The Ohio State University President Gordon Gee and the Buckeyes Roll Into Darke County

Today June 28th the Ohio State University President Gordon Gee and a busload of Buckeye Students toting school spirit took over the KitchenAid Store in Downtown Greenville. On a scheduled appearance of the "President Gee State Tour", OSU's President made appearances throughout the Darke and Mercer Counties. Students informed me that they spent the day yesterday in Mercer County and today started at Midmark in Versailles, moved to the KitchenAid Center in Greenville, and were to make another tour stop before finishing the day at a Dayton Dragons game this evening.

While the crowd was not overwhelming, it was ample to show that Darke County has Buckeye Pride. Local media, alumni, business professionals, and local Buckeye fans crowded the entrance and inside of the KitchenAid store for a makeshift 'pep rally' that included Brutus Buckeye, two Buckeye Cheerleaders, and over a half-dozen student ambassadors.

While my photos were not the best due to flash and blur issues, the pictures tell the story. Please enjoy!

Here, Mayor Mike Bowers poses for a photo with the Ohio State students in attendance including Brutus:

Brutus has fun with local alumnus Wilma Heiby:

A young Buckeye fan with the OSU Cheerleaders in attendance:

Grady (Class of 2031) was 'wooed' by Brutus for a hug:

If mischief is to be found, Brutus is just the right 'nut':

Dr. Gee did some baking in the KitchenAid kitchen:

Dr. Gee talks with locals:

Past President Eric Brand with Brutus:

Granted, they are blurry but tell a funny conclusion to Brutus trying to get a hug from Grady....

Cheerleader Brittany gets the hug from Grady and Brutus is in disbelief:

First and foremost, a huge thanks to the University and Dr. Gee for arranging a visit to our county. Secondly, what a bright future this state has with the Buckeye students that were in attendance; they were bright, polite, and were most definitely worthy of being leaders for tomorrow.

O-H!

Scott '05

Alumni Club 15th Annual Scholarship Golf Outing Registration Forms are Now ONLINE

Please click on the image below to access a printable Registration form for the 15th Annual Scholarship Scholarshp Golf Outing. Forms can be mailed to:

The OSU Alumni Club of Darke County
P.O. Box 613
Greenville, OH 45331

Go Bucks!

Scott '05

OSU Scholarship Golf Outing

Greeting Buckeye Fans and Alumni,

My name is James Conway and I am here to discuss and post information about our Scholarship Golf Outing. The 15th Annual Darke County OSU Alumni Scholarship Golf Outing will be held on Saturday, August 6th at the Greenville Golf Course. Registration will begin at 11:30a.m. with a shotgun start at 12:30p.m. The golf outing format is a four person team with a two net best ball.

The event raises money for scholarships for Darke County students who will be attending The Ohio State University in the fall. This past year, the alumni presented scholarships in the amount of $1,823 to four deserving high school seniors.

There are various ways you can participate to help make this event a success. You can register to participate in the tournament as a golfer or as a four person team, you can be a sponsor of the event or volunteer.

If you have any questions, you may contact me, James Conway at jamesconway04@yahoo.com or (937) 548-9233 or reply to the post and I will get back with you. Please click here to download a registration form. Should you have problems with google docs or pdf files, you can email me and I will send you one.

Thanks and GO BUCKS!

Spring is in the Air at the 2011 Alumni Club Gala!

Buckeyes young and old gathered once again for the annual Spring Gala on Tuesday May 24th at the Bistro off Broadway in downtown Greenville. It was a delicious evening of Buckeye camaraderie and celebration of our 2011 Scholarship Recipients and we were proud to have nearly 40 students, parents, and alumni and friends in attendance.

Our guest speaker was Vladimir Nazlymov who is Ohio State's National Championship Winning (and former Soviet Gold Medalist!) Fencing Coach. The scholarship award winners were humored by Coach Nazlymov's invitation to the already free Fencing matches and for his perspective on coming to America after his upbringing in the former Soviet Union.

Enjoy some candids from the evening!

-Scott '05

Sam and Toni Custer introduce Scholarship
Winner Mark Albright of Arcanum

Vladimir Nazlymov, OSU Fencing Coach

Eric Brand (now Past President), Vladimir Nazlymov,
J Ken McCoy (Current OSUAC of Darke President)

Bill shows off his Silent Auction purchase to Ken

(L-R) Toni , Kelly , Travis, Sam 

James chats up the Scholarship Recipients and Family

Taylor and Family

Marv & James O.

(L-R) Cathy Baker, Dick Brooks, Carmen 

Congratulations to Our 2011 Scholarship Recipients!

Through generous financial giving of Darke Buckeyes past and present, service, and fundraising, the Alumni Club was once again able to award the brightest and best graduating Seniors from Darke County high schools with academic scholarships for the 2011-12 academic year. Four prospective students were selected by a panel of interviewers to receive a scholarship that this year resulted in an $1,823 per student award.

(L-R) Taylor Piel (Arc HS), Nicole Williams (Ans HS),
Blake Williams (Vers HS), Mark Albright (Arc HS)

This year our four recipients were Mark Albright of Arcanum, Blake Williams of Versailles, Nicole Williams of Ansonia, and Taylor Piel of Arcanum. Mark Albright of Arcanum plans on going to Pharmaceutical School and trying out for the TBDBITL as a drummer. Blake Williams of Versailles plans on entering the Honors program for Computer Engineering. Nicole Williams of Ansonia High School (with Alumni Parents of Pat and Rhonda Williams) plans on entering the Honors Program for International Studies. Lastly, Taylor Piel of Arcanum is planning on entering the Honors Program for Physics but also plans on furthering her education into Dentistry/Orthodontics.

