The Buckeye’s second Spring under Coach Urban Meyer is wrapping up, and it is doing so in a much different venue. The Ohio State football team is taking their talents to Paul Brown Stadium tomorrow at 1:00 EDT for the annual LiFE Spring Game.
The need for a change of venue was necessary as Ohio Stadium undergoes a few renovations. Of course, there is a much larger reason for this change, as well. Ohio State needs Cincinnati. Much of the State’s top talent resides in the Cincinnati area and it is far from being a Buckeye stronghold. This is the main reason why the game is being played there instead of Cleveland. OSU really doesn’t need a lot of help in Cleveland. They have pretty much established themselves as top dogs. Cincinnati is a different story.
In fact, sometimes it’s tough to tell if Cincinnati is even in Ohio. Many top recruits have headed elsewhere and it was never really a big shock. The loyalty to the Scarlet and Gray in the area isn’t nearly as strong as it is throughout the rest of the State. This isn’t even because of the Bearcats. There is a freakishly large number of Notre Dame, Louisville and Kentucky fans in the greater Cincinnati area. Meyer wants to change that. His ties to the area go a long way towards doing so, and he’s hoping bringing the Buckeyes to them will give yet another nudge.
The Spring Game also benefits a good cause. LiFE Sports, Learning and Fitness & Education through Sports, is a youth development initiative run by the Ohio State Department of Athletics and the Ohio State College of Social Work. The program offers economically disadvantaged children and teens, ages 9-17, sport and education instruction during the summer months. This keeps the kids out of trouble and in a safe environment.
If you can’t make it to Cincy for the game, it will be aired on tape delay at 7PM EDT on BTN. If you don’t want to wait, you can stream it live on BTN2Go. Radio coverage will be on WBNS 97.1 FM The Fan in Columbus and WDJO AM-1480 in Cincinnati.
