Former Ohio State Buckeye great Chris Spielman has sued the Ohio State University over the use of player likenesses. At the heart of the issue is tOSU associating the images of players with corporate logos/sponsorships that the former player did not receive the ability for compensation or approval. Via The Columbus Dispatch:

That’s why it was considered such stunning news Friday that Spielman is the plaintiff in a class-action suit filed in federal court in Columbus against Ohio State University on behalf of all former and current Buckeyes football players.

The lawsuit takes issue with 64 banners hung in Ohio Stadium featuring players’ likenesses and a corporate logo for Honda on them, but it also mentions jerseys, photographs, signatures and more.

Spielman also said attaching his name to Honda puts him in a difficult situation given a separate sponsorship deal he has with a local Mazda dealership.

Spielman said he is fine with Ohio State using his name and likeness for non-commercial purposes.

“You can slap your name and logo on banners all you want,” he said. “But as soon as you slap a corporate logo on there, I have rights, in my opinion, to say yes or no, or to negotiate that.”

The lawsuit also names sports marketing company IMG College, LLC.; WME Entertainment; DBA International Management Group; Honda; and Nike. Spielman’s main issue is with IMG, Duncan said, which represents Ohio State in negotiations with such companies as Nike.


Numerous plaintiffs in the lawsuit including Spielman and Archie Griffin have stated any money won as part of the suit would either go to the Athletic Department or towards charity.


It is worth stating that Ohio State is believed to be one of the programs that pulled usage of their trademarks for the cancelled EA SPORTS College Football 15 (unofficial title) following the settlement of lawsuits regarding the use of player likenesses in previous versions of the game in fall 2013. Courtesy Kotaku and Owen Good:

If College Football 15 could have shipped, with them, the depth of customization—and the ability to share uniforms, complex logos and user-built stadia—could have soothed the sting of conferences like the Pac-12 and Big Ten pulling their trademarks from the series, and a big program—believed to be Ohio State—exiting it altogether.


The Buckeyes' rumored willingness to remove trademarks from a product that ultimately resolved their issues regarding allegations of using player likenesses while then utilizing exact likenesses and images for commercial and corporate gain is astounding shortsightedness and hypocrisy, even for a major athletic department.