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Editor's note: The interviews in this story took place prior to January 17. 

ATHENS, Ohio – Junior guard Ajay Sheldon (Dublin, Ohio) looked up at the scoreboard during his AAU game and could not believe the red digits in front of him. Sheldon knew junior guard Elmore James (Cleveland, Ohio) was talented, but the finesse he possessed to collect 30 points left the then high schooler in awe. 

The next time the two met face-to-face was at Bobcat Student Orientation in the summer of 2022, as teammates. 

James and Sheldon were joined by junior forward Aidan Hadaway (Lafayette, Ga.), junior guard Ben Estis (Southlake, Texas) and redshirt sophomore AJ Brown (Orlando, Florida) that afternoon. By then, they'd all communicated online, but they hadn't spent a single minute in the same room. 

As they shared their first meal together in Nelson Dining Hall after a tiring day, the group instantly clicked. Hadaway chatted away with Sheldon while Estis and James nodded along, with Brown occasionally chiming in. 


Aidan Hadaway scores in Ohio's game against Eastern Michigan on January 20, 2024. Hadaway scored a career-high 20 points. 

"The first time we all hung out, I just felt a genuine connection from the jump," James said. 

Over the past three years, that bond has grown, and now more than ever, it's fueling Ohio's success. 

We're Connected
Their first summer as Bobcats faded fast. Mornings and afternoons were for basketball, and nights were for video games. The time in between was for learning how to get from West Green to Chipotle by foot. 

"Everybody was totally different than I thought. Everybody was cool and welcoming," Brown said. "Everybody was funny and we all got along." 

Brown will never forget the first test of the group's early cohesion. It was when the Bobcats flew over Atlantic Ocean to Spain — his first international trip. 

Rather than scrimmage each other all summer, the freshman were seeing time against professionals in a foreign country as part of an NCAA initiative. It was unconventional, but also an experience the class credits for their growth. 

When they weren't on the court, they put their new-found navigation skills to the test to find meals and sight-see. Spain wasn't Athens, but that didn't matter. They were going to get through it, together. 

Their teamwork came in handy when the Bobcats traveled outside the U.S. again, this time to the Baha Mar Hoops Nassau Championship in the Bahamas in 2023. 


Elmore James reaches for the ball in his first career start in The Convo on January 21, 2023. 

It had been an exciting week filled with basketball and waterslides – some with pools much deeper than others – and the Bobcats were on the bus to the airport. However, their trip was derailed by an automalfunction. 

"Coach (Lamar) Thornton was in the back of the bus, it was 105 degrees, just grabbing suitcases and bags, sending them down. He was pouring sweat and it was to the point where he was getting mad because we were in a conveyor belt just passing everything down the line. It was maybe 10 of us. It was so efficient and there was no reason for us to be doing that," Sheldon said through laughter.

The Bobcats eventually made it back to the U.S., where they got to spend more time on busses. Road trips are one of Hadaway's favorite things, even just domestic ones to Mid-American Conference schools. He loves getting to fill restaurants with laughter alongside his teammates. 

Even when the team isn't scheduled for events, they're hanging out together. They've even gone as far as to include their family in their adventures. 

"That's something I didn't realize that I would be doing with my college teammates when I first got to college. If myself now would have told my younger self that I would be this close to my with my junior class, I probably wouldn't believe myself knowing how other experiences have gone from my other friends that I have back at home," James said. "it's completely different here." 

From team retreats to Hocking Hills with magicians to victories in The Convo, this class does it all together. 

"You have a family here," Estis said. 


Ben Estis in Ohio's game against Defiance on December 18, 2023. Estis set career-highs that night. 

We're Resilient 
The past three years taught the group that not every day can be has fun as capturing the victory flag for your team during the annual paintball trip. Sometimes, it's like being the individual speckled in colored paint after an attempt to get the flag. 

Freshman year was exactly that for the group. They went through the typical gauntlet: learning to live on their own, remembering to go to class and developing emotional maturity, all as recognizable faces on campus. However, they also had individual struggles. 


Ajay Sheldon takes a free throw in Ohio's game against Middle Tennessee during the 2024 Myrtle Beach Classic. 

For Sheldon, it was learning to manage his role as a bench player. He wasn't used to playing a handful of minutes the way he was freshman year. 

"I wasn't even used to coming out of the game, and then you come here, and you're not getting in the game. I think the mental aspect of it, in that way, can bleed into other parts of your life, like school and your mood."

Hadaway had almost the opposite effect. He saw decent playing time and his grades were steady until the end of nonconference play. He didn't see the weight of his poor decisions until it landed him a spot at the end of the bench.

"I was making the freshman mistakes. I stopped going to class, stopped doing assignments, I was not taking practice or workouts seriously like I should have been. My time diminished from then on," he said. 

The moment both James and Estis found themselves off the bench, they were searching for confidence under the bright lights of The Convo. 

James cracked into the starting lineup after a few other Bobcats suffered injuries, yet he couldn't find the courage to let his voice be heard. Luckily, Dwight Wilson III and Miles Brown took him under their wings and showed him how to command the court. That encouragement helped him find a spot on the MAC All-Freshman team. 

"Now, it feels like a lot more natural, and I feel like I can voice my opinion, and guys are going to respect what I say," James said. "I feel like I've came a long way in that aspect, and I know that's something that I still can improve on." 

Estis, on the other hand, had to remind himself that even though he was a walk-on, he belonged. 

"It took me a little bit to feel comfortable out on the floor, but I feel like just being around everyone, they all had confidence in me, and that kind of allowed me to become confident," he said.

Brown's freshman struggles featured a dislocated shoulder that caused him to miss part of the season. However, he was able to come back and drop a career-high 28 points in the MAC Tournament against Ball State later that year. Brown was also named to the MAC All-Freshman team.


AJ Brown takes a 3-pointer in Ohio's win over Ball State in the MAC Tournament in 2023. 

That next season, Brown found himself sidelined due to another shoulder injury that required surgery. He took a redshirt in tandem with sitting out the season. 

However, the group has come out on the other side of their struggles. They've lead Ohio to a 4-0 start in MAC play this season and a 8-1 record at home. Brown and Hadaway are also in the top five on the team for scoring. Hadaway is also No. 13 in the MAC for rebounds and No. 8 for blocks. However, Hadaway is currently sidelined with an injury. 

It took them a little bit to get there, but this class can't help but feel like they've moved a mountain when the lights go out in The Convo and their names are read in the starting lineup. 

We're Extraordinary 
One would think that a Division I basketball player would be able to hit a wiffleball, but that's not the case for a few of the Bobcats. An afternoon of pick-up wiffleball proved that even though they're solid in the paint, they need a little work at the plate. 

"You would not believe how many people are basketball players and not athletes," Sheldon said with a grin. 

However, that's what makes them special. There are no two members of that class that think or act exactly alike. Each of them have quirks that make the Bobcats the best versions of themselves. 

"Not everybody's the same. We all have our own personalities. We're all think a certain way that nobody ever agrees with. We all say crazy stuff. We all just our own person," Brown said.  

They're connected, they stay close, they work together, they're resilient and according to Hadaway, they're handsome. They're Ohio's original junior class. 

#OUOhyeah