Feigned ignorance equals bliss, full bowl roster for Ohio State

The stereotype of the big, dumb jock is not dead. The NCAA is telling us this loudly and boldly.

From the organization that gave us Cam Didn't Know comes Five Football Student-Athletes From Ohio State Who Didn't Know.
Incredibly, that was the NCAA's explanation for not suspending for the Sugar Bowl five Buckeyes who sold their souls -- or came darn close. They didn't know it was wrong to sell their jerseys, trophies and keepsakes. As it stands, the five players will miss the first five games of the 2011 season for selling awards, gifts and uniform gear and getting various extra benefits. A sixth must sit out the first game of 2011 for lesser violations.

The question is why the five are allowed to play in the Sugar Bowl. All of them are juniors who could conceivably declare for the draft after the Jan. 4 game.

Then what exact punishment would the Buckeye Five be getting?

Exactly.

Part of the reason the players are allowed to participate in the bowl game is that the NCAA said they "did not receive adequate rules education during the time period the violations occurred." Really? Isn't that why you penalize Ohio State to the fullest extent of the law? The school has one of the largest compliance departments in the country -- seven people. For good reason. This is a school that reported 375 violations to the NCAA from 2000-2009, the most in the country according to the 69 schools that responded to the a request by the Columbus Dispatch for such information. This is the school that went through the Maurice Clarett debacle, which almost brought the football program to its knees.

Six years ago, quarterback Troy Smith was suspended for two games (including a bowl game) for accepting $500 from a booster. This is the school whose faculty apparently sent a note to then-president William Kirwin protesting former linebacker Andy Katzenmoyer's questionable academic profile.

"The academic record of the University has become a joke," according to correspondence obtained by Sports Illustrated in 1999.

So no, lax rules education or lack of rules knowledge is not -- cannot be -- an excuse. Not at Ohio State. These players were hardcore pawn stars. It is a load of crap that players didn't know selling jerseys and championship rings was against NCAA law. I don't believe it. You shouldn't either. Somewhere Cam Newton is smiling. No, laughing his ass off. It's the NCAA's play-dumb defense that has legions of critics furious that something didn't happen in the Cecil Newton case. Thursday's developments weren't just about accepting discounted tattoos. This was selling some of the most revered hardware in the Big Ten. Buckeyes Mike Adams, Dan Herron, Devier Posey, Terrelle Pryor and Solomon Thomas sold, in some combination, Big Ten championship rings, a Fiesta Bowl sportsmanship award, a football jersey and the crown jewel of Ohio State football -- their Gold Pants.

Asked after the Iowa win in November whether it was more important to beat Michigan the next week or win the Big Ten, tight end Jake Stoneburner said, "Getting the Gold Pants for sure."

Every Ohio State player and coach who beats Michigan gets a miniature charm of gold pants inscribed with his initials and the score. The tradition is considered so sacred at Ohio State that center Mike Brewster didn't even think of giving his latest version of the Gold Pants to a girlfriend. Instead, the junior gave his to his mother.