Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Tressel honored, Pryor vilified in Fourth of July parades in Ohio

There are few things more distinctly American than apple pie, baseball and, of course, former Ohio State coach Jim Tressel.

At least that was the case in Westerville, Ohio as parade-goers were treated to a "Tribute to Tressel" where men, women and children dressed up in their favorite gray or red sweater vests and celebrated the man who helped put the Buckeyes in hot water with the NCAA.

But the tribute, led by the blue Dodge called the "Tressel Vessel," wasn't about Tressel's present or even his future. It was about his past, which included a 106-22 record, a 9-1 record against Michigan, seven Big Ten titles and one national championship (it's all right there on the banner). That's the way these Ohio State fans decided to remember their coach, not the guy who lied to his school and the NCAA as he tried to cover up misdeeds by his players.

The back of the banner reads: "We love you coach" while two people on riding lawnmowers follow behind.

The guy yelling a similar sentiment in the background of the video was also quite moving.

I wonder how many of the children exploited for this presentation actually knew what they were standing up for? Aw, who cares? They were in a parade.

But about 86 miles north of Columbus, in Arlington, Ohio, the Fourth of July parade decided to honor Ohio State in a different way.

One car in the Arlington parade represented "Pryor's Tattoo and Gold Exchange." While the owners of the "float" might have paid more to be in the parade than they actually paid for the car, it's the thought that counts. The car, similar to it's float counterpart in Columbus, also seemed to be in support of Tressel. Note the awesome drawing of the knife going into the back of an unidentified character wearing a sweater vest pasted to the back of the car.

The only thing that would have made the presentation better would have been if the car was a Dodge Challenger or a Nissan 350z.

Alecia Elliott Kat Von D Ana Paula Lemes Vanessa Simmons Chyler Leigh

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