One of my graduate advisees (Marcus Freeman) is a star player on the Ohio State football team. When I met with him earlier this summer, I mentioned that I had not been inside the renovated football facility (named after the famous OSU ex-coach Woody Hayes). Today, Marcus gave me (and a colleague) a great tour of the complex. It is an unbelievable facility! It includes many historical artifacts and is a true shrine to the Buckeye football program. About half-way through the tour, Marcus said, "Oh yeah, Coach Tress wanted us to stop by." I was absolutely shocked! We went to Coach Tressel's office and he immediately stopped what he was doing (unbelievable since I know he was preparing for Saturday's game against Ohio University). He remembered me from the book signing in July and began talking about a variety of subjects. We talked to him at least 10 minutes in his very spacious office. I had brought this picture from the book signing, just in case we met him:
If you can't read his autograph, here it is enlarged:
We are definitely going to hang this prominently her room. He is as nice and genuine a man as you'll ever meet. After leaving his office, we finished the tour. The locker room and weight room were 1st class (we actually ran into 2 other star players - James Laurinatis and Brian Robiskie and ex-Buckeye coach Earl Bruce). The player lounge had pool tables, XBox 360s and a Playstation 3, along with a room with computers. It also had a bar, with Gatorade dispensers behind it.In the entrance there is an atrium with several trophies. Below is the "Ring of Champions"; it lists Ohio State's 7 national championships.
This is me with Troy Smith's Heisman trophy. There are actually 7 of them placed in a semi-circle display (Notre Dame is the only other school with 7 Heisman winners).
Touring the facility and spending time with Coach Tressel got me even more fired up for Saturday's game. I can't wait to see the Buckeyes win their 800th game.
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