A History of Ohio State Football Uniforms

In recent years, the Ohio State Buckeyes have worn several different uniforms on the gridiron. Some uniforms honor past Buckeye teams while others appeal to a younger audience. Throughout the last several years, Nike has sponsored Ohio State athletics, and has significant influence on the recent alternate jerseys worn by the Buckeyes.

For many years, Ohio State stuck to their traditional uniforms for each game. However, starting in 2009, the Buckeyes took the field wearing new uniforms inspired by the 1954 OSU national championship team. The set, which debuted against bitter rival Michigan, featured a white helmet which displayed the players' number on both sides.  The Buckeyes have not worn a white helmet since.

In 2010, Ohio State debuted a second consecutive "Rivalry" uniform. This time, they faced the Wolverines at home and featured a new scarlet jersey and helmet. Once again, the uniform set honored a past Buckeye national championship team, this time from 1942.

The following year, the Buckeyes introduced Nike Pro Combat uniforms against Wisconsin. Once again, the uniform drew from the past, honoring the 50-year anniversary of coach Woody Hayes' 1961 national championship.

In 2012, the Buckeyes resumed their "Rivalry" uniform series against Michigan at Ohio Stadium. Unlike the previous three years, the Buckeyes brought back this flashy uniform set in later games (against Wisconsin and Penn State in 2013, Clemson in 2014, and Virginia Tech and Illinois in 2015.) The uniform paid homage to the 1968 title team.

The "Rivalry" uniforms continued in 2013 with what was essentially the "away" version of the set from 2012. The Buckeyes went with a white jersey and pants, and the helmets remained the same from the previous season. OSU also featured the uniforms against Penn State in 2014.

While nothing new was introduced during the regular season of 2014 for the Buckeyes, Ohio State did add very subtle changes to their jerseys in both of their playoff games which were later dropped from the uniform the following season. Last season, Ohio State went with "black out" uniforms against rival Penn State.

This season, Ohio State will debut throwback uniforms (from the 1916 season) at home against Nebraska as part of military appreciation night. Reports indicate that the uniforms may look like this:

Overall, Ohio State does a great job with their football uniforms. I believe their traditional scarlet and gray look is one of the best in college football. While some of their alternate uniforms have been hit or miss in my opinion, I am excited to see what Nike and Ohio State continue to produce in the following years.

(information found via elevenwarriors.com)

Week 4 Reaction Blog

Approximately 1.71 billion people use Facebook (as of 2016). While some from the younger generation might consider Facebook their parent's social media, regardless, Facebook is still extremely popular. Businesses worldwide use Facebook as a source of advertisement and a way to promote themselves.

Ginny Mineo talks about the ways businesses can most effectively use Facebook in his article "The Do's and Don'ts of How to Use Facebook for Business." He lists six "do's" and six "don'ts." Some of these ideas are very obvious (don't violate Facebook's terms and conditions) but others are not.

Mineo discusses posting during strategic times during the day to reach the maximum audience. Some statisticians believe that 1 PM to 4 PM is the time that people are most active on Facebook and other social media sites and are most willing to click and interact with an advertisement from a business. I believe that businesses are using analytics and/or advanced statistics more and more. This statistic is one example of that.

Similarly, Ginny Mineo discusses tracking URLs and Facebook insights. The goal from this "do" is to determine which posts are thriving and reaching a large audience. This again is another example of analytics in business.

Finally, Mineo talks about not posting too much. When I read this I definitely think I cheered inwardly. Nothing is more annoying than seeing the same advertisement over and over again. In my opinion, that may do the opposite effect of what the business had intended in the first place. If a business posts less, it will make the post that they do put forth more memorable.

Game Recap: #3 Ohio State vs. #14 Oklahoma

Even before the season began, sports fans and analysts all throughout the country highlighted the Ohio State vs. Oklahoma game as one of the top games to watch this college football season. Just a few weeks ago, the Associated Press came out with a ranking of the top college football programs of all time. Ohio State ranked #1, and Oklahoma ranked #2. Ohio State came into the game as the #3 team in the country, having easily defeated Bowling Green and Tulsa. The Sooners, on the other hand, dropped their opening game against Houston but rebounded with a win against Louisiana-Monroe. A lot was on the line for both teams, but the #14 Sooners were especially in need of a victory as a second loss would essentially eliminate Oklahoma from playoff contention. 

