Football Fan Series: Safety, Sportsmanship Keys to Successful 2008 Home Season – Ohio State Buckeyes
8/28/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
Ohio State serves as leader in college football fan initiatives, new cheers implemented
COLUMBUS, Ohio On its surface, wins and losses in college football stand as its most measurable entity. In recent seasons at Ohio State, that favorable ratio has moved the Buckeyes to the forefront of the national stage.
The wins and losses may grab the headlines, but Ohio State also is keeping score of what happens in the stands and around the perimeter of Ohio Stadium. Fan safety receives the utmost respect in Columbus and in July Ohio State served as a leader in addressing two of the most critical areas stadium security and fan sportsmanship.
Setting the Bar for Fan Security Standards
In the second week of July, Ohio State welcomed representatives from programs across college athletics to Columbus for the first of eight scheduled meetings to create an online stadium security curriculum for venue managers spanning the country.
In a partnership with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics, Dr. Lou Marciani, assistant athletics director at Southern Mississippi, took the lead role in establishing the Center for Spectator Sports Security Management (CSSSM).
After landing a $3.5 million grant from the Department of Homeland Security, Marciani got the ball rolling on forming a set of standards for venues across the country.
“Our ultimate goal is to upgrade the awareness training for those that work games,” Marciani said. “It is a hope that down the road this is an added (security) tool.”
Reps from USC, Texas A&M and Oklahoma joined Ohio State assistant AD Ben Jay on the first panel for two days of meetings at the Jack Nicklaus Museum. The group began construction of the course that is planned for launch in May 2009 and will include 80 two-day regional workshops.
“The goal is to teach sport venue personnel the skill set to protect guests, employees and property,” Jay said. “It is important for all sport venue personnel to know what to do in the event of an emergency or incident, who to contact, and the plan of action in response to a specific emergency or incident.”
Safety Starts with Sportsmanship
One of the major players in keeping fan safety in balance is sportsmanship. With its “Best Fans in the Land” promotion, started in 2006, Ohio State has taken a lead role in helping promote good sportsmanship at athletics events. The message is active, asking Ohio State fans to “Show we are the best fans in the land.”
In keeping with the theme, Ohio State’s student-led Sportsmanship Council invited student delegates from all Big Ten schools to campus July 25-27 for the inaugural Big Ten Sportsmanship Council.
Approximately 70 representatives from nine Big Ten schools attended the three-day council. The group was made up of students and officials from athletics departments and alumni associations.
Jason Hurst, co-chair of the conference, was one of several Ohio State students to organize the council and viewed the entire weekend a success and a strong step forward for sportsmanship in the Big Ten.
“Everyone came in eager to learn about our initiatives,” Hurst, who interned at NASA this summer, said. “The programming was very informative providing the delegates the tools to start sportsmanship campaigns at their own universities.”
The conference was not limited to student and administrative delegates, but also included some Big Ten student-athletes, who provided a perspective outside of the stands.
“There are two main aspects for Ohio State fans and students,” Hurst said. “With the increased sportsmanship effort across the Big Ten Conference we hope the game day experience will increase for home and visiting fans alike. We also hope a sense of Big Ten pride spreads across the conference so we are supportive of all other teams and we remember we must respect each other and respect the game.”
Brad Traviola, deputy commissioner at the Big Ten, served as the keynote speaker during the conference and stressed the overall influence sportsmanship has on the landscape of collegiate athletics.
“There is not a meeting that we have at any level NCAA, conference, specific teams and universities that sportsmanship does not come up,” Traviola, a former All-American wrestler at Northwestern, said during his speech. “There are many levels and different people that have responsibilities to contributing to positive sportsmanship or detracting from it and lowering the bar.
“I think in the Big Ten, we hire good people and the majority of our student-athletes are as well. These are things, as a conference, all our schools have agreed to support.”
The Fun Stuff …
Another addition to the fan experience in 2008 will be the implementation of several new cheers during games.
The OSU marching band has incorporated a new song in one of the cheers, while a slight alteration has been made to the pre-kickoff cheer. No longer will the east side of the stadium spell “O-H” and the west side “I-O.” Now, emphasis will be put on the “O” call leading into kickoff, which will include help from video board animation. The “O-H” on the east side and “I-O” on the west side will now take place before second half kickoff.
A highlight also will be put on Buckeye first downs this season. For a tutorial of the band cheer, visit www.OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
