Oller Second Thoughts: Ohio State exits make me ask what happened to wanting to compete?
Ladies and gents, boys and girls, it’s time for the Grumpy Old Man segment of our show, where we call out college athletes for taking the easy way out by transferring instead of competing for a job.
Readers recall what competition is, right? It’s a form of the word compete, the etymology of which is “to be equal to, to be capable of, to strive for.”
I don’t see much striving going on out there. Instead, I see a player like Ohio State men’s basketball center Felix Okpara bailing after the Buckeyes bring in another tall center from Kentucky. This after Okpara originally pledged to remain at OSU.
I see shooting guard Roddy Gayle leaving for what he thinks will be a better situation at Michigan. I also see Gayle wondering, with guard Meechie Johnson returning to OSU from South Carolina, if the competition is too hot to handle?
I see Buckeyes tailback Dallan Hayden waving good-bye to Columbus and reportedly visiting Colorado. I see Kyle McCord making what he called a “business decision” to bolt to Syracuse, which included exiting when OSU coach Ryan Day would not guarantee him the starting job in 2024.
Certainly, I see many players holding out their hands for more NIL money and others wanting fresh starts, but I also see a lack of them wanting to prove they should be starting.
What don’t I see? Ohio State quarterback Devin Brown pouting. Instead, he's planting his competitive flag in the ground by vowing to stick around and compete for the starting job. Bravo to Brown. We’ll see if his vow holds. Hope so.
Let me be clear, I don’t always blame athletes for leaving. Playing is more fun than sitting. More lucrative, too. There are career considerations in play; pro scouts don’t cozy to clipboard holders and bench warmers. Also, sometimes a situation is just too toxic to maintain the status quo.
However, it's not like Okpara is facing the prospect of Nikola Jokic walking through the doors of Value City Arena. (Or Bob Lanier, considering this is an old man column). The Buckeyes dipped into the transfer portal to bring in 7-foot-1 center Aaron Bradshaw from Kentucky. I don’t know how good he is, but I know as a freshman he averaged 4.9 points and three rebounds in a little under 14 minutes a game.
The 6-11 Okpara averaged 6.6 points and 6.4 rebounds in 24 minutes. Okpara leaving feels like a cook handing in his apron at a four-star restaurant because the new hire knows how to boil water.
Again, I hold no ill will toward athletes who leave. I wish them well. It’s just that I’d like to see more of them say, “Why should I be the one to transfer? I plan on winning the job.” And if that doesn’t happen? Don’t call it failure. Call it finding solace in having given it your best shot.
I’ll finish with one last get-off-my-lawn comment. Every player’s situation is different, but one thing remains the same: Running from competition smacks of fear of failure.
Butch Reynolds goes ESPN 30 for 30
Former Ohio State sprinter Butch Reynolds, who set a world record in the 400 meters in 1988, is the subject of ESPN’s new 30 for 30 documentary “False Positive,” which details the events prior to Reynolds testing positive for steroids in 1990 and the fallout from that result.
Reynolds and documentary director Ismail Al-Amin will appear at the central Ohio premiere of “False Positive,” which will be shown at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Southern Theatre as part of CAPA’s Cinema Columbus film festival.
Reynolds broke Lee Evans' 20-year-old world record in the 400 at a meet in Zurich, Switzerland, clocking a time of 43.29 that lasted until Michael Johnson broke the mark 11 years later. Reynolds also won silver (400) and gold (1,600 relay) at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, but two years later was suspended for two years by the IAAF for testing positive. The Akron native disputed the results, arguing the French lab mixed up his sample with that of another athlete. The case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, but Reynolds ultimately was unable to clear his name or collect the $27 million in false accusation damages initially awarded to him.
Listening in
“I can finally breathe now and just enjoy the moment because I was definitely really nervous. I feel sick to my stomach.” – LPGA player Nelly Korda, after winning the Chevron Championship Sunday, tying her with Annika Sorenstam and Nancy Lopez for most consecutive wins (five) in tour history.
Off-topic
I wish I could say I am lord of the flies, that I rule over the annoying insects like a tyrannical emperor giving the thumbs-down. But my fine motor skills are not what they used to be, which is to say I miss as often as not when attempting to swat them. It’s not the flies that have changed. It’s me. I used to be able to swat them out of the air. Now I can’t even smash them as they sit still. Kinda depressing.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State football and basketball transfers say so long to competing
