The Ohio State University, with an accent on pronouncing the as thee, is attempting to trademark a single word.
According to details released yesterday from a trademark application, Ohio State applied last week to copyright The which is one of the most common words in the English language.
OSU had submitted for the trademark in advance of a clothing line highlighting The on hats and shirts even though other vendors already offer clothing with The featured in scarlet and gray.
Copyright experts say they do not expect OSU's application to be successful.