Jack Nicklaus likes his chances of seeing a team he loves playing for the NCAA National Championship in 12 days; but the rub is that both his favorite teams might be playing each other.
Nicklaus is in Los Angeles today for the Rose Bowl, pitting Oregon against Florida State, where his grandson, Nick O’Leary, starts at tight end.
Later tonight, Nicklaus will watch on TV as his alma mater, Ohio State, takes on No. 1 Alabama, in the Sugar Bowl.
If both the Seminoles – defending national champions – and Buckeyes win today, they’ll square off against each other in the National Championship game on January 12.
But who will Nicklaus root for if it’s his alma mater against his grandson?
“If the two of them are fortunate enough to get there, Ohio State will just have to wait until next year when Nick is gone from Florida State, and I’ll be back,” he told a Southern California newspaper. “I’m an Ohio State guy, but blood is thicker than anything else.”
Born in Columbus, Ohio, Nicklaus played football and golf at Ohio State. He won the US Amateur title twice and the 1961 NCAA Championship.
O’Leary is in his senior season at Florida State. The 6’3″, 247-pound tight end has started nearly every game for the Seminoles since his sophomore year, and was a candidate for the Mackey Award in 2013, catching 33 passes for 557 yards and seven touchdowns.
He’s bettered those numbers by catching 47 passes for 614 and six touchdowns this season and is the Seminoles’ career leader in passes caught, receptions, and touchdowns by a tight end.
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