FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 11, 2000
Contact:
Mark Levine, Millsport
203-977-0521
mark.levine@millsport.com
Sharon Cohen-Hagar, Verizon
972-507-5365
sharon.cohen-hagar@verizon.com
Marshall University Quarterback and Illinois Wesleyan Basketball Star
Earn Highest Academic Honors in University, College Divisions
STAMFORD, Conn., July 11 – Marshall University quarterback Chad Pennington, a 1999 Heisman Trophy finalist, and Illinois Wesleyan basketball star Korey Coon have been chosen the Team Members of the Year for the 1999-2000 GTE Academic All-America® Teams.
The selections for the highest honors for all sports were announced today after voting by a committee of the College Sports Information Directors of America. Pennington, a draft choice of the New York Jets, is the recipient in the University Division (Division I) and Coon is the winner in the College Division (Divisions II and III).
Pennington, a native of Knoxville, Tenn., was a two-time GTE Academic All-America team member who graduated with a 3.80 grade point average (GPA) as a broadcast journalism major. He was the New York Jets’ first round selection (18th overall) and the first quarterback chosen in the 2000 NFL draft. In his senior season at Marshall, he led the Thundering Herd to a 13-0 record and a victory in the Motor City Bowl, finishing the season with 275 completions in 405 attempts (68 percent) for 3,799 yards and 37 touchdowns.
Coon averaged 22 points per game last season and was a first team All-America, winning the 2000 Jostens Trophy, given to the outstanding student-athlete in Division III basketball. He was a three-time, first team all-Collegiate Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin player and helped the Titans win the 1997 Division III national championship. A native of East Peoria, Ill., Coon had straight A’s throughout his college career and graduated with a perfect 4.00 GPA with a dual major in risk management and history.
To be eligible for the GTE Academic All-America® Team, an athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve and maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.20 on a scale of 4.00. During the 1999-2000 academic year, a GTE Academic All-America Team Member of the Year was named in each of 10 programs (football, volleyball, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball, men’s and women’s fall at-large and men’s and women’s spring at-large) in the University and College Divisions. Pennington and Coon were chosen from among these 20 finalists.