FREMONT, Ohio (WTVG) – During Buckeyes football season, you can always spot him in the crowd. He’s Jon Peters, A.K.A. Big Nut.
“I always say, if they show me, we better be winning. Because if we’re not winning, don’t show me because I won’t be happy. As Buckeyes, we wear our emotions on our sleeve, you know what I’m saying?” said Peters.
Peters has been dressing up and supporting The Ohio State University Buckeyes for decades with the help of his wife, Terese, whom he calls “First Lady Nut.” She paints his face and head, which takes about an hour.
Not only does Peters hand out Buckeyes and game schedules at bars like Silver Top Sports Bar & Grill in Fremont, he also awards scholarships to local high school seniors heading to OSU.
Those scholarships are funded in part through sales of Big Nut BBQ Sauces and Pickles. You can also make a donation to his scholarship fund through the university by clicking here.
This year, Peters will be giving out 16 scholarships worth $500 each at 14 high schools in Northwest Ohio. Through the years, he’s awarded $330,000 in scholarships.
“For me, knowing that I’m not a Buckeye graduate, it’s a form of healing for me because it helps me deal with the fact that I’ll never have that feeling, the ultimate, of walking across the stage and receiving that diploma from Ohio State because I’m not the sharpest knife in the drawer, as some people say. I’m a blue-collar guy, work in a factory,” said Peters.
The 64-year-old has worked at Whirlpool in Clyde the past 42 years. This year, he’s celebrating the Buckeye’s national championship win.
“It was just phenomenal. It was just a great ultimate feeling of winning that national title. That’s what you play for. First and foremost is to win that National Title and be number one,” said Peters.
That success is helping him plant the seeds for future Buckeyes.
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