Inside the Pulse of the Defending National Champion Ohio State Buckeyes

COLUMBUS, Ohio — I am standing in front of a church; only it is no longer a church. It’s now a makeshift Ohio State merchandise store with “Clinton Predestinarian Baptist Church” still etched in stone above its arched doorway.

Right now, 15 hours before Ohio State plays a scrimmage in front of nearly 100,000 people, four middle-aged gentlemen are sitting in front of a makeshift store, drinking makeshift drinks while sitting in makeshift chairs. National championship T-shirts, flags and swag hang proudly behind and above the magnificent architecture—the red brick matching the bright scarlet paraphernalia up for sale. The stadium is a little less than a mile away.

It is an unusual place to sell jerseys and other pieces of memorabilia, although in many ways it’s football poetry. It’s also an extension of the program it proudly backs: unexpected, magnificent and calm before a tremendous, inevitable storm eventually breaks up the celebration.

For at least one weekend, however, none of that mattered. Not the quarterback quandary. Not the inevitable No. 1 ranking. Not the hopeful rebirth of a rival. Not even the future, which is remarkably bright. This was a time for everyone—from the fans to the man overseeing it all—to catch his or her breath.

It’s why 99,391 people willingly gave up their Saturday afternoon and watched a spring football game.

That warrants repeating. Nearly 100,000 people made the pilgrimage to Columbus to…

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