Twas the night before Christmas: Ohio sports year in review

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the town.

There were sports fans recalling how this year went down.

The banners were hung in the rafters with care

In hopes that more banners soon would be there.

The Buckeyes made moves OSU NIL

Bringing Caleb, Jeremiah, Quinshon, and Will

One of the most talented teams I can ever remember

But it somehow went south the last week of November

Yes roses are red, and Michigan is blue

And both play a role in this year in review

But the Buckeyes bounced back, against Tennessee

I guess O-H-I-O owns the S-E-C

Scottie Scheffler won The Memorial at eight under par

With putting precision and driving it far

He’s one of the best golfers we’ve ever seen

And apparently orange is the new green

Ohio State hoops lost again and again

With a mid-winter stretch dropping nine out of ten

And Gene Smith decided no more he could take

So goodbye, Chris Holtmann a promotion for Jake

And speaking of Gene, it was time to retire

After 19 long years in scarlet attire

But now OSU has a new AD boss

A man from down south with the first name of Ross

The Blue Jackets decided to change their approach

And brought in Dean Evason for the role of head coach

Good for Dean and the Jackets, but it’s kind of a shame

If you’re writing a poem and need to rhyme his last name

Evason Evason moving on!

The MLS all-stars left Columbus impressed

As the capital city hosted the MLS best

While the Crew won a Leagues Cup, but that cup is half-full

Cuz the Crew lost their energy to a team of Red Bulls

And then there were high schools and some of them great

Bishop Watterson and Liberty were best in the state

While the Africentric girls went on the attack

And the Nubians were able to go back to back

And while losses to Michigan, and seasons cut short

Remind us of sadness that comes from a sport

We must keep perspective of the highs and the low

Because real tragedy is what happened to Johnny Gaudreau

As a player – he was great – one of the best that we’ve seen

We were lucky enough to know the number 13

What happened to his family is the peak of unfair

So please keep his wife and his kids in your prayers

May Johnny remind us we’re blessed to be alive

Merry Christmas to all. On to 2025.