Nice Guys Finish

Courtesy: Huffington Post

Yeah, I know the saying: “Nice guys finish last.” Leo Durocher said it…well, sort of. He was referring to the 1946 New York (baseball) Giants, saying: “The nice guys are over there … in 7th (last) place.” Accuracy aside, the four-word attribution stuck—so much so that even Durocher adopted it: his autobiography is so-named.

While the presumed aphorism isn’t true, it does serve another function: it epitomizes America’s struggle with what people perceive it takes to succeed. People don’t want scoundrels to come out on top, but there’s enough evidence to conclude they often do.

Nice guys don’t always finish last, but they almost always finish. That’s what Jim Tressel is doing. He’s finishing. He’s completing the circle—from rise, to fall, to rise again. On July 1 Tressel—the former head football coach at Ohio State—will become president of Youngstown State University.

Courtesy: Cleveland.com

It’s an incredible story, one that would stretch a Hollywood script writer’s imagination.

If anybody was born to be a football coach it’s Jim Tressel.  Lee, his dad, was a high school and college coach. Jim played quarterback for Lee at Baldwin Wallace in the mid-70s. Lee won a Division III national championship at BW a few years after Jim graduated.  And, like dad, Jim would go on to win a national championship of his own—five, actually—four at Youngstown State (I-AA) and one at Ohio State.

It wasn’t surprising that Tressel would end up at Ohio State. He’s an Ohioan through and through. Tressel was born in Mentor. He played college ball in Berea. He was a football graduate assistant and completed his master’s degree at Akron. He was a position coach at Miami (OH). He was YSU’s head man for 15 years. And he served as an OSU assistant under Earle Bruce. Those experiences—especially the YSU success and tie to OSU—made for a good fit at Ohio State.

Few could imagine just how good.

Over a ten-year span (2001-10) OSU won over 80% of the time and strung together two 19-game winning streaks. The Buckeyes played in three national championship games—winning one (2002)—and finished in the Top Five nationally (AP) six times. OSU dominated the Big Ten by winning seven conference championships and going 8-1 against Michigan. And from 2006-10—the second half of Tressel’s tenure in Columbus—the Buckeyes lost only four Big Ten games and seven non-conference + bowl games. That’s eleven losses, total, in five years. Simply incredible!

Then it came to a crashing end.

In May 2011 Tressel resigned as OSU’s head man. He knew that several of his players—star players—were exchanging OSU memorabilia for services (tattoos): a former Buckeye player told him so. But, when asked about it by different authorities, Tressel kept quiet. He later gave reasons—they were more like excuses—why he withheld information. Tressel knew the rules.

It wasn’t the first time Tressel had faced a difficult situation. Years earlier, a local booster had given benefits to a Youngstown star player. The NCAA concluded that YSU didn’t investigate the matter carefully, but Tressel wasn’t charged with misconduct.

There were implications now: YSU + OSU = a pattern of concern. The NCAA put a collar on Tressel. Any school wishing to hire him as head coach (through 2016) would have to make a convincing case to the NCAA (“show cause” is the term). Even with NCAA approval there’d be limitations. In year one Tressel wouldn’t be able to coach in about half of the regular-season games. He’d also be banned from post-season play.

These were sanctions with teeth, making Tressel unattractive to other schools. The Association essentially ended his college coaching career. This 5-time national coach of the year would need to switch gears.

Tressel’s story wasn’t going to end in disgrace. There wouldn’t be a Pete Rose scenario this time. You can understand why by watching ESPN’s 30-for-30 documentary, Youngstown Boys (2013). It’s about the Maurice Clarett saga at OSU—an important storyline associated with the Tressel years at Ohio State— leading up to and following the national championship year.

Courtesy: Youngstown Boys

Tressel is interviewed extensively in the piece. Watch him carefully. Evaluate how he looks; how he phrases things; and how he presents himself. What you’ll see is a thoughtful and forthcoming respondent. What you won’t see is defensiveness. There’s no blaming others or moaning “woe is me.”  Tressel is well-spoken, presentable, and calm—just the way he was on the sidelines and in press conferences. He looks and acts professorial.

By the time the ESPN documentary hit the airwaves Tressel was already writing the next chapter of his life. It was the Tressel version of Back-to-the-Future Redux. In Chapter 1 (early 2012) the University of Akron hired alumnus Tressel as a vice president. He focused on enhancing student success and, later, on assisting the university’s president.

Tressel took on new duties with gusto. By all accounts he flourished, focusing seriously and with great energy on an important task—helping students succeed. People took note. He became a finalist for UA’s presidency. Although Tressel didn’t get the job (it went to an academic at a peer institution) it opened the door for Back-to-the-Future, Chapter 2—being named YSU president in 2014.

To understand this turnaround story all you have to do is listen to what people say about Tressel. Just a few days ago admirers held a good-bye reception for him at Akron. Here are some of the comments: “Insightful. “Inspirational.” “Unselfish.”  “Generous and kind.” “He takes time for everyone” (Akron Beacon-Journal 5/27/14). And what are they saying in Youngstown? “He has personality and leadership skills.” “He has widespread community support.” “He’ll be a cheerleader, the face of the university.” “(his return to YSU) “is getting people excited.” (CNN.com, 5/9/14)

But let’s be clear: the integrity issues won’t “just go away.”  Tressel will live with them for the rest of his life. Yet, what happened, happened. The past doesn’t have to be the future’s script. “Live and learn” are words to live by.

That’s a tall order for Tressel, though. For all his strengths—and they are many and considerable—past behaviors reveal issues. But if there’s anyone who can make a turnaround stick, it’s Jim Tressel.

He’s back on top, by golly, full of energy and geeked about this new and big challenge.

Tressel is finishing.

ENDNOTE: Tressel’s resurrection at Akron is as much a story about Akron as it is about him. Remember Jerry Faust? Akron hired him in 1986 on the rebound from Notre Dame to coach the Zips. He later served UA as a fundraiser. Remember Terry Bowden? He was Auburn’s head football coach (1993-98, 47-17-1) before being let go in a squabble with boosters. Out of big-time coaching for over ten years, Bowden returned to the scene in 2012 as Akron’s head coach. (In the 80s he had been an assistant there under Faust.) The pattern at Akron didn’t happen by accident. Attribution goes, in part, to Bill Muse who served as UA president from 1984-1992. Dr. Muse, another nice guy, finishes.