First, to all three or four Akron Beacon Journal readers who root for a certain college football team from a state up north: We definitely appreciate your loyalty to this newspaper, but you may want to skip to the next story.
Seems that the certain college football team from the state up north is playing the higher-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes this weekend for the 113th time.
So, Gov. John Kasich and Lt. Gov. Mary Taylor once again have proclaimed “Scarlet Letter Saturday” and encouraged all proper-thinking Ohio registered voters, er, residents, to avoid using the 13th letter of the alphabet. (People rooting for the team from up north may want to take their shoes off to count that high.)
The storied football rivalry between the Ohio State Buckeyes and that other team is much deeper than the still ongoing acrimony between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton supporters following the presidential election earlier this month. (Trust me on that.)
This new resolution notes that Scarlet Letter Saturday dates back to 2013, when the state first urged registered voters, er, residents, not use the 13th letter of the alphabet in advance of what is called The Game.
The Kasich-Taylor resolution fondly recalls the Buckeyes’ 42-39 win 10 years ago in a matchup called The Game of the Century. Come to think of it, the Buckeyes were ranked higher back then, too — Number One. The losers, from that state up north, played like Number Two.
And, since no one from the state up north votes in Ohio — at least, legally — the resolution gets in some other digs.
For example: “Whereas, many Ohio State fans will celebrate by going out to dinner Saturday night, though none will drink milk with their steak like the coach of the visiting team does ...”
You can read the full resolution online by going to http://www.governor.ohio.gov/MediaRoom/Resolutions.aspx
Jim Mackinnon can be reached at 330-996-3544 or jmackinnon@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him @JimMackinnonABJ on Twitter or www.facebook.com/JimMackinnonABJ.