A year later, Jim Tressel has no ill will toward Ohio State
A year after Jim Tressel was forced to resign from Ohio State, he told the Cleveland Plain Dealer he didn't harbor any ill feelings toward Ohio State or anyone in the athletic department.
"It was going to end one day, in one way or another, and that wasn't the way we wanted to end it," Tressel told the paper.
"Wow, a lot happens in a year, a lot that you don't know is going to happen. But I don't feel scarred or disappointed or mad. I just don't feel that way. The people at Ohio State have always been great to me, and things end up the way they do, and you go on to the next play or the next day, and that's always been the way I look at things."
Tressel was urged to walk away from the university after the program was under NCAA investigation for major violations, including some Tressel knew about and never reported.
Tressel was with the Buckeyes for 10 seasons. He won six Big Ten titles and a national championship in 2002. Many thought Tressel would be the Buckeyes coach for as long as he wanted and retire on his own terms.
But that wasn't the case.
As a result of the violations under Tressel, Ohio State will miss the postseason this year as it tries to rebuild under new head coach Urban Meyer.
"I had a lot of confidence that we were moving forward and things would be fine," Tressel said. "We talked a million times to our young people about the fact that Ohio State is bigger than you, or Youngstown State is bigger than you, and it's going to move forward. So do the best you can while you're there and know that it's a part of your life forever, but that there's a moment when it's not the every day part of your life."
Tressel spent part of last season as a consultant with the NFL's Indianapolis Colts and is currently the vice president of strategic engagement at the University of Akron. And even though Tressel isn't doing the thing he loves — coaching — he's still grateful for his lot and thankful for the time he had with the Buckeyes.
"I suppose it was disappointing to some," Tressel told the paper. "They thought we would do that forever, but it took a strange turn. But I think when you step back, at least I do, I think of all the good times and the excellent I people I worked with and got to meet."
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