Tis the season for rumors and innuendo! Hark the herald bloggers sing of what could be, might be but probably isn’t.
Earlier today, according to Chicago Now’s Daily Sports Tab
two sources that are very close to recruiting at prominent universities confirmed that Jim Tressel will no longer be the head football coach at Ohio State University after the Sugar Bowl against Arkansas.
Despite Tressel’s phenomenal record in Columbus (well, his record vs. everyone not in the SEC anyway) this story was believable considering that 1.) The number one public relations rule for releasing “bad news,” is to do it at times when most people are likely to distracted by the weekend 2.) Big changes like this often occur at times of crisis (the “Shock Doctrine.”) and we all learned on Thursday about the Ohio State Buckeyes being rocked by harsh suspensions to their star players for 2011.
However, this college football bombshell, this sure to be a media sensation of a story has already been refuted.
Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith tweeted this at 6:42 PM CT
Merry Xmas everyone!! Go back to drinking your eggnog!! Rumors not true.. First NBA game I watched this year!! https://yfrog.com/h28fpnzj
So for now, the rumors are inherently discredited. There could very well be a spark of fire behind the smoke somewhere. But if anything were to happen regarding this situation, it’s not going to come out until after the Sugar Bowl. So take anything you hear about Tressel leaving these days with a grain of salt.
Actually, take that salt and help clear the roads with it. We need to get back from our holiday parties safely.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net , a Midwest webzine. He’s also a regular contributor to the Tribune’s Chicago Now network, Walter Football.com, Yardbarker Network, and Fox Sports.com
You can follow him on Twitter @thesportsbank
He also does a regular guest spot each week for Chicagoland Sports Radio.com