Ohio State University students are looking for a new ritual to replace the Mirror Lake jump before the annual Ohio State-Michigan Game this weekend.
The tradition stopped after a student died in 2015. Ohio State moved to ban the jump, with the student government voting in agreement.
Since then, Mirror Lake has been under construction as part of a complete renovation of the area, and on Monday, the lake was drained. The new design allows it to be drained in an hour, preventing anyone from jumping in ahead of Saturday's game.
“The most important thing is that we’re safe,” says Student Government president Shamina Merchant. “If it means finding another way to have fun, I think it’s the right step.”
Merchant says she’s heard from other students of campus activities leading up to the game, but nothing official to replace the Mirror Lake jump.
“I’ve definitely heard rumors of some other ways that we can embrace the community aspect of Ohio State and what’s so unique about the game,” Merchant says.
