Huge Simon Says game falls shy of record

ATHENS (AP) — A giant game of Simon Says in southeast Ohio didn’t break the world record over the weekend, and there was no winner, except some Athens High School athletes and a local food pantry.

The event that drew 950 people to Ohio University’s football stadium was a fundraiser for the high school basketball team.

The number of people trying carefully to follow only Simon’s instructions fell short of the nearly 1,200 who played in Glasgow, Scotland, last year and made the record books.

Fifty people were still standing in Athens when Saturday’s game ended.

The group did not include some who should have known better, such as those who were told to raise their hands if they had a college degree and did so — even though that wasn’t something Simon said.

Admission was $5, and entrants received T-shirts and raffle tickets for giveaways, with additional raffle tickets given to those who donated food item, said varsity basketball coach Paul McNeal. The event raised $4,000 for the team and 800 items for the Athens Food Pantry, he said.