Q&A: OSU's Orie Lemon

By Jenni Carlson

Published: August 30, 2008

Jenni Carlson: I've got to ask you about your name. What's the story with Orie?

Orie Lemon: I got my name from my dad's best friend who had passed. Orie C. My middle name is C. Just a C. They called him O.C., so that's where I got my name.

JC: So, your middle name is just ...

OL: C.

JC: Is it C period?

OL: Just C.

JC: Your dad's friend — was Orie a nickname?

OL: That was his given name.

JC: Has it been a source of mispronunciation throughout your life?

OL: When I was in elementary, my teachers called me O.C. because they knew my dad was involved in it. But they got my name right most of the time.

JC: What about PA announcers?

OL: They would call me all sorts of names. Probably somebody misprinted my name.

JC: Now, you were a quarterback who moved to linebacker. Not exactly a transition a lot of players make.

OL: My 10th grade year in high school, I played defensive end. I wasn't always a quarterback.

JC: Maybe the question I should ask, then, is how a defensive end goes to quarterback.

OL: This is what it was. Eighth grade, I played quarterback. Ninth grade, I played quarterback. My 10th grade year, I wanted to get out there with the varsity. I went and asked my coach, "What would it take for me to get out there with the varsity?” He tried me at D-end, so I started at D-end my 10th grade year and moved back to quarterback my 11th grade year.

JC: So, were you the smallest defensive end around or the biggest quarterback around?

OL: I wasn't the smallest defensive end, but I was the biggest quarterback around. (Laughs.)

JC: You've added some weight since coming here, right?

OL: I've gained 35 pounds since I've been here. I'm never going back.

JC: Did you gain by lifting weights or just saying, "You know what, I am going to eat that extra double cheeseburger”?

OL: Lifting and eating, both. Most of it's from lifting, though.

JC: Did you get any grief from the defensive guys when you moved over from offense?

OL: I knew I was going to make the move when I first got here. I was in No. 15, but on the card, they had my number as 41. As soon as I went in the team meeting room, they told me.

JC: You picked OSU because everyone else wanted you to play defense. So, were you upset at the move?

OL: It wasn't disappointing for me because all I wanted was a shot to play quarterback, and it didn't work out for me. Defense worked out for me. All the other schools, they didn't want to give me a shot.

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