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OSU Board of Trustees

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Ohio St. trustee sees cracks in values

Associated Press

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio State needs to do a lot of "soul-searching" in the wake of the memorablia-for-cash and tattoos football scandal that forced coach Jim Tressel to resign and quarterback Terrelle Pryor to leave school, a university trustee said Friday.

After weeks of silence, the oversight panel for Ohio State -- a school of more than 50,000 students -- is beginning to comment on the memorabilia scandal. It will spend up to six weeks reviewing the athletic department's entire response to the scandal, though members say they do not know of any other NCAA rules violations right now.

"We have a lot to look at in sort of the soul-searching of what is most important in the game of life," trustee Jerry Jurgensen, retired chief executive officer of Nationwide Insurance, said in remarks to the full board on Friday.

"The cracks here weren't really cracks of rules and procedures," he said. "They were cracks in a value system."

Jurgensen, often an independent voice on the board, was quickly contradicted by board chairman Les Wexner, billionaire chairman and founder of Limited Brands and a major donor to the university.

"I don't think we have a lot of soul-searching to do, not at all," Wexner said. "We have a lot of heart-celebrating to do for the good that this university does."

Neither Wexner nor Jurgensen would comment after the board meeting. Ohio State president Gordon Gee took Wexner's side, saying "the university is moving forward and we feel very strongly about the fact that we have much to celebrate today."

Tressel's 10-year Ohio State head coaching career, which included a national championship and seven Big Ten titles, ended in disgrace when he stepped down May 30 after failing to tell his superiors that players were getting improper benefits under NCAA rules.

The coach knew players received cash and tattoos for autographs, championship rings and equipment and did not tell anyone at Ohio State or the NCAA for more than nine months. NCAA rules -- and Tressel's contract -- specified that he had to disclose any and all information about possible violations.

Wexner defended the board's silence Friday, saying that, rather than making public pronouncements, trustees decided to devote their energy to working with university administrators to make sure the proper processes, reviews and protocols were in place.

"We've got a very sound process of work," Wexner said.

"I'm pleased and I think the board is pleased with the work to date and the way we've progressed that work in an orderly, focused and thorough manner."

Trustee Robert Schottenstein said on Friday that Ohio State's athletic compliance program is good but there might be room for improvement.

The program, with eight compliance officers, has added two positions since the scandal broke last December, but those positions were being discussed before the news of the memorabilia sales broke. The program oversees hundreds of athletes, including 85 football players on scholarship.

"The NCAA has been in here a number of times and claimed that our athletic compliance process is outstanding," Schottenstein said Friday. "They may be right. That doesn't mean we don't want to change it, though."


Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press



Scary, scary stuff.

Not because I fear there is a crack in values at Ohio State, but because I feel this board is going to attempt to turn Ohio State into Vanderbilt north.
 
Gee better shut his mouth. Of course he sided with Wexner. I'm wondering how many actually believe there is a problem with values? If lots do, it could mean the jobs of both Gee and Smith. So yeah, Gee is speaking up that he sides with Wexner for sure.

Let's not forget how idiotic both Gee and Smith came off with the couple of pressers they had with Jim Tressel. I'm very sure that didn't sit well with many on the board.
 
There is talk of the university absorbing the compliance department and becoming just encompassed by the university.

Bold step, but a huge deterrent for building a viable football program.
 
There is talk of the university absorbing the compliance department and becoming just encompassed by the university.

Bold step, but a huge deterrent for building a viable football program.

Forgive me for being ignorant, but what would a move like this entail? I just have no clue as to the type of effect that would have on athletics in general. Maybe someone with a little more knowledge on that could fill me in.
 
Forgive me for being ignorant, but what would a move like this entail? I just have no clue as to the type of effect that would have on athletics in general. Maybe someone with a little more knowledge on that could fill me in.

This essentially takes compliance away from JUST the athletic department and making it the responsibility of the university as a whole.

It would be no different from admissions or academic compliance, takes the athletic department completely out of it.

Not sure I want non-football people making football decisions of any kind.
 
This essentially takes compliance away from JUST the athletic department and making it the responsibility of the university as a whole.

It would be no different from admissions or academic compliance, takes the athletic department completely out of it.

Not sure I want non-football people making football decisions of any kind.

Thanks. That's kind of what I thought, but wasn't entirely sure. I guess it would eliminate favoritism that takes place within athletics. I'm assuming this we be an indication that OSU believes they will be hit hard by the NCAA, and this would be a step toward showing that they are taking the issue seriously.
 
Thanks. That's kind of what I thought, but wasn't entirely sure. I guess it would eliminate favoritism that takes place within athletics. I'm assuming this we be an indication that OSU believes they will be hit hard by the NCAA, and this would be a step toward showing that they are taking the issue seriously.

The favoritism I can deal with, it should be par for the course with how much money athletic departments bring in for their universities.

Add to the fact some of that favoritism is what makes the football team stay competitive.

The devil I know, beats the devil I don't.....and I like the devil I got. With a few improvements of course.
 
Ohio State to create central compliance office
FRIDAY, JULY 22, 2011 02:58 PM
BY JENNIFER SMITH RICHARDS
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Ohio State University will have a new centralized compliance office by Jan. 1, 2012, trustee Robert H. Schottenstein announced today.

Combining watchdogs from all over the university - including the athletics department, research areas and the medical center - will standardize and strengthen oversight efforts, he said. They currently operate separately from one another.

"Clearly, we have a great deal of work before us," said Schottenstein, who is he chairman of the trustees' Audit and Compliance Committee.

The first step in overhauling the compliance system is finding an outside consultant to help the university take inventory of its current compliance and monitoring efforts. The inventory will be completed by Sept. 1, Schottenstein said. By Oct. 1, the consultant will give university officials examples of good compliance and monitoring efforts from elsewhere in the country.

Options will be presented to university trustees in November.

Part of the compliance-overhaul work will include developing guidelines on how to manage crisis situations or potential public-relations issues.

"It's a complicated issue when your hair's on fire and you're trying to figure out what to do," Schottenstein said.

The redesign of Ohio State's compliance efforts was prompted by a scandal involving NCAA rule violations by members of the football team. Fallout has included the departure of quarterback Terrelle Pryor and coach Jim Tressel.

http://www.dispatch.com/live/conten...2011/07/22/Ohio-State-compliance.html?sid=101

Looks like there will be one big compliance now. This could affect some of the recruiting.
 
I don't know why they're worried about this...I mean, Tressel was the only one that knew anything about the violations, and now he's gone...right Ohio State?
 

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