The Program

Under a multimillion-dollar deal that includes signage and in-arena ATMs, Huntington Bank, one of the athletic department's biggest corporate partners, has affixed its name to suite levels at both the Horseshoe and the Schottenstein Center. The bank wants not only to reach the attractive demographic of college students but also to tap into the positive feelings that Ohio State sports provide fans of all ages. "At the end of the day," says Jim Kunk (class of '75), Huntington 's president for the Central Ohio market, "they have a great brand and a great following."

In 2000 Huntington launched the Buckeye Banking premium, whereby customers receive checks and ATM cards emblazoned with the Buckeyes logo. Cardholders can show their fealty to the scarlet and gray and receive perks such as discounts at the Buckeyes' gift shop. In what could form the basis for a psychology major's senior thesis, when Ohio State teams win--the football team, in particular--not only do more fans join the program, but the bank also sees a spike in existing members' spending.

These rivers of revenue are not lost on Buckeyes football and basketball players. "In all honesty, one of the most exploited groups of people in the country is college athletes," wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez , an Academic All-America, said during the week of the BCS championship game. "We basically have a job that generates millions and millions and millions of dollars, and, at the end of the day, we don't really see any of it." A few days later he announced that he was forgoing his final season of eligibility to enter this year's NFL draft.

THE BOOSTER | Steve Milligan
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? CFO, California -based Western Digital, one of the world's largest suppliers of hard drives

? Graduated from the same high school ( Upper Arlington , Ohio ) as Jack Nicklaus

? His three-year-old daughter, Megan, can sing Across the Field, the Ohio State fight song

EARLIER THIS DECADE Steve Milligan (class of '85), then a fast-rising executive at Dell , was looking for a way to honor his alma mater--and if it came with tax advantages, so much the better. He made a onetime gift of $50,000 to a general fund at Ohio State. A year or so later an athletic department fund-raiser contacted Milligan with a proposition: For a contribution of $100,000 he could permanently endow a scholarship for an OSU athlete. The idea appealed to Milligan, and he created the Stephen D. Milligan Family Scholarship, to be awarded in perpetuity. "I wasn't an athlete, just a normal Joe," says Milligan. "But I love Buckeyes football and feel such loyalty, I figured this was a way to personalize a gift."

Milligan joined more than 100 other donors--including former Buckeyes athletes such as Jack Nicklaus, NFL receiver Joey Galloway and NBA swingman Jim Jackson --in underwriting scholarships for athletes. Athletic director Gene Smith asserts that without the $36 million in endowed scholarships, his department would not be self-supporting. "I might have to cut travel and recruiting and equipment," he says.

After Milligan wrote his check, he was told that the inaugural recipient would be a lightly regarded football recruit named Troy Smith . "It was fine with me," he says. "I didn't want to be a pain-in-the-ass donor, but I've heard of guys requesting only running backs." ( Ohio State permits scholarship endowers to handpick the recipient.) For the next four years Milligan watched proudly as Smith started, starred and then won the 2006 Heisman Trophy, quarterbacking the Buckeyes to an undefeated regular season. But he never met the player whose education he was underwriting. "I got a few thank-you notes and a picture of him getting his diploma," says Milligan. "Knowing he took advantage of this opportunity was [thanks] enough. I never did this to meet a football player."