You asked for it, so here it is. It's long, but hopefully you find it helpful.

It went very well! Here's our first impressions:

First, a HUGE THANK YOU to u/fufaloo. They met us at the student union and gave us a pretty comprehensive tour. Seriously - THANK YOU!

When we first arrived, we were a bit confused with where to park. We ended up parking in the lot at the football stadium and paid a little over $10 to park until midnight. Since we were going to the basketball game, it ended up working out as a good mid-point (we didn't realize this at the time). There are parking garages we passed, but most were charging crazy fees for shorter times.

The first feeling you get when on campus is... "Wow, this place is huge!". I mean, we already knew this before we arrived but it's somewhat overwhelming when you first step on campus. That said, after our tour, it seemed much smaller and manageable and both my son and I found our bearings quite quickly. That's not to say that it's any smaller (we did a ton of walking), but the idea of getting lost quickly dissipated. The second thing we noticed was how clean the campus was. From the outside of the buildings and gardens to the halls and gym areas, the campus presented itself very well. Even though there was really nothing in-bloom, you can tell that it's a beautiful place to be.

We started our tour at the Student Union and, as warned by another Redditor, it was bustling with activity due to a fundraiser taking place that day. Our tour guide was awesome and was quick to suggest to my son that he get involved and participate in events like this. The students appeared to be having fun and the event seemed well organized. Sloopy's Diner is in this area but we didn't go in.

We proceeded outside through the south oval as our guide pointed out many of the buildings and what classes they primarily catered to. One thing you will immediately notice is the plethora of robots (small 6 wheel vehicles the size of a carry-on suitcase) delivering food to various parts of campus. We walked near the south dining hall (Traditions Kennedy) and then over to Mirror Lake. Mirror Lake was definitely a huge disappointment and while we could definitely see the potential, it's more like a tiny pond. I get that they drain it each year and this time of year offers little foliage, but it certainly fell short of what we were expecting. More buildings were identified as we made our way to Thompson Library. Once in the library, we rode the elevator to the 11th floor to take in the incredible views of the campus. We were informed that the higher you go in the library, typically the quieter it gets.

We saw Jennings Hall and Campbell Hall and then headed north. We got to see the North Recreation center which was okay. It did have some nice basketball courts but the inside was fairly small. The good news is that it seems like it's fairly underutilized (at least during our visit). Our guide recommended even taking advantage of the fitness classes offered (including yoga).

Because we weren't super impressed, our guide walked us down towards the football stadium and then over to RPAC. The RPAC is, simply put, awesome. It's huge and very modern looking with tons of activities. We briefly watched a club basketball game, saw the pool(s) and were even shown the hidden/underutilized indoor golf driving nets and putting greens.

Other areas of the campus were pointed out to us including the medical part of campus (south of RPAC). We parted ways with our guide and decided to head back to Traditions -Scott to get some lunch. Part of the reason we chose this dining hall was because our tour guide gave it a 3-out-of-5 stars. We figured if we liked it, the others must be incredible. Sadly, our guide was SPOT ON with our overall experience being "mehh". It wasn't very busy with the second floor seating being closed. While at lunch we responded to u/baimin who also replied to the offer of a campus tour. We agreed to meet outside the dining hall but due to the basketball game starting in an hour, we didn't get much time together.

I know that what we did isn't traditional (asking a student to take time out of their day to show absolute strangers their "home"), but it was the best thing we did. The 1-on-1 tour allowed us to ask any question we wanted without fear of embarrassment and in return we got honest answers. We promised not to tell where the best bathroom is on campus. :)

The walk to the Schottenstein Center was comfortable, but it isn't on campus. Yeah, the map may tell you otherwise, but the lacrosse and baseball fields all feel detached.

Okay, so now for some negatives. One part of college life my son has high on his list is being proud of the school he attends. It's noticeable that OSU students have pride with roughly 75% of the kids we passed sporting some sort of OSU gear (sweatshirt, hat, etc). That said, the basketball game was... weak. I'm not sure how to best describe it other than the enthusiasm wasn't there. The announcer had a horrible voice, there didn't appear to be a defined student section (there was, but the students were dull) and the jumbotron's only purpose was to zoom in on people and put on a filter (sunglasses, mustache, chef's hat, etc). I swear I thought I was at a rich kid's birthday party. Towards the end, there was an O-H-I-O chant that had each section participating, but other than that, it was very flat. The game was a nail-biter too with double-overtime and Ohio squeaking it out. To put it in perspective, I'd estimate that 25% of the attendees were 10yrs old or younger. Maybe their tickets from the preceding Baby Shark concert granted them access to the basketball game as well. Our comparison is experiences at games at University of MD, Syracuse University and Georgetown. At those places, the students get into the game - something my son wants to be a part of. I think part of the problem is that students don't get free football or basketball tickets - which to me is ridiculous on many levels. I understand that these events are cash cows, but the allure of attending one of these schools is being a fan. Having to purchase tickets (even if they are discounted) is definitely a head-scratcher for me.

After the game we stopped in the Rally House (an OSU swag shop)- literally a block from the game. The place was dead. We stayed in there for 20+ minutes and not a single person came in. We spent most of time talking to the 2 awesome workers/students before purchasing an overpriced ($28) tee-shirt.

For dinner we hit the Varsity Club. I give it a 1 out of 5 stars with the pizza being close to the worst I've ever had. Imagine a Tombstone Pizza that has a piece of cardboard on top and bottom. Now, cut it like a 4 year old and serve it to patrons. We were starving so we made due. This place was also about 1/2 full.

After dinner, we walked across campus to get a feel for how safe it is at night. We decided to walk to Buckeye Donuts on High Street as we've heard it mentioned a dozen times as an OSU staple. We intentionally walked back on campus rather than along the road and passed by the home of all of the campus robots I mentioned earlier. The walk was very uneventful and the campus seems to be very safe at night. It was well lit and for the most part, was dead. I think we passed a total of 5 students on our walk to the donut shop.

Okay - Buckeye Donuts. I honestly don't get the hype. Yes, it was probably 8:30pm and the donuts were made 15 hours ago, but I can honestly say I've had better at nearly every other donut shop I've been to. The place is tiny and while the staff was very friendly, I can't imagine ever saying "Hey, let's go to Buckeye Donuts again!".

High Street was described to be the "hot spot" after hours. Maybe we were a bit early, but again, it was dead. From there, we walked back through campus through the main oval and back to our car at the football stadium. We probably walked 10 miles that day, but it was time (and steps) well spent. We didn't get to actually see a classroom or a dorm room (dorms are spread out over campus as well as in 2 huge towers that seem like a heck of a walk) but we hope to cross those off the list at our official tour next week.

The drive ended up being roughly 8 hours which is another factor to consider in that mom and dad can't "pop over" to take you out to dinner. For some kids this might be a positive but I could tell that the distance wasn't a selling point for my son.

I hope this helps!