MOUNT VERNON — It wasn’t hard to find Ohio State Buckeye fans if you were anywhere near the Dan Emmett Conference Center on Tuesday.
The annual Buckeye Spirit Event, hosted by the Ohio State University Alumni Club of Knox Country, saw hundreds of alumni, family members and fans gather for plenty of food and fun.
The crowd dined on a full buffet while the Ohio State marching band performed. OSU cheerleaders and Brutus Buckeye himself led the cheering as people bid in a silent auction. There were even appearances by Buckeye Man, Look-a-like Woody Hayes and Look-a-like Jim Tressel.
But the star of the show was former OSU coach John Cooper, who gave the keynote address.
In his speech, Cooper told jokes and recalled his coaching days at Ohio State. He also couldn’t help but comment on the state of the Buckeyes today.
“In my opinion, they have a great coach right now,” Cooper said of interim coach Luke Fickell to the enthusiastic crowd. “If I were there, I’d hire him right now. Give him the job, and let him pick his own staff.”

