OK, but Vrabel is joining the program as it enters a tailspin and coaches are judged by winning.
Seems like a terrible career move to me.
The program isn't really entering a tailspin, Triumph. That would be the exact same as someone saying that we were entering a tailspin when Spygate happened.
The program (mainly the head coach) was under major scrutiny for not handling a situation (that was mainly Pryor's doing) in the correct manner. He also lied to the NCAA of any knowledge, when emails have proven that he knew beforehand, and tried to sweep it under the rug. Both of those guys are gone now, and that's what everyone wanted. That's what all of the big news was about, Pryor and Tressel.
When you have 3th and 4th stringers that would be starters on a lot of other programs, and you are one of the winningest programs in the NCAA (actually THE winningest over the past 15 yrs), taking on a coaching job there has to be a good thing.
The current coaches don't have anything to do with that controversy. Ohio State will play at a high level still, even if they only go 8-4 or so average--over the next 5 yrs.
It's a great move for Vrabel to get his foot in the door there, as he has the capacity to move up to DC in a few yrs, and he could possibly even be the future head coach of one of the biggest football programs in the country.
In other words, even if they went 0-11 for the next 5 yrs, it'd still be a great move that any coach in their right mind would jump on. The overall strength of the program, the history of the program, the current high-status etc will not change because of one controversy.
It's possible that they may not be able to play in a "major" bowl for the next year or two (worst case), and probable that they forfeit some past games and have scholarship sanctions. The NCAA could've possibly suspended Tressel and Pryor--maybe even permanently. That's what they pretty much wanted, for those 2 guys to be punished. The program itself will obviously be punished, but nowhere near the extent of the magnitude of losing a great head coach in Tressel. He did the right thing for the university by resigning.