This fall, a new way of getting play-by-plays and information from Oakland University Athletics came to be. This comes in the form of a podcast called #WEARtheBEAR, named after the #WEARtheBEAR hashtag. The hashtag is meant to create more pride within the student body and encourage people to proudly wear Golden Grizzly attire much like the Michigan State and University of Michigan attire is seen all around the state.

More recently, a sponsor who has been a part of Athletics for several years has become a sponsor for the #WEARtheBEAR podcast. The podcast is filmed and produced solely by Neal Ruhl, the director of broadcasting for Athletics. Currently, there is a podcast on the iTunes store for Apple products, but it is also available on the social media platform SoundCloud. The sponsor of the new podcast is the Evans Law Group. The law firm has been sponsoring Athletics for several years.

Ruhl said he was “determined to stay ahead of the curve and be at the forefront of technology” because other Division I schools currently do not have a podcast dedicated to all of their sports teams like Oakland.

The #WEARtheBEAR podcast is “a one-man band” right now according to Ruhl. He films, records, edits and produces everything for the podcast. He covers every single sports team at Oakland and the almost 360 Golden Grizzly athletes. Oakland is growing in population as well as popularity.

“Oakland isn’t a cute story anymore, we are gaining speed and becoming a competitor,” Ruhl said.

This is where sponsorship becomes a necessity. Oakland is growing, but it lacks the budget that bigger schools in Michigan have.

However, Cameron Evans, the president and founder of the Evans Law Group and special lecturer at Oakland said, “We are excited to expand our relationship with Oakland Athletics. [We] are entering our third year as the presenting sponsor of the Greg Kampe Radio Show…and jumped at the opportunity to team up with the Golden Grizzlies and Neal as they continue to expand the Oakland Athletics platform.”

The Division I Athletics program has already beat many of the “blue blood” Detroit teams which are extremely talented and competitive. Since it is prime time Golden Grizzly basketball season, Kampe is upping the momentum.

A previous statement made by Kampe at the start of the season is still relevant: “We are going to be really good and we need you [the students] here because when the arena is full we always win.”

The #WEARtheBEAR podcast wants to see the numbers rising in plays and in participation at the various sporting events. The mission is to create pride among Golden Grizzly fans, as Athletics believes Oakland students are just as talented and motivated as schools with twice as many students.

The podcast goes up the same night of any sports game and it can be found by searching “Golden Grizzlies” on the iTunes store or SoundCloud.