What the Columbus Dispatch should look like

Earlier this week, we mentioned how OSU's homer hometown newspaper, The Columbus Dispatch, apparently forgot the Buckeyes had a game on Saturday (granted, it was hard to tell based on what transpired in the 'Shoe vs. MSU).

As we also pointed out, the Dispatch is the paper that has the daily counter keeping track of the "days since Michigan's last victory over Ohio State in football."  And it's all done with nary an asterisk or hint of shame to be found in the wake of the latest scandals (plural). 

So following the most recent (on top of the other recent) violations -- or as they call them around the OSU athletic department, "individual failures" -- we at the MZone have huddled with our design team to produce a new masthead and sample page of what the Dispatch should look like.  Well, what it should look like if they were an actual paper and not a pro-Tosu blog printed on paper.

Ohio State Still Doesn't Get It

Talk about hypocrisy.

When we last left our friends in C-bus, they were throwing disgraced former coach Jim Tressel under the bus to the NCAA, saying he - and he alone - was responsible for the violations Ohio State* now finds itself faced with.

Gee, how things change in two weeks.

In the last week, a tribute to The Dirty Vest was added to the main hallway of the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.  According to the Dispatch article linked above, "included are such statistics as his career record at Youngstown State and Ohio State, national championships, Big Ten championships, record against Michigan, All-Americans and Academic All-Americans. Below that are photos from various seasons."

Here's a pic:

Wow.

I'm still trying to decide if this is Tosu* being utterly clueless, arrogant beyond words, or a giant heaping mixture of both. 

I thought the official word out of C-bus was that Sweaterboy was solely to blame and Tosu* utterly ashamed of the current mess.  If that's the case, how the hell does a school do this mere days after the man in the shrine went before the NCAA to admit that he was a cheater?  Or school officials simply that stupid as to how this appears?  (it is OSU*, after all).  I guess when Gene "See no evil" Smith and Gordon "I hope the coach doesn't fire me" Gee are in charge, any combination of the above shouldn't come as a surprise.

Your move, NCAA.  I can only hope that you "enshrine" The Dirty Vest's "accomplishments" by giving Tosu fans some sanctions with teeth to remember him by. 

Jim Tressel now sells stir-fry and wears his cellphone on his belt

Jim Tressel: From Coaching Great to Marketing Slogan in Mere Months

MZone reader William sent us this pic taken at Washtenaw and Huron Parkway in A2 on August 14th.

Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

Speaking of Tressel...

Carr and Tressel: The MZone Transcript

SiC and Ex sent us the story about Jim Tressel and Lloyd Carr both showing up on the sidelines on the sidelines of a Cleveland Browns training camp practice. 

JIM TRESSEL: "Lloyd, remember when I said I didn't sic those bomb sniffing dogs on your team bus?  I lied about that, too."

LLOYD CARR: "No surprise.  Hey, don't know if you heard, but I was just elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.  So how's your summer going?"

JIM TRESSEL: "Well, I traded in my vest for the black cellphone holder I now wear here on my belt.  Awesome, right? I just got a job in middle-management at Target."

MZone Summer Close-Out Contest: Predict the Penalty in C-bus

As we get set to close out the off-season and turn our attention to Meeeechigan's 2011 campaign, we would be remiss if we didn't take at least one more look back at all the problems at Tosu* which have provided us with so much material during the summer.  If not for Tatgate-turned-Tresselgate, we'd have gone dark more times than that Spider-Man musical on Broadway.

With Tosu* set to go before the NCAA committee on infractions August 12th, frequent contributor SiC suggested we have a contest in which MZone readers attempt to predict what further penalties (if any) will be leveled against the Buckeyes.

Excellent idea!

So gaze into your crystal balls and let us know whether you think the NCAA is going to drop the hammer or give Gene Smith & Co. a big ol' sloppy wet kiss.

Personally, I think it'll go something like this...

It's Chinatown
Chinatown at MOVIECLIPS.com

"It's Columbustown, Jake."

New Arrival

In the wake of yesterday's news that the all the wins from the 2010 season will be vacated, Columbus retailers are scrambling to get the latest "Fuck Michigan" shirt on their shelves.

Downfall: OSU vacates entire 2010 season

More to come but had to get something up about the carnage in Columbus.  As you've probably heard by now, Ohio State vacated every win from its 2010 season and gave itself 2 years probation.

