In a report today via Cleveland.com and the Plain Dealer's Doug Lesmerises, Ohio State was warned about the activities of Columbus photographer Dennis Talbott, who is a central figure in the scandal in Buckeye Country involving alleged payments to players for autographs -- most notably to Terrelle Pryor, who recently left the OSU football program -- as far back as 2007, and that ex-coach Jim Tressel specifically received that warning first-hand.
The report claims that Tressel received an email on March 21, 2007, advising Tressel of Talbott's alleged actions. Specifically, the email from "a source" had this to say:
"He (Talbott) has sold over 50 items with underclassmen signatures before their eligibility expires and would seem to be someone that both you and the university is aware of. I have a full report of his eBay activities if you would like to explore further or require documentation."
Allegedly, Talbott paid Pryor between $20,000 and $40,000 for Pryor's signature on memorabilia.
Lesmerides had this to say in the body of his story:
"With Tressel's resignation, Pryor's decision to leave the team and the fact that Talbott is not under NCAA jurisdiction, the issue at hand isn't about a coach, a quarterback or a photographer.
The issue is whether Ohio State had reason to act when it came to Talbott's access to the team; whether his continued presence around the program led to any NCAA violations that could have been prevented; and whether those at Ohio State committed potential violations if they failed to follow up on information."
Undoubtedly, yet more revelations, accusations and declarations will be forthcoming...
Stay tuned.