Former Buckeye and current Green Bay Packer linebacker A.J. Hawk took a break from celebrating a Super Bowl victory to sign autographs at Ohio State.
Hawk spent two hours signing autographs Thursday afternoon for fans in the East Ballroom of the Ohio Union. He said it was “great” to be back at OSU.
Dan Biegger, a fifth-year in mechanical engineering, said he has been an OSU fan since he moved to Ohio from Green Bay, Wis., 15 years ago.
“I’ve been a Packers fan all my life,” Biegger said.
The first student in line for the event was Beth Castilano, a fourth-year in actuarial science. Castilano arrived at 11:45 a.m. for the 2 p.m. event.
“I love A.J. Hawk; he went to my high school. My family has always followed him,” Castilano said. “Everyone here has OSU stuff or Green Bay Stuff, I have Centerville.”
Andrew Sutter, a fifth-year in anthropology, has been an OSU fan his whole life.
“A.J. has always been my favorite player,” Sutter said. “I’ve always liked defensive players, and he was ‘the guy’ when he played here.”
Also a Green Bay fan, Sutter said he thought Hawk did a good job anchoring the defense this year considering the team’s injury problems.
OUAB member Courtenay Samsel, a fourth-year in human nutrition, said Hawk was brought in as part of OUAB’s Celebrity Signer Series because he was a former OSU player and standout. The Celebrity Signer Series has also included alumni R.J. Umberger and Santonio Holmes.
Hawk was a member of the OSU football team from 2002-05, earning All-American honors his junior and senior years, and the 2005 Lombardi Award for the nation’s top linebacker or lineman. This year he earned a Super Bowl title to go along with his 2002 Fiesta Bowl National Championship.
