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Special Awards Program
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CSC Hall of Fame
2025 Special Awards Announcements Schedule
Please note: Following this week's announcements of all awards, CSC will highlight recipients throughout the spring with special individualized content and social media recognitions and honor them in person during the June CSC UNITE25 convention in Orlando (June 8-11).
The Hall of Fame class, which will be honored at the 2025 College Sports Communicators #CSCUnite25 annual convention in June at the Orlando World Center Marriott, is comprised of a former CSC President and Board of Directors member Cindy Potter (Columbia College, Mo.) of the NAIA; long-time CSC members Tony Neely (Kentucky), Scottie Rodgers (Cotton Bowl Athletic Association/Goodyear Cotton Bowl) and John Painter (Maryville College, Tn.); and retirees Lonza Hardy, Jr. (MEAC, SWAC, among others) and Larry Hymel (Southeastern University).
by Barb Kowal, CSC Director of Operations and Professional Development
The College Sports Communicators (CSC) will honor nearly 60 members, distinguished external colleagues, media members and collegiate administrators with its 2025 Special Awards, the association's annual awards of distinction.
CSC is composed of intercollegiate athletic communications and creative professionals from colleges, universities and athletic conferences at all divisions of competition in the United States and Canada.
The Special Awards, to be announced throughout the week of January 6-9, are presented for outstanding contributions to the organization and to CSC's mission. Honors will be presented at CSC's 68th annual convention,
#CSCUnite25 at the Orlando World Center Marriott Resort taking place June 8-11 in Orlando, Florida. The convention is held in conjunction with NACDA and Affiliates Convention Week.
The 2025 Hall of Fame class highlights the annual CSC Special Awards. In addition to the Hall of Fame, other Special Awards recognize emerging leaders, community service, lifetime achievement, organization trailblazer, outstanding media contribution, and 25-Year service honors. Those announcements follow January 7-8-9.
Highlighting the 2025 CSC Special Awards honorees are the six new Hall of Fame inductees:
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Lonza Hardy, Jr. – athletic administration and communications leader at Alcorn State, Southern University, Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) and the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), among others (retired)
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Larry Hymel – Southeastern Louisiana University Sports Information Director (retired)
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Tony Neely – University of Kentucky Assistant Athletic Director for Athletics Communications and Public Relations
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John Painter – Maryville College (Tenn.) Assistant Athletics Director for Communications
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Cindy Potter – Columbia College (Mo.) Director of Athletics and former CSC president
- Scottie Rodgers – Cotton Bowl Athletic Association/Goodyear Cotton Bowl Vice President of Communications
The six members of the Hall of Fame class will be inducted into the HOF on Monday, June 9, in ceremonies during a special CSC Celebrations Award night at the Orlando World Center Marriott.
"College Sports Communicators is proud to unveil its class of 2025 Special Award winners. Over the next four days, CSC will highlight these incredible individuals and their remarkable stories, state College Sports Communicators President Kevin Trainor, University of Arkansas Senior Associate Athletics Director. "These men and women represent the very best of our membership and have distinguished themselves by serving intercollegiate athletics and their communities. We look forward to honoring our CSC Hall of Fame inductees and all of our Special Award winners at CSCUnite25 in Orlando this June."
The retired Hymel was selected as part of the veteran's sub-committee nominations. Veterans Committee Hall of Fame inductees represent former sports information professionals of distinction from the past whose professional and personal deeds and accomplishments helped make possible the stature of the athletics communications profession today.
"CSC's Special Awards program and Hall of Fame annually honors many outstanding athletics communicators for their contributions to the profession and national association," said CSC Interim Executive Director Will Roleson. "Honoring deserving members and others who have contributed to CSC is a hallmark of our organization, and we look forward to saluting this year's honorees for their achievements at our upcoming convention."
Following this week's announcements of all awards, CSC will highlight recipients throughout the spring with special individualized content and social media recognitions and honor them in person during the June CSC UNITE25 in Orlando.
Additionally, each of these six 2025 Hall of Fame inductees will join their predecessors on the CSC Hall of Fame plaques that are on permanent display at the NCAA Hall of Champions in Indianapolis.
The College Sports Communicators Academic All-America Hall of Fame® Class of 2025 and the 2025 Dick Enberg Award winner will be announced at a later date.
A closer look at the College Sports Communicators Hall of Fame Class of 2025.
Established in 1969, CSC inducted 39 individuals in its inaugural class. A total of 254 members have been inducted to date. See CSC Hall of Fame all-time inductees.
