OSU HEISMAN TROPHY WINNERS CASSADY, GRIFFIN, GEORGE, SMITH
EXPECTED TO MAKE JOINT APPEARANCE FOR FIRST TIME

Columbus sports fans will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see The Ohio State University’s four living Heisman Trophy winners gather together when the ex-Buckeye greats headline the sixth-annual The Morning Sports Report on June 22, 2010 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.

Howard ‘Hopalong’ Cassady, Archie Griffin, Eddie George and Troy Smith have been invited to headline the Greater Columbus Sports Commission’s annual breakfast meeting, marking the first time they will have ever appeared together. The Morning Sports Report has previously featured national celebrities with local ties such as CBS basketball analyst Clark Kellogg and ESPN football analyst Kirk Herbstreit, both former OSU stars as well.

GCSC executive director Linda Shetina Logan and representatives of the Blue Jackets, Crew, Clippers and The Ohio State University will also be featured at 2010 The Morning Sports Report.

“The Morning Sports Report is our annual meeting, and each year we try to feature local sports celebrities that are also very well known nationally,” Logan said. “Very few sports stars from Columbus have done more than our own Heisman Trophy winners to bring national attention to our community, so we are thrilled to host a one-of-a-kind reunion of these four Ohio State legends.”

The 2010 The Morning Sports Report will be held from 7:30-9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, June 22 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center. A Fan Fair featuring a variety of the city's sports teams and organizations will be held from 7:30-8 a.m., with the program beginning at 8 a.m.

Tickets are $70 for an individual seat; $800 for a table for ten and 2 tickets to VIP reception with sports celebrities; $85 for an individual VIP seat and one ticket to the VIP reception with sports celebrities; and $1,500 for VIP table for nine with the opportunity to host a sports celebrity, nine tickets to VIP reception with sports celebrities, and other special amenities. Tickets are available at www.ColumbusSports.org.

Attendees will again receive a ticket package to various Columbus sporting events.

“One of our many missions of The Morning Sports Report is to celebrate the variety of sporting events that we have in our community and we are proud each year to provide our guests with complimentary tickets to many of the major sporting events in Columbus,” Logan said.

For more information on The Morning Sports Report, visit www.ColumbusSports.org.

The Greater Columbus Sports Commission was founded in June 2002 to attract professional, amateur, collegiate and youth sporting events to Columbus. In the past five years, the Sports Commission has booked more than 100 events that have generated more than $100 million in visitor spending in Columbus.

Marquee events in which the Sports Commission played a significant role in attracting to or hosting in Columbus include:

• Black American World Softball Championship (September 2003)
• FIFA Women’s World Cup (September 2003)
• NCAA Men’s Basketball 1st & 2nd Rounds (2004, 2007)
• NCAA Women’s Basketball 1st & 2nd Rounds (2004, 2009)
• World Cup of Hockey Training Camp (June 2004)
• NCAA Frozen Four (April 2005)
• International Diving Championships (May 2006)
• NSA Girls Fast Pitch World Series (2006, 2008)
• U.S. Olympic Trials – Synchronized Swimming (December 2006)
• NHL Entry Draft (June 2007)
• USA Track & Field Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships (June 2008)
• Big Ten Conference Baseball Tournament (May 2009)

Major upcoming events include:

• McDonald’s All American High School Basketball Games (March 2010)
• National Association of Sports Commission’s Sports Event Symposium (April 2010)
• NCAA Women’s Basketball 1st & 2nd Rounds (March 2011)
• NCAA Men’s Basketball 1st & 2nd Rounds (March 2012)

MEDIA CONTACT:
Brent LaLonde                                        
Greater Columbus Sports Commission                        
614-562-0940 (cell)                                        
BLaLonde@ColumbusSports.org

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