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Mooney graduate now a Buckeyes walk-on
NEW ORLEANS
Cardinal Mooney graduate Trevon Forte knows he won’t be on the field for a second of tonight’s Allstate Sugar Bowl at the Superdome.
After all, the Ohio State walk-on cornerback isn’t even listed on the team’s three-deep depth chart and hasn’t appeared in a game since joining the Buckeyes in the spring of 2013.
None of that’s stopping him from soaking up every last moment.
“It’s a blessing,” said Forte, a sophomore. “I’m extremely grateful for everything.
“I came a long way and I’m just thankful for the coaches and my brothers.”
Forte called it a dream come true to be on the Ohio State team. He remembers putting on a scarlet-and-gray jersey for the first time when he made a recruiting visit during his senior year at Mooney.
It was there that the 5-foot-9, 170-pound state track qualifier prepared himself for the amount of work needed to play at a big-time college football program.
“When I got here, I was competing with people who were the best at their high school,” Forte said. “Practicing against them makes me even better.
“I just try to add value and help make them better as well.”
That’s all Forte wanted, an opportunity. Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer gave him that opportunity. Now Forte’s just trying to give back everything he can.
“I’m extremely blessed to be around him, Forte said of Meyer. “He gives everybody a chance and all he wants you to do is go hard.
“I like the culture that he’s made for the program.”
It was a culture that also attracted Austintown Fitch graduate Billy Price, whose media day obligations were a little bit busier than Forte’s. Price is the Buckeyes’ starting left guard.
Forte remembers when Price’s Falcons “beat on us pretty good” his senior year.
“We share the Youngstown family,” Forte said. “Every time he sees me, he says ‘330.’
“It’s just something we share.”
While Buckeyes starters were busy answering many of the same questions, the reserves were finding ways to keep themselves entertained — even if it was at the expense of one another.
During an interview, Forte was photobombed by a cell phone picture of ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith that his teammate, Jeffie Johnson, was holding up. Forte wasn’t buying it.
“No, no, no, no,” he said, when asked if thought the comparison was accurate.
“The most common ones I get are Tupac, Kobe — those are the big ones.”
Top-seeded Alabama awaits in the inaugural college football playoff.
“We take things seriously, but we’re always joking behind closed doors,” Forte said.
Tonight, it will be strictly business for the Buckeyes. Forte’s plan — continue to soak up the moment.
“I’ve never been around something as big as this is gonna be,” he said. “I’m sure the crowd is gonna be enormous. Loud, bright lights — everything.
“I’m just extremely blessed to be around it.”