Terms of Tressel's exit nearly finished
6/12/2011
Former Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel, left, former OSU quarterback Terrelle Pryor.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
E. Gordon Gee, president of The Ohio State University.
A deal sealing Jim Tressel's departure from Ohio State University -- including whether the university will pay the former football coach or whether he owes any money -- should be completed this week, OSU President E. Gordon Gee said Saturday.
Gee would not detail any proposals, saying that attorneys for the university and Tressel are negotiating those now.
"We will resolve this thing really quickly," Gee said, adding that an agreement could be presented this week to the university's board of trustees, who meet on Thursday and Friday.
In his first sit-down interview about the scandal that led to Tressel's departure, Gee said Saturday that:
• Tressel was not given an ultimatum that forced him to resign.
• The coach withheld information but did not directly lie about his knowledge of players' misdeeds under questioning by Ohio State officials.
• He (Gee) "did not bring credit to the university" by the way he handled the "disastrous" March 8 news conference to discuss Tressel's actions.
The coach resigned on May 30 amid widening allegations of wrongdoing in the football program.
University officials will meet with the NCAA on Aug.12 to discuss whether Ohio State should face further sanctions after a scandal that began with the revelation that six players, including former quarterback Terrelle Pryor, traded or sold memorabilia. After the initial tip to the university, OSU's legal office found evidence that Tressel had known about the allegations for at least eight months.