In a response submitted today to the NCAA, Ohio State admits allegations that then-coach Jim Tressel lied and allowed ineligible players to compete by failing to report that they had sold OSU-issued memorabilia to a tattoo-parlor owner.

But my favorite part of the Dispatch story linked above was this paragraph:

"The responsibility is upon Tressel. No other institutional personnel were aware" of the violations, and the former coach failed in his obligation to report them, the response says. "The institution is embarrassed by the actions of Tressel."

(emphasis MZone)

Gee, when your own school is "embarrassed" by you, that's pretty bad...and also a damn good excuse to repost Vestocchio!

Meet Luke Fickell

Ohio State officially unveiled interim INTERIM INTERIM (emphasis Ohio State's, not MZone's) head coach Luke Fickell yesterday.  Here's a brief bit of the presser...

(Smith intro via Eleven Warriors)

What?

That's not him? Are you sure?

Well...okay. 

Here's another clip of some other dude talking in Columbus yesterday.




If I were a Buckeye fan (and I thank the Lord each and every day that I am not), he doesn't exactly inspire a ton o' confidence based on this press conference (either of the above).  Hell, he looks like the 37-year-old assistant that he was until the "Fickell" finger of football fate tapped him on the shoulder. Then again, the guy was thrown into a no-win (or some would say, no-lose) situation. 

But you never know.  Who would've thought that Lloyd Carr would've gone on to a National Title and Hall of Fame career when he got his unexpected shot?  Same guys just step up when the rest of the world counts them out.

Yet Fickell's future in Columbus may not come down to W's and L's.

When asked if he had known of any past or present NCAA violations or any players or coaches who had done the same, Fickell stumbled through the following answer:

“You know I can honestly say that um...where I wasn’t going to say I had blinders on but...very focused at the task at hand and I was not informed of any information until it became public knowledge.”

It was almost as if he was trying to address a second part to that question which wasn't asked: “If the cars and memorabilia and tattoos were so prevelant, how could you not have noticed, too?  Everyone else on campus seemed to notice the cars the players were driving.”

So the bottom line is, if Tosu's Troubles turn out to be rampant in the program (and not isolated to the Tat 5), I think OSU is going to need a clean break with the past, no matter how well Luke Fickell does on the field (I'm also looking at you, Gene Smith and Gordon Gee).  He'll get the broom in after the season even if Urban Meyer isn't taking their calls. 

Finally, while we swear OSU's deer in the headlights INTERIM head coach looks like a certain waterboy, MZone reader JS said Fickell has "runaway bride eyes"...

The Real Reason Tressel Resigned

The other shoe - or should we say shirt - has dropped in Columbus.

You just knew there had to be more.

UPDATE: It keeps getting worse.

Jim Tressel for President!

You're a disgraced football coach.  Forced to resign under an ethics cloud.  Called a liar by the NCAA.  With potentially major violations still to come for the once-proud program you left behind. 

What do you do next?

Politics, naturally!

At least one columnist is saying the coach many called The Cheater The Senator would be a natural fit for public office because it's Ohio and they'd elect a fucking tree stump if it beat Michigan nine times he's "a gifted speaker, he knows the state of Ohio well and would have little trouble raising money."

And while the columnist in the story linked above touts Tressel for a possible U.S. Senate run in Ohio, we say a man with the stones to live such an ethically challenged professional life while putting forth such a holier-than-thou public persona should aim higher. 

As the t-shirt of the fan who had nothing better to do with his life showed up at Tressel's house to support him last weekend said: Jim Tressel for President!

And we at the MZone have just the running mate for Tressel.  Behold, the first spots for Tressel's 2012 campaign.

Buckeye fans keeping Tressel's demise in perspective

Look, I get that OSU fans loved Tressel, if for no other reason than he was 9-1* against Michigan.  But even reasonable Buckeyes (if there is such a thing) have to admit some of their fan base have totally lost it in their defense of a man the NCAA called out for lying.   Seems the more evidence against him, the more they dig in their steel-toed work boots.

Yesterday, I saw a tweet by a Buckette who responded to a comment on one of my tweets by saying this:

Tressel became the fall guy. The Board figured that if Tressel resigned, the penalty against OSU w/b lessen from NCAA

Yes, Tressel became the fall guy for - wait for it - Tressel!  He has no one to blame for this mess but himself.

