Former Ohio State wide receiver Ray Small has been a lightning rod for drama from the moment he stepped on Ohio State’s campus. He was constantly in Coach Tressel’s dog house or suspended for violating the teams rules. He has been away from the Ohio State program since 2010 but that doesn’t mean he has kept the OSU name out of the media in regards to his actions. Let’s take a look at some of his actions.
In 2008, after multiple rules violations, Coach Tressel suspended Ray Small for one game. That didn’t sit well with Ray Small’s father, Ken Small, who had this to say about the suspension:
“They’re intentionally trying to blow his career,” Ken Small told The Associated Press by telephone from his home in suburban Columbus.
But Tressel and Small came to an agreement and it seemed like things would go smoothly but you could tell that there was always an underlying issue of Ray being in Tressel’s doghouse. Did it effect his career at Ohio State? Almost certainly. He had a ton of talent but never lived up to potential. He wasn’t drafted and after becoming a free agent signee, never made it out of pre-season camp and has been out of football since.
Then came the tatgate scandal that was primed to take down Coach Tressel and you could almost sense that Ray Small was salivating at the chance to gain some “revenge” for a coach he really did love but was angry at and blamed for his football career failures. In May of 2011, he got his chance and had these things to say to Ohio State newspaper The Lantern:
Small told The Lantern on Wednesday he profited off of memorabilia while at Ohio State, adding that some student-athletes “don’t even think about (NCAA) rules.”
“I had sold my things but it was just for the money,” Small said. “At that time in college, you’re kind of struggling.”
The wheeling and dealing didn’t stop with rings. The best deals came from car dealerships, Small said. “It was definitely the deals on the cars. I don’t see why it’s a big deal,” said Small, who identified Jack Maxton Chevrolet as the players’ main resource.
“They have a lot (of dirt) on everybody,” Small said, “cause everybody was doing it.”
The article was full of accusations. Some were true and others not so much. He was a kid on a mission to get even with those he deemed had wronged him.
Although I am sure he thought this might vindicate him, it estranged him from the school and teammates who all came out in droves to disassociate themselves from him and the school. He previously had a seemingly successful career of club promoting going in Columbus but that ended shortly after he became a pariah.
Things have been spiraling out of control since then for Ray Small. In February of 2012 he ran into some serious legal troubles in Ohio. Once again The Lantern was able to provide some of the details:
According to a report from the Pomeroy Daily Sentinel, Trooper James Trelka of the Gallia-Meigs Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol arrested Small, 24, Sunday at 5:56 p.m.
The report said that Small, according to Sgt. Barry Call of the Gallia-Meigs Post, allegedly possessed 243 suspected Oxycontin pills, an undisclosed amount of suspected heroin, hand-rolled marijuana cigarettes and a loaded 25-caliber pistol.
This case is still open and heading to trial soon but in the meantime, back in May of this year, Ray Small started to make amends with Ohio State, his former teammates, Coach Tressel, and the fans with this video:
In the video, Small apologies to his high school coach in Cleveland, Ted Ginn Sr., as well as Tressel and Darrell Hazell, the Buckeyes wide receivers coach during his career.
“I truly am sorry for my actions,” Small said. “… Coach Hazell was like my favorite guy because he always kept it strictly real with me. I want to apologize to Coach Tressel because he told me, he tried, he gave me many, many chances. I’m just here today to speak up on my behalf, saying that I’m a man and I understand the things that I did wrong.”
and
We would have hoped his spiral would have stopped there and he had turned his life around but, alas, that didn’t happen. There is news out today that he was arrested again last night on more drugs and weapons charges. It would seem Ray Small is destined for a long time behind bars and a product of his own devastating decisions in life. News of his arrest is being reported by Fox 28 news in Columbus, Ohio:
Ray Small, former Buckeye wide receiver from 2006-2009, was arrested last night in Franklin County. A Franklin County Grand Jury had indicted Small on narcotics trafficking and drug possession charges, including a firearm specification.
According to the Franklin County prosecutor, Ron O’Brien, Columbus Police raided Small’s Ferris Road apartment in April and found drugs and guns. Officials say they seized nearly $4,500 in cash, digital scales used in weighing drugs, over 400 Oxycodone and Alprazolam (Xanax) pills, and heroin.
Along with the pills, police also recovered a .380 semi-automatic handgun and an SKS assault rifle.
Hopefully Ray Small can turn his life around but it will be much harder now with these major criminal cases suffocating him until they are resolved. He still has a chance to become the man Coach Tressel tried to shape him to become but it is all on him now.
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