The Southern Miss Alumni Association will soon celebrate excellence, leadership and impact with the induction of seven of its most accomplished alumni into its Hall of Fame.
This year’s honorees include:
Richard G. Cowart, ’75, of Nashville, Tenn.
Krandall Paige Howell, ’87, of Summit, Miss.
David Hurt, ’90, of Madison, Miss.
Mickey Lee Marshall, ’83, of Orange Beach, Ala.
Hal McMahon, ’85, of Hattiesburg, Miss.
Jennifer Duke Payne, ’04, of Hattiesburg, Miss.
Ellen Hunter Ruffin, ’77, ’98, of Hattiesburg, Miss.
Each honoree represents the best of what it means to be a Golden Eagle, bringing honor to the university and inspiration to future generations.
“You know, when you look at any hall of fame, you look at the overall resume of everyone that’s come out and what they have done their entire lifetime, and one of the biggest things that you always want to focus on here is, you know how have they gone into, whether they're professional or personal life and best represented what Southern myth stands for Tucker Sappington, executive director of the Alumni Association. “And so, when you look at this group of individuals, there's a lot of amazing. Men and women who've graduated from Southern Miss and gone to do some very amazing things in this country and globally, for that matter,”
Behind every Hall of Fame class is a detailed selection process designed from the first nominations to the final vote.
“So, what I'll say a little bit about it is that it is a nomination process, and so names can be nominated either online, directly to the alumni association through emails, or word of mouth,” said Sappington.
The seven new inductees will be honored at the Alumni Hall of Fame Banquet on Friday, Oct. 24, in recognition of their contributions of time and financial support to the University of Southern Mississippi.
They will also be recognized during the Homecoming game against the University of Louisiana Monroe on Saturday, Oct. 25.
The Alumni Hall of Fame Banquet is held each year as part of Southern Miss’ Homecoming celebration. Additional events hosted by the Alumni Association during the weekend include:
Thursday, Oct. 23 27th Annual Alumni Homecoming Scholarship Golf Tournament Hattiesburg Country Club, 1 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 25 Annual Awards Brunch and Business Meeting Thad Cochran Center, TBA
Pregame at Southern Station Spirit Park, TBA
