High school student-athletes often participate in multiple sports. Although many high school athletes dream of playing more than one sport at the collegiate level, very few of those athletes actually see their dreams come to fruition. On rare occasions, a select few are given the opportunity to participate in college athletics and are able to play more than one sport. At Ohio Northern University, a number of the students who become Polar Bear athletes undertake the challenge of two collegiate sports.

NCAA Division III schools, such as Ohio Northern, are unable to give athletic scholarships. Because of this fact, the rosters of Polar Bear teams are not filled exclusively with recruited athletes. In essence, any student accepted to ONU that is academically eligible may try out for varsity sports. Therefore, the flexibility of the Division III athletic atmosphere is conducive to the multiple-sport athlete. With 21 athletic teams in men's and women’s sports, ONU features nearly fifty men and thirty women on more than one varsity roster.