GAME DAY, 1:00 PM FOOTBALL GAME
Written by a current parent and alumnus
In my humble opinion, there is no better sporting event in these United States than a crisp fall Saturday at Ohio State watching my beloved Buckeyes in Ohio Stadium—the famed horseshoe.
10:00 AM
A favorite spot for breakfast around 10:00 is Hang Over Easy on Neil Street. Great brunch food and Bloody Mary's get the day started off well.
11:30 AM
Around 11:30 (1.5 hours before kickoff) my son and I like to walk over to the Blackwell (main hotel on campus and quite nice digs) to high five the team. The tradition is for the entire team and staff to have breakfast (all dressed in suits) in the Blackwell and then walk over to St. John's Arena (the old basketball arena) for the Skull Session. Along the way they are lined by fans—ten deep—cheering them on to victory.
12:00 PM
We then go into St. John's for the Skull Session where the famed Ohio State Marching Band - the best damn band in the land - is warming up and whipping the OSU faithful into a frenzy. Coach Urban Meyer then has a few words for us followed by a keynote speaker (usually a famous alum or former star player) and the team then proceeds to walk directly South into the locker rooms in the stadium.
There is tailgating literally as far as the eye can see and a huge open food court area just north of St. John's with great eats for lunch.
12:15 PM
We ALWAYS get to our seats at least 45 minutes before game time so we can watch the band enter to 105,000 manic fans. They open with Drive The Team Across the Field and finish with the most famous piece of any band in the world—the incomparable Script Ohio.
Take it from someone who's been to 4 Super Bowls, the National Championships for college football and basketball, the Masters, US Open, PGA and Ryder Cup in golf, and 6 World Series games, the Indy 500—there is NOTHING quite like Buckeye Saturday's.
