Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Is the End Near? Looking Back—An Ohio State Coaching Career Retrospective



Embattled Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel confirmed today that he has never considered resigning or stepping down, and that he would not do so unless he believed the University and his players would be better off.

Don't mistake that to mean, however, that he still can't be forced to resign or be fired; it is still a possibility once the NCAA finishes their investigation.

Now with that out of the way, please take a look at my latest offering if you would be so kind. I think you will find it most interesting...

Here's the rundown of our beloved Buckeye coach

  • Was born in a small Ohio town.

  • Coached and compiled a fine record at small colleges in Ohio before becoming head football coach at the Ohio State University.

  • Is among the most respected and recognized college football coaches in the country.

  • As coach of Ohio State, compiled an unprecedented winning record against football teams from the University of Michigan.

  • After leading Ohio State to a national championship, led a 10-year run of tremendous success marked by appearances in major bowl games in 8 out of the 10 years.

  • Coached Ohio State to 6 consecutive Big Ten Championships in those 10 years.

  • During that decade, his teams nearly won several other national championships, falling just short by one game on several occasions.

  • In that span, his Ohio State teams twice lost major bowl games that would have completed undisputed national championship seasons.

  • Universally loved by Ohio State fans everywhere.

  • Recognized for his off-the-field contributions to Ohio State and central Ohio as much as for his football record.

  • Nine years after winning a national championship, committed a serious conduct violation.

  • Despite never losing the adoration of the Buckeye Nation, that violation led to his firing, and he never coached another football game at Ohio State or anywhere else.

Despite the intentionally misleading image at the top right of this article, you may or may not have figured out by now that the coach this article is about is the one-and-only, Wayne Woodrow "Woody" Hayes, NOT Jim Tressel.

But, everything Hayes did, Tressel also has done exactly to the mark, except for the getting fired part—well, so far at least.

You know how they say history repeats itself?

They're right...


Special thanks to TheShoe78   for his post on the Ohio State/Scout.com "Hineygate" Football Forum, which included all of this info.







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Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Big 10 Blogging: 5 Thoughts on Tressel Saga



CFN's Big 10 Bloggers give you five different perspectives on the current state of Tressel's troubles. What this means for Tressel, to the University, the Big 10 and OSU fans. Oh yeah, and some folks up in Michigan.


HD Handshoe: On what this means for Buckeye fans

One word—Division.

Tressel has always had his detractors because of his conservative coaching style and his failure to win several of the biggest games in which his teams have played. So a divide amongst fans and their support of the coach is nothing new—just now, the division and lack of support is even greater.

Before learning that Tressel knew ....





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Sunday, March 27, 2011

Still "In Tressel We Trust?" — Plot Thickens as Concerns Rise Over Latest on Tressel Emails



Until recently, Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel had been given the benefit of the doubt (mostly) by the majority of loyal Buckeye fans. The general thinking inside the Horseshoe was that outsiders who despise Ohio State for its on-field success this past decade under Tressel were on some fruitless witch hunt....




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Friday, March 25, 2011

No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 4-seed Kentucky—History Favors Buckeyes?



In the history of college basketball, Kentucky is considered basketball royalty, and rightfully so—what with their total of 51 NCAA tournament appearances, 13 trips to the Final Four, and seven national championships.

Ohio State, however, has a higher success rate (50%) of getting to the Final Four. In their 20 NCAA tournament appearances, the Buckeyes have made it to 10 Final Fours, but have only won one national championship.

In their 71 combined tournament appearances, the Buckeyes and the Wildcats have faced each other five times before tonight's regional match up, with one team winning all five of the previous meetings.

It may surprise even the most astute college basketball fan to learn that Ohio State, not Kentucky, is the owner of that 5-0 record. The games were played in 1945, 1961, 1962, 1968, and 1987.

The only team with more tournament wins over Kentucky is Marquette, who coincidentally, could face the Ohio State-Kentucky winner in the regional final if the Golden Eagles knock off another member of the "men's basketball royal court" in No. 2-seed North Carolina.

While the Buckeyes have previously had Kentucky's number, no Kentucky player was even alive yet the last time the two teams played in 1987, so certainly this trend means nothing for tonight's meeting, right?

Say what you will of trends and how they are meant to be broken, but consider this—No. 1-seed Duke was previously 0-for-4 in the Sweet 16 when playing in the West regional.

