Why Sports Illustrated's Jim Tressel Story Doesn't Surprise Me

COMMENTARY | The report in Sports Illustrated detailing alleged abuses by Jim Tressel and others within the Ohio State University football program are damning. Laying out a litany of wrongdoing and cover-up, SI pulls no punches. Here are three things I found particularly indicting and why.

Jim Tressel the ignorant

The SI report details Tressel's long-running professed disassociation with the trouble around him, going back to his coaching tenure with Youngstown State. Tressel claimed not to know his star quarterback was embroiled in a car and cash scheme with a school trustee.

It was later revealed, in court documents, that Tressel was the one who told his player to go see the trustee. There were more violations when he came over to Ohio State, and more ignorance. Because so many believed him to be a man above reproach, the "I didn't know" defense worked, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Jim Tressel "couldn't think"

When confronted as to why he didn't report violations when he became aware of them, Tressel said he "couldn't think" who to tell. When the revelations first became public that Ohio State players were trading school memorabilia for tattoos and cash, he chided his players for not listening to their "inner sensor."

Seems Tressel's was turned off, as he denied knowing about it until confronted with evidence. When emails were found implicating him, reports WYTV, Tressel fell back on his aw-shucks, I just didn't know who I should tell approach, conveniently allowing players who would have been ruled ineligible to continue to play.

Jim Tressel the evangelical

As Sports Illustrated pointed out, Tressel professes a strong faith that he infuses into his coaching. He has a prayer request box on his desk, and conducts faith sessions labeled "Quiet Time" at the start of practice.

The first question that brings up is what about players who aren't evangelicals? Using Christianity as a unifying force in athletic competitions is nothing new, but it is inherently discriminatory. The alliance of evangelism and sports strikes me as unsavory, and gives those involved a sense of entitlement.

Coaches and athletes who think God is on their side are just like politicians and evangelical leaders who fall into the same trap. How many times have we seen evangelical leaders fall due to scandal?

SI reports Tony Dungy came to Tressel's defense, citing his "integrity." Tony Dungy infamously professed winning the Super Bowl "The Lord's Way," according to Christian Post. When anyone involved in sports thinks there is a God that holds them or their game in higher regard than others in need, there is a problem. When thousands of children die around the world each day, we cannot imagine a deity that cares about sports.