Thurlow "Tad" Weed

The Weed family, father Roy, mother Claire, and son Thurlow “Tad”, lived in this home from 1927 to 1958. Roy Weed had a degree in Geology from OSU, worked as a consulting geologist, was the Columbus Safety Director from 1940-44, and a WWI veteran. 

The Buckeye connection in the family however was strongest for Tad (b. 1933 – d. 2006), who was the placekicker on OSU’s 1954 national championship football team, coached by legendery Woody Hayes. Weed, a dimunitative player by today’s standards, 5’5” tall and ~140 pounds soaking wet, made 24 of 26 extra point attempts and one field goal in the Buckeye’s 10-0 title run in 1954. A 1955 article in OSU student newspaper The Lantern noted “(Weed) put more total time in during the season practicing kicks than sitting in classrooms”.

Weed (right, #24) with OSU Team Co-Captain John Borton (left, #20).

In 1955, he participated in the College All-Star Game beating the professional Cleveland Browns at Soldier's Field in Chicago in front of 75,000 fans. Weed had three field goals for the winning All-Stars, one of only two games the All-Stars won in that extended series. During his last (and fifth) year at OSU, Weed was place-kicker for the Pittsburgh Steelers, flying to their games Friday evening and returning Sunday night to Columbus. After college, Weed spent one year in the National Football League with the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

Weed designed some of the earliest blunt-nose place-kicking shoes used in football, using one of his ski boots for his prototype.

Weed, at Ohio Stadium, showing his kicking style (Source: OSU Lantern). 

In the early 1970s, Weed invented the WEED tennis racquet. The racquet's 135-square-inch hitting area was the largest allowed under the rules of tennis, and provided added power and consistency. 

WEED tennis racquets are still produced and sold today. 

On a trip to Cuba during college, Weed met and had an extended conversation with Ernest Hemingway and his wife Mary.

Weed served his Marine Corps years in Japan where he developed the Japanese Inter-Corps Athletic Program, and kicked for the Tokyo team every weekend, flying in from the U.S. Army Base in Ewakuni, south of Tokyo, where he was stationed. 

Weed was among a group of entrepeneurs who attempted to build a tax-free sovereign micronation, the Republic of Minerva, on submerged coral reefs near the Minerva Straits in the Pacific Ocean.