Urban Meyer to coach Buckeyes?

[See Red]

I'm sure Urban can't wait to put up with this fanbase:

http://www.daytondailynews.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/dayton/throughthearch/entries/2011/11/20/at_osu_urban_meyer_looms_over.html

Saturday was a little different though. Still in the back, he (Fickell) was joined by his wife, Amy, and their four young kids. With his left hand he reached down and held the hand of one of his little twin boys. His older son was crying.

Fickell wrapped his right arm around senior running back Boom Herron. As they waited for the song to begin, a guy in a red OSU sweatshirt leaned over the front rail of the stands some 50 feet away and hollered:

?Embarassing?.#%@&-ing embarassing?You?re done! Done!!?

He was yelling in Fickell?s direction and, as out of place as his outburst was, he was probably right.

Every school or team has fans like that. Michigan included.

[infrared41]

I'm sure Urban can't wait to put up with this fanbase:

http://www.daytondailynews.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/dayton/throughthearch/entries/2011/11/20/at_osu_urban_meyer_looms_over.html

Saturday was a little different though. Still in the back, he (Fickell) was joined by his wife, Amy, and their four young kids. With his left hand he reached down and held the hand of one of his little twin boys. His older son was crying.

Fickell wrapped his right arm around senior running back Boom Herron. As they waited for the song to begin, a guy in a red OSU sweatshirt leaned over the front rail of the stands some 50 feet away and hollered:

?Embarassing?.#%@&-ing embarassing?You?re done! Done!!?

He was yelling in Fickell?s direction and, as out of place as his outburst was, he was probably right.

Every fan base has it's ass-hole element. We're no different. Needless to say, he doesn't represent the vast majority of Ohio State fans.

[The_Admiral]

I like how we can be totally and completely shocked when there are point-shaving scandals, memorabilia for tattoo scandals, pedophilia scandals and some guy buying Reggie Bush's mom a house scandals, yet still hold on with every bit of our being that college sports are somehow more pure than the pros and the players are in it for an education and an opportunity.

Call the basketball and football players university employees, pay them a fair wage, and be done with it.

Title IX, folks. Title IX.

If paying football/basketball players makes them stop being college athletes and start being employees of the universities' student activities departments, doesn't that take Title IX out of play? You seem like you're too cowardly to step forth and say you don't want them making money, so you're trying to rationalize or intellectualize it.

[Jigga]

I'm sure Urban can't wait to put up with this fanbase:

http://www.daytondailynews.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/dayton/throughthearch/entries/2011/11/20/at_osu_urban_meyer_looms_over.html

Saturday was a little different though. Still in the back, he (Fickell) was joined by his wife, Amy, and their four young kids. With his left hand he reached down and held the hand of one of his little twin boys. His older son was crying.

Fickell wrapped his right arm around senior running back Boom Herron. As they waited for the song to begin, a guy in a red OSU sweatshirt leaned over the front rail of the stands some 50 feet away and hollered:

?Embarassing?.#%@&-ing embarassing?You?re done! Done!!?

He was yelling in Fickell?s direction and, as out of place as his outburst was, he was probably right.

Every fan base has it's ass-hole element. We're no different. Needless to say, he doesn't represent the vast majority of Ohio State fans.

I think that actually represents the majority of "fans" nowadays...I think as you get away from whatever "fanhood" or "fandom" is, you tend to gain perspective and this kind of just doesn't matter as much.

[BBTV]

If you make them "employees of the university", does that mean that they could then unionize? Imagine the impact that would have on college athletics.

[McCall]

I like how we can be totally and completely shocked when there are point-shaving scandals, memorabilia for tattoo scandals, pedophilia scandals and some guy buying Reggie Bush's mom a house scandals, yet still hold on with every bit of our being that college sports are somehow more pure than the pros and the players are in it for an education and an opportunity.

Call the basketball and football players university employees, pay them a fair wage, and be done with it.

Title IX, folks. Title IX.

If paying football/basketball players makes them stop being college athletes and start being employees of the universities' student activities departments, doesn't that take Title IX out of play? You seem like you're too cowardly to step forth and say you don't want them making money, so you're trying to rationalize or intellectualize it.

Yes, since I have a different opinion on a subject than you, I'm an a-hole. Sorry I don't bow down in your pretentious glory.

[The_Admiral]

I didn't call you an a-hole; I said that you were dissembling and passively couching your argument to avoid overtly taking a stance.

[McCall]

I didn't call you an a-hole; I said that you were dissembling and passively couching your argument to avoid overtly taking a stance.

How? By making points to back up why I believe what I believe and linking to logical articles that actually have something to do with the argument? I've taken a stance. I don't think they should be paid like pros. It's a legitimate stance to take and opinion to have. Seems that since it's not your opinion, it's automatically wrong. That is exactly how you are coming off.

[GFB]

lol. Same as any other school in major college football. Urban would be treated as a god in Columbus. He would have to have about 5 seasons of 4 wins or less and not beat Michigan once for Columbus to turn on him.

Every school or team has fans like that. Michigan included.

Every fan base has it's ass-hole element. We're no different. Needless to say, he doesn't represent the vast majority of Ohio State fans.

While it's true every fanbase does have their ass-holes, OSU is notorious for being among the worst offenders. Stories range from the infamous cheering of Willis McGahee's devastating knee injury to slashing tires of cars with out of state license plates... If you don't believe a Michigan fan, just ask Texas, Florida, Miami, or any other Big Ten school who has the worst behaved fans in the Midwest. I would bet heavy money that 90% of the poll would fall between OSU or Penn State (urine throwers).