In case you missed last night's Duke-Arizona game, the Blue Devils are now 0-for-5 in the Sweet 16 when playing out West.

Kentucky is very young, and albeit very talented, but Ohio State is the true definition of a team. They are as unselfish as they come.

National POY candidate Jared Sullinger, Jon Diebler, David Lighty, and William Buford are all capable of scoring 25-plus on any given night, but none of them seem to care if they do.

All they care about is winning, not personal highlight reels.

All that being said, Kentucky won't be intimidated, well, because they are Kentucky, so this game could end up being one of the best of the entire tourney.

While it's likely to be a back-and-forth close battle—one that could even come down to the final seconds tonight—expect the Buckeyes to push their all-time mark against the Wildcats to 6-0.






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Saturday, March 19, 2011

Attention eSECpn, Dennis Dodd, and All OSU Buckeye Haters



Yes, we get it already.

You hate Ohio State and you're running with this story faster than a fat kid runs to the buffet at Golden Corral.

In the words of former Michigan football coach Rich Rodriguez, "Get a life."

Jim Tressel received several emails in early April, 2010 that stated that two of his players were involved with a somewhat less-than-reputable tattoo shop owner who was currently the subject of a federal investigation.

The emails suggested that the players may have sold or traded personal items (trophies, rings, etc) to the shop owner in exchange for money and tattoos, but Tressel did not confirm his knowledge of the situation until December.

Here's where we separate people of my ilk from the clueless dolts who have nothing better to do than assume they know everything that transpired and that Tressel indeed knew what was going on the minute these emails arrived in his email inbox.

The problem here for you haters is that just because Tressel received those emails does not mean he needed to pick up the phone and call the NCAA to inform them that violations had occurred.

Ever hear of due-diligence, or did you just expect Tressel to assume the emails were written by Jesus, so they are 100% true?

If you know anything about the lawyer who penned said emails, then you know he's about as believable as George H.W. Bush when he said and I quote, "Read my lips, no new taxes."

He has his own legal issues and has even had his license to practice law suspended on at least one occasion, so forgive coach Tressel if he wanted to look into the allegations before sounding the alarm.

Tressel and Ohio State could face further sanctions from the NCAA once they conclude their investigation, but don't believe the ridiculous "hammer-to-come-down" hype being spread by CBS college football "analyst"/resident Buckeye hater Dennis Dodd—This isn't the second coming of SMU, I promise.

And as for this talk of Ohio State being repeat offenders and how they should be punished as much or more than what USC was...

Talk about blowing this entire situation completely out of proportion.

USC bought OJ Mayo for their basketball team and knew that Reggie Bush and his family had been given cash and a free condo on "Slippery" Pete Carroll's watch.

The players and coach Tressel broke various rules (not to say that makes the rules in question right), but nobody at Ohio State gave these players money or houses to come to Columbus.

Instead, the players sold their own items for money that they needed/wanted.

The coach was informed of the situation but he could not just assume at the time that it was true beyond a reasonable doubt.

Then, of course, the haters like to ignore that whole ungoing federal investigation that Tressel could have unraveled all in the name of NCAA bylaw 10.1, which bans "unethical conduct."

Where I'm from, interfering with a federal investigation is much worse, and far more punishable that not telling your A.D. or the NCAA that you "think" some of your players "might be" involved in certain activities deemed unacceptable for the standards set forth upon student-athletes.

Just remember, these kids aren't allowed to have jobs and the stipend they get does not allow them to do much of anything other than eat. And most of them aren't from well-to-do, upper-middle class, or upper-class families.

Since when does being a college athlete mean you're supposed to be poor and never have money to enjoy college life, or to be able to afford to go out with your friends, all while you make MILLIONS for the university you attend and the TV network that hates you so much?

Apparently since right now...






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Buckeye Basketball—No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 8 George Mason



This has nothing to do with the game at all. Just thought this video of the GM "Green Machine" band was worth sharing.



I admit this is pretty badass, but their band, nor their team, can hang with TBDBITL or the Buckeyes!

That will be proven Sunday at 12:00PM.

Sullinger, Buford, Lighty, and ThreeBler, all day baby...GO BUCKS!








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Sunday, March 13, 2011

BlockONation Now Has 1,250 Twitter Followers—Thank You All!



