Doug Collins, former Illinois State basketball great and current TNT analyst, will speak at the 2003 State Farm Student-Athlete Academic Excellence Banquet on October 26 in Redbird Arena on the Illinois State campus.
The State Farm sponsored banquet will recognize 212 AFNI Athletics Honor Roll student-athletes with a 3.0 GPA or higher. This event will also honor the Illinois State Male and Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year, as voted on by Redbird coaches and administrators, and will be announced during the banquet.
Collins will be the keynote speaker for the event. He starred on the Illinois State basketball team from 1970-73, before embarking on a successful playing career with the Philadelphia 76ers. His coaching career consisted of stints with the Chicago Bulls, Detroit Pistons and Washington Wizards, having coached Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Grant Hill in the process.
The Benton, Ill. native was a scholar athlete himself during his playing days at Illinois State. He was a first-team Academic All-American in 1973 and was named to the GTE Academic All-America Hall of Fame in 1995.
Illinois State director of athletics Perk Weisenburger is delighted to have Collins return.
Were very happy to have Doug return to campus to speak to our student-athletes and be a part of this academic excellence banquet, Weisenburger said. Doug means a lot to this university and to this athletics department and it will mean a lot to have him and his wife Kathy back with us.
Collins was the first Illinois State student-athlete at the Division I level to be honored as an academic all-American, making it only fitting that he speak to a group of current Redbird athletes who excel in the classroom.
Dougs presence is a perfect fit for everyone involved because during his time as a student-athlete, he not only was committed to being the best athletically, but the best academically, Weisenburger said. His commitment to education mirrors that of this institution, State Farm and our student-athletes who perform so well academically.
Registration for the event will begin at 5:30, while dinner starts at 6 p.m. A limited number of tickets are available to the public, and must be purchased in advance. The dress code is business attire.
Tickets for the event are $25 and can be purchased by calling 438-3803.
