Ohio

Ohio legislator introduces bill to curtail Ohio State football noon kickoffs

Published

11 months ago

May 15, 2025

Ohio legislator introduces bill to curtail Ohio State football noon kickoffs

In recent years, Ohio State football fans have become increasingly frustrated with the high volume of noon kickoffs their beloved Buckeyes have been forced to play.

One Ohio legislator is hoping to remedy that.

Ohio Representative Tex Fischer has authored a bill that would prohibit Ohio State from playing marquee games before 3:30 p.m. ET. A notable exception would be for the Buckeyes’ annual rivalry game against Michigan, which traditionally kicks off at noon.

Since Fox, one of the Big Ten’s television partners, introduced its “Big Noon Saturday” window ahead of the 2019 season, Ohio State has become a fixture of the earliest broadcast time of the day. The Buckeyes have played 35 noon games since the start of the 2019 season, including seven last year on their way to their first national championship in a decade. Each of Ohio State’s final six regular-season games began at noon, three of which came at home.

The bill, as written, would prevent any game from being played in the state of Ohio if it meets both of the following criteria:

One of the competing teams is a football team from a state university
Both teams are ranked in the top 10 of the Associated Press poll of the FBS

Of note, only one of the Buckeyes’ 2024 games would have fallen under that criteria: The Nov. 23 meeting with Indiana, a game in which the Buckeyes and Hoosiers were ranked No. 2 and No. 5 in the AP Top 25, respectively. Ohio State played only one other top-10 team in the noon slot against No. 3 Penn State, though that was on the road.

If the bill becomes law, the ramifications for skirting it would be steep. The legislation states that if a game starts before 3:30 p.m., the Ohio attorney general will impose a fine of $10 million against either the host team’s conference (the Big Ten) or the television network, whichever one scheduled the earlier kickoff.

While noon kickoffs offer fans, particularly those watching from home, time to take in other college football games from across the country later in the day, they’re generally an annoyance for fans attending the game in person, forcing them to wake up earlier in the morning and giving them less time to tailgate.

When Fox debuted “Big Noon Saturday,” it was a way for the network to air a marquee matchup during what’s typically a barer early slate rather than having to compete against the SEC’s longstanding 3:30 p.m. game on CBS or ESPN’s primetime game (CBS now primarily airs a Big Ten game during the 3:30 p.m. slot as part of a new media rights deal with the conference). Fox adds some pageantry to its noon kickoff by bringing the network’s pregame show, “Big Noon Kickoff,” to the site of the game, much in the same way ESPN does with “College GameDay.”

Unfortunately for Ohio State, the Big Ten’s most consistently successful program since “Big Noon Saturday” launched six years ago, that interest in putting the Buckeyes in marquee time slots for Fox often means receiving a disproportionate share of early start times.

The bill hasn’t yet appeared on the Ohio legislature database, but text of it was published Thursday by journalist D.J. Byrnes of The Rooster.

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Ohio

Spring wild turkey hunting in Ohio broken into four seasons this year

Published

8 hours ago

April 9, 2026

Press Room

Spring wild turkey hunting in Ohio broken into four seasons this year

Spring turkey hunting is about to start in Ohio and is broken into four separate seasons this year.

That covers youth and adult hunts across two different zones: northeast and south.

Ohio’s northeast zone consists of Cuyahoga, Geauga, Trumbull, Lake and Ashtabula counties. The south zone is comprised of the state’s 83 other counties, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

Youth spring wild turkey hunting season will be April 18-19 for Ohio’s 83 southern counties and April 25-26 in the five northeast counties.

For adult hunters, the spring wild turkey season runs April 25 to May 24 in the south zone and May 2 to May 31 in the northeast zone.

Spring gobbler hunters in Ohio are allowed to harvest one bearded turkey in 2026.

Hunters should refer to the Ohio Hunting and Trapping Regulations for turkey hunting requirements.

Seasons established to manage size of state’s flock

The seasons are in place to regulate the turkey population of the Buckeye State, Nathan Cass, an ODNR wildlife officer in Crawford County, previously told the News Journal.

“In the early 1900s, they were pretty much gone from Ohio,” Cass said.

Management practices allowed the birds to rebuild their flocks. A century later, they were just as plentiful as ever.

“Probably the 1990s and early 2000s was when the population was at its highest,” Cass said.

Predators and loss of habitat have reduced the state’s turkey numbers slightly over the last two decades, but there are still plenty of gobblers for hunters to harvest this spring.

Hunters who scout their local flocks ahead of the season will notice the bird strutting to entice a mate.

“We try to time our season right after the peak breeding time,” Cass said. “It gives the birds an opportunity to breed and then some of the hens will start incubating their eggs and sitting on their nest.”

ztuggle@gannett.com

419-564-3508

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Ohio

Giaunna Renee Lee Jackson, Youngstown, Ohio

Published

21 hours ago

April 8, 2026

Press Room

Giaunna Renee Lee Jackson, Youngstown, Ohio

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (MyValleyTributes) – Giaunna Renee Lee Jackson, affectionately known as “Gigi” departed this life suddenly on Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Youngstown, Ohio at the tender age of 22.

