Jim Tressel, Troy Smith to attend fraternity Casino Night

Some Ohio State students will be putting on their poker faces this weekend.

Alpha Tau Omega is hosting Casino Night 2013, held in the Archie Griffin Grand Ballroom in the Ohio Union on Friday, and proceeds will be donated to the Tressel Family Fund for Cancer Prevention Research at The James Cancer Research Hospital.

“It’s a way for us to give back to the community, to provide a venue for college students and parents and university staff, alumni, (ATO’s) alumni and university alumni the ability to come back and see the greatness that Greek life can bring, what fraternities and sororities can contribute to the Ohio State community,” said Joshua Glocer, Casino Night co-chair and fourth-year in political science.

Former OSU football coach Jim Tressel is expected to attend the event, as well as former OSU player Troy Smith — accompanied by his Heisman trophy.

“Students and parents will have the opportunity to take a picture with Tressel and Smith, and his Heisman,” Glocer said.

In an email to The Lantern, Tressel said he is “really looking forward to being with Troy Smith and my ATO brothers to raise money for The James Cancer Hospital.”

Tressel said one of his friends has been treated at The James.

“The Casino Night event is always one of the highlights of the year at the Ohio Union Archie Griffin Ballroom,” Tressel said.

The event will feature a wide variety of casino-style games, including poker, blackjack, roulette and craps, Glocer said.

Each participant in the event will receive a yet-to-be-determined number of chips to bet on the games with the goal of earning more chips, Glocer said. Once participants are done betting, they will cash in their chips for raffle tickets.

The prizes include free haircuts, golf passes, sporting events tickets, purses and more, Glocer said.

“We have an Evan Turner jersey, signed, so that’s pretty sweet,” Glocer said.

Turner used to play men’s basketball at OSU but currently plays for the Philadelphia 76ers. Turner was drafted No. 2 overall in the 2010 NBA draft.

In addition to the prizes, there will be a couple of special guests at Casino Night.

ATO aims to sell 1,200 tickets for the event and raise roughly $30,000. Last year’s event raised $25,000 and had 900 people attend, according to the event website.

The majority of the money raised by the event comes from ticket sales, Glocer said.

Glocer estimated that ATO would need to make a total of $50,000 on the event to have enough left over to meet the donation target after covering costs.

Betsy Malone, a third-year in biomedical engineering, was aware of the event and would want to go if not for schedule conflicts.

“I think it’s really cool. I know it sounds like a fun event, I’ve never been to it because I always have things on the weekend of it, but I’d want to go if I could,” Maione said.

Brian Rhea, a fourth-year in biochemistry, said he was supportive of the goals behind Casino Night.

“Anything is good, as long as people are donating money to a cause, that’s better than spending the money on beer, or cigarettes or anything else,” Rhea said.

Casino Night is a black-tie and non-alcoholic event, Glocer said.

Tickets can be purchased from an active member of the fraternity or from the website.

Tickets cost $20 for an OSU student or $50 for a single non-student ticket. OSU students who want a Casino Night T-shirt pay an extra $5 with their ticket purchase. Non-OSU couple tickets can be purchased for $80, according to the event website.