Violations At Ohio State

Former OSU Player Claims Special Deals
James Oldham and Zack Meisel discuss their interview with former Ohio State WR Ray Small
Tags: Ray Small, The Lantern, OTL, James Oldham, Zack Meisel OSU WR On Selling RingsVIDEO PLAYLIST
OSU WR On Selling Rings
OSU WR On Selling Rings
Ray Small sits down with OTL to discuss selling rings while at Ohio StateFormer OSU Player Claims Special Deals
Former OSU Player Claims Special Deals
James Oldham and Zack Meisel discuss their interview with former Ohio State WR Ray Small
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Ray Small
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The Lantern
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OTL
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James Oldham
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Zack Meisel Should Jim Tressel Be Fired?
Should Jim Tressel Be Fired?
Stephen A. Smith, Skip Bayless think Jim Tressel should be fired
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First Take
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Stephen A. Smith
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Jim TresselThe Year Of Violations
The Year Of Violations
SportsCenter
Former Ohio State wide receiver Ray Small is calling an audible.

Small, who told the school's student newspaper that he sold Big Ten championship rings and other memorabilia for cash and got special car deals during his playing days, backpedaled Friday, saying his words were twisted.

"I've come back to retract my words, because there's two sides to every story, and I want to tell the world my side of the story," Small said in an interview Friday with ESPN's Tom Farrey.

Small admitted that he sold "just a couple of my rings," which is a violation of NCAA rules, but said he never said the words "we were all doing it."

"I never heard another player say he sold his ring," Small said.

Ohio State's student newspaper, The Lantern, issued a statement in reponse to Small's allegations.

"We, 100 percent, stand by our story," Lantern editor-in-chief Zach Meisel said. "Everything (Small) said was recorded."

Small said The Lantern reporter asked him about deals players received on cars, and that his answer referred to the deal he felt he got.

"Everybody just knew it was quicker to get a car from Jack Max (Jack Maxton Chevrolet), so you know, when you go to Jack Max, you could pick who you want to get a car from," Small said. "Who said that they was giving deals, if so, I didn't get a deal. I wish I did."

The Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles is investigating at least 50 transactions to try to determine whether athletes and their relatives received discounts not available to the public, which would be a violation of NCAA rules. Ohio State, which has suspended its investigation until the BMV investigation is complete, has said it has no reason to believe any violations occurred.

Small said he knew selling his rings was an NCAA violation but said he did it to make his rent and pay his car note.

"It was either break the rule or get evicted," he said. "That was the best thing I could do. I mean, you don't want me go doing anything illegal, which I don't do, you know what I mean? So it was the smartest plan I could come up with."

He said he doesn't remember how much he received and that he "gave them to my people, gave them to my cousin or something, told him bring me back the money." He said it was between $800 and $1,000 per ring.

Several Ohio State players have taken to Twitter to speak out against Small.

"Show me a coward and I will show you Ray Small," center Mike Brewster tweeted. "He isn't part of the sacred brotherhood anymore. Never on time, never accountable, never sacrificed for the team. Can you trust his word?"

Ohio State coach Jim Tressel and five of his players, including quarterback Terrelle Pryor, have been suspended for the first five games of the 2011 season because the players sold memorabilia to a tattoo-parlor owner for tattoos and cash. Tressel learned of the memorabilia sales in April 2010 but did not alert Ohio State officials. The school and the NCAA are still investigating.

The tattoo-parlor owner, Ed Rife, was indicted in Columbus on Friday on charges of drug trafficking and money laundering.

Small, who played from 2006 through 2009, said he does not know Rife and that he does not plan to talk to investigators unless he has to.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.