Trouble in Athens, OH??

[TexRef]

It has been a while since the issue in Athens, Ohio with Ohio University. Has there been any movement? Will they release Joe? If so, who would want/apply for that job? How are the facilities? 

[MPhillips]

1 minute ago, TexRef said:

It has been a while since the issue in Athens, Ohio with Ohio University. Has there been any movement? Will they release Joe? If so, who would want/apply for that job? How are the facilities? 

There hasn't been any new news around CBUS since it began. 

[nhs67]

Some kids were on Twitter over it yesterday.

Apparently they have had zero access to their coaches since it started, the investigation was completed and innocence was either found or proven, and they are pissed that they aren't being given any sort of attention, as student-athletes, from the Ohio administration.

[mspart]

What is this about?  I haven't heard of this.

mspart

[Idaho]

I forgot all about this story... They best be getting things in order this summer before school starts. 

[TexRef]

1 hour ago, mspart said:

What is this about?  I haven't heard of this.

mspart

https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/athens/ohio-university-wrestling-coaches-on-leave-as-police-investigate-assaults/

[mspart]

Ok, thanks for that TR.   So the coaches are on administrative leave.   What else should be done?   Innocent until proven guilty correct?   So they stay on administrative leave until they find enough evidence to charge or don't.  

After I left my HS, we had a new coach come in that was my brother's coach.   Apparently he had an assistant who beat up the kids regularly, showing them that he was meaner and tougher than the HS kids.    I would count that as assault too.   I was in college when that happened so wasn't anywhere near and only heard about it after the coach was let go and my brother told me.   I'm not big on assault, especially from a coach.   That's why I was incensed about what Zalesky allowed at OSU when Nick  Simmons was assistant there.   I can't find a link but it happened and that was my turnaround on Zalesky.   I was very happy he was fired from there. 

mspart

[flyingcement]

 

[wrestle87]

On 6/15/2023 at 2:15 AM, mspart said:

Ok, thanks for that TR.   So the coaches are on administrative leave.   What else should be done?   Innocent until proven guilty correct?   So they stay on administrative leave until they find enough evidence to charge or don't.  

After I left my HS, we had a new coach come in that was my brother's coach.   Apparently he had an assistant who beat up the kids regularly, showing them that he was meaner and tougher than the HS kids.    I would count that as assault too.   I was in college when that happened so wasn't anywhere near and only heard about it after the coach was let go and my brother told me.   I'm not big on assault, especially from a coach.   That's why I was incensed about what Zalesky allowed at OSU when Nick  Simmons was assistant there.   I can't find a link but it happened and that was my turnaround on Zalesky.   I was very happy he was fired from there. 

mspart

Uh…so not to be that guy, but what is this about? I missed this one.

[MPhillips]

3 minutes ago, wrestle87 said:

Uh…so not to be that guy, but what is this about? I missed this one.

Did you click the link four post' up?

[wrestle87]

13 minutes ago, MPhillips said:

Did you click the link four post' up?

Yup, I was asking about Oregon State.

Unless I’m being particularly dense, I didn’t see anything in the link about that.

[MPhillips]

46 minutes ago, wrestle87 said:

Unless I’m being particularly dense

That must be me in this instance. Mea culpa.

[wrestle87]

1 hour ago, MPhillips said:

That must be me in this instance. Mea culpa.

No sweat no sweat

[mspart]

4 hours ago, wrestle87 said:

Uh…so not to be that guy, but what is this about? I missed this one.

I am sorry to say that I have searched all over the internet for that story.   It used to be there but I am not searching correctly. 

As I remember it, the OSU wrestlers were playing something on a field.  Nick Simmons had a problem with one of them and decked him.   Zalesky did nothing.   It is probably discussed on the old themat or theopenmat forums.   But they are gone now.   Simmons should not have done what he did and Zalesky should have fired him on the spot.  On theopenmat forum we had a dad in Oregon that was wary of Zalesky and actually pulled his kid out of the program, not just due to this but to other things his kid said were going on.   It was a bad situation there and Zalesky could have been a man and did something about it, but he couldn't have cared less about anything.   That became apparent about 5 years into his time there. 

mspart

[wrestle87]

5 hours ago, mspart said:

I am sorry to say that I have searched all over the internet for that story.   It used to be there but I am not searching correctly. 

