The Recipient Of The 2009 NFLPA, Kentucky Chapter Blanton Collier Award - Coach Tony Dungy!
COACH TONY DUNGY, retired head coach of the Indianapolis Colts and the Tampa Bay Bucaneers has been named the recipient of the 2009 NFLPA- Kentucky Chapter's 3rd Annual Blanton Collier Award for INTEGRITY ON AND OFF THE FIELD. He was presented the award at the 7th annual Kentucky Chapter NFL Hall of Fame Ceremony on Friday evening, June 19th, at the Opera House in Lexington, Kentucky.
Tony Dungy with the Blanton Collier award trophy.
At the NFL Media Conference on April 16th, the following introduction was given for the 2009 award:
We believe that there could be no higher standard set for those who might be considered for the NFLPA, Kentucky Chapter Blanton Collier Award than the 2009 recipient. You have known him as the winning coach of two NFL teams. You have known him as a teacher, of both the men who have played for him, and his assistant coaches, three of whom are presently head coaches in the National Football League. You have known him to have widespread recognition as an individual of such personal integrity and deep beliefs, lived daily in his actions , that he has received awards and accolades from educational, civic and religious institutions. You have known him as the author of five books ; the title of the latest of these describes so well the reasons he has been chosen to receive this award:Quiet Strength:The Principles, Practices and Priorities of a Winning Life. He is the living example of the truth of the statement that GOOD GUYS DO WIN 'on the field and in life.
Coach Dungy led the Indianapolis Colts to a Super Bowl victory on February 4, 2007, the first such win for an African American coach. Dungy established another NFL first by leading his teams to the playoffs for ten consecutive years. He has been involved in a wide variety of charitable organizations, including the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Athletes in Action, Mentors for Life, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Boys & Girls Clubs, the Prison Crusade Ministry, and All Pro Dad. He also works with Basket of Hope, the Black Coaches Association National Convention, Indiana Black Expo, the United Way of Central Indiana, and the American Diabetes Association. He retired from coaching in 2008 and now serves as an analyst for NBC's Football Night in America.