Dear Coach Meyer,
First of all, I want to tell you how angry I still am about the 2007 National Championship game. It was embarrassing. Humiliating. Your Gators destroyed us; there's simply no getting around that. I thought we had that game in the bag. I thought we would coast to our second National Championship in five years. But you exposed us; and after that game, whether it's fair or not, the narrative became Ohio State versus the SEC. It was a difficult few years. LSU. Texas. (Heartbreak! But we did still beat Oregon in the Rose Bowl, and while it's off the record books, we beat Arkansas in the Sugar.) And then...well, let's not bring up the tattoos. Or last season. It's time to move on. So I want to say this from the bottom of my scarlet and gray heart: I forgive you. You're my coach now. You've come home. Welcome back.
Now, let me make a confession. We made an idol out of Jim Tressel. We dehumanized him by making him superhuman. We set our expectations too high. We demanded his lifeblood, his flesh, his soul. And when he failed us, we turned on him. We sent him away. And I participated in every step of that journey. It wasn't him so much as it was us and our unrealistic expectaions. We, the fans, the alumni, and the boosters were the first ones who sinned. We drove him to it through our dehumanizing idolization. I don't know if we've learned our lesson yet. I hope we have. So please, be careful. We need you to set boundaries with us. If you don't, we'll eat you alive. If you thought things were tough in Florida...well, you ain't seen nuthin' yet.
Do us a favor. Keep that promise to your daughter. Don't violate that contract. Eat lunch. Exercise. Go to your kids' sporting events. Take your wife out for dinner. Love your family and take care of yourself. Keep us at arm's length. Keep the program in it's proper place. Don't lose yourself in the sea of scarlet and gray. Don't listen to us when we turn on you. (We will.) Don't pay any attention to us when we boo your players. (We will.) Don't let the expectations of boosters determine how you run the program. Just do your job and go home to your family with a clear conscience.
Most importantly, and I don't know where you stand with this, abide closely with Jesus Christ. Find a church. (I know a good one that's small and meets on Sunday nights!) Only by fostering a deep and rich relationship with the true King will you be able to keep yourself from becoming what we will try to make you into--a king and an idol. Enter into a Christian community that will treat you as a man and not as a god. Jesus doesn't care if you beat Michigan or win Big Ten Titles or National Championships. He cares if your heart is fully turned toward himself in humble submission to his rule and reign. And win or lose, Jesus, the eternal King, loves you.
God bless you!
Andy Holt
tOSU, Class of 2001
Showing posts with label buckeyes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label buckeyes. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
I'm Proud of You, Jim Tressel
I'm sad today. Rain is pouring down on central Ohio right now, the weather a reflection of the emotion many Buckeyes are feeling in their hearts. As you may have heard, our beloved football coach Jim Tressel failed to report that he received information about the tattoo scandal long before it came to light through a federal investigation. This is a major NCAA violation, and the school has suspended him for 2 games and fined him $250,000. While Ohio State will most certainly win those games (against Akron and Toledo), the suspension is a major blemish on an otherwise stellar career.
Jim Tressel is being suspended. This is sinking in. And it hurts. The national media, of course, is happy as can be. Mark Schlabach, writing on the Big Ten blog at ESPN, said this:
Tressel didn't pass along some information. He broke the rules. He said he was scared for the safety of his players and didn't want to interfere in a federal investigation into the obviously dangerous man with whom these players were getting connected. I believe him. This is why:
Jim Tressel didn't throw Maurice Clarett into the garbage pile, like the national media would have liked him to. Instead, he stuck with him, long after his playing career was over. Maurice Clarett has been through hell and back, and the man who went there with him was Jim Tressel.
A friend of mine, an OSU alum, is dealing with some severe chronic pain. The other day she received a hand-written note from Jim Tressel (who doesn't know her at all) wishing her well in the midst of her pain. The joy this note brought was overwhelming.
Jim Tressel consistently goes above and beyond the call of duty. But no human being is perfectly consistent. He failed here, but he's not a failure; he's a man. And if, for that reason, he is deserving of the stones being flung at him today, then I suppose that those of you who have never sinned have every right to throw the first stone.
Tressel is being held accountable for what he did, more accountable than you or I. As an Ohio State fan, I sense that justice must be served, and that it is. I hope we are held to a higher standard than schools in other parts of the country. My football coach stood in front of the cameras and took his punishment. He didn't bolt for the NFL, he didn't leave his school in the lurch. He didn't deny it or downplay it. He owned it.
So I'm sad today, but I'm also proud. I'm proud of Jim Tressel. I'm proud of my school. I'm proud to be a Buckeye. Let's give the haters even more to whine about by going undefeated next year! Go Bucks!
Jim Tressel is being suspended. This is sinking in. And it hurts. The national media, of course, is happy as can be. Mark Schlabach, writing on the Big Ten blog at ESPN, said this:
In 10 years as the Buckeyes' coach, Tressel has often showed us his teams can't win big games.Which coaches, exactly, is Jim Tressel worse than? Pete Carrol? Or Lane Kiffin? Who, Mr. Schlabach, are these coaches who stood in front of the media and said "I was wrong." Who took Because Tressel did that. So you can put down your stones and arrows.
On Tuesday night, Tressel showed us he can't win the big news conferences, either.
Tressel, who has guided the Buckeyes to seven Big Ten titles and the 2002 BCS national championship, wanted us to believe that he was different from other successful head coaches.
