A Look at the Jim Tressel Era So Far

Let's take a look at what Jim Tressel has done while he has been the coach of our beloved Buckeyes (2001-present):

• Record of 73 wins, 16 losses (.820 winning percentage - our beloved Woody had a .743 winning percentage in case you are curious. The only other Buckeye coach with a higher winning percentage was Carroll C. Widdoes who coached in 1944 and 1945, who held a record of 16-2 for a .889 winning percentage).
• 1 Unanimous National Championship (2002)
• 2 trips to the BCS national championship game (2006, 2007)
• 4 Big Ten titles (2 outright, 2 co-championships, interestingly enough one of the co-championships was in 2002 when they won the national championship; Iowa also went 8-0 in the conference and the Buckeyes and Hawkeyes did not play each other).
• A 6-1 record against the team from up north (only loss a 35-21 loss in 2003).
• A 4-3 record in bowl games (the only non-BCS national championship loss coming in his first year in 2001 when they lost to South Carolina in the Outback Bowl 31-28.

As far as intangibles go, Jim Tressel has brought national prominence to a program that had lost a little of its luster under John Cooper. He has built a program that expects to win, and is hated by everyone but Buckeye fans. He has proven that he can recruit the best (Clarett, Beanie, Pryor) and that he can mold players into greatness who weren't expected to do much (Troy Smith).

Yet questions still linger about his tenure. Let's be honest Buckeye fans. Our beloved Bucks got waxed in the last two national championship games. Does this have to do with Tressel, or the fact that the SEC truly has superior athletes, or at the least, play in a tougher conference week in and week out and are better prepared for a national championship game. Personally I happen to think it has more to do with the greatness of the '06 Gators and the '07 LSU Tigers rather than some sort of weakness in Jim Tressel's ability to coach. One thing is for sure. A national championship in 2008 for Jim Tressel's Buckeyes will make Tressel among OSU's greatest coaches of all time, if he is not already.

I love the man in the sweater vest.