Lonza Hardy, Jr. – Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), Southern, Alcorn State
Athletics Administrator and Communications Director (retired)
A University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill graduate with more than 40 years of committed service in NCAA Division I athletics,
Lonza Hardy held positions as director of athletics and conference assistant commissioner for media relations positions at the schools and conferences listed above.
He currently serves as a consultant in college administration, media relations and marketing.
In his last position before retirement, Hardy joined the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) in September 2018 and served as its media relations and research consultant through January 2022.
Prior to his MEAC role, Hardy served in director of athletic roles at three institutions: University of Arkansas Pine Bluff (Sept. 2011-Feb. 2018), Hampton University (July 2007-Sept. 2011), Mississippi Valley State University (April 2001- July 2007).
Before his athletic director appointments, Hardy held a 14-year tenure as associate commissioner at the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). He also served in sports communications roles at Southern, Alcorn State and Albany (Ga.) State.
During his tenure at the SWAC, Hardy was appointed to a three-year term on the CoSIDA Board of Directors (1998-99 through the 2000-01 academic year). Hardy has been honored by numerous groups for his standout work and dedication, earning the SWAC SID of the Year Award four times. He was recipient of the former Good Person Award presented by CSC (CoSIDA) for community service work (now the Bob Kenworthy Community Service Award) and was also inducted into the SWAC Hall of Fame in 2018. Hardy also earned the 2006 General Neyland Outstanding Athletics Director Award by the All-American Football Foundation.
Hardy's career in media relations started in 1978 when, after graduation from UNC-Chapel Hill, he took a job at Albany State in Georgia for two years before spending the next six years at Alcorn State from 1980-86.
Larry Hymel – Southeastern Louisiana University
Sports Information Director (retired)
The first full-time Sports Information Director for Southeastern, his alma mater, Larry Hymel served in that capacity for 28 years. He was named to the position shortly after graduation while he was working as the sports editor for The Daily Star in the same year. Previously as an undergrad, he worked for the university as a student worker for public information and as a staff member of The Lion's Roar (student paper).
After retiring as SID in 2005, Hymel was director of Southeastern Louisiana's University Center for 11 years. Upon that retirement in 2016, he began work as the Alumni Athletic Coordinator for the Southeastern Alumni Association and coordinated the university's Hall of Fame Day activities.
In 2017, he established The Endowed Scholarship for Sports Journalism at Southeastern Louisiana.
Among his honors, Hymel was the 2017 Southeastern Louisiana University Lion for Life Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. He was inducted into the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Hall of Fame in 2011 with the organization's Distinguished Service Award for Journalism - the highest accolade bestowed by the LSWA. Also in 1997, Hymel received a CoSIDA (CSC) Lifetime Achievement Award and a CoSIDA 25-Year Service Award.
In 1994, he was inducted into the Southeastern Louisiana Athletics Hall of Fame (Distinguished Service) and the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Max Russo Award, which recognized his valuable and varied contributions to the organization.
Tony Neely – University of Kentucky
Assistant Athletic Director for Athletics Communications and Public Relations
For 31 years,
Tony Neely has given distinguished service to the University of Kentucky where he currently serves as Assistant AD for Communications and Public Relations.
His athletic communications career began in 1978 as an undergraduate at Vanderbilt University, and Neely spent 16 years in communications at his alma mater from 1978-94. He started as a student assistant at Vanderbilt in 1978 and was hired full time as an assistant sports information director before finishing his final semester as a student. He was promoted to associate SID in 1990 and then to sports information director just two years later. In 1994, he accepted the SID position at Kentucky.
UK's communications/public relations staff have been named one of the best in the country by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) three times under Neely's direction.
Neely has served eight years on the CSC Professional Development and Continuing Education Committee where he is one of CSC's key moderators for convention sessions and webinars. Throughout his years of membership in the organization, he also served on CSC committees for NCAA Legislative Liaison, Postgraduate Scholarship, and Publications Award Publicity.
Neely earned his 25-year Award at the 2018 CSC Convention and has won numerous publications and writing awards in the CSC Fred S. Stabley Sr. Writing Contest during his tenure. He also co-wrote the official University of Kentucky book commemorating the UK 1998 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament championship.
John Painter – Maryville College (Tn.)
Assistant Athletics Director for Communications
John Painter has compiled an impressive 30-plus year career as an athletic communications leader in both NCAA Division I and Division III. He has served as Assistant AD for Communications at Division III Maryville College (Tenn.) since August 2021.
His previous position was as the Director of Athletic Communications at Colgate University in Hamilton, New York.