As I remember it, the OSU wrestlers were playing something on a field.  Nick Simmons had a problem with one of them and decked him.   Zalesky did nothing.   It is probably discussed on the old themat or theopenmat forums.   But they are gone now.   Simmons should not have done what he did and Zalesky should have fired him on the spot.  On theopenmat forum we had a dad in Oregon that was wary of Zalesky and actually pulled his kid out of the program, not just due to this but to other things his kid said were going on.   It was a bad situation there and Zalesky could have been a man and did something about it, but he couldn't have cared less about anything.   That became apparent about 5 years into his time there. 

mspart

This is brutal, and really makes me feel bad for what some wrestlers run into in terms of abrasive personalities and bad coaches in their pursuit of their own goals.

I sure as heck can say it also mirrors a lot of my own experience back in the day dealing with coaches in recruiting and then wrestling in college.  I’m sorry to say at the college level, my personal experience was that more than half of the coaches I had long term interactions with were angry and duplicitous people who made their athletes lived and skills worse.  

There are the rare individuals who truly care about building relationships, supporting and developing their athletes into human beings of character, but my goodness was it few and far between.

Direct quote from an old teammate, “Yeah, it sucked, but the upside was it made me find things to care about outside wrestling.”

[1032004]

 

 

[juniorvarsity]

so i have only heard part of the story because the OUPD says there were two kids... but what i heard was some kid was out getting in fights at the bars the night before a practice. he goes with one of the coaches the next day and claims he got hurt, so the kid's rich parents tried to press charges. the kid transfers out and is already at a different school. apparently the criminal investigation is over and nothing happened with it. i do not know if there is a pending civil suit. maybe that is why the coaches are not back yet.

[nhs67]

So... where the hell do the coaches stand with this?  Are they still not allowed in the room?

This is essentially a death sentence to the program for the foreseeable.  It is a mid-MAC school in their better years and this sets them back at the very best-case for this season.  Nevermind the recruiting aspect that would set them back for the next few seasons as well...

[Idaho]

1 hour ago, nhs67 said:

So... where the hell do the coaches stand with this?  Are they still not allowed in the room?

This is essentially a death sentence to the program for the foreseeable.  It is a mid-MAC school in their better years and this sets them back at the very best-case for this season.  Nevermind the recruiting aspect that would set them back for the next few seasons as well...

Good question. All coaches are still listed on the website. Now that the situation has been put to rest legally (barring new info), I don't see a positive path forward for this program that does not involve the coaching staff being dismissed. If I remember correctly there were around 5 kids that went to the portal after this? I am guessing that we will see some sort of statement soon from the university. 

 

[rpbobcat]

42 minutes ago, Idaho said:

Good question. All coaches are still listed on the website. Now that the situation has been put to rest legally (barring new info), I don't see a positive path forward for this program that does not involve the coaching staff being dismissed. If I remember correctly there were around 5 kids that went to the portal after this? I am guessing that we will see some sort of statement soon from the university. 

 

I just heard that the asst. coach  who was the wrestling partner has left the program.

[flyingcement]

5 hours ago, Idaho said:

Good question. All coaches are still listed on the website. Now that the situation has been put to rest legally (barring new info), I don't see a positive path forward for this program that does not involve the coaching staff being dismissed. If I remember correctly there were around 5 kids that went to the portal after this? I am guessing that we will see some sort of statement soon from the university. 

 

They had three portal entries after last season.  One guy is still in the portal and the other two have found teams.  

 

[flyingcement]

This extended state of limbo sucks for the wrestlers and fans of the Bobcats

[rpbobcat]

It would be nice to think that, now that the legal issues have been resolved,

O.U.'s President or Athletic Director would issue some type of statement.

But, they both seem to be doing a very good impression of "Where's Waldo".

I would also like to think that, even if they don't  issue a public statement ,

someone would have told the wrestlers and coaching staff what's going

on.

But, based on their past actions, or lack there of  I don't think it has/will happen either.

 

 

[rpbobcat]

Yesterday Ohiobobcats.com posted Ohio University's 2023-24 Wrestling Schedule.

The piece says the Head Coach is back.

Guess that's the only "official  announcement"  the Athletic Department or Administration intends to make.

 

Edited September 7, 2023 by rpbobcat

[flyingcement]

5 hours ago, rpbobcat said:

Yesterday Ohiobobcats.com posted Ohio University's 2023-24 Wrestling Schedule.

The piece says the Head Coach is back.

Guess that's the only "official  announcement"  the Athletic Department or Administration intends to make.

 

Sounds like a major lapse in communication here from the school.  What are we to believe has taken place?  If the coaches are innocent of the accusations then say so.  To quietly reinstate but to make no comment makes me think that there was a shade of grey in terms of what actually happened here, and the institution does not know how to articulate it.