One of the upsides of having a child is the right to name him/her whatever the hell you damn please. Saddling them with a name of life can be tricky, however, and for any number of reasons, whether you opt for a trendy name (meaning your daughter is just one of 170 Kirstens at her high school), a family name (like Mordecai, or Walter, or something old-timey), or some complete made-up bullshit that’s not even acceptable if you’re Gwenyth Paltrow (Stardust, or Apple, for example.)
And then there’s the tribute name, which is problematic in scenarios where the person you were honoring by passing on their name to your progeny suffers a fall from grace, leaving your kid to deal with the life-long stain of someone they never met. Like, for instance, Jim Tressel.
Deadspin talked to Andy Tomcho, a native Clevelander who now lives in Chicago, about his decision to name his son Tressel, after the now fallen Ohio State Vest.
This article appears in Jun 1-7, 2011.
I am a native Ohioan living in Houston and my son who will be 8 in July is also named Tressel. We will be calling him “Tressel”. I hope my son will care for others and do as much for others as Jim Tressel has and will most likely continue to do. It is sad that Jim is no longer the coach however we will continue to honor the man that has meant so much to so many people.