Carmen Reynolds: Converting a Closet from Red to Blue
11/23/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 23, 2011
By Joanne C. Gerstner
Yes, once upon a time, Michigan women's basketball senior guard/forward Carmen Reynolds was one of those Ohio State fans. She grew up in Hilliard, a suburb northwest of Columbus, surrounded by family and friends who were huge Buckeyes fans.
She was a die-hard fan too, attending games and following the various Buckeyes teams. The Reynolds family even did Christmas cards with everybody decked out in Ohio State gear. Her older brother, Cody, played varsity lacrosse for the Buckeyes.
But then something interesting happened.
Reynolds, who was a star basketball player for Davidson High, decided to attend Michigan. She wanted to go away for college, and Ohio State was way too close for her taste.
"Yeah, I did get some grief for that, all in fun of course, from my family and friends. I mean, I chose to go to Michigan -- of all places!" Reynolds said. "As much as I loved Ohio State growing up, I just knew it wouldn't be the right place for me to go to school. That wasn't going to happen. I came up for my visit to Michigan, and I just fell in love with everything.
"It was the right place. I'm away from home, but not too far. So I changed, everything turned to blue from the red."
And Reynolds isn't joking. She has tossed out all of her Ohio State garb, no more Buckeyes sweatshirts, t-shirts or hats, except for one item. She still has an Ohio State lacrosse shirt, out of support for her brother. But that's it.
Everything else scarlet and gray has been turned maize and blue in her closet.
Reynolds counts herself lucky to have both Ohio State and Michigan experiences in her life, as it's given her an understanding of the big rivalry.
"I don't think you really, really can get it unless you're from Columbus, as to what Ohio State means down there," Reynolds said. "It's everything. It's everywhere. It's always weird when I go home, as I'm usually now wearing some Michigan stuff.
"Last summer, my mom, who was wearing an Ohio State shirt, and I went into a restaurant (in Columbus), and I got people making comments to me about my Michigan shirt. Some mean comments. And we had another guy like semi-kiddingly refuse to serve us because I had Michigan stuff on.
"I don't think somebody wearing an Ohio State shirt up here would get that treatment. I find people are a little nicer, more laid back, about the Michigan-Ohio State thing up here, which is why I love it here."
A lot of Reynolds' friends are at Ohio State, including her close pal, senior soccer midfielder Caitlyn Martin. The two still cheer each other on, joking that they want a compromise: for the friend to play well, but for the other school to win. So if it's basketball season, Martin is cheering for Reynolds to play well and for Ohio State to win.
"I think we both are also secretly hoping for both of us to win too, because you want your friends to win, not lose, but I don't think we're allowed to say that out loud since I'm at Michigan and she's at Ohio State," Reynolds said.
The Reynolds household remains pretty pro-Ohio State but has made some big concessions to show they're fully behind their Wolverine too.
"They're flying one of those 'house divided' flags, which is pretty cool," Reynolds said. "And my uncle, who loves the Buckeyes, even wore a gray sweatshirt with a little block 'M' on it.
"That's huge for him, first time he ever wore something for Michigan. So I think that's about as good as it's going to get for my family. They're happy I am happy at Michigan, want me to do well, and when it's not basketball, they're going to cheer for Ohio State. I've switched -- I'm all Michigan, all the time."
Michigan/Ohio State Rivalry
• Cheryl Stacy: Trading in the Scarlet & Gray for the Maize & Blue
• Michael O'Neill: A Buckeye, Yankee Fan Makes the Move to Ann Arbor
• Leisa Rosen: From Wasilla to Columbus to Ann Arbor
