by on Dec 21, 2011 8:00 AM PST in Ohio State University Investigation
I chuckle at the feigned outrage we now see from some in the press now that other schools are in the NCAA's cross hairs.
Sadly, some of these people still get wrong when it comes to USC.
Mark Schlabach (on Twitter) and Adam Rittenberg (on his Big 10 Blog), both of ESPN, said that USC didn't cooperate with the NCAA. That is a clear falsehood showing that neither Schlabach or Rittenberg ever read the NCAA's report....it is right there on page 57. USC did cooperate, and you can bet your next paycheck that the NCAA would have loved to nail USC for a lack of cooperation.
The open defiance of Mike Garrett and the head in the sand stance by Steven Sample is seen by many misinformed as being uncooperative. That is a narrative not based in fact. Neither Garrett or Sample are mentioned in the report.
Here are what some others have said in the past 24 hours...
Breathe, USC fans, breathe.
In fact, I'd suggest you ignore what happened Tuesday with Ohio State and its slap on the wrist from the NCAA for a massive systemic breakdown and a coverup by head coach, Jim Tressel.
Yes, when you hold up the Ohio State case and the USC case, it's impossible not to conclude the Ohio State case was far more severe. It was, of course, without question. No informed, objective person believes differently.[...]
Adopting a placid pose ? at least as best as you can ? will be good practice for handling potentially more infuriation ahead. The NCAA also likely will give even worst upcoming cases ? North Carolina and the University of Miami at Paul Dee ? less severe penalties than it gave USC.
Why? Because the NCAA treated USC unfairly ? everybody in college sports knows this ? and it likely won't revisit such irrational harshness. In the end, the justification for such severe penalties, meted out in contrast to past precedent, was little more than "just because."
Miller has been the only voice of reason from the beginning in all of this.
Others have jumped on the band wagon of late, but Ted Miller was front and center from the moment these penalties were handed down.
The Ohio State University still doesn?t get it.
That?s the only way to explain athletic director Gene Smith?s asinine response Tuesday to the NCAA?s Committee on Infractions slapping the Buckeyes with a one-year post-season ban, the loss of nine scholarships over the next three years and three years of probation along with other penalties for football players receiving more than $16,400 in impermissible benefits.
"We are surprised and disappointed with the NCAA?s decision," Smith said in a statement. "However, we have decided not to appeal the decision because we need to move forward as an institution. We recognize that this is a challenging time in intercollegiate athletics. Institutions of higher education must move to higher ground, and Ohio State embraces its leadership responsibilities and affirms its long-standing commitment to excellence in education and integrity in all it does."
Hey, Gene, enough with the empty rhetoric, OK? As usual, you are in denial more than a third-world leader with eroding power.
I still contend that the Emmert/Gee connection is part of the reason that the NCAA was light in their sanctions. While some tOSU faithful still have a hard time understanding it, Jim Tressel, as the highest paid man on campus, IS the institution.
Heck, the NCAA didn't even interview all of the parties involved. Dennis Talbot the memorabilia dealer who paid Terrelle Pryor anywhere between 20- $40,000 for signed memorabilia over the years. According to Talbot, the NCAA didn't even attempt to speak with him.
Part of the reason that tOSU got lucky was because some of the guilty parties wanted nothing to do with the investigation. They wanted COMPLETE anonymity. Lake wanted to hurt Reggie and USC, unlike the tOSU witness who were going down with the ship. Lake and Michaels wanted to be big shots, sit at the big boys table...they wanted to be to be recognized, to be a part of the ritz and and glitz.
The NCAA sent a strong message Monday when it slapped Ohio State with a one-year bowl ban and took away nine scholarships for violations committed within the Buckeyes' football program.
Unfortunately, that message was less about moral courage and more about backroom politics. Ohio State deftly played the game with the NCAA while USC fought the charges without the conciliatory tone the organization craved.
[...]
In other words, USC never stood a chance with an organization that needed to be stroked before it meted out justice.
That is how the Buckeyes avoided the nuclear penalties that stunned the Trojans two years ago. How else can you explain the NCAA's decision that Ohio State did not exhibit a lack of institutional control, which brings the harshest penalties?
I have many disagreements with Wolf and his reporting, but he is pretty dead on here.
In Columbus, Ohio, where college football ranks in importance only a tiny notch above visits from the Pope, there is weeping to match the gnashing of teeth. One local news report began by saying that the "NCAA had rocked Buckeye football to the core."
Out here, USC loyalists can feel Ohio State's pain. Except that most would testify that theirs has been worse. Most would also wonder aloud, again, why they took such a hard hit when other situations, certainly including Ohio State's, seemed similarly egregious.
Meh...
Nothing really earth shattering here, although I did laugh out loud at the "NCAA had rocked Buckeye football to the core." line.
And then there is the one that really makes me scratch my head...
You can read it for yourself...
The NCAA will continue to remain unchecked. Congress won't get involved, petitions won't help, CAPA is a joke that will get put on the back burner as the election season starts and McNair will probably settle.
This will get revisited when the UNC and Miami verdicts are rendered, but the result will be the same.
I am sure there will be more to point out in the next day or so (more conspiracies from Weber?) and then this will die a quiet death.
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