What can Buckeye fans learn from Barry Switzer? (and for everyone else, why Buckeye fans still support Coach Tressel)

It's been over twenty years since he left the school but to a kid growing up in the 70s and 80s, Barry Switzer was and still is Oklahoma football.  He was big, brash, and always smiling.  It was like he knew a secret and wasn't going to tell you about about it.  As an adolescent Ohio State fan, I hated every school except my beloved Buckeyes but Oklahoma held a special place in my hate.  It wasn't because of Eve Von Schamann's kick in  1977 or Brian Bozworth stealing Chris Spielman's Butkus Award in 1987.  It was more primal than that.  In hindsight I probably hated them because of their success.  Switzer became coach in 1973 at the young age of 36 and was the head coach for the next 16 years until he resigned in 1989.  During his tenure the Sooners had a record of 157-29-4 or a winning percentage of 83.7% and won 3 national titles.  Switzer also had the fortune (or misfortune) to coach in an era when payoffs and scandals occurred that make the Reggie Bush scandal look like child's play.  No doubt some schools were more aggressive than others but to be successful things like this happened at every school.  Oklahoma was always at the top of the hit list because somehow every year they seemed to attract the best recruits.  Everything for Switzer and the Sooners came to a crashing halt in 1988 when the NCAA put them on a 3 year probation with reduction in scholarships, TV exposure, and bowl visits.  Switzer escaped direct blame in the matter but 6 months after the penalty was announced he decided to resign at the young age of 51.  


The reason I decided to write about this was after I saw this article in the USA Today.  A few things in the article stick out to me the most.  First, most people were surprised/upset that Switzer would resign as most fans wanted him to stay as coach.  He felt otherwise and this particular quote was telling,

"Coaches pay a tremendous price for the actions and behavior of their athletes. We are held accountable for their actions. That's what the media and administration do. Is that fair? You judge it."

and this one when talking about Bob Stoops and how the program fell on hard times when he left,

"That was where the program always should have been," Switzer said. "We were doing what should have been done. The '90s were a disaster. If I had lasted, it never would have happened."

The 3 coaches that followed Switzer had a combined 61-50-3 record until Stoops was hired in 2000.
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On the surface you couldn't find two men any more different than Jim Tressel and Barry Switzer.  Switzer is flamboyant, loud, and aggressive while Tressel is quiet, reserved, and conservative.  In fact, I'd wager the only thing they have in common is that they are both amazingly successful football coaches.  Jim Tressel's record in his ten years at Ohio State is 106-22 or 82.8% with 1 national championship.  Like Switzer before him, Tressel's university is under investigation by the NCAA with the current expectation of further NCAA penalties after the two sides meet in August.

Buckeye fans are growing tired as it seems every week another rumor pops up in the media and as it makes its way across the internet there are thousands upon thousands of posts either calling for Jim Tressel to be fired or conversely (from a shrinking section of  Buckeye fans) calling for him to remain as head coach.  For me the answer is simple and can be answered with one simple question to all Buckeye fans (other fans need not bother -- we don't care what you think):

"Do you think Jim Tressel is a man of integrity and one that is trustworthy to lead the program through whatever penalties the NCAA gives us and does so in the manner which we all expect?"

It's a simple question and not as easy to answer as some cynics might think.  Being the head coach at Ohio State means more than just wins and Jim Tressel himself said it best when he was first hired that, "you will be proud of our young men, in the classroom, in the community, and"... well you know the rest.  I was always impressed that he put them in that order.  Ohio State fans want success on the field but they also want to be proud of the players and they want someone at the helm to make sure they are winning the right way.  Is Jim Tressel still the man to do this?

At this point we know he lied to cover up a stupid actions by his players.  This mistake will haunt him for the rest of his life and let's not kid ourselves, a mistake by a coach is much more egregious than a mistake by a player because coaches are the leaders.  Jim Tressel decided to take care of this violation in house and he was wrong.

On the other hand we look at the long history Coach Tressel has of selfless community service, improving graduation rates, and yes winning.  So we have to ask ourselves -- Is one mistake worth termination?  Do we feel Jim Tressel can live up to the standard he set when he first accepted the job?

My feeling all along has been if this is limited this one mistake we'd be stupid let him go.  Look at Switzer's comment about the media using coaches as scapegoats.  It is certainly true in this instance.  Every week another article pops up about the football team and instead of focusing on the player doing something he shouldn't, the media focuses on Jim Tressel.  I make no apologies for his mistake but does it invalidate all the good he's done?  As a fan of the program I am looking for an indication of something bigger.  Is there a pattern of cheating?  So far I'm not convinced though the negative press would have me believe I am being naive.  My question to them is -- if cheating is so rampant at Ohio State why haven't you been able to find anything concrete in the 3 months since the story first broke?  You know everyone in the country has reporters here (I hope I'm not tempting fate with the alleged SI article coming out soon).   To damn the man, I want concrete proof of more wrongdoing.

For me, it all goes back to the simple question above and I just don't see enough proof that he is corrupt.  That brings me to the second Switzer comment about the 90s being a disaster.  There is no guarantee that a new coach will be able to perform on the field at the same level as Coach Tressel.  In fact I'd find it highly unlikely that the next coach will be able to duplicate his success.  So the question goes back to integrity and do I trust Jim Tressel to lead the program with integrity.

At this point, I do.