Just google "rudest college fanbases" and you'll find OSU in the top 5 of almost every list along with Alabama, LSU, and West Virginia fans.

[The_Admiral]

I don't think they should be paid like pros.

Well, if by "like pros" you mean "millions of dollars," I don't think anyone thinks that way, other than perhaps the players themselves. But don't you think that "welp, sure can't go bankrupt paying the volleyball girls" is kind of a cop-out, like you're trying to set yourself up to get caught on a technicality? I think the fundamental split here is about whether you think football/men's basketball student-athletes are, for the most part, students or athletes. I feel that that they are athletes first, inasmuch as the commitments to their sport are such that any education they may be getting will be compromised, and that their position as substantial revenue-generators entitles them to a modest, I repeat modest wage. If you're paying them to work for you as part of a student activities department, they're no longer intercollegiate sports as sanctioned by the NCAA, and the Title IX canard is out the window.

If you don't think schools ought to throw college football players a few thousand a year to destroy their minds and bodies for the financial gain of their institution, something that is certainly not asked of English majors, it's probably because you have some warped view of amateur athletics and not because you've carefully considered the logistics as per Title IX.

[infrared41]

While it's true every fanbase does have their ass-holes, OSU is notorious for being among the worst offenders. Stories range from the infamous cheering of Willis McGahee's devastating knee injury to slashing tires of cars with out of state license plates... If you don't believe a Michigan fan, just ask Texas, Florida, Miami, or any other Big Ten school who has the worst behaved fans in the Midwest. I would bet heavy money that 90% of the poll would fall between OSU or Penn State (urine throwers).

Just google "rudest college fanbases" and you'll find OSU in the top 5 of almost every list along with Alabama, LSU, and West Virginia fans.

Fine, we're the "rudest fanbase" in all of college football. Happy now? God, give it a rest already.

[The_Admiral]

But I think we can all agree that even the rudest Big Ten school is much better behaved than the best of those SEC schools, for the Big Ten is the nation's noblest assemblage of thousands upon thousands of drunken middle-class white kids. Am I right or am I right.

[IceCap]

I think the fundamental split here is about whether you think football/men's basketball student-athletes are, for the most part, students or athletes.

Ideally they would be students first. Realistically though, that ship set sail a long time ago. Paying them as university staff is the best solution yet.

[BBTV]

I think the fundamental split here is about whether you think football/men's basketball student-athletes are, for the most part, students or athletes.

Ideally they would be students first. Realistically though, that ship set sail a long time ago. Paying them as university staff is the best solution yet.

I'll bring it up again - if they're staff, could they then form (or join an existing) a union?

[IceCap]

I think the fundamental split here is about whether you think football/men's basketball student-athletes are, for the most part, students or athletes.

Ideally they would be students first. Realistically though, that ship set sail a long time ago. Paying them as university staff is the best solution yet.

I'll bring it up again - if they're staff, could they then form (or join an existing) a union?

Yes, they could.

http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/578952

[BBTV]

So you'd have the Big 10 Players Association, the United Brotherhood of SEC Ballers, the Pac 12 Players Local 485, etc. Then the conferences would really have to open their books re: TV deals and such, and these guys will really get paid.

They could also sell jerseys with NOBs, which IIRC they cannot do right now.

[infrared41]

But I think we can all agree that even the rudest Big Ten school is much better behaved than the best of those SEC schools, for the Big Ten is the nation's noblest assemblage of thousands upon thousands of drunken middle-class white kids. Am I right or am I right.

No. "Rudest fanbase" is about all we can win this season. So I'm not giving it up that easily. You take your victories where you can get them.

[CityOfWalrus]

I've actually found that BYU fans are among the worst in the nation as far as rudest, meanest, dirtiest fans. They're downright a terrible fan base

[dfwabel]

FYI, as for Meyer. Pasch and Speilman will work the Ohio State@ Michigan, but Meyer won't be.

[McCall]

I don't think they should be paid like pros.

Well, if by "like pros" you mean "millions of dollars," I don't think anyone thinks that way, other than perhaps the players themselves. But don't you think that "welp, sure can't go bankrupt paying the volleyball girls" is kind of a cop-out, like you're trying to set yourself up to get caught on a technicality? I think the fundamental split here is about whether you think football/men's basketball student-athletes are, for the most part, students or athletes. I feel that that they are athletes first, inasmuch as the commitments to their sport are such that any education they may be getting will be compromised, and that their position as substantial revenue-generators entitles them to a modest, I repeat modest wage. If you're paying them to work for you as part of a student activities department, they're no longer intercollegiate sports as sanctioned by the NCAA, and the Title IX canard is out the window.

If you don't think schools ought to throw college football players a few thousand a year to destroy their minds and bodies for the financial gain of their institution, something that is certainly not asked of English majors, it's probably because you have some warped view of amateur athletics and not because you've carefully considered the logistics as per Title IX.

They are not employees. They're STUDENT athletes. I know it's difficult to grasp that someone may not see things the way you do, but they are in fact STUDENT athletes. You gonna pay high school students next? If college athletes want to make money playing sports, that's what the pros are for. They can go overseas if they want. They have the choice. But if you choose to go to college, this is how it is. A modest stipen for living a STUDENT living is one thing, but a salary is just ridiculous.

Don't sit here and act like my opinion is a cop out or cowardly because I disagree with you. Seriously, people have different opinions and you're not always right. Deal with it.