Ole Miss linebacker Mike Marry was awarded the 2013 Chucky Mullins Courage Award on Saturday, April 13th, 2013 in Oxford, MS. Photo by Joshua McCoy
OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Chucky Mullins Courage Award with a ceremony, presented by the M-Club, on Saturday morning, April 5, and tickets are now on sale at OleMissFB.com.
The Inn at Ole Miss will host the event with breakfast beginning at 8 a.m. CT, followed by the ceremony emceed by the “Voice of the Rebels,” David Kellum. The Regions Bank Grove Bowl game will kick off at noon later that day.
Many former winners will be on hand for the landmark occasion, and special guests on stage will be 1992 recipient Trea Southerland, who was a suitemate of Mullins, and 1996 recipient Derek Jones, who is currently an assistant coach for the Duke Blue Devils.
Tickets are $15 and can be purchased online at OleMissFB.com or by calling 888-REB-TKTS. Guests in attendance will receive a commemorative print celebrating the award’s 25th anniversary.
Presented at the breakfast will be the 25th annual Chucky Mullins Courage Award, which goes to an upperclassman defensive player at Ole Miss who will have the honor of wearing Mullins’ No. 38 on the field during the 2014 football season.
The recipient, which is chosen by the Rebel coaching staff, will also be recognized during on-field ceremonies at the Regions Bank Grove Bowl game.
In addition to the announcement of this year’s award winner, attendees to the breakfast will hear from head coach Hugh Freeze and see video highlights of many former award winners offering their reflections on Chucky Mullins and the significance of the honor.
Established in the spring of 1990 by the Phi Beta Sigma fraternity at Ole Miss, the Chucky Mullins Courage Award honors the late Chucky Mullins, who had his Rebel football career come to an end during the 1989 Homecoming game against Vanderbilt when he was paralyzed after making a tackle. After returning to his studies at Ole Miss, Mullins passed away on May 6, 1991.
Past recipients of the Chucky Mullins Courage Award include Chris Mitchell (1990), Jeff Carter (1991), Trea Southerland (1992), Johnny Dixon (1993), Alundis Brice (1994), Michael Lowery (1995), Derek Jones (1996), Nate Wayne (1997), Gary Thigpen (1998), Ronnie Heard (1999), Anthony Magee (2000), Kevin Thomas (2001), Lanier Goethie (2002), Jamil Northcutt (2003), Eric Oliver (2004), Kelvin Robinson (2005), Patrick Willis (2006), Jeremy Garrett (2007), Jamarca Sanford (2008), Marcus Tillman (2009), Kentrell Lockett (2010), Deterrian Shackelford (2011), Jason Jones (2012), and Mike Marry (2013).
Other events surrounding the Regions Bank Grove Bowl include the Rebels’ Choice Awards on Monday, March 31 at 7 p.m. at the Ford Center and Ole Miss Baseball hosting Auburn in a weekend series at Swayze Field. The track & field, women’s tennis and women’s golf teams will also be in action on campus that weekend.