Controversy is the focal point to perspectives. There is no
right perspective; nor one perspective, just 7.1 Billion of them. I don’t expect
you to know them all but I do demand the contrary…
There isn’t much more opposing than that of an older white
man wearing a sweater vest then a young black kid from the other side of the
tracks. But then again opposites attract. Jim Tressel could connect with those
kids and he did; to the tune of 229 victories and 5 National Titles for THE
state of Ohio . So why are we so
quick to throw out the bath water when the NCAA starts cleaning our baby?
My view; rather simple, dirty. It wasn’t until today that I
got to see the rest of the story.
You can tell a lot about a man by his playbook. Tressel: traditional,
simple, straight forward. Not one for coach speak as he only promised one thing
to his kids (and their families); to treat them as if they were his own. So
when he chose to take one for the team he wasn’t that opposite from those kids on
the other side of the tracks as he finally earned his street cred.
There are many ways to view this story but I now choose this
one. Jim Tressel spent his life building and putting structure into young men’s
lives. He believed those lives were more important than his career. He was and will always be their support
system. But then again his name says it all.
GYM TRESTLE
