Ohio State center Greg Oden drives by Florida forward Chris Richard during their men's championship basketball game at the Final Four in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta Monday, April 2, 2007. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

COLUMBUS, Ohio — This fall, 14 outstanding Buckeyes will be enshrined in the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame. The first seven of the Class of 2024 were published Friday with the final seven listed below.

The group will be officially inducted during a dinner Oct. 4 in the Covelli Center and recognized at Ohio Stadium when the Buckeye football team hosts Iowa Oct. 5. Tickets for the dinner will go on sale at a later date.

The Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame was created in 1977 and has inducted 487 athletes, coaches and administrators through 2023.

Brian Mannino

Baseball, 1992-95

Brian Mannino was a four-year letterwinner for the Buckeyes, playing on the Ohio State squad from 1992 to 1995. He helped the Buckeyes capture Big Ten Tournament titles in 1994 and 1995 and to NCAA Tournament appearances all four of his seasons.

Mannino earned Third Team All-America honors following his sophomore season in 1993 and led the Buckeyes in home runs that season with 12. In 1994, he was an Honorable Mention All-American. He was a First Team All-Big Ten honoree in both 1993 and 1995 and was a Big Ten All-Tournament Team selection in 1993 and 1994. Mannino, who served as a team captain in 1995, is sixth in Ohio State program history in career batting average (.362), tied for fourth in hits (250), tied for 10th in doubles (45), tied for fifth in home runs (35), sixth in runs scored (174) and second in RBI (180).

Mannino went on to play three seasons of Independent League baseball after his collegiate career concluded before returning to Ohio State as an assistant coach for five years under Hall of Fame head coach Bob Todd.

Kathy Monard

Women’s Cross Country/Track & Field, 1986-87

Kathy Monard remains one of the best distance runners in Ohio State’s track & field and cross country history. The 1986 NCAA individual qualifier finished a program-best ninth in the cross country championships, earning All-America honors. She was also an Outdoor First Team All-America honoree the same year in the 3000m. The two-time First Team All-Big Ten honoree was also the 1987 Big Ten 5000m champion. Monard was a champion on the track and in the classroom as a two-time Academic All-Big Ten selection. She remains in the Top 3 among the all-time leaders list in three events at Ohio State.

Greg Oden

Men’s Basketball, 2006-07

One of the most recognizable figures both on and off the court, Greg Oden was one of the country’s most dominant players during the 2006-07 season. He was named the National Defensive Player of the Year and helped lead the Buckeyes to a national championship game appearance. He had 25 points and 12 rebounds in the championship game vs. Florida.

A Second Team All-American, Oden averaged 15.7 points, 9.6 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game in his lone season. In addition to being named the NABC Defensive Player of the Year, he was also the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and the Pete Newell Big Man Award winner. Behind Oden’s dominance, the Buckeyes won the 2007 Big Ten regular season and Big Ten Tournament titles as well as a program-record 35 games.

After his one year, Oden went on to be the No. 1 overall selection by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 2007 NBA Draft. He played parts of six seasons in the NBA before eventually returning to Ohio State in 2016 as a student manager. He spent three seasons as a manager and completed his sport industry degree in 2019. He also served as a graduate assistant for the program during the 2021-22 season.

Tony Russo

Men’s Lacrosse, 2001-04

Tony Russo is one of the greatest players to stand in net for the Ohio State men’s lacrosse program. A captain and four-year starter for the Buckeyes, Russo is the only Buckeye to earn multiple conference player of the year awards. His sophomore season in 2002 saw him post the second-best save percentage in the country and a Top 5 goals-against average. He followed that season up with a junior campaign worthy of Great Western Lacrosse League Player of the Year and First Team All-GWLL honors. Russo helped the Buckeyes to a GWLL title and the first NCAA Tournament appearance in program history that season. In 2004, Russo backstopped Ohio State to back-to-back GWLL regular season titles and NCAA Tournament appearances and picked up his second conference player of the year award.

