Jim Tressel Resigns as Ohio State Head Coach

By Justin Worsley,

Jim Tressel has resigned as the head coach at Ohio State according to the Columbus Dispatch, ending an era that began with winning the National Championship and ending with a scandal.

Assistant head coach Luke Fickell will serve as the interim head coach for the upcoming season.

Tressel, 58, was hired by Ohio State in 2001 to replace John Cooper. In 2002, Tressel led the Buckeyes to their seventh National Championship and their first since 1970. Ohio State also made it to the 2007 and 2008 National Championship games, where they lost to Florida and LSU.

Ohio State has gone 106-22 under Tressel, the second-best winning percentage by a Buckeyes head coach. The Buckeyes have also dominated their rivalry with Michigan under Tressel, going 9-1 including a current seven-game winning streak.

While Tressel may be known for returning Ohio State to prominence as well as the sweater vest he routinely wore during his tenure, he ends his career under scrutiny. Just before the Sugar Bowl, the NCAA discovered that several players were selling autographed jerseys or one of their Big Ten championship rings to tattoo parlor owner Edward Rife, who has been arrested by the FBI for drug trafficking. The NCAA later found out that Tressel knew of the players activity and suspended him for two games and fined him $250,000. The five players, most notably quarterback Terrelle Pryor, will be forced to sit out the first five games this season.

Before coming to Ohio State, Tressel served as the head coach of Youngstown State, where he won four Division I-AA National Championships.