Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork joined Skip Mosic on 97.1 The Fan during halftime of the Buckeyes football 45-0 win over Purdue, and while on the air, Bjork admitted “a lot of improvement” can be made when it comes to the atmosphere at OSU’s sporting events.

“Our players deserve it,” he said. “The fans want to be entertained; the fans want to have fun, and that’s really what we’re after. You want to walk away from there and, forget the game, you want to say, ‘Boy, I had fun. Boy, that was entertaining.’ That’s what we want to create.”

Mosic specifically brought up at “The Schott,” also known as Value City Arena.

In response, Bjork praised new Ohio State men’s basketball coach Jake Diebler and his energy. Bjork also said the Buckeye women’s team plays an electric style of basketball and features a freshman in Jaloni Cambridge who will be really exciting to watch.

Bjork then went on to explain that the athletic department has a “comprehensive review” of all its venues underway, and secret shoppers are a part of that project.

“We have somebody that comes in that nobody knows they’re there,” Bjork said.

OSU men’s basketball: How does Ohio State’s 2025 class fit into the changing college basketball landscape?

Those secret shoppers take notes on their experiences and share them with OSU.

For Bjork, the hope is that what is reported back helps Ohio State consistently recreate the atmosphere that the men’s basketball team saw during its NIT run last season.

“To me, that’s kind of the blueprint of how our fans can be engaged, how our students can be engaged,” he said. “We need that every game.”

bmackay@dispatch.com

@brimackay15

NORTH RIDGEVILLE, Ohio (WOIO) – A local display in Northeast Ohio has closed down for the season after one of the owners recently went through surgery.

The North Ridgeville display has been in the area for years, and attracted thousands from all over Ohio.

But this year, owners Bob and Lettie Mangan decided to close down the shop.

“Going down is always a big, big treat. ‘Let’s go down to Bob’s house and see the lights!’ It’s an annual trip,” neighbor Jim Clark said.

Clark has been going to the Magan’s house to see the lights every year.

He says that his two sons would look forward to touring their front yard every December season.

But this year, they will not be able to take part.

Owner Lettie Magan shared the following statement with 19 News:

“It’s gonna be definitely different to not have the lights on. But I’m thinking he’ll still have some lights, just the sheer display that he usually has is not gonna be there. It’s gonna be strange,” Clark said.

“There’s some grinches in the neighborhood who’ve complained about it, but it’s just nice. It’s a beautiful display– he puts a lot of time and effort into it.”

Copyright 2024 WOIO. All rights reserved.

Ohio’s drought continues to move in a positive direction, even before Thursday’s wet weather.

A new drought map from the U.S. Drought Monitor shows extreme drought retreating from Franklin County and an increasing amount of the state’s area experiencing no drought whatsoever.

Franklin County is now experiencing moderate to severe drought conditions, or D1 to D2 on the drought monitor’s scale.

Ohio’s exceptional drought area in southeast Ohio has shrunk and areas in northeast and southwest Ohio experiencing no dryness at all continued to expand on this week’s map.

Additionally, the state’s Drought Severity and Coverage Index score, an overall measure of the state’s drought conditions, is down to 219 from 247 a week prior. A zero on the scale means the state is experiencing no dryness at all while a 500 means the entire state is experiencing exceptional drought.

For comparison, here’s how the state looked at the peak of the drought on Sept. 24.

Columbus rainfall that occurred after Nov. 12 at 8 a.m. will be reflected on next week’s map.

Speaking of rainfall, here’s what you can expect from the weather for the week, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington.

Columbus weather for the week of Nov. 14, 2024

• Thursday: There will be showers, mainly before 11 a.m. The high will be near 53. Wind gusts up to 24 miles per hour are possible. The chance of precipitation is 80% and between a tenth and a quarter inch of precipitation is possible.
• Thursday Night: There’s a chance of showers, mainly before 9 p.m. It’ll be cloudy with a low around 48. The chance of precipitation is 30% and less than a tenth of an inch of precipitation is expected.
• Friday: It’ll be mostly cloudy with a high near 55.
• Friday Night: It’ll be mostly cloudy with a low around 44.
• Saturday: It’ll be partly sunny with a high near 55.
• Saturday Night: It’ll be partly cloudy with a low around 40.
• Sunday: It’ll be partly sunny with a high near 62.
• Sunday Night: It’ll be mostly cloudy with a low around 51.
• Monday: It’ll be mostly sunny with a high near 62.
• Monday Night: It’ll be mostly cloudy with a low around 46.
• Tuesday: Showers are likely. It’ll be mostly cloudy with a high near 63. The chance of precipitation is 60%.
• Tuesday Night: Showers are likely. It’ll be mostly cloudy with a low around 52. There’s a chance of precipitation is 60%.
• Wednesday: There’s a chance of showers. It’ll be mostly cloudy with a high near 60. The chance of precipitation is 40%.

NHart@dispatch.com

@NathanRHart