While it's never been a secret that my fandom begins and ends with Ohio State, it may be a little shocking to find out that I collect hats from colleges and universities around the nation. A recent reorganization allowed me to get an actual count -- there are 215 in my collection. I also have some MLB, NHL and NFL hats, though in much smaller numbers as I find in pro sports it's about the team you root for, and that's it.
The habit started innocently enough, without any thought of it really becoming a habit.
For awhile I was consumed with cool college team nicknames — Cal Irvine Anteaters, Lock Haven Bald Eagles, Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens and UC-Santa Cruz Banana Slugs (a heavy concentration of good names is in California apparently) — and out of that came an idea. A noble idea, and one that would be difficult to realize, but an idea nonetheless.
I would collect every hat of every college sports team in the country. After thinking about just how this would be achieved I realized that it would be a pretty arduous undertaking. Things like work and sleep and eating would probably get in the way, so I would have to ditch those. After about five hours I came to my senses and figured out that the goal would need to be a little smaller. All of the FBS football schools. Once that was taken care of, then it would be all of the FCS football schools. Then all of the basketball schools. If the occasional NAIA institution came along, all the better. It appeared to be cheaper than buying jerseys, and quite a bit more accessible, too. Thanks to school websites and online outlets like Fanatics, obscure schools are no longer obscure.
Before continuing, a distinction must be made — I had a few hats prior to beginning my “collection”, but all were Ohio State. Growing up in Columbus and having the Buckeyes as my team that was only natural. The Buckeyes are also among a very small group of schools — Florida and Florida State being the others — where more than one hat is allowed. I have family in Florida and they rooted for both schools, and on a few occasions a Gators or Seminoles hat was presented to yours truly. Never look a gift hat in the mouth, I always say.
The first hat I decided to buy with the express purpose was Southern Illinois, the good ol' Salukis.
I was covering the Big Ten Wrestling Championships and traveling with the Ohio State contingent, and during some down time decided to head over to a local mall. The Salukis had always been another of my favorite nicknames, so when I saw the hat I knew it would be mine (cue the Wayne’s World clip).
After that, it didn’t really matter where I was — if I could find a school hat that I didn’t already own it was in the collection. And I didn’t discriminate, either.
I do own a Michigan hat, but have never (nor will ever) worn it. Same can be said about the University of Miami. Have it, won’t wear it. General rule -- if I can't stand the team, it ain't going on my head.
A quick perusal of my collection, which is grouped by conference, then alphabetically, then schools that do not play football, then Ohio State:
I don’t have nearly the time to pursue my hobby the way I used to — for one thing I’m off the road, and for another I have to be on a real mission to find one. It’s nice having enough hats to color coordinate just about everything I own, and you can bet at times they are conversation starters. I’m also not above taking a bunch with me to the local sports bar at NCAA Tournament time and changing out as games end.
It's not a bad thing to have so many hats -- they are conversation starters, they can elicit cheers from a fan base, and they are generally just cool to have.
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