The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rogers To Receive CoSIDA Trailblazer Award
4/25/2008 | Athletics
OXFORD, Miss. -- Langston Rogers, the Senior Associate Athletics Director for Media Relations at Ole Miss since 1981, has been selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) to receive the Trailblazer Award at the organization's annual workshop July 1 in Tampa, Fla. The award is presented annually to an individual who is a pioneer in the field of sports information and who has mentored and helped improve the level of ethnic and gender diversity within CoSIDA.
The former sports information director at Delta State University from 1966-81, Rogers has been a long-time member of CoSIDA for over 40 years. He served as the CoSIDA president in 1980-81, and served on the organization's Board of Directors for 11 years. He has been a long-standing vice chair of the site selection committee, and member of the nominating committee. This past year he served on the search and screening committee to select the newly named CoSIDA Executive Director, John Humenik.
This award recognizes pioneers in the sports information field, particularly those that mentored others, opened doors, and provided a visible support to gender and diversity issues. Rogers has inspired hundreds of aspiring sports information proteges and continues to be a true supporter and long-time promoter of women's intercollegiate sports, coaches, and athletes from the fledgling years in the field to the present.
As the publicity director for Delta State University, he had a big role in promoting his school's nationally recognized women's basketball program and legendary coach, Margaret Wade. The Wade Trophy awarded annually by the Women's Basketball Coach Association to the national player of the year is named for her. He was the most experienced person attending those three consecutive national championships in the 1970s, and lent his professionalism and recommendations to a tiny corps of media and sports information personnel who covered those early women's sports events.
He took those values along to Ole Miss, and continued to support women in the profession who often labored in separate offices from their male counterparts. As CoSIDA president he encouraged the establishment of the Publicists for Women's Sports Committee that addressed concerns of CoSIDA members involved in reporting women's sports. In 2003, he returned to his roots in women's basketball as a member of the NCAA Communications committee which handles media relations annually at the NCAA Women's Final Four. There this prototypical professional oversees the placement of dozens of photographers in the championship photo box as well as ESPN's time demands for the team and athletes he is assigned.
This award honors a CoSIDA member who has worked to encourage the active participation and acceptance of women and ethnic minorities in sports information. Rogers works as easily with elite athletes like the 2008 Super Bowl MVP quarterback Eli Manning (graduate of Ole Miss), as he does with the women's basketball teams at the Final Four. It is this rare combination of professionalism and approachability that makes him unique, and the reason he is being recognized as the CoSIDA Trailblazer Award winner for 2008.
The former sports information director at Delta State University from 1966-81, Rogers has been a long-time member of CoSIDA for over 40 years. He served as the CoSIDA president in 1980-81, and served on the organization's Board of Directors for 11 years. He has been a long-standing vice chair of the site selection committee, and member of the nominating committee. This past year he served on the search and screening committee to select the newly named CoSIDA Executive Director, John Humenik.
This award recognizes pioneers in the sports information field, particularly those that mentored others, opened doors, and provided a visible support to gender and diversity issues. Rogers has inspired hundreds of aspiring sports information proteges and continues to be a true supporter and long-time promoter of women's intercollegiate sports, coaches, and athletes from the fledgling years in the field to the present.
As the publicity director for Delta State University, he had a big role in promoting his school's nationally recognized women's basketball program and legendary coach, Margaret Wade. The Wade Trophy awarded annually by the Women's Basketball Coach Association to the national player of the year is named for her. He was the most experienced person attending those three consecutive national championships in the 1970s, and lent his professionalism and recommendations to a tiny corps of media and sports information personnel who covered those early women's sports events.
He took those values along to Ole Miss, and continued to support women in the profession who often labored in separate offices from their male counterparts. As CoSIDA president he encouraged the establishment of the Publicists for Women's Sports Committee that addressed concerns of CoSIDA members involved in reporting women's sports. In 2003, he returned to his roots in women's basketball as a member of the NCAA Communications committee which handles media relations annually at the NCAA Women's Final Four. There this prototypical professional oversees the placement of dozens of photographers in the championship photo box as well as ESPN's time demands for the team and athletes he is assigned.
This award honors a CoSIDA member who has worked to encourage the active participation and acceptance of women and ethnic minorities in sports information. Rogers works as easily with elite athletes like the 2008 Super Bowl MVP quarterback Eli Manning (graduate of Ole Miss), as he does with the women's basketball teams at the Final Four. It is this rare combination of professionalism and approachability that makes him unique, and the reason he is being recognized as the CoSIDA Trailblazer Award winner for 2008.
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