College football coaches are usually the most revered and highly paid figures on college campuses and often times in the state. However, behind the scenes college presidents are the authority wielding the scepters.
Jim Tressel was banished from Ohio State because of his unwillingness to snitch on student-athletes to the NCAA and has been slumming it at the University of Akron in the interim as the executive vice president of student success. In his new role, the NCAA can't touch him.
Legendary college coaches usually get promoted to athletic director jobs once they ascend to another plane of football existence, however, Tressel is a different breed. Football and athletics aren't the end all, be all for the national championship coach. The Senator has always conveyed the dignity of a professor and at Akron, he's taught a class called "Principles of Coaching" along with another professor.
On Tuesday, Akron announced that Tressel was among three candidate pool to succeed outgoing the outgoing president. The other choices hail from outside the current administration including provost of Maryland Eastern Shore and the current provost at the University of Toledo. Each of the finalists will visit the Akron campus and meet with several prominent campus groups including faculty, college deans, trustees and the public.
From the outside looking in, it sounds like Tressel's got this one in the bag. This the championship game of academia job promotions. Hopefully he comes out the other end better than he did after his final two BCS championship games.