He finished his collegiate career as the program’s all-time saves leader, a record that still stands today. Russo was a two-time USILA All-American and picked up All-GWLL honors three of his four seasons as a Buckeye. He was a four-time GWLL Player of the Week honoree and was named the team’s Most Valuable Player of the 2002 season and defensive MVP in 2003 and 2004. Russo graduated with a degree in philosophy in 2004.

Gene Smith

Administration, 2005-24

Gene Smith will retire as Senior Vice President and Wolfe Foundation Athletics Director at The Ohio State University at the end of this month after a storied, 19-year career leading the Department of Athletics, one of the most successful and outstanding athletic programs in the country. Smith’s tenure as AD at Ohio State started in April 2005 and is the third-longest among the school’s eight athletics directors.

Under Smith, Ohio State has finished as the No. 1 athletics program in the Big Ten Conference in the Learfield Director’s Cup standing eight times. Ohio State teams have won 117 Big Ten championships and 35 national championships. Smith’s philosophy of developing the ‘total student-athlete’ has resulted in academic achievements concurrent with athletic success, including all 36 teams posting at least a 3.00 cumulative grade point average for 2023-24, 811 Ohio State Scholar-Athletes and 489 Academic All-Big Ten honorees.

Recent construction projects completed under Smith include the Schumaker Olympic Sport Complex, Covelli Arena and Jennings Wrestling Facility, Ty Tucker Tennis Center at Auer Tennis Complex, Field Hockey Stadium and Lacrosse Stadium. In addition, the Eugene D. Smith Leadership Institute (EDSLI) was created, funded by $15 million in private support, to provide leadership, character and career development for all Ohio State student-athletes to best prepare them for life after graduation.

Fund raising was also one of Smith’s gifts. Along with his development team, more than $930 million has been raised since his arrival.

Kyle Snyder

Wrestling, 2015-18

Kyle Snyder lettered and captained the Buckeyes during the four seasons he competed at Ohio State from 2015-18. The four-time All-American helped lead the Buckeyes to the 2015 NCAA Team Championship before winning three individual NCAA crowns at heavyweight from 2016-18. He was the runner-up at 197 pounds in 2015.

Snyder became the youngest world champion and winner of Olympic Gold in U.S. history, claiming the Olympic title for the United States in 2016. He added a silver medal in 2020 and recently qualified for the 2024 Games in Paris. Snyder also is the youngest wrestler ever to win the world, NCAA and Olympic championships in the same year – a triple crown of American wrestling not accomplished in a generation until he completed his sweep at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

The three-time All-Big Ten and league heavyweight champion (2016-18) went undefeated in both 2016 (11-0) and 2017 (17-0) while compiling a collegiate record of 75-5. A two-time Ohio State Male Athlete of the Year (2016-17), Snyder was the Big Ten Medal of Honor recipient in 2018.

Internationally, Snyder owns 42 international wrestling competition medals, with 30 gold, six silver and six bronze.

Matt Wilhelm

Football, 1999-2002

Matt Wilhelm was a three-year starter at middle linebacker and one of the cornerstones of the Buckeyes’ 2002 defense that helped them win a national championship. The team’s leading tackler with 121 stops that season, he earned consensus First Team All-America honors and All-Big Ten Conference honors. He still ranks in the Top 10 all-time in career tackles for loss (eighth – 43.5) and single season tackles-for-loss (ninth – 19.5 in 2002). Wilhelm capped off his senior season by registering a team-high 11 tackles in Ohio State’s 31-24 double overtime win against Miami in the BCS National Championship Game. He had career totals of 266 tackles, 34.5 tackles for loss and eight sacks in 48 games in the Scarlet and Gray.

Wilhelm went one to an eight-year NFL career, spending six of those seasons with the San Diego Chargers. He was also a member of the Super Bowl-winning Green Bay Packers in 2010.