From his character-based books to his conservative sweater vests, Tressel wanted us to believe that he's a straight shooter who follows the rules.
On Tuesday night, we learned Tressel isn't any different from a lot of coaches in college football. He's apparently more concerned about winning games and championships than following rules and doing things the right way.
In fact, Tressel might be even worse than other coaches who are corrupting college athletics. He won't admit he's wrong even after he has been caught.
Tressel didn't pass along some information. He broke the rules. He said he was scared for the safety of his players and didn't want to interfere in a federal investigation into the obviously dangerous man with whom these players were getting connected. I believe him. This is why:
Jim Tressel didn't throw Maurice Clarett into the garbage pile, like the national media would have liked him to. Instead, he stuck with him, long after his playing career was over. Maurice Clarett has been through hell and back, and the man who went there with him was Jim Tressel.
A friend of mine, an OSU alum, is dealing with some severe chronic pain. The other day she received a hand-written note from Jim Tressel (who doesn't know her at all) wishing her well in the midst of her pain. The joy this note brought was overwhelming.
Jim Tressel consistently goes above and beyond the call of duty. But no human being is perfectly consistent. He failed here, but he's not a failure; he's a man. And if, for that reason, he is deserving of the stones being flung at him today, then I suppose that those of you who have never sinned have every right to throw the first stone.
Tressel is being held accountable for what he did, more accountable than you or I. As an Ohio State fan, I sense that justice must be served, and that it is. I hope we are held to a higher standard than schools in other parts of the country. My football coach stood in front of the cameras and took his punishment. He didn't bolt for the NFL, he didn't leave his school in the lurch. He didn't deny it or downplay it. He owned it.
So I'm sad today, but I'm also proud. I'm proud of Jim Tressel. I'm proud of my school. I'm proud to be a Buckeye. Let's give the haters even more to whine about by going undefeated next year! Go Bucks!
Monday, February 15, 2010
The Future: Michigan Football
This is an open letter to all Michigan football fans. Did you, by any chance, catch the Big Ten bowl season this past year? I know your team wasn't involved so maybe you didn't care, but what you don't know ought to scare you.
In the Rose Bowl, Ohio State held Oregon's offense to its worst performance of the season. Do you know Oregon's offense? You should, because it looks a lot like what RichRod is trying to install at Michigan. The problem is that you probably can't expect to find guys faster and better suited for that offense than Jeremiah Masoli and LaMichael James. But Ohio State's defense held them to 260 (260!) total yards and just 12 (12!) first downs.
Here's the deal, Michigan. Oregon had probably the best offense you could hope for, and Ohio State shut them down. Do you realize what this means for the future of Michigan football? It means you're not going to beat Ohio State as long as you're running the spread offense because Ohio State has figured out how to stop the spread.
Granted, it took a couple of years, but they figured it out. They can stop it. Sure, maybe you'll get a couple of big plays here and there, but for every 20 yard pass you're going to have 2 or 3 that go for no gain or a loss. And you just can't beat OSU with those ratios.
And in case you think this only applies to The Rivalry, look at what Iowa did to Georgia Tech, or what Wisconsin did to Miami, or what Penn State did to LSU. The simple truth is that nobody plays defense like the Big Ten Conference, and the defenses in the Big Ten know how to stop your offense.
Here's the point, Michigan. We need you. Heck, I'm a born Buckeye and I need you! I need you to be good again. I want more games like in 2006, not 2008. The Big Ten needs you to be good again. You're supposed to be right there with us, competing for conference and national championships every year. But it's not going to happen as long as you're running this gimmicky offense. If you want to be good again, you need to ditch RichRod. Sure, his game works in the Big East where football players are either fast or big or strong. But in the Big Ten, our guys have strength, size, and speed. I mean, have you seen Terrelle Pryor?
In the Rose Bowl, Ohio State held Oregon's offense to its worst performance of the season. Do you know Oregon's offense? You should, because it looks a lot like what RichRod is trying to install at Michigan. The problem is that you probably can't expect to find guys faster and better suited for that offense than Jeremiah Masoli and LaMichael James. But Ohio State's defense held them to 260 (260!) total yards and just 12 (12!) first downs.
Here's the deal, Michigan. Oregon had probably the best offense you could hope for, and Ohio State shut them down. Do you realize what this means for the future of Michigan football? It means you're not going to beat Ohio State as long as you're running the spread offense because Ohio State has figured out how to stop the spread.
Granted, it took a couple of years, but they figured it out. They can stop it. Sure, maybe you'll get a couple of big plays here and there, but for every 20 yard pass you're going to have 2 or 3 that go for no gain or a loss. And you just can't beat OSU with those ratios.
And in case you think this only applies to The Rivalry, look at what Iowa did to Georgia Tech, or what Wisconsin did to Miami, or what Penn State did to LSU. The simple truth is that nobody plays defense like the Big Ten Conference, and the defenses in the Big Ten know how to stop your offense.
Here's the point, Michigan. We need you. Heck, I'm a born Buckeye and I need you! I need you to be good again. I want more games like in 2006, not 2008. The Big Ten needs you to be good again. You're supposed to be right there with us, competing for conference and national championships every year. But it's not going to happen as long as you're running this gimmicky offense. If you want to be good again, you need to ditch RichRod. Sure, his game works in the Big East where football players are either fast or big or strong. But in the Big Ten, our guys have strength, size, and speed. I mean, have you seen Terrelle Pryor?
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