Ay-Ziggy-Zoomba.com

I somehow got copied onto an email being shared with tOAMU fans. The email was regarding Troy Smith.

Here was one reply which made my stomach turn:

Yet another exceptionally underwhelming academic performance posted by a
Buck Nut athlete (I assume it's academics, I mean really, what else could it
be). The question we must ask is is Ohio State really that difficult an
acedemic institution for the undereducated, ill prepared and undisciplined
student/athlete? Why can Ohio State not be like, say Penn State? I can
accept crappy football (not too mention hoops) if 80%+ graduate. Oh, wait,
what am I saying, no I can't! I'd rather they all be felons and win! Come
on, who did not love the gun toting Switzer led Oklahoma teams, or the one
foot in the jailhouse Jimmy Johnson led Hurricanes of Miami. You want to
have a top tier program you have to accept the brain dead with the pre-meds,
and just pray your pre-meds outnumber your brain dead at the skill
positions.

What's the line on Smith being back under center in '05?

Merry Christmas Bucks, you just blew another bowl game!

My response was simple, "What a sad and wrongheaded thing to say. But, that's THE Ohio State University fan base for you."

I understand that not all fans think this way. I don't know the person who wrote this email, but I have a feeling that they didn't attend the university. In that respect the broad brush with which I painted in my reply was unfair and illegitimate.

[soapbox]
With that said; is this the future/present of college ball? Where athlete comes BEFORE student? I understand that athletes have problems, but to avow that you - as a fan - want to win at any and all costs is wreckless.

'pray that the pre-meds outnumber the brain deads in the skill positions.' Gadzooks! That line of thought is an acid which will erode my love for college football. It has already happened with my interest in ALL professional sports.

I pray that we don't become like this. And I pray that no fan of BG falls into this line of thinking. We have fine and intelligent ladies and gentlemen attending BGSU. Some of them are members of the university's athletic program. THAT'S my thought process.
[/soapbox]

Thank you for allowing me to vent, friends. I'm going to sup some coffee and cool down a bit. I may post again after reflection.

Right on....keep it all within the rules. If we have to break rules to win, I'd much rather lose.

Education first...athletics second. Always.

GO FALCONS!!!

BTW, quotes from Andy Geiger...

Athletic director Andy Geiger said the university has petitioned the NCAA to have Smith reinstated for the 2005 season.

According to Geiger, OSU acted quickly and decisively after learning that a problem might exist.

"We got some information and we researched it, investigated it ourselves, discovered there was truth to the incident report, declared him ineligible and reported it to the NCAA, and are now applying for reinstatement," he said.

"We've had similar kinds of things before. This is not a new procedure.

Why is that?

"Contrary to showing a program that's out of control, I think this is showing a program that is in control. We just declared our quarterback ineligible, going through proper procedures in the proper way with the information we have just as we're supposed to do.

The program is under control?

"It's sad for Troy and sad for his teammates, for the coaching staff, for the fans, for everybody, but we're doing it the right way," Geiger added.

Really?

The speculation on some other boards is that Smith is the player who recently sold his national championship ring on Ebay for $10,000.

Flip,

Was Smith RS in 2002?

Yes

Falconfreak90 wrote:BTW, quotes from Andy Geiger...

"We got some information and we researched it, investigated it ourselves, discovered there was truth to the incident report, declared him ineligible and reported it to the NCAA, and are now applying for reinstatement," he said.

Am I the only one who thinks it is strange to report the violation and suspend a player and follow that up by immediately asking for reinstatement of said player as soon as possible?

Warthog wrote: Am I the only one who thinks it is strange to report the violation and suspend a player and follow that up by immediately asking for reinstatement of said player as soon as possible?

Give that man a cigar!

Disgusting. I wouldn't buy a used car from Geiger.

Warthog wrote:

Falconfreak90 wrote:BTW, quotes from Andy Geiger...

"We got some information and we researched it, investigated it ourselves, discovered there was truth to the incident report, declared him ineligible and reported it to the NCAA, and are now applying for reinstatement," he said.

Am I the only one who thinks it is strange to report the violation and suspend a player and follow that up by immediately asking for reinstatement of said player as soon as possible?

Well, that is THE way things are at THE.

---MH

The specualtion on that aspect of the issue is that some Georgia players were given a one game suspension a few years ago. The Cow college might be simply telling the NCAA "we caught this kid doing the same thing and punished him the same way...can he play now?"

THere was a column in the Akron Beacon Journal yesterday calling for Geiger to step down. If that were to happen, I'd be very uncomfortable...I could see Krebs heading to Columbus.

Krebs is a great AD...and has OSU ties.

Falconfreak90 wrote:THere was a column in the Akron Beacon Journal yesterday calling for Geiger to step down. If that were to happen, I'd be very uncomfortable...I could see Krebs heading to Columbus.

Krebs is a great AD...and has OSU ties.

Except his wife is completely and totally attached to the Early Childhood Education program here. She practically runs it, especially the Methods and Student Teaching portions of it. She's a huge factor in this debate also.