| DALLAS – Conference USA announced today its 2021 Hall of Fame Class. The standalone inductee is Russell D. Anderson, former league communications administrator and dedicated member of the C-USA staff for more than 25 years, who passed away suddenly in April. “It is our honor to recognize Russ posthumously for induction as the lone member of our third Hall of Fame class,” said Judy MacLeod, Conference USA Commissioner. “His contributions to Conference USA were remarkable, and his passion and dedication were evident in everything he did for the league. We are proud to commemorate his lasting legacy to our conference.” Anderson promoted Conference USA since its formation in 1995, primarily working as media relations contact for the league’s football and baseball programs. He helped shape the C-USA communications department and essentially became the league’s chief historian as a live encyclopedia of Conference USA facts, figures and history. Anderson also worked with baseball and football scheduling, officiating, served as a liaison to the football and baseball coaches and was a member of the C-USA Hall of Fame Committee. Criteria to be eligible for the Hall of Fame includes the following:· A minimum of two years played for student-athletes, minimum five years served for coaches/administrators (coaches/administrators in current roles are eligible)· Student-athletes are only eligible five years after their last C-USA competition· Considerations for student-athletes will be based on but not limited to All-America selections and national honors, C-USA superlative awards, academic standing and off-the-field contributions· Considerations for coaches/administrators will be based on contributions to C-USA as a whole The league’s Hall of Fame Committee selects the nominees and the league’s Athletics Directors serve as the voting panel for the C-USA Hall of Fame. The league’s inaugural class made its debut in 2019 with 20 student-athletes, three coaches and two administrators. Current and future C-USA Hall of Fame class size will be a minimum of one inductee and a maximum of five inductees per year. Nominees not selected in this class will remain on the ballot for future years. 2021 CONFERENCE USA HALL OF FAME CLASS Russell D. Anderson, Conference USA Assistant Commissioner (1995-2021) · Communications and media relations specialist since league’s formation in 1995 · Primary media and administrative contact for baseball and football · Coordinated league championship media operations and events for several sports · Served on the media relations staffs for countless NCAA postseason regional, national and championship events, College Football Playoff championship games and bowl games · The C-USA Baseball Championship MVP Award is named in his honor · Actively involved with the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) since 1996, and was the organization’s most recent Associate Executive Director · Received the NCBWA’s Wilbur Snypp Award in 2002 for his outstanding contributions to college baseball. The Wilbur Snypp Award has been renamed in his honor About Conference USA Conference USA is an NCAA Division I athletic conference based in Dallas, Texas, that services 14 institutions of higher education – Charlotte, FIU, Florida Atlantic, Louisiana Tech, Marshall, Middle Tennessee, North Texas, Old Dominion, Rice, Southern Miss, UAB, UTEP, UTSA and WKU. Now in its third decade, Conference USA has adapted to the ever-changing landscape of collegiate athletics with an unwavering commitment to excellence, integrity and leadership in competition, academics and community. -ConferenceUSA.com- |