During his time at Colgate, Painter was a member of the inaugural CoSIDA/CSC Division I Cabinet – a 10-member board, and served as chair of the NCAA Statistics and Advisory Committee. He earned a CoSIDA/CSC 25-Year Award in 2014.
Painter also served at the University of Tennessee from 2001-2012 as associate media relations director and primary head football coach contact and then as director/chief features writer for the UT websites. During his Tennessee tenure, Painter worked with CoSIDA (CSC) Hall of Fame members Haywood Harris, Bud Ford and Debby Jennings.
While serving at Tennessee and Colgate, Painter earned numerous writing honors in CSC's Fred Stabley Sr. Writing Contest.
Before joining the Tennessee athletic department, Painter was a senior statistics coordinator at the NCAA for 11 years and was communications coordinator for one year. He held roles as the Media Coordinator for Division I Ice Hockey and Division I-AA Football Championships from 1994 to 2001, as well as managing statistics and records for all three divisions.
Painter began his career as assistant sports information director for women's basketball and football (secondary) at Auburn University from 1988-1989.
Cindy Potter – Columbia College (Mo.)
Director of Athletics / former CSC president
A highly-honored CSC member,
Cindy Potter has served at her alma mater, Columbia College (Missouri) since 2005 in various communications and administrative roles. This past September 10, Potter, serving as Senior Deputy Director of Athletics and Senior Women's Leader for four years, was elevated to the college's Director of Athletics position.
There have been many "firsts" for Potter in her career. She becomes Columbia College's first female athletic director, and has helped build one of the premier athletic departments in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). CC programs are fixtures in national tournaments. The college has also earned seven straight American Midwest Conference (AMC) President's Cups as the top athletic department in the conference.
Potter became the first representative from an NAIA school to ascend into the officer rotation of CSC (CoSIDA) and served as the organization's president – the fifth female to do so in the association's 60-plus-year history – during the 2021-22 academic year. She was first elected to serve on the Board of Directors in 2011.
A CSC multi-award recipient, Potter received the organization's Rising Star Award (College Division) in 2008, earned the 2020 Warren Berg Award for outstanding communications service and leadership, and received the 2022 Bud Nagle Award for displaying ethics, integrity, compassion and/or bravery under an unusual or stressful personal or professional situations.
In addition to her service with CSC, Potter has been a member of numerous NAIA national committees, including the National Administrative Council, Council of Presidents and RISE (Respect, Inclusivity, Support, Education). She currently serves as the American Midwest Conference's representative on the National Administrative Council.
Potter graduated from CC in 2005 with a bachelor's degree in Interdisciplinary Studies and later earned a master of arts in teaching. She was a member of the Cougar softball team from 2002-04 and was inducted into the Columbia College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012.
Scottie Rodgers – Cotton Bowl Athletic Association/Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic
Vice President of Communications
From his time as a student assistant in the University of Alabama athletics communication office in 1995 to his current position as Vice President of Communications of the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association/Goodyear Cotton Bowl,
Scottie Rodgers has been an instrumental leader in the profession and within the College Sports Communicators organization.
His career path has taken him from Alabama to the Southeastern Athletic Conference (SEC), the Ivy League, CSTV (formerly CBS Sports Network, now CBS Interactive), the NCAA, Tulane University and to the Sun Belt Conference prior to joining the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association (CBAA) in 2020.
Among his current responsibilities, Rodgers coordinates publicity and executes the social media and digital marketing strategies for the Classic, CBAA and Cotton Bowl Foundation and oversees media operations for the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic and the press box operations for all college games at AT&T Stadium.
As the first ethnic minority to serve in numerous roles at his various positions over almost 30 years, Rodgers currently serves as Chair of CSC's Inclusion Committee and as chair, oversees the CSC Diversity & Inclusion Fellowship which is in partnership with the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics.
Since September of 2020, Rodgers had served on CSC's Division I Cabinet. He is a 10-year member of the CSC Special Awards Committee and serves on the Black College Sports Information Directors (BCSIDA) Leadership Council. During the pandemic, Rodgers helped create CSC's Racial and Social Justice initiatives in June 2020.
Within CSC, Rodgers received his 25-Year Award in June 2020 and has been selected as a President's Award recipient twice for his committee work and dedication (June 2021 and June 2024).
On the executive board of the Black Sports Professionals North Texas Chapter as the Marketing & Communications Committee Chair, Rodgers also is a current member of National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), Minority Opportunities Athletic Association (MOAA), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA), and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.