The best and worst of Jim Tressel
A. Isaac 
Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel resigned in disgrace yesterday after months of rumors regarding his knowledge of players being paid for memorabilia. Oddly enough, his resignation also came on the same day that Sports Illustrated ran an explosive piece on the shenanigans regarding the Buckeye football program since 2002.
Regardless of your personal feelings towards Tressel, the man certainly had wild success during his tenure. He also, had some career lowlights that he’d probably like to forget.
Let’s take a look back at some of his best and worst over the last decade.
The best…
2002 National Champions
In only his second year as head coach of OSU and after a somewhat disappointing first season (7-5), Tressel led his undefeated Buckeyes to the BCS National Championship game against Miami. Despite being outmatched against the heavily favored Hurricanes, OSU won in double overtime 31-24. However, the game did not come without controversy as Miami was flagged for a pass interference call on 4th down during the first overtime. The call came late and many players and fans had already rushed the field thinking the Canes had won.
9-1 against Michigan
Before Tressel’s reign in Colombus, there was a man named John Cooper. An excellent coach who would later be named to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008. Cooper’s problem, however, stemmed from an inability to win the big game. Specifically speaking, he was unable to beat OSU archrival Michigan. In his 13 years, Cooper went 2–10–1 against the Wolverines including several losses when OSU was undefeated. Enter in Tressel. In the past decade, he’s absolutely dominated the team in Ann Arbor going 9-1 with the only loss coming 8 years ago. It is, in part, the reason he is so loved by Buckeye fans and alums, and why the administration was willing to turn a blind eye to many of the tomfoolery behind the scenes.
7-time Big Ten Champion
Some might say the Big Ten was down during Tressel’s tenure. It’s a fair argument considering the turnover in coaches with several of the Big Ten teams (especially the aforementioned Michigan Wolverines). Even so, several other teams came on while Michigan was down and still, OSU was able to win the Big Ten 70% of the time during the last decade. Here’s an astounding statistic for those unaware of the Buckeyes dominance. Not only have they won the conference title the last 6 years, but they’ve gone 43-5 in Big Ten play during that stretch.
The worst…
2004: 8-4, 4-4 (Big Ten)
In 2004, Jim Tressel and his patented “Tressel ball” backfired. Although they went on to win the Alamo Bowl, the season was marred by a disappointing three game losing streak to Northwestern, Wisconsin and Iowa. The latter of which came in embarrassing fashion as the Buckeyes were trounced 33-7 in Iowa City. To top it off, they lost another heartbreaker to Purdue later in the season. It was the only time in OSU history, that they had lost games in the same year to Northwestern and Purdue.
Maurice Clarett scandal
As a stud freshman running back for the Buckeyes, Maurice Clarett led the team to that amazing national title in 2002. But his contribution to the team did not come without problems. In 2003, a teaching assistant told the New York Times that Clarett had received “preferential treatment” from professors. Later, Clarett filed a false police report indicating he had lost thousands in clothing, cash, CD’s and stereo equipment. By that time, OSU decided to distance themselves from the malcontent and dismissed him from the school for receiving improper benefits. This apparently occurred without Tressel’s knowledge—or so everyone thought. In 2004, Clarett stated that he received money and help from the coaching staff during his time there and that Tressel turned his back on him when he was caught. For a man full of integrity, he sure had a funny way of showing it.
Lying to the NCAA
College football analyst Brent Musburger said it best yesterday, “Sometimes the cover up is worse than the crime”. When Tressel found out about many of his players selling memorabilia for money, tattoos, and possibly drugs, he tried to protect them. Instead of reporting the violation to administration and possibly the NCAA, he simply pretended like the information he received never existed. In March, however, Tressel went in front of the world and admitted that he indeed lied and had known about the “tattoo scandal” for an extended period of time. In the end, as many have said, his “blind love” for his players was his downfall. Fortunately for him, that “blind love” was also the main reason he was so successful.
follow guyism:
Other Stories You Might LIke
Sports by the numbers: 3/18/10
Sports by the numbers: 3/15/11
Sports by the numbers: 3/10/11
comment on this story
blog comments powered by Disqus