But my favorite defense of Tressel was the one I saw over the weekend.  I was on Amazon looking up one of The Vest's books for a post idea and stumbled across this review posted after Tressel resigned:

Jim Tressel is a Man of Integrity. People of Integrity expect to be believed and when they are not, they let time prove them right. Even Jesus had players who betrayed Him. (emphasis MZone)

Apparently this insightful reviewer is referring to Judas, who played middle inside linebacker for Jesus's stacked 32 AD team.  As most of you know, Judas thought he was good enough to start but he turned out to be the 12th man on the Apostles that season.  And unfortunately for Judas, back in those days everybody played both ways (ironically, this also made Judas the first documented case of oversigning).

But I kid.  I really do.  Because I think it's perfectly legit to compare the situation of a lying college football coach to, you know, THE LORD.  And anybody who disagrees with me is acting like Hitler.

So the question isn't 'Why would you compare Tressel's situation to that of Jesus?' but rather 'Why wouldn't you?'

Sermon on the Porch: Jim Tressel addresses his flock after they show up at his house

ED. NOTE:  Some will say I've crossed a line in the religious sand with this post.  And maybe I have.  I admit it's pretty risky to use The Almighty in a comedic post about college football.  Especially when we all know the only respectful way to bring up the Lord's name is when equating His divine story to that of a disgraced former college football coach in an Amazon review.

The Life of Tressel: OSU fans always look on the bright side

To help with the pic above (and have something to hum along to), click here

Close Up of Buckeye Helmet Stickers

(HT: EDSBS)

OSU names Happy Gilmore as interim head coach

With The Vest having been gone some four days now, it's time to start making fun of Ohio State's place-holder-until-they-beg-Urban-Meyer interim coach, Luke Fickell.

Now, we could go into great detail about Fickell's past and coaching experience, but why bother?  OSU fans don't want him coaching there any longer than he has to.  Hell, even Luke Fickell probably hopes Urban Meyer becomes Ohio State's next permanent coach.

But we did notice one thing we had to mention.  Is it just us or does Fickell look a hell of a lot like The Waterboy?

One is a major movie star, the other will probably end up being a wedding singer in 3 years

Tresselgate: Our Blogging Cup Runneth Over

It's June. The last thing I should be doing in the wee hours of the night when I have to get up for work in the morning is blogging about college football. Did I mention it's June?

But just when I think I can take a break...Tresselgate pulls me back in!

JIM TRESSEL...COME ON DOWN!

(from MZone wire reports) Hollywood, CA -- Former Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel has already lined up his next job.  Not surprisingly, it involves being on TV with a microphone in hand.  But while, for most coaches, that usually means stepping into a sports broadcast booth, Tressel's microphone will be of the long, skinny variety.

The MZone has learned that the recently-resigned Buckeye coach will be replace Drew Carey as host of The Price is Right because "Tressel is simply better at giving away free cars" according to longtime Price producer Harvey Millsap.

"Tressel's probably given away more cars than Bob Barker did during the entire 104 years he hosted the show" explained Millsap.  "And like Barker, Tressel has that same, non-threatening 'old guy in the dessert line at Home Town Buffet' vibe about him."

Millsap also said several popular games on the long-running show will be updated or changed when Tressel takes over this summer.  Among them are "Hi Lo" and "That's Too Much!"

Currently in "Hi Lo," a contestant is shown six grocery items and asked to choose the three he believes are the highest-priced.  When Tressel arrives, the contestant will be shown six tattoos and asked to choose how many pairs of Gold Pants he'll have to trade for five of them.

The biggest change is coming to "That's Too Much!"  In the present version of the game, a contestant is shown up to ten prices for a car in ascending order of price. The contestant wins the car by correctly identifying the first revealed price which is higher than the actual price by calling out "That's Too Much!"

On Tressel's show, that format will be completely scrapped and retitled as "Phone a Booster!"  In the new version, each contestant will randomly call Ohio State fans in the Columbus area to see who will pay for the new car they just picked out at the local car dealership.  If the booster initially refuses, the contestant will yell, "Fuck Michigan!" until the booster changes his mind and pays for the car.

(HT to KK whose FB post inspired this idea)


DUDE, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO WRITE SOME NEW LYRICS

Last October, we introduced you to a pro-OSU, pro-Tressel video that was so gloriously, jaw-droppingly bad it was Showgirls-esque.  In light of recent events, it begs for a re-posting.

Looks like it's time to write a new tune, Mascot Man.



I know, right? Rest assured, this may not be the last time I post this. Simply classic.

