Tag: Randy Wade

Buckeyes Wire caught up with Ohio State cornerback Shaun Wade’s father, Randy, Thursday afternoon on his way from his home in Jacksonville, Florida, to the airport in Orlando. He was hopping on a flight to Chicago with the intention of meeting other Big Ten parents to have a peaceful protest outside of the Big Ten offices.

For Randy, the Big Ten’s decision to postpone the fall football season hit home. First and foremost he is a father, one ready to fight for his and others’ sons affected by the decision that has become so polarizing.

He’s hoping Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren takes notice.

And while many criticized the parents’ group for protesting the ability to play during a global pandemic, Wade agreed that, yes, he’d like to see his son and others play, but that it’s much more than that.

“It is very important, and I’m just trying to change things,” Wade told Buckeyes Wire. “The message everyone is trying to convey is that we’re cavemen, and we just want football. No, we want football safely, and as soon as football is available to be there, we want to play it. We want to play in the fall, but if we can’t, we want to make sure everything is talked about for the spring.”

“I’m just a dad,” continued Wade. “I’m not even a part of the Ohio State parent’s association. I’m a dad trying to open better communication for the future. That’s all I’m doing.”

Wade says he’s heard from a few parents groups that he hopes will join him in bringing awareness Friday morning. He hopes to push for a Zoom call between the various football parents’ associations, the athletic directors and Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren. So far, he’s heard from groups from Iowa, Nebraska, Purdue, Illinois, and Indiana.

On whether he expects a good turnout, Wade said regardless, he’s planning on continuing with his mission.

“I hope so, regardless of that, I am a man of my word, I’m going to go out there and fight for these kids, do what I can,” Wade said.

Wade made the plans to fly to Chicago for a peaceful protest prior to Kevin Warren’s statement on not revisiting the fall season, but to him, he’s afraid it will be more of the same in the spring.

“We are trying to make sure to the best of our ability, what has happened doesn’t carry over into the spring,” Wade said. “Yes, we want to play in the fall, and everyone’s going to ask questions about the fall, but we don’t want to disappoint our kids again as parents. At the end of the day, people say that these kids are grown, but they’re still kids. We still got to support them — we have to pay their bills. They have a lot of growing up to do. Just because you’re in college doesn’t mean your grown.”

He also believes the kids and parents need more of a voice.

“The kids cannot vocalize themselves as they want to. If the coach says nobody say anything about this, for the most part you know what they got to do? Keep quiet about it and move forward. The kids get paid a stipend by the school, the coaches get paid by the school, ADs gets paid by the school, the president gets paid by the school, but us parents? We get paid by a job, so we can say what we want to say. We are going to be respectful, but we want to avoid a couple of the things that we think need to be done, and a couple of concerns that we have. So whether football is going to be played in the fall or the spring, open up that communication to us.”

We asked Wade why he is taking up this baton, especially considering his son is a potential high draft pick for the upcoming 2021 NFL draft. He said Shaun is in a good spot, but it’s about others, and he’s fighting for more than just his kid.

“Shaun is a potential first-rounder. It’s about the people at schools waiting for their chance to come,” said Wade. “This moment right here will be the biggest moment in a lot of young men’s life other than getting married or having a baby. We got to do what we got to do.”

He ended the conversation by imploring those that feel like the communication and decision-making needs improvement to show up outside of the Big Ten offices Friday morning with him to take up the cause.

“Showing up tomorrow morning at 8 a.m. is going to be the answer to Kevin Warren’s statement,” said Wade. “If you agree with his statement, then you’re not going to show up. But if you disagree with his statement and you don’t show up, that’s going to be the problem. Don’t complain in the spring when the same result happens.”

No matter how you feel about efforts to play football during extraordinary times, it’s hard to argue against a dad not only fighting for his son, but others that are on a similar journey.

According to Wade, all he wants is improved communication, transparent decision making, and inclusion for the student-athletes and other stakeholders that are most affected by the loss of competitive opportunities.

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