Should Buckeye Fans Accept Pryor's Apology?

Is Pryor's apology enough?

Former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor apologized yesterday for his part in creating the downfall from NCAA violations that have hurt Ohio State, and he took responsibility for the resignation of former coach Jim Tressel.


Pryor spoke publicly for the first time since Tressel resigned under pressure on May 30 and since it was announced last week that Pryor, the subject of another NCAA investigation for receiving improper benefits, would forgo his senior season.


"In terms of Ohio State, I'd like to say sorry to the coaching staff, say sorry to my teammates, say sorry to all Buckeye Nation and all Buckeye fans across the country," Pryor said. "I never meant to hurt anybody directly or indirectly with my conduct off the field, and I am truly sorry.


"In terms of coach Jim Tressel, a special shout-out. I'm sorry for what all went down. I apologize with all my heart. I love you just like a father. You taught me a lot, and I apologize for putting you in a situation and taking you out of a job at a place where you love to be.


"I regret the fact you're not there anymore, and I regret the fact I'm not there anymore."

Ray Small Gives Buckeye Fans An Inside View of Going Downhill

What have you done, Ray-Ray

Ray Small came into the Ohio State university with a lot of upside and potential as a recruit hailing from the well known Glenville pipeline of recruits. Players such as Troy Smith and Ted Ginn Jr. led Buckeye fans, and the recruiters at Ohio State, to believe that Small was the next big thing at Ohio State. Soon after, it appeared that Ray-Ray was not going anywhere in the program. After repeatedly getting into trouble with the team rules, he and his father went on a tirade against Tressel saying that he had purposely ruined Small's career. 


When Ray Small was in his senior season, it seemed he was at least a decent asset to our special teams, and occasionally got a play in or two at receiver every game. He had become a contributor. Small spent much of his OSU tenure in Tressel’s doghouse for what he admitted was academic laziness. He also was suspended for two games for a violation of team rules. After being named a captain for the 2009 Michigan game, and telling Buckeye Nation that this was where he was glad to be and wanted to be, his final home game, Small was suspended for the Rose Bowl and did not make the trip with the team.

Tressel Announces New Format For 2011 Spring Game

Buckeye fans tuning in to the annual Ohio State spring game will get a new experience from previous years.  An offense versus defense scrimmage has taken the place of the normal split squad game that has been the norm for Ohio State spring games.

The spring game will be Tressel's last on the sideline until Oct. 8 in Lincoln

The new format will provide more competition in the game with the potential for both first-teams to square off against one another, as opposed to previous years where the best offensive and defensive players may have been on the same squad.  With the winner of the spring game awarded the right to wear the scarlet jerseys in practice, the stakes will be raised even further.

Another reason for the format change, according to Coach Tressel, was the lack of depth on the offensive line and at wide receiver.  Keeping the split squad game would have left each team short on numbers in those positions with possibly no substitutions if any injuries occurred.

The new format will bring some new scoring changes; the offense can score by putting the ball in the end zone (who’da thunk it?) and the defense can score by getting stops and turnovers.

Staying the same from previous years will be the lacrosse game prior to the spring game as the Buckeyes will face off against Fairfield in an 11 a.m. start with the spring game set to kickoff at 1:30 p.m.  Coming off an 8-4 victory over Air Force, the Buckeyes will look to improve on their 7-6 record against the Stags.  Both games will be available on the Big Ten Network.



Braxton Miller will look to shine in Saturday's spring game.



This new format will allow the fans to see the quarterbacks vying for the starting job against one of the best defenses in the country.  Joe Bauserman, Kenny Guiton, Taylor Graham and Braxton Miller will all get their shot at showing Buckeye Nation why they should be given the reins come fall.

Join us here at Inside The Shoe on Saturday for a live blog covering the spring game, maybe some lacrosse and whatever other shenanigans we get in to.

Thank YOU, Jim Tressel

Yesterday was the 10th anniversary of Jim Tressel making one of the most famous speeches in Ohio State history. "In 310 days..." has been used over and over with OSU fans, and no Buckeye fan will ever forget the moment. All Ohio State fans are Tressel fans. Jim Tressel has brought Ohio State a national championship, an overall record of 106–22 at Ohio State, including seven Big Ten Conference championships, a 6–4 bowl record, a 5–3 mark in BCS bowl games, and an 9–1 record against the arch-rival Michigan Wolverines. Tressel's nine wins against Michigan place him second in school history to Woody Hayes, who had 16. Considering Hayes had a much longer tenure, Tressel may just surpass Woody at some point.

Tressel is such a big influence on the game, as a head coach should be, that constant articles are being written about him, like this, and this. He has a contract through 2014, but early speculation is that after that, he will retire after that. Honestly, I don't think he will. I'm not saying he's going to be the next Joe Paterno, but Tressel might stick around for whoever may come after the Braxton Miller era. We will see. 

For now, I'm glad we have Tress behind the sweatervest, on the sidelines with the conservative "Tresselball". He continues to win big games, and is an upstanding person off the field. His students have done mostly well, and don't get in trouble too often. He has a good grasp of these kids, and knows how to bring them together, which is why their results on the football field are fantastic. 

Happy 10th, Tress.