Clarett Implicates Tressel, Ohio State

In this week's issue of ESPN The Magazine, controversial running back Maurice Clarett attempts to perform damage control with NFL owners and general managers concerning his image as the 2005 NFL Draft looms on the horizon. But with his recent claim that he took the fall for the Ohio State football program, he may have further alienated potential suitors.

In Clarett's interview, he claims that head coach Jim Tressel arranged loaner cars for him use while Tressel's brother, Dick, lined up landscaping jobs that he didn't even have to show up for. He also told of boosters slipping him cash and an academic advisor who enrolled in him in classes with teachers who would pass him whether he attended classes or not.

Now, I'm not naive enough to believe that none of this stuff happens at Ohio State. In my view, it's a problem that runs wild through a lot of top college football programs. But the problem with going public with his claims, whether they are legit of not, is that he continues to enforce his image as a player willing to buck the system to get what he wants.

Based on his performance as a freshman, Clarett has the skills to be a second or third-round selection in the next draft, but his time away from the game and concerns of a me-first attitude, which he continually reinforces, could see him still on the board well into the second day. Of course, if the youngster shows up in great shape and posts good numbers at the NFL Combine in February, there will probably be at least one GM who is willing to overlook his off-field issues and take a chance on him on the first day.