30,000-plus fans join Buckeyes for national championship celebration at Ohio Stadium
Celebration included key to the city, ‘Champions Way’ street sign unveiling
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The Ohio State University |
More than 30,000 fans gathered at Ohio Stadium Sunday to celebrate The Ohio State University Buckeyes’ historic 2024 College Football Playoff victory over Notre Dame and first national championship since 2014. The event included the unveiling of a new street sign, Champions Way, to be placed outside the stadium.
“I want to say congratulations on this amazing run to this amazing football team … because this year was not like any other year in college football history,” said Ohio State President Walter “Ted” Carter Jr.
Among those celebrating the first-ever winners of the 12-team playoff were Ohio State students in a standing-room-only section on the field.
Athletic Director Ross Bjork thanked the community for supporting the Buckeyes throughout the season.
“Everything we do is connected through the people. People matter, relationships matter, the culture matters, leadership matters,” he said. “Ohio State Athletics is a public trust here in the state of Ohio. We never take that for granted every day that we come to work for the Buckeyes.”
Gov. Mike DeWine declared the occasion “THE Celebration of Champions Day.”
“Thank you for bringing us such great joy in Ohio,” DeWine said.
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther presented Carter and coach Ryan Day with a key to the city on behalf of the team.
“We are thrilled to celebrate these amazing men who showed us great perseverance, resilience and commitment to one another as great examples for our city, our state and our nation,” Ginther said.
The celebration included an invocation by Buckeyes tight end Gee Scott Jr. Quarterback Will Howard thanked fans for their support. Captains Emeka Egbuka, TreVeyon Henderson, Jack Sawyer and Cody Simon spoke about the hard work the team put in.
Day shared highlights from all six top-10 victories the Buckeyes racked up this past season, starting with the road win at Penn State and eventually winning all four College Football Playoff games.
“Those memories will live in Ohio State history forever,” Day said. “The reason we’re able to tell the story is we were able to finish the mission. Now let’s go get another one of these.”
