This is the best time of the season for Ohio State Buckeyes' fans. Colorful outfits and personalities will be on display in the stands when the Buckeyes take the field against the Michigan Wolverines.
College football rosters turn over season after season. Coaches fall from grace in a flash.
But those familiar game-day characters -- head coach look-alikes and fanatics whose painted mugs, scary hair and wild outfits attract TV cameras like moths to the back-porch light -- remain the constant.
They make personal appearances. (Some even hand out business cards. ) They are tailgate-party regulars. And for Ohio State-Michigan week, college football's most storied rivalry, these faithful fans will have their crazy, colorful, game-faces on....
Big Nut
Name: Jon Peters
Description: Paints face half scarlet, half gray, wears Ohio State jersey, striped Buckeye shorts, paints legs silver, wears scarlet or gray leg-warmers on arms, carries Brutus the Buckeye doll in one hand and huge buckeye nut in pocket for luck.
Hometown: Fremont
Age: 49
Personal: Married, with two daughters and son ("I call him 'My Little Peter,' 'cause my last name's Peters") and a grandson ("I call him 'Little Nut.'")
Day job: Works in materials department at Whirlpool Corp. in Clyde.
The kickoff: Started in 1995 when he won "Best Dressed" contest at local Ohio State-Michigan fundraiser; traces Ohio State passion to grandfather and great-grandfather, both OSU grads, and his first Buckeye game, a 22-0 loss to Michigan in 1976, in which each team had a standout from Fremont: Buckeye linebacker Bob Brudzinski and Wolverine tailback Rob Lytle, who died from a heart attack last weekend.
Pregame: Takes about two hours to become Big Nut; also prepares 50 buckeye necklaces to hand out at games.
Money-maker?: "Mrs. Big Nut would like it to be, but no. I like to bring a smile to someone's face. That's what it's all about."
Favorite Buckeye: Linebacker Chris Spielman. "He played with so much heart."
How survives the bye week: Does high school play-by-play on cable TV. "I'll catch a high school game somewhere...and count the days until the next Buckeye game."
Block O
Name: Dave Miller
Description: Can be identified by Block O shaved in head, 500 buckeyes strung around neck and face painted half scarlet, half gray.
Hometown: Malvern
Age: 41
Personal: Single; "No kids, no wife. An understanding girlfriend."
Day job: Project engineer for Motorola; travels for his job and worked all summer just north Ann Arbor, sporting his Block O scalp. "They stole the (Ohio State) decals off my truck."
The kickoff: Has been Block O about 3 years. Miller, a lifetime Ohio State fan, returned from a 2007 loss to Illinois and was Block O from then on. "I wanted some extra mojo for the Michigan game, and it was quite a hit with fans, so I continued." Now he makes four to six Buckeye games a year; also wears Block O get-up on yearly vacation to North Carolina's Outer Banks.
Pregame: Takes 45 minutes to an hour to become Block O. And, yes, he shaves his own head, using a mirror -- a skill he picked up in the Marines.
Money-maker?: "No, in fact, I've had people offer to buy the necklaces I carry around. I give them away."
Favorite Buckeye: Quarterback Rex Kern, although Miller is too young to have ever watched him. "I just always loved reading stories about him and how he played the game."
How survives the bye week: "I'll peruse the other Big Ten games or I'll throw in one of the great DVDs of the Bucks beating Michigan, or the Miami game (2003 Fiesta Bowl)."
Buckeyeman
Name: Larry Lokai
Description: Guy in half-red, half-gray fright wig, face painted red with 13 gray stripes and seven buckeye necklaces around neck -- one strand for each Ohio State national championship and each Heisman Trophy winner, and 107 buckeye total nuts for each Ohio State-Michigan game.
Hometown: Urbana
Age: 68
Personal: Married, four grown children and 17 grandchildren, the oldest of which is an Ohio State freshman and third-generation Buckeye.
Day job: Urbana city councilman; retired high school agriculture teacher.
The kickoff: Had planned to become farmer after high school -- until he attended the Ohio State-Wisconsin game in 1962. "That game was the turning point in my life." Earned undergraduate and master's degrees from Ohio State; in fact, between him, wife, in-laws and siblings, his family has 18 degrees from there. Became Buckeyeman after winning a national fan scream-off in 2000. Now attends all Ohio State games, home and away.
Pregame: Takes 25 minutes; has transformation down to a science. On game day, he's up at 4 a.m., on road by 5 and in parking lot at 6:30.
Money-maker?: Lokai spends about 110 days a year on Buckeyeman appearances, such as Ohio State's "Becoming a Nut" freshman orientation. Sound lucrative? It's not. "I hate to tell my wife this, but it probably costs me somewhere around $7,000 to $8,000 a year."
