Ole Miss Athletes Celebrated at the Rebels' Choice Awards
By Sofia Hellberg Jonsén
Jour 379-2: Group 3
Ole Miss athletes will be honored for
outstanding achievements as the annual Rebels’ Choice Awards ceremony takes
place Wednesday, April 10, at the Gertrude C. Ford Center for Performing Arts.
This is the third year that the
athletic department is organizing the event with the Student-Athlete Advisory
Committee.
The athletes and coaches will be
honored in 14 categories, including player of the year, rookie
of the year and coach of the year, with the winners decided by the SAAC. Fans
will decide the winner of three additional categories: play of the year, game
of the year and fan favorite Rebel. The honors are based on the performances
from the recent calendar year.
The past year has been successful for
many Ole Miss teams. The football team won its first bowl game since 2009;
track athlete Isiah Young represented the United States when he ran the 200
meters in the 2012 Summer Olympic Games; men’s
baseball advanced to the NCAA regional final; men's
tennis played in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen, and
men’s basketball won the SEC tournament and reached the second round of the
NCAA tournament.
“This has been a great year for us
and there are a lot of deserving people,” said assistant athletic director
Jamil Northcutt.
Three years ago, Northcutt started
Rebels Choice Awards because he felt that Ole Miss should have a special
occasion for the athletes to come together and be acknowledged for their outstanding
performances. The event is a way to celebrate the annual National
Student-Athlete Day, which occurs in April.
“It’s a good way to build the Ole
Miss community, both internal and external,” Northcutt said. “So many different things happen during
a year, so this is a way to highlight achievements on and off the field and end
the year on a high note.”
Sophomore tennis player and rookie
of the year-nominee Nicolaas Scholtz said the Rebels’ Choice Awards is a great
event and another reason it’s good to be an Ole Miss athlete.
“It is always nice giving some
recognition to the athletes and it’s a true honor to be nominated,” Scholtz
said. “I have been blessed by having a decent first season and I’m happy to be
able to make a contribution to my team’s success.”
All the student-athletes, coaches
and other athletic faculty are expected to attend the Rebels’ Choice Awards. Organizers also hope to see a big crowd
of family members, members of the M-Club, donors, Ole Miss students and Oxford
locals at the event.
“We will have a wonderful
reception in the South End Zone with special recognitions there,” SAAC President
Brittany Broome said. “The red carpet
will be better than it has ever been and we will also have great presenters,
videos, music and lights that will all be components for making this year the
most successful Rebel Choice Award we have ever had.”
The event starts with a reception
for the athletes, followed by a red carpet event held outside the Ford Center. The prize ceremony starts at 7 p.m. and
will be hosted by radio personality Richard Cross. The event is free to the public but tickets are required. They
will be available at both the UM Box Office and Ford Center Box Office.
SIDE BAR:
National
STUDENT-Athlete Day
April 6 marks the 26th
anniversary of National STUDENT-Athlete Day, when colleges and high schools
nationwide will host their own events to honor student-athletes.
National STUDENT-Athlete
Day was established in 1987 by the National Consortium for Academics and Sports
and Northeastern University’s Sport in Society. The day is
co-sponsored by the NCAA and the National Federation of State High School
Associations.
The goal of National STUDENT-Athlete Day is to acknowledge and reward
students who exhibit excellence both in the classroom and on the field, while
also promoting the positive role they play within their communities.
According to the NCAS
website, 3,180,498 student-athletes have been honored since
1997, with 260,000 of those being recognized in 2012 alone.
To be honored for National STUDENT-Athlete Day
events, student-athletes must have a 3.0 GPA or higher and must also be
involved in community outreach services.
For more information, visit www.ncasports.org.
