Been quiet for a while. With warmer weather, the outdoors is beckoning and it's the quiet season for Buckeye football. That will change when they strap it up for spring practice tomorrow.

I did have the fortune Monday to gather for lunch with 500 other Buckeyes, and hear Archie speak on "Ethics in American Sports" at the Todd Bell Lecture Series. The event is an annual fundraiser for the Todd Bell National Resource Center for the African American Male and honors the legacy of Todd Bell. It was a chance for me to support a good cause and connect with some of my storytellers. This is the second year I have gone and I have thoroughly enjoyed both times.

Todd Bell, for my younger readers, was one of the hardest hitting safety's to ever play for the Buckeyes. He went on to play professional football for the Chicago Bears and the Philadelphia Eagles. As a high school long jumper, in the 1977 state track meet in the 'Shoe, he broke the 44 year old state record that was held by none other than one Jesse Owens. Fierce on the field, Todd was described as a mild mannered gentlemen off.

Following his career, Todd returned to serve Ohio State where, in the words of E. Gordon Gee, "his time with the University remains steadfastly inspirational. He was first recognized for his athletic talents, but overwhelmed us all with his caring for people of every age and status...It is a joy to remember what a great player Todd Bell was, in the game of football and the game of life, and to strive to emulate his passion and leadership."

Which brings me to the numbers part.

In 2005, at the age of 47, Todd Bell, athlete extraordinaire, died of a sudden heart attack. His widow Daphne now works in outreach with the Roth Heart Hospital to encourage people to "know their numbers" as a means to determine if they are at risk. "Todd's death was preventable," she told me in an interview last year, and she has dedicated her life to saving others. With a cardiac history in our family, I go every year to check my numbers. What a coincidence that my doctor's appointment was this week