Things have pretty quickly gone
from bad to worse at Ohio State. The lawsuit which prompted the school
to fire Jim O' Brien has turned out to have a lot of allegations, including:
- financial benefits
- illegal contacts between agents and athletes
- grade manipulation
- not that it matters to the NCAA, in this context, but a sexual affair
involving a player and the ex-wife of a booster named in the lawsuit (the
former wife confirms the affair).
The woman who filed the suit didn't keep particularly good records and will
have a tough time proving some of her claims, but the embarrassment level for
Ohio State is nonetheless quite high.
In related news, Texas
Tech has given Bob Knight a contract extension, and he will not be taking
the Ohio State job. It's an open question now as to who will.
Chances of getting an established coach at this point are slim to none,
particularly with major violations now an issue.
Knight, incidentally, is within 48 games of passing Dean Smith's career win
record. This will upset some UNC fans, who will then point to Dean Smith's
public demeanor to show his superiority, and further upset some Kentucky fans,
who are still made that Adolph Rupp has been surpassed.
So who's around who's dying for a big-time job and can wade through this and
rebuild at the same time? Well, how about Bobby Gonzalez?