We are very proud of our local high schools and are thankful to be able to honor Darke's finest.

Congrats to Mark, Blake, Nicole and Taylor!

Scott '05

Reminder! Spring Gala is Set for Tuesday May 24th!

Vladimir Nazlymov

Greetings Local Buckeyes! I would like to take the time to thank the 23 club members that have RSVP'ed thus far to this year's Spring Gala. It is going to be a night of delicious food, great camaraderie and a powerful message.

The event is sponsored by the Ohio State Alumni Club of Darke County but the event is open to anyone that loves the Buckeyes. As a reminder, this year's speaker is National Championship Winning Fencing Coach Vladimir Nazlymov. 


For those that would like to read more about Vladimir, click here to read his biography courtesy of wikipedia.org.

As a reminder, The Gala is going to be held on Tuesday, May 24, 2011 and will be held at the Bistro Off Broadway located at 117 E. 5th Street in Greenville. The festivities will kickoff at 7:00 PM and the evening will include Door Prizes, a Silent Auction, Food and Drink (cash bar available), Awarding of 2011 Academic Scholarships and a Presentation by Guest Speaker Vladimir Nazlymov.

Few speakers from the University are as loved and respected as Vladimir Nazlymov, OSU's Fencing Coach. A three-time Soviet Olympic Gold Medalist, Vladimir has led the Buckeyes to two National Championships and has produced many All-Americans and three Individual National Champions.

Tickets are $18 for members of the Darke County OSU Alumni Club, $21 for non-members and includes a hors d'oeuvres/buffet dinner, with a cash bar available.

To RSVP, please contact Scott '05 at (937) 548-7434 email Scott '05 at osuacofdarke@gmail.com.

Monday Morning Quarterbacking the 2003 Fiesta Bowl

Good Evening Buckeyes!

I wanted to share a memory from my college years and frankly, a memory of the greatest OSU game of the past 40 years. I wrote this blog originally in November of 2009 and posted it on my personal blog. I thought it was a fun memory that I'm sure others will be able to relate.

This morning I found myself in the same position as every Monday and Tuesday morning: commenting and reflecting on the football game I watched the night before. This morning had a unique twist to the conversation as I was second-guessing and analyzing the 2003 Fiesta Bowl, a game that was played over 8 years ago. I pulled my DVD of the uncut broadcast out of the dust of the DVD shelf to remember the greatest OSU victory of my lifetime. As confused as my colleauges were, they were a little more animated and excited than I expected them to be while recollecting the game as well. 

Some observations....

1) The first quarter belonged to Miami. After watching the first quarter, I was wondering how the Bucks would pull the game out. Maurice Clarett was getting shut down on the run, the passing game was careless (but came up big later in the game when it needed to), and Miami was constructing some solid ball movement down the field. 

2) The turning point of the game was undoubtedly the Dorsey interceptions. The only advantage Ohio State had over Miami in the first quarter was that they picked off Dorsey and had multiple sacks. I believe the stat going into the game was that Dorsey had only been sacked 4 times all season. The Buckeyes laid him on the ground at least twice on the opening drive.

3) The biggest play of the game was the Sean Taylor Interception turned Maurice Clarett ball strip. The Buckeyes for five seconds seemingly made a huge blunder that would have allowed them to possibly put away the Hurricanes early when Craig Krenzel had an errant pass intercepted in the endzone in the third quarter. The score was Bucks 14, Miami 7 at the time. Sean Taylor of the Hurricanes, looking to make a big play, decided to attempt to return the ball out of the end zone for a big gain. Maurice Clarett, having the greatest moment of his life, made a huge play by stripping the ball from the arms of Taylor on the return. The play set up a Mike Nugent field goal, which put the Buckeyes up 17 to 7. 


4) The Bucks defense was the star of the game, but Craig Krenzel was awesome when he needed to be. Not to take away credit from Michael Jenkins, who was an underrated and oft forgotten hero of that Buckeyes team and of that game, but Krenzel brought both a legitimate pass threat and a great running attack. His efforts reminded of a Rex Kern-like performance. He completed only 7 of his 21 passes, and was intercepted twice. However, he ran the ball 19 times for 81 yards and two scores. In addition, he took a beating from the Hurricane defense. The pass to Jenkins on 4th and 14 in the 1st overtime to keep the drive alive was something that did not surprise Buckeyes fans...he had been coming up big like that all season long. If anyone ever forgets why Craig Krenzel was a hero to Ohio State sports history, look no further than this game. 

5) Maurice Clarett: before his troubles and exile from the Bucks, he legitimately was a game-changing player for the 2002 Ohio State Buckeyes team. His performance in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl was most memorable as the decoy that set up Craig Krenzel, ball running hero. 

6) The infamous "Pass Interference" call in the first overtime was perhaps incorrect. However, if it was incorrect, it made up for the missed call of "holding" on the Miami defender that was mugging Chris Gamble on his way to the pass. Either call would have given the Buckeyes a first down. I think that sports nation has recognized this, that's why it is a forgotten moment in BCS history.

That wraps up my "Monday Morning Quarterback" commentary. Look for the 2007 BCS National Championship commentary sometime in 2015. Better yet, maybe not. I watched that game when it was originally aired....NOT...SO...GOOD.

Have a memory of this game? please share by leaving a comment!



Go Bucks!

Scott '05