All you need to know about buckeyes and why it’s Ohio State’s mascot

The Buckeyes take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish today, fighting for a place in history if they win the College Football National Championship game.
The 2025 College Football Playoff final will be decided today as the Notre Dame Fighting Irish take on the Ohio State Buckeyes.

The team mascot – Brutus Buckeye – is one of the most celebrated in the world of college football and he has an interesting back story.

In 1965 Ohio State students Ray Bourhis and Sally Huber set out to give their school a mascot, initially hoping to bring a live animal to the stadium on game day. Their plan to enlist a live buck deer was dismissed on logistical grounds, so they opted for an anthropomorphic buckeye instead.

What is a buckeye, the Ohio State mascot?

The buckeye is the official state tree of Ohio, typically found along streambanks, in forests and at the corners of old agricultural fields.

The Ohio State buckeye was initially constructed out of papier-mâché by students, to be worn over the head and torso of the wearer. The Buckeye debuted at a Minnesota – Ohio State game in October 1965. It proved popular, but changes were quickly made.

Now the Brutus costume features the buckeye head and the school’s iconic ‘O’ hat, along with a red and grey striped jersey. Both Male and female students step in to wear the mascot’s outfit on gameday.

Brutus was involved in a controversy in 2010 when Ohio State played the Ohio Bobcats. The rival mascot – Rufus the Bobcat – charged at Brutus and tackled him to the ground, before jumping on his back. Brandon Hanning was inside the Rufus costume that day and had to be pulled aside by stadium security. He later revealed that he had been working on the plan for a long time.