Plenty of drama surrounded the game leading up to kickoff. Oklahoma backup quarterback Austin Kendall called the OSU defense “really basic.” He added that OU starter Baker Mayfield would “light them up.” Ohio State heard about the comments and took to Twitter to respond. College football analyst Kirk Herbstreit commented, it was “not a smart decision during a hyped game week by a backup QB.” It seemed as if Buckeye and Sooner fans had waited for ages for this matchup, and as the time drew near to kickoff they would be forced to wait just a little longer. Severe thunderstorms in the Norman, Oklahoma, area delayed the game by an hour and a half. Finally, it was time for kickoff. 

Despite the delay, a record crowd filled Gaylord Family Memorial Stadium. On the Sooners’ very first drive, a field goal attempt glanced off the upright -- it served as a representation of how the rest of the night would go for Oklahoma. Ohio State’s motivated “silver bullet” defense frustrated Oklahoma all night and forced two interceptions from Baker Mayfield. As impressive as the defense was, OSU WR Noah Brown stole the show. Not only did he catch four touchdowns, but his third touchdown was an incredibly acrobatic catch that many analysts described as one of the best catches ever.

Led by Heisman candidate JT Barrett, the Buckeyes punished the Sooners offensively and won the game rather comfortably, 45-24. Head coach Urban Meyer praised the young Buckeyes after the game, saying he was "very proud of them." Moving forward, OSU looks like a legitimate national title contender. Ohio State is off next week and will open up Big 10 play against Rutgers the following week.

Week 3 Reaction Blog

I really benefitted from reading Neil Patel's article "How to Develop an Unforgettable Voice in Your Writing."  I found his post very intriguing because it focuses on how to improve article writing specifically. It is a writing medium that is become increasingly popular and widespread. Often articles or blog posts are generally shorter so I completely agree with Patel's idea that every article must have a "laser focus" and be to the point. While it's probably not a good trend, we as a society have such a short attention span. If something doesn't immediately catch our eye we move on without even giving it a thought. It's for this very reason, then, that Neil Patel's other sub-points are so vital. To be successful in this style of writing, you have to be willing to be risky and opinionated. Whether it's fair or not, writers are forced more than ever to give a reason for their audience to read their material.

Perhaps my biggest takeaway from his article is Patel's point that successful article writing tells a story. Stories transcend generations; every single person can relate to a story. In regards to writing for sports, specifically, I believe this concept is absolutely key. Sports tell stories. Whether it's a story of a team's journey to a championship or a player's remarkable comeback from an injury or hardship, sports are filled with different stories.

For me personally, I would love to be a sports information director. SID's often take the lead in writing articles for a team website as well as posting to social media. Patel's post hit on some very important points on how to best catch the attention of an SID's target audience. I will definitely work on implementing Patel's tips in my blogs for this class as I prepare for the future!

Welcome! (Week 2 SM3410 Blog Post)

Hi everyone! My name is Aaron Lynn and I am a sophomore sports management student from Plain City, Ohio. For my social media assignment for this year, I have chosen the Ohio State Buckeyes football team, my favorite sports team since the age of six. Sports have been a passion of mine since a very young age and I am currently working on my degree so that I can pursue a job as a sports information director of a major college athletic program. While college football is probably my favorite sport, I am also a big fan of SpikeBall. SpikeBall is a relatively new sport that has only existed for a few years but that is rapidly growing in popularity. I also really enjoy music and spending time with friends and family. This summer I toured with HeartSong Ministries as a keyboard player and really enjoyed that experience!

For those of you who may not have ever heard of SpikeBall, here's a video of the top 10 SpikeBall plays from July, it's pretty amazing! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT4DKcJYht4

I'm excited to get to know all of you better and to follow along with the teams that you all have chosen for your social media assignments. Have a great day!

-Aaron