U Weekly. Serving The Ohio State University in Columbus Ohio

Representing OSU in calendar form

By Sarah Ledford

Most of us are probably going to miss everything that comes with the warm weather and what summer has to offer. When we think of summer, we tend to picture swimming pools, tan lines, late nights with friends, sunny days and pulling out that sexy swimsuit to sport.

Recently, I had a chance to ask my friend Jen Maul about her life as a Tempe12 swimsuit and calendar girl. Tempe12 chooses one girl to represent each of the Big Ten and Pac 10 schools each year. However, there’s more to being a Tempe12 girl than meets the eye. Aside from wearing a sexy swimsuit, it involves a little bit of work and a whole lot of play.

The calendar originated in Tempe, Ariz., hence the name, and first displayed 12 gorgeous ladies from the Tempe area. Maul, a junior at Ohio State and originally from Columbus, heard about the Tempe12 calendar through mutual friends.

“I checked it out, went on the Web site and applied,” she said. “I was contacted by David probably about a month later, and he asked me to be the Ohio State model. I was so shocked!”

So what does a Tempe12 girl do exactly and what responsibilities come along with the title? Although it may seem nothing shy of a dream come true to many, there’s still some work that comes along with being chosen to represent your school.

“Tempe12 is always trying to put on events and do things with their models,” Maul said. This coming January, for example, they’ll be a part of the National Beer Pong Tournament being held at a resort in Las Vegas. “They are trying to get as many girls as they can to come out for it, so I hope to make it to that,” Maul said. “I think it would be a ton of fun, and I would love to meet up with all of the other girls again!”

So where and what goes into the calendar itself? According to Maul, “Tempe12 did their photo shoots in two locations: one at the Palms resort in Vegas and one in Scottsdale, Arizona. I got picked to have my photo shoot in Arizona, so I only got to meet half of the girls in the calendars. The girls that I did get to meet, though, were awesome. There was about 12 of us around during the shoots, and we had an absolute blast together.”

Maul went on to describe some of the work she’s done as Ohio State’s Tempe12 girl thus far. “This fall, the Tempe12 crew is doing a bus tour visiting all of the girls and their colleges,” she said. “Because Ohio State starts school so late, I had the opportunity to tour with them for about a week and had one of the coolest experiences of my life. I got to visit Philadelphia, New York City and State college (Penn State), all of which I had never been to. While in New York City, I got to go to Sirius Radio and watch another model, Alexis, go on ‘The Howard Stern Show’ in the morning and met a lot of the crew that worked with Howard. Later on,” she said, “Alexis and I went to Maxim Radio and got to talk on air with the guys, which was very cool and something I had never done before.”

When asked about whether she experienced any rivalries with any of the other girls representing the schools that make up the Big Ten, Maul simply responded, “I still talk to many of the girls, and it was so nice to meet new friends from all around the country. Now I have a friend at every Big Ten school! We had a lot of fun with the rivalries, doing interviews and taking some good pictures with our ‘opponents.’ I have to admit, the Michigan girl was absolutely adorable. They’re all not evil!”

Ohio State is known for numerous things, being a huge University and all, so how does one girl possibly grasp the thought and feeling of being chosen to represent THE Ohio State University?

“It feels awesome being the girl picked from Ohio State! I definitely felt special when David told me that he wanted me to be the girl to represent Ohio State. I was absolutely shocked, though, because there are so many beautiful girls that go to school here. I had no idea they would pick me of all people!”

How did Tempe12 thank Jen and allow fellow Buckeyes to meet our girl? By hosting a party, of course! The big promotions party was held at O Patio, which Maul described as “…awesome, and I had a ton of friends come out for it. It definitely made me feel like a hometown celebrity for a hot minute.”

So what does the future hold for this busy girl next door? “I hope to continue to work with Tempe12 as long as they need me! Of course, my modeling career with them will end as of next year when they pick the next Ohio State model, but I hope to keep in touch and work with them in the future if they ever needed me,” she said.

So take some time and get yourself a calendar, come out for the events and get the privilege to meet this remarkable girl. Help support our own Tempe12 girl who’s working hard and doing her best to represent The Ohio State University to make her fellow buckeyes proud.

Check out tempe12.com to see pictures or to apply to become a Tempe12 girl.

Originally Published: November 5, 2008

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