| 09 June 2011
What else has happened?
OK, so some articles came out. One alleges that TP got cars. Fine, the NCAA has investigated this and are opening a new investigation. He wasn't given cars. Just loaned cars. So that really is a minor offense am I wrong? If it even is an offense. Because evidently it has already been cleared in the past. The only new thing here isn't the act, but its frequency.
TP sold autographed items for money. Basically the exact same penalty as selling memorabilia. The Tat 5 penalties only punished the players. Not the University. So if the NCAA stuck with the precedent they have already set, then nothing should come down on OSU.
But TP is gone. So thats really the problem. TP left without serving his punishment. And so the NCAA is going to punish OSU for that? OSU can't stop anyone from leaving the team. But now we're expecting additional punishment to the team over actions that precedent has already established only warrants penalties to the individual. An individual no longer non the team. I need help justifying this...
Now, maybe all our problems surround Tressel... I can deal with that. Tressel lied to the NCAA. He admitted it. I get that. But what has "OSU" done that was so wrong? I can understand the NCAA going after Tressel. Because Tressel, as far as we know, acted alone. OSU has already let Tressel go. What else can OSU do?
So if we are talking an eye for an eye, I could see vacating 5 wins last season, based on what we know. Because 5 players would have been ineligible. And to be fair, in light of TP making some extra money that we didn't know about last December, I could see vacating 3 more games. Which is excessive for one player, but fine. So vacating 8 games would be fair in my mind. I can also see being put on probation. After all, even though OSU did nothing wrong, OSU employed and recruited individuals who violated rules while acting alone. So OSU should be more mindful of such individuals and that warrants probation. We'll say 5 years.
Last, obviously compliance has been negligent. And OSU should be forced to re-examine, if not completely overhaul, their entire compliance department. That would mean putting people out of jobs. That would mean in this economy these negligent individuals would not be able to feed their families. And because compliance was so negligent, I could see scholarship reductions. Because obviously they can't even handle the scholarship players we have on roster now.
But thats it. We have fired our coach, forced our veteran QB off the team. 4 players, 3 of them key veterans at their positions, are suspended for the first five games. And then tack on what I've suggested which is vacating 8 wins from last season, 5 years probation and scholarship reductions. We'll be extreme and say 5 scholarships per year for 3 years. Oh yeah, and completely overhaul our entire compliance department.
But thats not whats being talked about. The nation is talking about post season bans. Some people have mentioned the death penalty. Why?
Because OSU fired the coach who didn't report kids selling services and personal property for income? Because a private individual allowed a player to drive his car?
And whats worse, everything that is being discussed is for penalties against OSU. OSU???? You mean the Athletic Department that turned in Tressel? The Athletic Department that turned in the Tat 5? All of which happened the minute they found out about it. The Athletic Department that had nothing to do with any of the violations being discussed? All the OSU Athletic Department is guilty of is not doing a good job with its compliance and monitoring. And I would say cleaning out an entire department of employees, firing a coach, losing a star player, 5 years of probation, vacating 8 wins from last season and losing 5 scholarships per year for the next 3 years TOTALLY GETS THAT POINT ACROSS!!!!!!
We didn't have multiple staff members contribute to the deliquency of players. We didn't have a father auction his child off to us, being the highest bidder, and hide behind plausible deniability. We didn't acquire condos, or any valuable (or appreciating) property for a player. We didn't instill a system of recruiting services with the financially backed motivation of steering recruits to our school. We didn't have an entire season or seasons where we knowingly extended or mandated practices that other universities aren't permitted. We didn't pay players. We didn't gamble. We didn't violate any recuiting rules. We didn't have a drug ring. We didn't give a father a new tractor. We didn't provide prostitutes. And we didn't even break a single law.
The only thing OSU is guilty of is a few players sold their personal property for money and services and our coach didn't tell anyone about it. Thats it. And evidently that warrants the most severe penalties since SMU was nearly wiped from college football all together.
You have a problem NCAA. You've been the biggest pussies in all of Athletics for 25 years over guilt from spanking SMU too hard. And after multiple failures during that period of time, you chose OSU to finally make your stand. You are going to violate precedent and punish those who are guilty of nothing (keep in mind, the remaining players and staff have done nothing or are serving their punishment) just so you can ruffle your plume in front of ESPN and say "SEE???? We are tough". But you aren't tough. You aren't strict and you aren't even setting any new precedents. You are weak. Like the cowards you are, you are choosing the one school who is trying to work with you to be your massive declaration of accountability. Because dishonorable schools who don't comply with you are too tough of a battle. You let them off easy. Its the schools who provide you everything they can that get the entire might of your authority.
Look in the mirror NCAA. You twisted your ethics and compromised your morals in order to maintain your delusion of amatuerism. All the while you implement a system where players whose teamates that try to barter their own goods are punished more severely than the players who simply get money for nothing. All while your member institutions profit from their abilities, celebrity and their likeness. You created this.
The only people who ARE worse than you NCAA, are Americans who will celebrate you for it. And Wolverines...
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