Ohio Lawmakers want the Buckeyes' 2010 wins back.
Lawmakers in Ohio have brought forth a resolution petitioning the NCAA to reinstate Ohio State's wins from the 2010 season that were vacated due to players receiving improper benefits as part of the "Tattoogate" scandal, the Columbus Dispatch reports.
Ohio State vacated 12 wins from the 2010 season after Terrelle Pryor, Boom Herron, DeVier Posey, Mike Adams and Solomon Thomas were found to have exchanged memorabilia in return for tattoos, improperly profiting off of their name image and likeness.
State Rep. Brian Stewart, who is sponsoring the resolution, says that vacated wins unfairly hurt players and coaches that had nothing to do with the scandal, and points out that the NCAA has recently radically altered its rules regarding player name, image and likeness.
"This resolution does not say anything about the sanctions," Stewart told The Dispatch. "This resolution says enough is enough. The NCAA's view of what is permissible for players has changed drastically in the last twelve years."
It's worth noting that while the NCAA does now allow athletes to profit off of their name, image, and likeness, Ohio State's current name, image and likeness guidelines still prohibit athletes from selling team-issued equipment and apparel until NCAA eligibility is exhausted, so the "Tattoogate" scandal still would not have been permissible today.
This is not the first time an attempt has been made to reinstate Ohio State's 2010 season. Shortly after the NCAA's new name, image, and likeness rules went into effect over the summer, the "Tattoo 5" of Pryor, Herron, Posey, Adams, and Thomas wrote an open letter to the NCAA requesting the wins, records and legacies from the 2010 season be restored.
"Although this could never undo what we and our families endured for breaking rules that shouldn't have existed in the first place, we believe reinstating and acknowledging the accomplishments of ourselves and our teammates would be a huge step in the right direction," the letter stated.
The NCAA has previously said that it would not consider reversing penalties or previously vacated records from past years based on recent changes to name, image and likeness regulations, and similarly denied Reggie Bush reinstatement of his 2005 Heisman Trophy season.
