The Ohio State Buckeyes may have been banned from postseason play in 2012, but each member of the team still received a custom piece of hardware. As Doug Lesmerises of the The Plain Dealer reminded us, head coach Urban Meyer promised the team they would receive rings for an undefeated season — despite the fact that they were ineligible for a Big Ten title or a bowl game. He came through.
On Thursday, receivers coach Zach Smith posted the photo that you see above on Twitter, which shows the ring alongside the gold pants pendant the Buckeyes receive for beating Michigan. Football sports information director Jerry Emig shared a closer view of the ring:
The deeds of the 2012 Buckeyes are memorialized in the “Woody.” Going unbeaten became memorialized personally today. twitter.com/BuckeyeNotes/s…
— Jerry Emig (@BuckeyeNotes) April 11, 2013
That’s one way to motivate a team with no postseason aspirations. While some people will inevitably say that the gesture is completely over the top, others will argue that there are players on the team that had nothing to do with the postseason ban. Ohio State made life easier than it had to be for the BCS committee, but it must have been difficult for the players to stay motivated. Sometimes all it takes is the promise of a little extra swag.
H/T Dr. Saturday