REST THE VEST

My former blogging cohort, Benny (respect) sent me the following tidbit he saw on Uni Watch.

The Fort Myers Miracle, the minor league baseball affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, is holding a "Rest the Vest" night on June 6th.  According to their press release, "

The Fort Myers Miracle feel the disappointment and anger of the Ohio State University football fan today and want to help ease the pain. So the time to move on from the Jim Tressel era is now!

The new coach of the Buckeyes presumably will not wear sweater vests on the sidelines; so it's time to retire them. Fans are encouraged to bring their sweater vest and place it in the retirement bin near the front gate of Hammond Stadium.

Patrons willingly letting go of the prized possession will have the opportunity to participate in a test drive of a beautiful sports car from Classic Cars of Florida.

The Miracle want everyone to enjoy the "Rest the Vest" Night and even though you might not have a favorite sweater vest, if you have a tattoo then you also benefit.

Just by showing a tattoo, Ohio State or non-related, fans will receive a piece of Miracle memorabilia to keep or sell.

We know it has been a long saga that has affected Buckeye Nation, but let the Miracle help with your move into the Luke Fickell era.

Why the Florida-based minor league baseball affiliate of the Minnesota Twins is concerned with events in Columbus is beyond me, but who am I to judge?

Two-Minute Drill: Tresselgate Edition

Look, we could try to drum up something new, different and non-Tresselgate to put on the MZone.  But if the folks who made THE HANGOVER can simply change the setting from Vegas to Bangkok then regurgitate the exact same movie and call it THE HANGOVER II, then mere bloggers shouldn't be expected to come up with completely new stuff each day either.  Plus, we don't charge $12 bucks and $8 more for popcorn.

And let's be honest, if you're a Michigan fan, The Troubles are the gift that just keep on giving.  So why would you want them to end?  After so many years of misery at the hands (and thrown objects) of those scarlet and grey "fans," I think we all deserve to sit back, relax and enjoy.

IN COLUMBUS, THEY SHOOT THE MESSENGER

I guess I should be shocked by the response of some Buckeye fans who seem to be blaming just about everybody but, you know, the guy who lied/cheated/covered it up.  But I'm not.  It's even to the point where the 21-year-old student reporter who did the Ray Small story for the OSU student newspaper is getting threatened with bodily harm.

WTF?!  Seriously.  YOUR COACH LIED!  Period.  He brought this all upon himself.  Period.  Not Ray Small.  Or Kirk Herbstreit.  Or any reporters.  Jim Tressel is the reason this is all happening.  It's self inflicted.

Period.

So leave the 21-year-old econ/journalism major alone and turn your anger at the man who deserves it: Jim Tressel.

TRESSEL'S RESIGNATION LETTER

If you haven't seen in yet, here is the text of Tressel's letter of resignation that he delivered to OSU's soon to be fired AD Gene Smith:

Dear Gene:

After meeting with university officials, we agreed that it is in the best interest of Ohio State that I resign as head football coach.

The recent situation has been a distraction for our great university and I make this decision for the greater good of our school.

The appreciation that  Ellen and I have for the Buckeye Nation is immeasurable. We have been blessed to work with the finest group of young men in America and we love them dearly. In addition, we cannot thank you enough ... the high school coaches we have worked with over these many years.

We know that God has a plan for us and we will be fine. We will be Buckeyes forever.

Jim Tressel

What a colossal load of shit.  First, he calls what's going on "the recent situation" like he's talking about problems with the office fax machines, not the NCAA hammer coming which he caused the school to be smacked with.

Next, he says, "I make the decision for the greater good of our school."  Oh, that's rich.  If Tressel was so concerned about the greater good of the school, then he'd have turned over the emails last April to his bosses, the compliance department - somebody! - besides Terrelle Pryor's "mentor." If Tressel was so concerned about the school, he wouldn't have hung his school out to dry in December when he knew - he knew! - since the previous spring that it had been going on.

But he didn't. 

Because Jim Tressel was more concerned with the greater good of Jim Tressel and his won-loss record.  All this "he did it to protect the kids" crap is utter BS.  He did it to to protect Jim Tressel.

And, Jim, since you brought up God, I bet God's initial plan for you was not to cheat.  Or lie.  Or cover-up the first two.  In fact, maybe He's not a fan of yours either.  And maybe, just maybe, He led that OSU official to those emails in January that you thought you'd buried for good.  I'm just sayin'.

