Two Mercerians Among Seven in 2010 Georgia Sports Hall of Fame Induction Class

Two Mercerians were among the seven individuals announced Thursday as the new inductions into the the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. The Honors Court met on Thursday and selected Al Ciraldo, Edward Everett, Ernie Johnson, Sam Mitchell, Larry Rakestraw, Ronald Simmons and Suzanne Yoculan as the Hall of Fame Class of 2010. These seven individuals were chosen from an eligible pool of 252 nominees as those men and women who best exemplify the tradition of sports excellence in the State of Georgia.

“Georgia is truly blessed to have such a wide array of talented people in the world of sports,” said GSHF Executive Director Jacquelyn Decell. “It is our privilege each year to be able to give voice to the citizens of our state in congratulating our inductees on a job well done.”

The 2010 Induction Class highlights the broad range of sports in which Georgia’s athletes excel. The class includes two broadcasters, a golfer, a basketball player, a multi-sport athlete, a football player, and a gymnastics coach. The combined careers of those selected span six decades.

Sam Mitchell was a two-year starter on the basketball team at Columbus (Ga.) High School where he earned All-City honors. From there, he went on to lead Mercer University to the TAAC Championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament in 1985, and he remains Mercer’s all-time leading scorer with 1,986 points. Mitchell played professionally in Canada and France before joining the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves in 1989. He is second only to Kevin Garnett in all-time scoring and rebounding in Timberwolves’ franchise history. As head coach of the Toronto Raptors, Mitchell was named NBA Coach of the Year in 2007.

Edward Everett is a native of Macon where he attended both Lanier High School and Mercer University. Everett began winning golf tournaments at the age of 11 in 1955 at the Macon Junior Tournament and continued to win tournaments as an amateur and professional for more than 40 years. Among his many tournament victories are the Rose City Open in 1973, 1975, and 1976; the Perry Classic in 1990; the Georgia Senior Open in 1997 and 2000; and the National PGA Senior Club Professional Championship in 1997.

Al Ciraldo was born in Akron, Ohio but spent 43 years as the play-by-play announcer for Georgia Tech football and basketball games beginning in 1954. Over his career he called 416 football games and 1,030 basketball games for the Yellow Jackets including Georgia Tech’s 1990 Citrus Bowl victory over Nebraska and the basketball team’s Final Four appearance the same year. Ciraldo’s signature kickoff call, “Toe meets leather”, remains famous throughout college football.

Ernie Johnson grew up in Vermont before becoming a pitcher for the Boston Braves, Milwaukee Braves, and Baltimore Orioles. Johnson’s greatest contribution to baseball came as the iconic voice of the Atlanta Braves from 1966–1999. Named Georgia Sportscaster of the Year in 1977, 1983, and 1986, he also won three regional Emmy Awards in 1993, 1995, and 1997. Johnson was elected to the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame in 2001.

Larry Rakestraw is a native of Atlanta where he attended West Fulton High School. At West Fulton, he was a four year letterman in baseball and football and a three year letterman on the basketball team. In 1959 he was named to the All-State Football Team and was selected as the Back of the Year by the Atlanta Touchdown Club. As a baseball player and football player at the University of Georgia, Rakestraw was named MVP of the baseball team in 1961 and threw for 407 yards against Miami in 1963 to break the NCAA record for passing yards at that time. He went on to play professional football for the Chicago Bears and Atlanta Falcons and has won numerous amateur golf tournaments since his retirement from the NFL.

Ronald Simmons was born in Perry and led Warner Robins High School to the state and national championships in 1976 as a defensive lineman. He played college football at Florida State and has been credited by Bobby Bowden as one of the key players in beginning the long run of success for the Seminoles. Simmons was a Consensus All-American at FSU in 1979 and 1980 and finished his career with 25 sacks and 44 tackles for a loss. Drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the third round of the 1981 NFL draft, he chose to play in the USFL and later became a professional wrestler.

Suzanne Yoculan led the University of Georgia’s Women’s Gymnastics Team to one of the greatest runs of success in any sport in NCAA history. Over her 26 year career, the Gym Dogs won 16 SEC titles and 10 NCAA titles including five consecutive national championships from 2005-2009. Yoculan coached 37 gymnasts that won NCAA individual championships and 58 gymnasts that garnered a total of 306 All-America honors. She was named National Coach of the Year five times and SEC Coach of the Year eight times. Yoculan retired from coaching in 2009 with a career record of 836-117-7.

The 2010 Georgia Sports Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be held in Macon in February.

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Aflac Outdoor Games Return to Columbus for a Second Year

/PRNewswire/ -- Aflac announces it will be the title sponsor for the 2009 Aflac Outdoor Games held on June 19-21. For the second consecutive year, the popular three-day event will take place at the South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus, Ga.

Aflac Outdoor Games is a combination of several events including the Collegiate and Professional Championships of the STIHL(R) TIMBERSPORTS(R) Series, a competition consisting of eight disciplines that challenge competitors' strength, endurance, stamina, tool skill and agility. The saw chips fly, and the competition is fierce. In fact, last year during the Aflac Outdoor Games, New Zealander Jason Wynyard broke the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS world record in the stock saw discipline, making three cuts through a foot-wide log in just under 10 seconds.

"Last year was a tremendous success for everyone involved," said Paul Amos II, president and chief operating officer, Aflac U.S. "Aflac is very pleased to return as the Outdoor Games' title sponsor and to help bring this quality family event back to our hometown."

