I attended a prayer service in Ohio Stadium yesterday. No, this is not a reference to an offense that "didn't throw the ball" as some of you who always want to see fireworks might think. Rather, it was another chapter in my continuing quest to experience all that is Ohio Stadium.

While you were getting all fired up...some of you in the parking lot getting lubricated, or feasting on a tailgate spread, and others in the stadium cheering the warm-ups, I was with a group of the player's parents in a room deep within the stadium for their pre-game prayer service. It is a ritual that occurs before every game and includes parents of both the Buckeyes and the opposing team's players.

In a quiet room full of warmth and hospitality, about 35 parents joined hands in a circle of prayer. The parents prayed for the safety of all the players and for them to do their best. They prayed for the coaches to make good decisions, and guide their sons, on the field, off the field, morally, and academically. They prayed for their sons to represent their schools with dignity and class. And if you were in the stadium, they prayed for you too, for your safe return home, before we all finished with the Lord's Prayer.

The thing that struck me most was the contrast between the calm and serenity in that room versus the energy and clashes that were already starting to take place outside in the stadium. I commented on this to one of the mothers as we walked out. She turned to agree with me, and when I saw the number she wore and the player on her button, well I realized her son was a starter and one of the hardest competitors on the Buckeyes, yet here she was, praying for the safety and success of players of both teams.

It was one more indication that Ohio State Football is not just about the ball.