Finally, and most importantly, it's not "Buckeye Nation."  Tressel has lived long enough now in Columbus to know it's "Buckeye Unincorporated Township."

MORE TRESSEL

All you needed to know about Jim Tressel's integrity was revealed long before the infamous March 8th press conference and well before Ohio State stumbled upon the emails in January that he'd been hiding from them for 296 days.  For me, Tressel's decision to let Pryor and the Tat 5 play in the Sugar Bowl said it all.

If Tressel had any integrity, if he cared so much about "molding young men" and "teaching life lessons," then he wouldn't have let Pryor and the others play. 

Maybe it's because Tressel was simply covering his own ass.  Since we now know, despite his bogus claim of "confidentiality," that The Vest discussed the initial emails with Pryor's "mentor" in Pennsylvania, maybe he was worried that if he grew a spine and benched Pryor, his star QB (or his "mentor") might have a story to tell.

Contrast Tressel's gutless call with Bo.  I recall in my youth a player for one of Bo's final teams, I believe, missing curfew in LA by like 15 minutes a couple days before the Wolverines were to play in the Rose Bowl.  Not only did that player not play in the Rose Bowl, he was on a plane back to Detroit the very next day.

Tressel wouldn't know about integrity if it smacked him in the face.

Oh, and speaking of getting smacked in the face, Andy cooked up this little 'Shop dandy...

WOODY RESPONDS TO CONTINUED RULES VIOLATION ALLEGATIONS

"Couldn't you at least go out like a man!"

LAST BUT NOT LEAST

Yesterday, @beckleys who follows our shenanigans on Twitter, sent us this video of a Buckeye fan who was quite enthusiastic when Terrelle Pryor made his decision to play for "University of Ohio State."

Wonder how he feels today?



I know: you couldn't fake a video of a someone who was that, shall we say, stereotypical of a Buckeye fan.

R.M.S. Tressel

The sad voyage of Ohio State coach Jim Tressel



(HT: WLA for the 'copter 'shop)

MZone Exclusive: New Ohio State Logo

In the wake of Tressel's resignation and the ongoing scandal swirling in C-bus, the MZone has learned that Ohio State will be changing their traditional logo - "Ohio State" across a block "O" - to something a little more honest.

The Best of Tresselgate

In the wake of Ohio State coach Jim Tressel's quitting before he got fired resignation, we put a few of our favorite posts about the scandal in one convenient place for all your linkage needs.

You're welcome.

Sincerely,

The MZone

SCRIPT O-LIE-O!

TRESSELGATE DOUBLE FEATURE

And back for a special return engagement:

TRESSEL-I-AM

Two weeks ago - before Yahoo! Sports posted a story claiming that Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel knew about Buckeye players trading merchandise for free tattoos more than eight months before the school said it was made aware of the allegations - The Vest was photographed reading Dr. Seuss books to a group of school children in Ohio:

Well, in light of the recent allegations in C-bus, may we suggest the following for The Vest's next reading to the kids:

 An excerpt:

We looked!
Then we saw him step in on the mat!
We looked!
And we saw him!
Terrelle and his tats!
And he said to us,
"Why do you sit there like that?
I know it is wet
And the sun is not sunny.
But we can have lots of fun
Lots of fun with booster money!"


"I know some good bars to go to,"
Said the QB.
"We can drive in the new car
The new car dealer just loaned me!
We will take the car, take the car out for a ride.
My coach
Does not care, so I have nothing to hide!"


Then Sally and I
Did not know what to say.
But Terrelle said Coach Tressel
Would look the other way.


But our fish said, "No! No!
Make Terrelle go away!
Tell that Cat with the Tats
You do NOT want to play.
He should not be here,
He should be on probation!
He should be suspended
With the rest of Buckeye Nation!"


"Now! Now! Have no fear.
Have no fear!" said the QB
"I won't get caught
Since my coach just ignores me.
Why, we can have
Lots of fun doing my thing
With a game that I call
Selling my championship ring!"

An excerpt:

I do not like the game's laws and its rules
I do not like them, they're only for fools
I did not like them during the days of Clarett
I do not like them nor have been busted just yet
I let Terrelle Pryor get his free tats
Then claimed, "Oh, I did not know about that!"
I do not like the rules they have about class
The N-C-A-A can kiss my Vest-wearing ass
I do not like the rules out on the field
And if we get busted, I'll surely appeal
I do not like the rules here in the 'Shoe
And our fans do not care as long as I beat the Blue
I do not like rules here or there
I do not like them ANYWHERE!


