At Ohio State, there is a tradition for every new player that enters the program, whether it is a recruit from high school or a transfer from another college. Every new player enters their first practices with a black stripe on their helmet and they have to work to get it removed. This was a tradition that was started under former head coach Urban Meyer and the stripe is meant to symbolize the player is on a probationary status.
The new players have to demonstrate commitment, hard work, and talent to get their stripe removed from their helmet and once they do that, they are then deemed a full Buckeye on the team.