Broadcast set for 7 p.m. Wednesday on MPB stations statewide
JACKSON, Miss. - (November 29, 2005) – The tenth anniversary Cellular South Conerly Trophy presentation will air live on Mississippi Public Broadcasting (MPB) stations from 7-8 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30. This is the second year that the award will be telecast live for a statewide audience.
"This is the most significant statewide award presented to a Mississippi football player each year," said Gene Edwards, MPB deputy director of operations. "We are thrilled to be able to share the anticipation and announcement of the 2005 Cellular South Conerly Trophy winner with all Mississippians. In spite of severe budget restraints we remain committed to expanding local programming coverage on MPB. We are able to do this because of outstanding local companies like Cellular South."
The one-hour broadcast will originate from the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum and include features on each of this year’s three finalists, Scott Eyster, Delta State University; Jerious Norwood, Mississippi State University and Patrick Willis, University of Mississippi.
The show also features a live panel discussion with Mitch Williams, sports anchor of WDAM-TV; Rick Cleveland, sports columnist for The Clarion-Ledger and Doug Colson, co-host of Mississippi Sports This Morning, and live appearances by Sylvester Croom, Head Coach, Mississippi State; Rick Rhoades, Head Coach, Delta State; and Ole Miss Athletic Director, Pete Boone.
"As a Mississippi-headquartered company, Cellular South is proud of our partnership with the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum to present one of the most highly coveted sports awards in the state – the Cellular South Conerly Trophy," said Hu Meena, Cellular South president. "This award has honored some of our state's most outstanding athletes and will continue to do so in the future. With its live coverage of the awards presentation, Mississippi Public Broadcasting will allow all Mississippians to share in the excitement of honoring our state's finest college football athletes."
The special MPB broadcast is underwritten by Cellular South, title sponsor of the Cellular South Conerly Trophy for eight years of the award's decade-long history. The trophy represents one of three sports in the Cellular South Outstanding Player Awards series, which includes awards for top collegiate football, basketball and baseball players. The 2004 telecast won a prestigious Telly Award for live programming.
"Cellular South's commitment to bringing this event to every Mississippian is significant because live broadcasts like the Cellular South Conerly Trophy are simply not possible without corporate partnerships," said Ty Warren, Executive Director, Foundation for Public Broadcasting in Mississippi.
Founded and organized exclusively by the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame & Museum since 1996, the award is given annually to Mississippi's top college football player as determined by a panel of 60 media voters representing radio, television and print outlets in small, medium and large sized markets across the state. The award, named after the late Charlie Conerly, is a lost-wax bronze casting of an original clay sculpture by the late Bruce Brady, a nationally acclaimed artist from Brookhaven.
"This is a proud year for the Cellular South Conerly Trophy," said Michael Rubenstein, Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame & Museum Executive Director. "To our knowledge, Mississippi is the only state in the country that announces its college football player of the year on live statewide television. It’s great to be able to share the excitement with so many Mississippians."
The Cellular South Conerly Trophy is named after the late Charlie Conerly – the only football inductee in the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame who combines all of the following accomplishments: native Mississippian who was an All-American at a Mississippi university; NFL rookie of the year; NFL All-Pro; and quarterbacked a team to a world championship. For more information, visit www.msfame.com.
Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame & Museum is operated by the Mississippi Sports Foundation, Inc. (MSF), a non-profit corporation established in June 1992. The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame & Museum occupies 21,542 square feet on Lakeland drive in Jackson. The site, donated by the City of Jackson, is adjacent to the Jim Buck Ross Agriculture and Forestry Museum and across from Smith-Wills Stadium. For more information, visit www.msfame.com.
Mississippi Public Broadcasting (MPB) operates an eight-station public television network, an eight-station public radio network, and the Radio Reading Service of Mississippi. MPB serves all 82 counties of the state of Mississippi providing quality instructional and public programming. Since its first broadcast in 1970, MPB has won over 350 awards for its local productions. MPB provides live broadcasts of the Mississippi High School Activities Association State Football Championships in December and State Basketball Championships in March. For more information, visit www.mpbonline.org.
About Cellular South
The company is the largest privately held wireless provider in the U.S. and is licensed to provide wireless service – to a total population of more than five million people – on its network stretching from the Memphis Metropolitan Area, throughout all of Mississippi, along Coastal Alabama and the Florida Panhandle through Walton County. The company has been named Mississippi Business Journal’s Salute to Business and Industry 2005 Large Retailer. For more information, contact Cellular South at 1-877-CSOUTH1 or visit cellularsouth.com.
Contact:
Tanya Rankin, Cellular South (601) 974-7134 trankin@cellularsouth.com