Favorite Buckeye: Kicker Mike Nugent, because his mom attended Springfield Catholic Central High School with Lokai's sister.
How he survives the bye week: "Reconnect with the wife." Her birthday falls around Buckeyes bye week. So, each year, he makes good on promise to take her jewelry shopping in the Detroit area, where she grew up.
Buck I Guy
Name: John Chubb
Description: Wears white 10-gallon cowboy hat, 6-foot-long white cape with Ohio State athletic "Block O" logo, white pants and white shirt with matching logo.
Hometown: Columbus
Age: 50
Personal: Married, with three grown children.
Day job: Sells computer supplies.
The kickoff: Since 2003, donned outfit for fun; was born 3 miles from Ohio Stadium and lives 15 minutes from "Horseshoe"; a Buckeye fan since childhood, when his dad would return from day of hunting, young John would catch him up with game details.
Pregame: Takes about a half-hour to get his game-face on.
Money-maker?: "Absolutely not. Fan and fan only. It's for the love of the game." Attends all home games and drives to regional road games, buying tickets game by game. Most he's ever paid for a seat? "Handsomely, let's just say that."
Favorite Buckeye: "No hesitation at all. It's old number 45, Archie Griffin. Two-time Heisman Trophy winner and he's from Columbus."
How survives the bye week: "Wait on the next game to come."
Jim Tressel
Name: Dennis Singleton
Description: The other mild-mannered gent at Ohio State games in a gray sweater vest, tie and white shirt with sleeves rolled up.
Hometown: Huber Heights
Age: 62. "Five years older than Tressel. We both have two sons, two daughters."
Personal: Married, with four grown children.
Day job: Drives Pepsi truck.
The kickoff: People just started telling him he looked like the Buckeyes' coach. When his wife bought him a sweater vest, that clinched it. ESPN once called him "Jimposter." Causes a stir at high school games. Has attended more Ohio State games this season than usual, but is a reluctant character. "Well, I'm a little overwhelmed by it, but people sure get a kick out of it."
Pregame: Ready in minutes. "When I put a sweater vest on, I feel like Clark Kent putting on Superman's cape."
Money-maker?: "Oh, I wouldn't. I don't know if that would be appropriate. I wouldn't want to do anything that he would object to."
Favorite Buckeye: "Well, Archie (Griffin) has to be at the top of the list. But, certainly, Chris Spielman has to be up there."
How survives the bye week: Channel surfing college football on TV "for as long as I can stay awake."
Michigan SuperFan
Name: Jeff Holzhausen
Description: A maize and blue Batman-like fellow with sunglasses, a pointy-eared mask, cape, cowbell and megaphone.
Hometown: Chelsea, Mich., about 10 minutes from An Arbor.
Age: 37
Personal: Married with a 9-month-old son, named Logan, after the character in the X-Men and Wolverine comics and movies.
Day job: Manager for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan.
The kickoff: Earned three degrees at Michigan; debuted as SuperFan as a freshman in 1992; now sponsors a SuperFan student each year, paying for tickets for home and road games; hasn't missed an Ohio State-Michigan game since 1988.
Pre-game: It used to take over an hour. "Now I've got it down to 10, 15 minutes."
Money-maker?: "No, people have offered me money for appearances. I usually won't allow it. I tell them to make a donation to the university or whatever."
Favorite Buckeye: "(Former Ohio State coach) John Cooper, for obvious reasons."
Woody Hayes
Name: Roger Thomas
Description: Easy to spot -- even among 105,000 crazies -- in Ohio State cap, white short-sleeve shirt and Buckeye tie, black pants and the legendary coach's familiar glasses. (His hometown optometrist -- an Ohio State grad -- dug out a matching frame and customized with his prescription.)
Hometown: Tipp City
Age: 71
Personal: Married, with two grown children.
Day job: Commodity futures broker for 40 years.
The kickoff: Started about seven years ago. Woody likeness, even without get-up, is uncanny. He and wife of 44 years are huge college football fans. People would approach them at sports bars and call him "Coach." When owner of Buckeye Hall of Fame Caf invited him for a benefit, the character took off. Thomas had been a regular at games, but has since cut back because of age and health issues. But he hasn't curbed his Buckeye love. "They're the greatest football team in Ohio -- and that would include a couple of professional teams."
Pregame: To transform into Woody? "Oh, gee, about five minutes." (By the way, sounds like him, too.)
Money-maker?: Nope. "I get a lot of hugs and handshakes and smiles and stuff, and I'm not confused about who I am. I'm a messenger. I take messages for Woody."
Favorite Buckeye: "Golly, Woody Hayes. God love 'em, you know, he did a great job."
How survives the bye week: "Well, we watch football. We watch 'em all day Saturday when we don't go to Ohio State."