Why is this news?: Possible return for Daniel Giddens, Ohio State revamps alumni ticket process

"We're hoping to have him back by Saturday. We're going to do half a practice with him today and see how he goes. If he can go all of (Friday) then he'll be cleared to go, but he's saying he feels really, really good. But we did not practice yesterday so I don't know for certain."

- Thad Matta on Daniel Giddens via Adam Jardy, The Columbus Dispatch

Freshman Daniel Giddens has missed the past two games, but Ohio State hasn't needed him as they easily won those games. Now the Buckeyes will hit the road to take on UConn on Saturday afternoon, where they'd definitely be boosted by the return of Giddens. The freshman for Georgia missed Ohio State's 89-62 win over VMI on Saturday due to illness, and it was thought he would be able to return on Tuesday night, but a hamstring injury scratched him from the 74-50 win over Air Force.

Giddens has been a large presence in the paint so far this year for Ohio State, as he has averaged 3.4 blocks per game. After coming off the bench while Trevor Thompson started in the first three games, Giddens started the next three games for Ohio State before missing the previous. Thompson filled in for Giddens in the starting lineup the past two games, and recorded a double-double in the victory against VMI. Ohio State will be taking on a UConn team on Saturday that has lost three of their last four games, but those losses have come against Syracuse, Gonzaga, and Maryland.

"Beginning in 2016, alumni association Sustaining and Life Members will use a new process to purchase football tickets. The lottery system in which eligible alumni applied in May and learned results in July will no longer be used."

- The Ohio State University Alumni Association

Earlier today Ohio State announced some big changes to the process in which alumni can purchase football tickets. The biggest change is that instead of the yearly ticket lottery, now alumni members can choose which games they would like to purchase tickets for, although they might not be guaranteed to receive tickets to games selected. For alumni that aren't currently Sustaining or Life Members, there is still time to become one. All that needs to be done is to give a $75 gift to any Ohio State fund by December 31, 2015.

While past ticket lotteries resulted in alumni with the chance to get tickets for just one game, now there is the possibility of getting tickets to more games. Now alumni have the chance to buy tickets for two games, with one being a premier game or Big Ten game, and the other being a non-conference/non-premier game. For non-conference/non-premier games, alumni have the opportunity to purchase up to four tickets. Like in past when alumni had to wait a couple months to learn of which game they were awarded tickets to, with the new process buyers will immediately know what games they were awarded once they complete the ticket purchasing process.

"That's what people don't understand about recruiting. It's not about 'Hey, we want your kid.' It's about friendships that take years to build. It's relationships. I trust those guys and they trust me."

- Ohio State co-offensive coordinator Ed Warinner via Ari Wasserman, Cleveland.com

So you want to be a college football coach? Be ready to spend plenty of time on the road recruiting. Just a couple days after Ohio State's 49-7 win over Rutgers, Ohio State co-offensive coordinator was back in the Garden State for a number of stops during a no-contact period. In recruiting every second counts, and this was especially true with Warinner's trip, as he had to be back in Columbus the same evening for an event with Ohio State supporters. Not only did Warinner have to fly from Columbus to Newark early in the morning, but after picking up his rental car he had four stops he had to make before flying back to Columbus.

The recruiting trip got off to a scary start for Warinner, as he was involved in a car accident which cause the airbags to deploy, and his rental to end up being towed. Warinner was able to receive a ride to the high school from a police officer so he could talk to a high school coach about a five-star defensive tackle. The accident put Warinner behind schedule, but didn't deter him from making the rest of his stops. The most notable moment was when he arrived at a high school at the same time as a Alabama assistant coach. Warinner had to cut his last stop short so he had enough time to make his flight back to Columbus, which he was able to do with a few minutes to spare. Just a day in the life on the road for recruiting sounds tiring, imagine have to do all that year-round.

"It's been a great journey, so it's cool that we're still one of those 16, and we're going to treat it like a home match. We were there last year, and I feel like we're in Lexington more than we're in Columbus sometimes."

- Ohio State women's volleyball coach Geoff Carlston via Andrew Erickson, The Columbus Dispatch

Ohio State's women's volleyball team will have their work cut out for them when they take on Washington in a Sweet 16 matchup on Friday in Lexington. Washington comes into the match leading the nation in hitting percentage, and have a 13 match winning streak that stretches back to October 23rd. On the year Washington has only lost two matches, so Ohio State knows they'll have to be aggressive if they want to pull off the upset. One thing going for Ohio State will be their familiarity with Lexington, as they've played there in the NCAA Tournament in three of the last four years.

This marks the second straight year Ohio State has reached the Sweet 16, and the Buckeyes are just one of 11 schools to reach the Sweet 16 four times since 2010. In the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, Ohio State swept both Robert Morris and American in three sets. While Ohio State struggled during Big Ten play, losing six of their last 10 Big Ten matches, they have turned things around at the right time, winning their last nine sets. If Ohio State is able to get by Washington, there is a possibility they'll play Nebraska, who plays BYU in Lexington on Friday, in the next round.

STICK TO SPORTS

• Keep an eye out when driving around Columbus on Saturday.
• A lot of coffee washed ashore in Florida on Tuesday.
• A mix-up cost an Ohio horse track a bit of money.
• Dirk Nowitzki likes to bring his own pre-game meal.
• Fans of The Leftovers can rejoice.