The tone of Oklahoma State's response to allegations has been serious and determined.
That is the type of precise and aggressive path OSU should follow as a series of investigative stories by Sports Illustrated continues to unfold.
OSU athletic director Mike Holder has taken the high road so far, saying and doing the right things. We assume this type of informed yet transparent tone in OSU's response will continue.
If so, regardless of the outcome, it will shine a new, brighter and better light on OSU football.
So far, if Sports Illustrated's purpose was to tear down a football program, for whatever reason, it isn't playing so well in the court of public opinion.
No one should be shocked that disgruntled former athletes, most tossed from the team or school for various reasons, would say nasty things about OSU.
And this is not about Sports Illustrated. The magazine has to answer - and has been with numerous media appearances by a few selected staffers - for credibility.
This is about Oklahoma State and how it deals with one of the ugliest moments in the school's football history.
This goes to the very core of what college football should be about, not only at Oklahoma State but at every school.
That's the bigger issue. If OSU was singled out because it was a struggling football program that became prominent in a short period of time, then Stanford, Northwestern, Vanderbilt and Baylor should be put on notice that investigative journalists will soon be visiting with former athletes. All four of those schools, after years of much bigger struggles in football than OSU, are enjoying a renaissance.
We seriously doubt Sports Illustrated is going to spend a year investigating possible wrongdoing in Palo Alto, Evanston, Nashville or Waco.
So, the question doesn't appear to be about the reporting and motivation for such a series of stories. Those issues will be debated and determined in the coming months.
In the end, it comes down to how OSU deals with the fallout of these stories.
No question Oklahoma State's name and brand has been tarnished. You can't turn on a television or radio talk show without OSU being discussed.
And there is little question that Sports Illustrated has likely been shocked by the number of journalists around the country questioning the validity and/or reasons for the stories.
But this will come down to OSU and how it responds in the coming months.
Most schools have taken a different path in response.
Southern California, Ohio State, Alabama, Miami and a number of other schools at various times in recent years have responded in a somewhat defiant tone to media allegations of wrongdoing in college football.
So far, that has not been Oklahoma State's response.
There will be some who believe OSU hasn't been aggressive enough in responding to the allegations. Yet, OSU has set up a website to address the issues. That may not be a perfect way to do it, but it is better than no response.
By responding as OSU investigates these issues, and either resolves or can't verify allegations, Oklahoma State will be showing some degree of transparency.
It allows OSU fans, alums, media and anyone interested to look at facts being uncovered by OSU and make a rational decision about the validity of the allegations.
If all of this sounds complicated and overwhelming, it is because it is complicated and overwhelming.
This is not a quick fix. Regardless of how many or if any of these allegations are found to be true, there is no doubt about the short-term damage done to Oklahoma State.
When Holder said Monday the Cowboys would eventually "shine up" the brand and move on, he was talking about repairing the harm done by these stories regardless of merit.
Make no mistake. These are sad times for OSU.
Instead of celebrating what has been such an uplifting era in OSU football, the program has now been placed perhaps unfairly under a cloud of suspicion.
But if OSU continues to do the right thing - be transparent and serious about looking at all of these allegations - there's a good chance the Cowboys emerge even better.
Read John Klein's blog at
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Jimmie Tramel talks SI investigation.
Original Print Headline: Transparency is OSU's best weapon
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OSU football investigation
On Monday, Oklahoma State announced the hiring of Charles E. Smrt to lead an independent review of alleged misconduct in the OSU football program.
In the final chapter of "The Dirty Game," Sports Illustrated said so many players have been jettisoned from the Oklahoma State football program and wound up in bad situations that this question should be asked: "How much did the program really care?"
