COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Two days after several Ohio State freshmen proudly displayed wristbands supporting deposed Buckeyes coach Jim Tressel, the university has taken away the wristbands and refunded the players’ money.
Ohio State spokesman Jerry Emig says Friday that officials wondered if wearing the wristbands — which said “JT” on them — were an NCAA violation. Emig says Ohio State decided to take a “cautionary” approach after the wristbands, which were sold by an Ohio State staffer, were mentioned prominently in several media reports.
At a news conference on Wednesday to introduce the freshmen, several wore the wristbands. They said they did so out of support for Tressel, who was forced out on May 30 for knowing players had broken NCAA rules but not reporting it.
