Frances Curley O’Malley is finishing her second season as a student manager for the OSU women’s basketball team. If you’ve attended a game at Gill Coliseum, you may have noticed her sitting on the bench alongside the players and coaching staff, particularly because O’Malley is often wearing colorful crocheted items that she makes by hand.
“I learned to knit before I learned to read, and I would argue I’m probably better at crocheting than I am at reading,” she joked.
O’Malley’s skills with yarn are apparent to anyone who has seen her work for themselves. Having previously crafted a custom sweater for the 2025 Dam Cancer game, O’Malley recalls Ron Callan from Beaver Sports Network making the point that she should crochet something in OSU colors for future games. The idea sparked quickly, and soon after, she was working with orange, black and white fibers.
“My great-grandma was a big crocheter and did the Irish knit sweaters from Newfoundland. So it’s a way to connect to her, but also a way to express myself,” said O’Malley, who doesn’t always love the corporate attire at games. “I feel like it adds a fun little pop, whether that’s some color or in pattern.”
“I don’t ever really follow [stitching] patterns. I just kind of find a picture and I’m like, okay, I think I can do that. Or I’ll have an image in my head of what I want it to look like.”
Her attention to detail pays off, as each clothing item is comprised of large multicolored granny squares seamlessly threaded together. These custom looks are flattering, as the brightly hued garments are tailored specifically by and for O’Malley.
After coaching staff from the women’s team asked her how long the process took, O’Malley realized she had never considered this element, and purposefully timed her next project.
“I made a pink sweater last year for our pink game…That one took me about 40 hours. The orange one and the skirt took me about a week and a half. I don’t know the exact hours, but I was working on it pretty consistently,” said O’Malley. “Once I start working on a project, it’s really hard for me to put it down. It’s like the only thing I want to do.”
As expected, these outfits welcome lots of compliments from those in the gym. O’Malley comments that there are times where she has to be practical with her time as a team manager, and choose other attire to prioritize her role courtside.
“It kind of depends on my mood and how social I’m feeling that day, because it definitely brings in more interactions. Which is totally fine, I’m always up for it, but sometimes if it’s a busier game or I know we’re gonna have to do something postgame, that might factor into [wearing] it.”
“I do prefer to wear my stuff, but I do need to make more because I feel like I’ve been outfit repeating too many times.”