Born January 15, 2004, to Thomas Hall, Sr. and the late Fannie M. Jackson, Giaunna was a smart, determined and resilient soul whose sassy charm and confident spirit made her believe she could conquer anything she set out to do.

Whether it was playing the trumpet, making the softball, basketball and volleyball team, finding a job or being on the honor roll at school she set, and most times conquered her goals. She was a hard worker and held several jobs with her most recent employment at Walmart and McDonald’s.

Giaunna’s educational journey began at Martin Luther King Elementary and included Campbell Memorial Middle School, Rayen Early College, and Campbell Memorial High School where she graduated in 2022. She continued her education at Youngstown State University where she majored in Criminal Justice.

Giaunna enjoyed going out to dinner, shopping, binging on Netflix & Hulu, creating her own personal quotes, coloring books and listening to chill music. However, what she loved most was cooking for her brothers and grandmother, late night conversations with her brother Gerald, car rides with her brother Joshua, face timing her dad for cooking recipes, hanging with her cousins and with her best friends, Emily, Aiyana and Amy. Over the last several months, Giaunna opened her heart to let God in as she began to join her grandmother on what she called “grandma’s Jesus’ line” and as she joined her “Aunt Katrett” for Thursday devotions.

Giaunna was preceded in death by her mother, Fannie M. Jackson; maternal grandfather Abraham Jackson, maternal aunt Debbie Jackson Woodside, paternal grandparents; Thomas & Creola Hall and paternal uncle Bruce Harris.

Giaunna’s life will be treasured and remembered by her father & stepmother; Thomas (Monica) Hall, Sr. of Campbell, Ohio, brothers; Gerald and Joshua Jackson both of Youngstown, Ohio, Thomas Hall ,Jr. of Atlanta, Georgia and step-brother Darnell Heard of Columbus, Ohio, sister Devan Hall of Greenville, North Carolina, grandmother Elder Bessie Jackson, Aunts; Patricia Jackson McLendon of Bellevue, Michigan, Brenda (Rev Arthur) Jackson-Mackey, Jr. of Roosevelt, New York and Janet Jackson of Youngstown, Ohio, uncle; Barry Harris of Wellsville, Ohio and a host of cousins, godparents and loving friends. Rest in peace, dearest Giaunna. You will forever live on in our hearts.

Funeral services will be held on Friday, April 10, 2026, at New Beginnings Outreach Ministries, 2007 Shenley Ave. Youngstown, OH 4451. Visitation will be from 10:00-11:00 a.m. followed by a celebration of life at 11:00 am. Bishop Chris Crump, Eulogist. Internment: Tod Homestead Cemetery, 2200 Belmont Ave. Youngstown, Ohio.

Arrangements are being handled by the L.E. Black, Phillips & Holden Funeral Home.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Giaunna Renee Lee “Gigi” Jackson, please visit our floral store.

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Ohio

Ohio prisons, including Butler County, making millions to house immigrants for federal officials

Published

1 day ago

April 8, 2026

Press Room

Ohio prisons, including Butler County, making millions to house immigrants for federal officials

Ohio prisons are making millions of dollars to house immigrants for federal authorities, including in Butler County, which has raked in more than $6 million.Records show six correctional facilities across Ohio are currently holding immigration detainees for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.Last year alone, those facilities brought in more than $13 million in federal payments. Butler County received a large share of that money, serving as a primary holding site for immigration arrests, including operations out of Columbus.Documents show ICE pays facilities a daily rate per detainee, along with transportation costs. Those rates can range from about $68 to $125 per person each day.In November, Butler County updated the agreement with ICE and is now paid $105 per detainee.Advocates say these agreements raise concerns about detaining people who are not facing criminal charges.But some Ohio sheriffs defend the practice, saying it helps support federal immigration enforcement and provides local resources.These agreements are expected to continue into this year, with Butler County remaining a key location for immigration detention in Ohio.

BUTLER COUNTY, Ohio —

Ohio prisons are making millions of dollars to house immigrants for federal authorities, including in Butler County, which has raked in more than $6 million.

Records show six correctional facilities across Ohio are currently holding immigration detainees for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Last year alone, those facilities brought in more than $13 million in federal payments. Butler County received a large share of that money, serving as a primary holding site for immigration arrests, including operations out of Columbus.

Documents show ICE pays facilities a daily rate per detainee, along with transportation costs. Those rates can range from about $68 to $125 per person each day.

In November, Butler County updated the agreement with ICE and is now paid $105 per detainee.

Advocates say these agreements raise concerns about detaining people who are not facing criminal charges.

But some Ohio sheriffs defend the practice, saying it helps support federal immigration enforcement and provides local resources.

These agreements are expected to continue into this year, with Butler County remaining a key location for immigration detention in Ohio.

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