BlockONation has hit 1,250 Twitter followers so to say thanks, we will now give away a signed OSU-Michigan "The Rivalry" DVD.

In order to determine the winner, we want to hear from you!

Post your Twitter account name along with a brief summary of why you want/deserve to win!

You can post more than once if you like, but at least one post including your Twitter account name is required to be eligible to win.

**The winner will be chosen at random based on the quality of your entry**

Whomever sways us the most with their reason(s) why they want/deserve to win will earn the prize!

GOOD LUCK and GO BUCKS!





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Thursday, March 10, 2011

Ohio State Football LIVE Chat - Tressel, The Tat5, Pending NCAA Sanctions? Anything Goes!










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Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Jim Tressel and Ohio State Admit Wrongdoing—It's a Sad Day For Buckeye Football



The news that first broke on Yahoo Sports is true—Coach Jim Tressel knew about the violations that at least two of his top players had been / still were committing as early as April, 2010.

Originally, Tressel and the University said they knew nothing prior to December, after the season, and before the Sugar Bowl.

Sadly, they lied.

I'd like to believe that Tressel and Ohio State are above this, but alas they are not. In fact, similar situations very likely exist in almost every big-time DI college football program, but it should not have happened here, period.

Tressel is facing a two-game suspension to start the 2011 season and a $250,000 fine. These are self-imposed sanctions. The NCAA will get involved, and could also increase the punishment for Tressel and the program.

Further sanctions may include more suspension time, loss of scholarships, and probation. A bowl ban, however, would seem excessive at this point, but perhaps we don't know everything yet. Hopefully we do, but there's no way to be sure as of now.

Here is video from ESPN about the story and the press conference Ohio State held Tuesday evening.




Personally, I have got to be honest...I am surprised and very disappointed in Tress.

Obviously he didn't give the players money, but he knew they did this and basically said nothing...

That being said, this is nothing like the USC situation, which I only mention because I have already been hearing comparisons to USC in terms of what violations were committed and in terms of what punishment OSU should receive.

That is beyond absurd. Ohio State / Tressel did not pay the players or buy them hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of gifts (cars, homes, etc...)

They turned a blind eye to what THE PLAYERS THEMSELVES DID, and that was wrong, but many people (fans, haters, and the media) are way overstating the "crimes" committed and the punishment that should and will be handed down by the NCAA.

I'm embarrassed and ashamed of the black eye this has given to our program, but I am also optimistic that this will not happen here ever again, at least as long as JT is at the helm.

Lesson learned?

Let's hope so.






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Photo Copyright: Terry Gilliam/AP
Video Copyright: ESPN/ESPN.com

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Ohio State Spring Football 2011



It's that time of year once again folks!

Our hopes and excitement are renewed, if only for a month or so, as the start of spring football draws near.

The Buckeyes begin spring practices March 28th, and the Scarlet and Gray spring game will be played on April 23rd in historic Ohio Stadium.

It has been a busy and hectic time for me personally away from the blog since the end of the 2010 season, but you can trust that BlockONation will be with you every step of the way this spring, throughout the summer, and all the way to the start of fall camp—and ultimately the start of the 2011 season, of course.

After all, we don't say Ohio State Football Lives Here™ for nothing...

We're excited to share in the journey with you and you can expect some great articles and player interviews in the coming months, so buckle up Buckeye and BlockONation fans—it's going to be one hell of a ride—preferably all the way to the 2011 BCS National Championship game!







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BlockONation's Expanding Web Presence

6/05/2009

Numerous BlockONation articles have been posted on or linked to from some very well known, high-volume sports websites.

We'd like to take a moment to both acknowledge and thank those sites for their support in helping make BlockONation one of the most popular new Ohio State Football blogs on the web!

In no particular order:

CBSSports.com

FOXSports.com

BuckeyeExtra.com

BleacherReport.com

SportsTimeOhio.com

TheClevelandFan.com


Again, thanks so very much to those sites for all their support and also, a huge thank you to the fans who have visited the site to date!

I'd also like to personally thank all those individuals who have contributed to the success of the site! I wouldn't be here without your help over the last 8+ years. You all know who you are!

It is our mission here at BlockONation.com to continue to provide top-notch, fresh content for our readers and we will always do everything possible to meet your expectations!

Honestly, I really can't thank you all enough....

HD Handshoe
Founder
BlockONation.com



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