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The Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation, Inc., the creator and sponsor of the Biletnikoff Award, in its 20th year of existence held its 19th annual banquet on Saturday, February 9, 2013, with a sell-out crowd of 550 patrons at Florida State University’s University Center Club in the south end zone of Tallahassee’s Doak Campbell Stadium. The banquet, hailed by keynote speaker Larry Csonka, as the “best” in college sports, saw a record $740,000 in college scholarships awarded to North Florida high school seniors who have overcome significant barriers to achieve at the highest academic and extra curricular levels. In addition, at the banquet which was broadcast through live streaming by ESPN3, Foundation Chairman Walter Manley, II, presented the Biletnikoff Award trophy, the most beautiful in college sports, to 2012 winner Marqise Lee of the University of Southern California. Lee, gracious and animated, declared he would “be back” in 2014 to accept the award for a second year. Both Michael Crabtree and Justin Blackmon have twice won the Biletnikoff Award, presented to college football’s outstanding receiver. Lee delighted the enthusiastic patrons and his family by brandishing his custom designed Biletnikoff Award ring which he had received the evening prior at a welcoming party by foundation trustees. This year marked the most successful in Foundation history in terms of number of scholarship benefactors, number of scholarship recipients, amount of donated scholarship funds both received by the Foundation and awarded to Foundation scholars, and in total revenues. “Although this year is our greatest in history,” recounted Foundation Chairman Manley, “Our momentum is such that we expect every subsequent year to be the most outstanding.” Professor Manley noted that the Foundation has achieved remarkable success over twenty years with all uncompensated volunteers as trustees and leaders. In fact, this year the Foundation achieved another milestone: Over the course of 20 years, the total value of volunteered hours exceeded 3 million dollars. “We are blessed to have had many of North Florida’s most successful and talented leaders serving as trustees over the last 20 years,” noted Manley. “Our trustees’ inexorable drive and talented dedication have established the Biletnikoff Award as one of the most recognized individual awards in college football, as well as generously funding our charitable purpose in providing college scholarships to outstanding North Florida high school students,” remarked Foundation Chairman-elect Ritchie Pickron. Also recognized in the proceedings were prominent Foundation benefactor and trustee Mel Pope, III, who received a Biletnikoff Award ring; Master of Ceremonies virtuoso and former executive director of Seminole Boosters Charlie Barnes, cited as the greatest MC in Florida, who also received a custom designed Biletnikoff Award ring for 20 years of orchestrating the banquet; and, in the stunning surprise of the evening, Southern Scholarship Foundation CEO Mickey Moore, who pledged that organization’s financial support for the Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation’s scholars beginning immediately. Hall of Famer Larry Csonka, also the keynote speaker at the 1997 Biletnikoff Award Banquet, delivered a stirring speech referring to barriers in life to be overcome and praising the Foundation scholars, as well as Marqise Lee, for their noteworthy lives. Csonka’s remarks were interrupted by standing ovations from an appreciative audience. The Foundation has attracted the finest speakers in American sports, including Csonka, Bart Starr, Archie Manning, Don Shula, Mike Ditka, Steve Largent, Jerry Kramer, Bill Curry, Dan Fouts, and Ron Jaworski. Fans can follow the Biletnikoff Award at its fact-filled web site: www.biletnikoffaward.com. The banquet, considered the best in college football, can be viewed at http://espn.go.com/watchespn/index/_/id/798617/2013-biletnikoff-awards-banquet ESPN3 is ESPN’s live multi-screen sports network, giving fans a destination that delivers thousands of live sports events annually, accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app and through ESPN on Xbox LIVE to Gold members. It is available at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed internet connection or video connection from an affiliated service provider. ESPN3 is currently available in 83 million homes. It is also available at no cost to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers connected to on-campus educational networks and on-base military networks.