Tag: Coronavius

Attorney Tom Mars working closely with Big Ten football parent movement

Buckeyes Wire has learned that multiple Big Ten parents and parent groups are using attorney Tom Mars to push the league for answers.

Ohio State and other Big Ten football parents are revolting, looking for answers, and they have apparently turned to a prominent, trusted force in attorney and collegiate player advocate Tom Mars.

If the name is familiar to Buckeye fans, it should be. Mars successfully represented Justin Fields’ appeal to the NCAA to be granted a waiver for immediate eligibility when he transferred from Georgia to Ohio State at the conclusion of the 2018 season. He also has assisted other high profile college athletes on similar matters, including Michigan’s Shea Patterson.

Big Ten parents’ courtship with Mars

Buckeyes Wire has learned that Mars has been approached by several different football parents and parent groups to provide guidance, support and leverage to help move the cause of transparency along. Though specific parents or parent groups were not confirmed by Mars because of client confidentiality, Mars said he is being leaned on heavily through a process that hopes to push the Big Ten into more cooperation and communication surrounding the league’s decision to postpone the fall football season.

“It started with a core group of parents who I agreed to help and it sort of expanded without my help to a larger group of people who probably see me as their lawyer, some of whom I’ve never even spoken with,” Mars told Buckeyes Wire.

Mars’ office has sent letters to all 13 public Big Ten institutions under each state’s Freedom of Information statutes, requesting detailed communications between the universities and Big Ten officials. Buckeyes Wire was able to obtain the letter sent to Ohio State, and an OSU spokesman confirmed receipt of the letter. Mars also told Buckeyes Wire that OSU acknowledged receipt of the letter to him via email and has communicated efforts to provide a response in a “reasonable amount of time,” as dedicated by Ohio’s open records law.

Mars’ bigger role and support for Big Ten parents

However, Buckeyes Wire also has learned that Mars has assisted in compiling some of the language in parent group letters to the Big Ten and conference Commissioner Kevin Warren. Mars did not explicitly confirm he had a hand in the #B1GParentsUnited letter sent by a coalition of Big Ten parents on Wednesday, but he said he has been influencing direction for the parents throughout this process.

“I do operate behind the scenes in pretty much everything that I’m working on, whether that be college sports or something else,” said Mars. “I cannot comment on that particular letter, but yes, I probably had some influence in the messaging and communications that come out of different groups.”

The Big Ten announced its decision to postpone fall sports on Aug. 11 amid concerns over the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Since then, the league has come under fire as three other Power Five conferences (SEC, Big 12 and ACC) have continued to work toward the start of their seasons. The Pac-12 is the only other Power Five conference that also has announced a shelving of the fall football season.

Buckeyes Wire reached out to the Big Ten for comment Wednesday evening but has not received an official reply.

The Big Ten’s subdued response

While caution over the safety of student-athletes amid a global pandemic is hardly anything to be critical of, many observers feel the Big Ten needs to provide answers. Some say they deserve answers because they are directly impacted by the conference’s decision, namely the parents of football players that don’t have much of a platform to speak out.

Much of the parents’ criticism involves a lack of transparency and communication in making a decision that has significant impacts on hundreds of athletes and their families. Whereas the Pac-12 revealed significant details regarding medical advice and other key decision points, the Big Ten has remained relatively silent and vague about what went into its decision-making process.

Many observers have questioned whether there was even an official vote to reach a consensus on the announced decision to pause athletic competition. Some have said the Big Ten severely underestimated the pushback that it has encountered and may regret its actions. In fact, some sources claim that if another vote were held today, the results would be much different.

Truth will come out

Now, all of those questions and notions are being pushed by Mars and parent groups. There may be pushback along the way, but Mars said he is confident the information eventually will have to be handed over. When it does, there’s going to be a lot of information out there for almost anyone to see — good, bad, or indifferent.

Buckeyes Wire had a wide-ranging conversation with Mars on these topics and will have more in the coming days, but there are still some questions that aren’t going to go away. Why do Kevin Warren and the Big Ten continue to remain fairly silent, and specifically what went into a vote to postpone the season? Furthermore, why aren’t there more details being provided?

That’s the gist of what Mars is hoping to bring to light in cooperation with the various parent groups, and this appears to be just the start of it.

“Never underestimate a mob of angry parents,” Mars said.

 

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