Ohio’s Saturday afternoon matchup against Stony Brook was tight, but the home team never gave up its lead. The perseverance and ability to bounce back from slumps the Bobcats displayed perfectly represent the causes they supported in their battle against the Seawolves: Morgan’s Message and The Green Bandana Project.
Morgan’s Message and TGBP are national nonprofit initiatives spanning college campuses nationwide. Morgan’s Message focuses on destigmatizing mental health struggles for student-athletes, while TGBP seeks to improve student awareness of mental health support and suicide prevention resources.
In Bird Arena, tables were set up for both nonprofits, featuring information about what they do and resources for those who feel they need them. Ohio’s social media platforms collaborated with Morgan’s Message and TGBP, sharing ways for people to get involved and support mental health awareness to a combined 14,000 followers.
“What's great about our program … is the role it can play in all of those types of organizations on this campus, and obviously that's a very important one,” Ohio coach Barry Schutte said. “I think our guys take an approach that they're proud to be a part of it and play a role in that, and help spread the word, spread the message.”
Heading into the second period, it looked like Ohio was losing steam. The match started slow, with Stony Brook frequently staying 1 point away from overtaking Ohio’s lead. Between the second and third periods, Schutte’s message of motivation to the team hit extra hard; the Bobcats quickly jumped into the driver’s seat for the last minutes on the ice.
“It's a 60-minute game, right? And not all 60 minutes are going to go our way,” Schutte said. “There's going to be a play here, a play there, a bounce there. You have to have short-term memory, but you also need guys to go out there and have a shift, and at that point, I think you really just need to simplify the game and don't complicate it.”
For Schutte, prioritizing his player’s physical and cognitive health is a regular part of the job, and he takes it seriously. Whether it is a pep talk to get out of a slump in gameplay or a helping hand on the bench, Schutte wants to make sure his players know they have a safety net in Athens.
“We talk about it every day. We try and surround our guys with the proper support, mentally, physically, emotionally, as being a student, you all know there's lots and lots of challenges,” Schutte said. “It's difficult, so there's people around that can help.”
