The Ohio State University Department of Athletics’ Buckeye Club and the Ohio Farmers Union are teaming up with others in Ohio agriculture to build support for OSU’s student athletes through a unique program aimed at Ohio farmers.
Through Grow Forward, Ohio farmers will be able to donate bushels of grain and corn at their local elevator. Proceeds will benefit Buckeye scholar-athletes. Farmers who donate will earn at a minimum a football season ticket application and various premiums over and beyond that according to how much they donate. Premiums include football parking passes, men’s basketball practice passes, seats in an OSU luxury suite for a football game and walk-on golf course privileges among other exclusive rewards.
“The Buckeyes are Ohio’s team and we want to make sure rural communities are represented in the Horseshoe,” Jordan Birkemeier, Director of the Buckeye Club, said. “With our tremendous fan base inside the state, we want to make sure supporters know how they can make an impact on Ohio State student-athletes and receive access to season tickets. This initiative hopefully will educate people on how they can do both by joining the Buckeye Club.”
OFU and OSU are joined by the Ohio AgriBusiness Association (OABA), the Ohio Soybean Association and the Ohio Corn and Wheat Growers Association in promoting the program. Each organization understands the importance of athletics in our communities.
The Buckeye Club’s mission is to directly support the overall goals of the Ohio State Department of Athletics by generating the funds for athletics grant-in-aid and scholarships for student-athletes in 36 varsity sports. It strives to embrace and engage the most dedicated Buckeye fans within the OSU community to further promote the passion and camaraderie that makes the University so unique.
The Ohio State University Department of Athletics sponsors 36 fully funded varsity teams – 17 for women, 16 for men and three co-educational. The department is committed to providing its more than 1,000 student-athletes with the finest in academic and athletics support in order to ensure a quality and life-enhancing experience. The Department of Athletics is completely self-supporting and receives no university monies, tax dollars or student fees. In Fiscal Year 2010-11, the Department of Athletics will transfer back to the University more than $30 million in assessments, including $15 million in grant-in-aid costs.
To learn more visit OFU’s Grow Forward information page.
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