By Paula Pyzik Scott
The August 24 Made in Ada Wilson Football Festival was an action packed, five+ hours that transformed Depot Park. The 8th annual event celebrated Ada’s unique contributions to the sport–including handcrafted leather footballs used exclusively by the NFL–and marked the start of the football season for the Ada High School Bulldogs and Ohio Northern University Polar Bears.
The event was kicked off by the ONU marching band. Ohio Northern and Ada High School cheerleading teams performed, as a preview of things to come at Ada stadiums this fall The evening wrapped up with the traditional Wilson football drop at 10:00 p.m.--and then the band played on. Throughout the evening, the Ada-based Shifferly Road band played rock classics and contemporary hits.
On the Johnson St. end of Depot Park, the Kids Endzone featured inflatables and face painting, with all funds and donations going to the Coldwater, Ohio football team in honor of Cale Wenning, who recently died following a bike accident.
The Ada Area Chamber of Commerce brought in a flock of food trucks, which served all kinds of cuisines from Cajun to German-American. Picnic tables and grassy space for blankets made ample room for enjoying a snack or dinner. A chamber beer tent sold draft beverages and a food truck offered shaved ice.
It was a sultry evening, which kept participants in the dunk tank relatively comfortable. Nearby several corn hole boards were busy with players. Bengals and Browns fans enjoyed photo ops and conversation with Bengals Captain and Pumpkin Nation.
The Wilson Football factory was present with their mini Airstream trailer as a photo backdrop and offered the chance to win a custom festival “Made in the USA” football. As the sun set, you could also see the factory water tower illuminated with colored light.
Emcees AJ Hatem and Jacob Crawley, who are business professors at ONU–provided information and commentary from the stage. They also presented the evening’s raffle winners as they were drawn from a well-stuffed ticket drum. Century 21’s Becky Neville coordinated a wealth of football-themed prizes ranging from football memorabilia to tailgating gear.
After dark a large contingent of Ohio Northern students arrived at the OhioHealth stage–filling the previously quiet stage front area–to the delight of the Shifferly Road band, which will also play for the university at an upcoming football game and homecoming.
A newly refurbished Wilson football facsimile floated over Depot Park for the duration, ready to mark the start of the fall football season. The size of the football is somewhat deceptive when seen from below. It is the size of a car and provided another photo opportunity when it returned to earth.
Just prior to the 10:00 hour, search lights began to weave through the sky and when the Wilson football was near the ground, fireworks erupted in the sky to the east.
For more coverage of the event, visit the chamber’s Facebook page, where director Lindsay Hollar has invited followers to post photos. Hollar writes, “Ada, [Saturday] was simply amazing! Thank you to everyone who came out and supported our event. If you took any photos, please share them with us to add to this album. We’ve already started planning for next year…see you August 23, 2025!”
The chamber also enjoyed the support of an ACE (Ada Civic Engagement) Day crew from Ohio Northern, which helped with setup earlier in the day.
The event was also made possible by support of the following:
STAGE SPONSOR
- OhioHealth
GOLD SPONSORS
- Ada Area Chamber of Commerce
- Ada Lions Club
- Ada Technologies Inc.
- Ada VFW
- Blanchard Valley Health System
- Century 21 Sunway Realtors
- Middlefield Banking Company
- Ohio Northern University
- Quest Federal Credit Union
- Superior Credit Union
- Wilson Football Factory
SILVER SPONSORS
- Ada Grooming
- Amburgey Construction
- Casey’s Automotive & Performance
- Charles VanDyne Law
- Hanson-Neely-Allison Funeral & Cremation Services
- HSLC Banking & Financial Services
- Hempy Water Conditioning Inc.
- Jalapenos Mexican Grille
- Liberty Oaks
- Mercantile on Main
- Norada Lanes
- Peter Previte Law
- Raymond James Financial Services
- Rogers Insurance Agency
- Maria Santo
- Bob & Jill Simmons
- Tavern 101
- Vancrest of Ada
- Viva Maria
- William H. Bass Trucking