"Our athletes were impressed with the hospitality Aflac and Columbus showed last year, and we are excited to bring the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Series back to be part of the Aflac Outdoor Games," said Roger Phelps, promotional communications manager for STIHL Inc. "With the level of competition growing each year, fans can be assured that this year's professional and collegiate championships will be the most exciting yet."

The STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Series is broadcast on ESPN2 and ESPNU, which will bring national exposure to the region. For more information on the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Series, visit www.espnoutdoors.com/timbersports.

Among the events making an encore performance at the Aflac Outdoor Games will be the Pig Bowl, a national and local barbeque cooking contest. The Kansas City Barbeque Society, an organization that has sanctioned almost 300 barbeque contests throughout the United States, has put its seal of approval on the professional portion of the Pig Bowl competition to be held during the Aflac Outdoor Games. The local contest is open to amateur cook teams from the Valley area. Dog dock diving will be back with a new event called Ultimate Air Dogs. Agility Dogs and Flyball also return. There will be a designated area just for kids with the Knology Family Zone, a place for small ones to climb, bounce, draw, and many more activities.

In addition to the events back from 2008, the Aflac Outdoor Games will host two new entries - the Georgia State Frisbee Dog Championships and the Extreme Power Sports Archery Challenge. These competitions were created to add more quality events to an already robust lineup.

"We're very excited about planning for the 2009 Games. The success of last year's event generated a great deal of interest for the 2009 Games," said Warner Neal, president of Outdoor Events.

"Bringing back last year's events and adding events we feel will be fan favorites in 2009 should make this even more appealing to everyone in the Valley area. The benefits to the area are immense. There is the obvious economic impact and, the exposure Columbus will gain from the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Series being broadcast on ESPN2 and ESPNU. It's a win-win for the Valley area for sure."

Advanced tickets per day are $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 5-12. Admission is free for children under 5 years of age. Family and military rates are also available. Tickets can be purchased at all area Piggly Wiggly and Lewis Jones stores.

For more information on the events -- including registering for some of the events -- please visit AflacOutdoorGames.com.

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Carmike To Show FedEx BCS National Championship and NBA All-Star Saturday Night, Live in 3-D at 35 Theatres in 19 States

(BUSINESS WIRE)--Carmike Cinemas, Inc. (NASDAQ: CKEC), the nation’s leading motion picture exhibitor in 3-D, today announced that it will be showing two upcoming Live 3-D broadcasts: the FedEx BCS National Championship Game between the University of Florida and the University of Oklahoma on January 8th and NBA All-Star Saturday Night on February 14th. Both events will be shown at 35 Carmike theatres in 19 states (list below).

“Cinedigm's CineLive(TM) Satellite Distribution Network is the only system that can distribute over a national theatre footprint, and we are delighted to collaborate with them to bring these premier sporting events for the first time ever to the viewing public, live and in 3-D,” stated Michael W. Patrick, Carmike’s Chief Executive Officer.

“With a growing slate of 3-D content planned for 2009 and beyond, Carmike has taken the industry lead in deploying digital 3-D technology. Our circuit’s first-run theatres are 100% digital, with state-of-the-art sound, stadium seating and other patron-friendly amenities at most locations. During the 2008 fourth quarter, we completed the conversion of Carmike’s entire theatre circuit to 3-D readiness, giving us 502 compatible screens of approximately 1300 3-D screens across the U.S.

“The major motion picture studios are solidly behind 3-D, and we share their excitement as this content is ideally suited to the customers in our markets. Importantly, movies continue to be added to the studios’ release schedules, with over 20 3-D films currently slated for debut in 2009 and 2010. In addition to professional and college sports in 3-D, there are a growing number of additional special events that we will be bringing in digital and or 3-D format to the Carmike circuit, including religious programming, concerts and arts-oriented productions such as opera and ballet,” concluded Mr. Patrick.

Carmike Theatre Locations BCS Championship and NBA All-Star Saturday Night
STATE		CITY		THEATER
Alabama		Mobile		Wynnsong 16
Colorado		Colorado Springs		Chapel Hills 15
Colorado		Fort Collins		Carmike 10
Florida		Bradenton		Carmike Royal Palm 20
Florida		Fernandina Beach		Carmike Amelia Island 7
Georgia		Columbus		Carmike 15
Georgia		Conyers		Carmike Conyers Crossroads 16
Georgia		Savannah		Carmike Wynnsong 11
Iowa		Johnston		Carmike Wynnsong 16
Illinois		Champaign		Beverly Center 18
Illinois		Dekalb		Carmike Market Square 10
Kansas		Manhattan		Seth Childs 12
Minnesota		Oakdale		Carmike Oakdale 20
Missouri		Warrensburg		Carmike University 8
Montana		Billings		Carmike Wynnsong 10
Montana		Missoula		Carmike 10
New York		Olean		Carmike 8
North Carolina		Asheville		Carmike 10
North Carolina		Fayetteville		Carmike Market Fair 15
North Carolina		Hickory		Carmike 14
North Carolina		Jacksonville		Carmike 16
North Carolina		Winston-Salem		Carmike Wynnsong 12
Oklahoma		Stillwater		Carmike 10
Pennsylvania		Pittsburgh		Carmike 10
South Carolina		Charleston		James Island 8
Tennessee		Dyersburg		Carmike 9
Tennessee		Franklin		Thoroughbred 20
Tennessee		Johnson City		Johnson City 14
Tennessee		Knoxville		Carmike Wynnsong 16
Texas		Edinburg		Carmike 20
Texas		El Paso		Carmike 16
Texas		Tyler		Carmike 14
Utah		Provo		Carmike Wynnsong 12
Virginia		Charlottesville		Carmike 6
Virginia		Roanoke		Carmike 10

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