I live far enough away from Ohio that the state schools in Ohio don't have much of an identity in peoples minds. If they are familiar with the schools in Ohio they'll know it usually by OU. In causal conversations I'll usually say Ohio U. is where I went but in a formal setting I wouldn't abbreviate like that because it looks tacky. My friends who follow college sports where I live refer to Ohio University as Ohio almost every time. With the programs that Solich and Groce on that front there has at least been progress to the point where that now 10% of the public recognizes us as just plain Ohio. For the non-sports fans even schools that you think would be obvious like Wisconsin or Michigan have responses like Madison? Ann Arbor? when you go by just the state name. Texas is thought of as Austin, North Carolina as Chapel Hill. You say Athens and people think it could mean Georgia. I once tried to go by the name Ohio-Athens and they thought it was a branch campus. Ohio U. is the only name where you can stay consistently safe in interpretation. 

I was thinking this week that it has definitely gotten better.  Just a few years ago, I used to very rarely hear us referred to as Ohio and just about every sports score ticker had the U on there.  Now, I have heard many many people referring to simply Ohio.  It is refreshing.  I think the athletic department (and all of us supporters of their mission) have made a difference in their expressed desire to be known as Ohio.  It will only get better the more they hear our name.

There are times when you want to avoid having to go into a lengthy explanation about things. A friend of mine from Duke asked me if the 3 land grant schools in Ohio were Miami, Ohio State and Ohio. My response was sure. Some battles aren't worth fighting unless they confuse Green and White with Marshall or something like that. 

 HERE'S WHAT YOU WILL DO.  YOU WILL START USING THE TERM "OHIO."

My boss at work saw the flag hanging in my office window (faces interior of the office...big O with 'Cats paw) and said, "You're an Ohio fan?"  It's an identity.  It's respect.  It's a brand.

O H I O.

If you don't like this post...no one cares.

None other than Walter Luckett is quoted as referring to "us" as Ohio U in those linked stories from today's Dispatch.   Is it any wonder people are confused?

Conversly, when I was matriculating in the early 70's the only use of "Ohio" alone that I recall was in a popular parody of a McDonalds jingle of the day.  

"You deserve a break today so, yada, yada, yada, at Ohio!". 

Bonus points for those who can fill in the yada's (on a family message board).