Greg Oden likes roller coasters
Last week, we mentioned the poll that Buckeye Commentary had created in an attempt to give Greg Oden a suitable nickname. Through Friday, "Block O" was leading the results comfortably, but that has changed quickly. We received an email from the leader of a pro-Odenator group on Friday evening and since then, Odenator has surged ahead of Block O in voting. Evidently, the Odenator Facebook group that we mentioned last month is alive and well.
Just checked in on this and saw you made mention of Greg's Facebook group "You Got Odenated." I'm the creator of the group, and I figured I would fill you in on a few of the details. "You Got Odenated" is the catchphrase of sorts for when Greg blocks a shot or throws down a big dunk. The physical expression of Odenation is a double thumbs down (you might have noticed him doing this after he blocked Armon Bassett at the end of the Indiana game. Now as far as the history of the phrase goes, it was created in May of 2006, between myself, Mark Titus (#34), and Greg. Greg was coming to our prom and we knew everybody would try to get attention from Greg. Mark and I suggested that Greg stare them down, extend his arm, have a dramatic pause, and then give them the thumbs down, kind of like in the movie Gladiator. Of course Greg wouldn't do that because he's too nice, but we all enjoyed a laugh about it. Later we talked about Greg doing the thumbs down after he blocked someone's shot later on, and from that sprung the phrase "You Got Odenated." Other forms are the noun Odenation, and the nickname Odenator. I created the Facebook group shortly afterwards, and what turned into an inside joke among Brownsburg High School students quickly turned into a phenomenon. We peaked at around 1500 members by the time September rolled around, and when Greg started playing we gained an extra 600 or so. The membership just keeps going up, but the area of exposure is dwindling a bit. What I can say is that the people who are a part of the group have managed to incorporate Odenation into their everyday vocabulary, and the thumbs down is getting a revival it never expected. Greg himself is a member of the group. Speaking of Facebook, you should plug the underappreciated "Mark Titus is a God" Facebook group as well, although it only has 175 members. I'd appreciate this information getting passed along. Although Block O is pretty badass, I think it's only appropriate that the name that Greg has embraced be the one that he's given. I'm adding links to the You Got Odenated logo (a takeoff of the NBA logo that was photoshopped using Greg doing the thumbs down) and a picture of Mark Titus, myself, and Greg doing the thumbs down on King's Island's Vortex at the beginning of May. http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c341/bigred9613/vortex.jpg http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c341/bigred9613/logo2.jpg Thanks a lot, and spread the Odenation! Keller
Perhaps a compromise of sorts? "Block O" until he leaves OSU and "Odenator" once he joins the Association?