REDLINED FIRST DRAFT OF OSU LETTER TO NCAA

Yesterday, we printed in full Ohio State's letter to the NCAA regarding Tresselgate.   Since then, portions of an earlier draft of the letter have been leaked.  Initially, in addition to missing the first two games of the 2011 season and paying a $250,000 fine, Ohio State officials considered banning Coach Jim Tressel from spring practice and summer camps.

And that's not the only shocker.

In the MZone exclusive below, we have obtained a copy of the heavily edited rough draft of the last "Conclusion" paragraph of that letter.  As you'll discover, significant changes were made before it was submitted.

The institution was wondering when the other shoe was gonna fall regarding the charade that is Cheaty McSweaterVest.  How the hell it took this long is beyond us is very surprised and disappointed in Coach Tressel's lack of action in this matter.  His behavior in this situation is par for the course out of character from him and is contrary to his proven history of saying one thing in those bullshit self-righteous books he pawns while doing another behind the scenes of promoting an atmosphere of NCAA compliance within the football program.  Since this shit has been going on ever since his hiring as the head football coach in 2001 (i.e. Maurice Clarett, Troy Smith, etc.), he and his staff have ignored attended the NCAA rules education sessions on a consistent basis, regularly made up sought interpretations, and self-reported an almost laughably huge fuckload of nearly 400 secondary violations.  His lack of truthfulness action in this matter appears to have been the result of thinking he was above the rules and wouldn't get caught as usual indecisiveness regarding the appropriate actions to take in this specific situation in which he was placed if you can even begin to wrap your head around what a huge set of stones it took to even try to pass that nonsense off as a plausible excuse, as opposed to a blatant disregard of NCAA legislation stretching back to his Youngstown State days.  Nevertheless, we recognize that because he wins a lot of games and beats Michigan, we look the other way when we can and offer the insulting slap on the wrist punishment in this letter now  that he should have forwarded this information in some manner to appropriate institutional officials.  With the exception of this mistake that you know about, he is a man  of integrity and high moral standards if you set the bar somewhere between, say, Pete Carroll and the SMU program during the Eric Dickerson years. 

This institution really hopes you'll buy the ginormous load of horse shit in this letter in the same way you shockingly believed the whole 'Cam Newton didn't know' steaming pile appreciates the cooperation of your staff in this inquiry.

Suckers, Sincerely,

Larry Gordon Gee, President

Moe John Bruno, Faculty Athletics Representative

Curly Gene Smith, Director of Athletics

cc: The assclown who tried to fuck with The Game 

    Mr. James E. Delany

Now Playing in the MZone Theater: CARS (no, not that one)

Inspired by the latest crisis in Columbus, this one involving used cars, Hollywood has rushed a new movie into theaters this week.  Luckily, the MZone was able to obtain an exclusive look at the poster.

O-lie-o!

We here at the MZone would like to officially thank Jim Tressel and THE Ohio State University for providing some much needed material during the dog days of college football blogging.

And, with real life intruding of late, we'd especially like to thank regular reader Bob for the pics below.

First up is the revised edition of Jim Tressel's book The Winner's Manual.

Next, in order to help Tosu players sell their Buckeye memorabilia, a new tech company has sprung up.

Finally, as Tresselgate heats up, we end these guest pics with the obligatory 'Shop of Script O-lie-o.

So, what are the odds of Tressel getting canned when all is said and done?

NCAA to Tressel: Liar!

ED. NOTE:  It's been an extremely busy time lately so my apologies for the lack of new posts.  Double apology for all the unreturned emails as I hadn't checked MZone email in a couple days.

The NCAA sent a "notice of allegations" to Tosu Friday (which defines "Good Friday") and verbally bitch-slapped coach Jim Tressel in what could amount to "potentially major violations."

According to the ESPN link above:

In a 13-page indictment of Tressel's behavior, the NCAA alleged that Tressel had "permitted football student-athletes to participate in intercollegiate athletics while ineligible." It also said he "failed to deport himself ... [with] honesty and integrity" and said he was lying when he filled out a compliance form in September which said he had no knowledge of any NCAA violations by any of his players.

Gee, shocker.  I guess our photoshop of the movie poster below is no longer just MZone hijinks but rather something now confirmed by the NCAA.

And no, we never tire of posting this pic.

CHAPTER 1: Cheat