Lebron James of the Miami Heat gives a thumbs up before a 95-88 win against the San Antonio Spurs in Game 7 of the NBA Finals at the AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami, Florida, June 20. Credit: Courtesy of MCT
In arguably its biggest game of the 2013 season to date, the Ohio State football team will hear from a fellow Ohioan and current NBA World Champion before its tilt with Wisconsin Saturday night.
An OSU spokesman confirmed that Miami Heat forward LeBron James will be on the Buckeyes’ sideline during the game. The four-time NBA MVP will also address the team before kickoff according to media reports.
James, a graduate of Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary, is a longtime fan of OSU, even though he never went to the school. The NBA star even has his own locker inside the newly renovated locker rooms at The Jerome Schottenstein Center.
OSU men’s basketball coach Thad Matta showed his own support for the Heat star, when the new facility was released to the media. OSU was the first team to wear Nike’s LeBron line of shoes as well as have their jerseys sponsored by him in 2007.
“He’s done a lot of things in his time, but I think from a standpoint we always want to pay our respects to him for what he did for us in ’07 in terms of we were the first LeBron school,” Matta said Sept. 3. “I know he’s very proud of what he does for us.”
Matta was not the only person to express his gratitude for arguably the biggest star in sports.
“I feel sorry that our fans won’t rally around LeBron because of the way he did his things, because for us, he’s been unbelievable,” OSU athletic director Gene Smith said Sept. 3. “He’s always kept us at the top of his thoughts when he’s doing things.”
OSU is scheduled to take on Wisconsin at 8 p.m. Saturday.
