[November 20, 2014]

Delta State's Sullivan Tops Latest Round of 2014 C Spire Conerly Trophy Finalists for Most Outstanding College Football Player in Mississippi

Quarterback Tyler Sullivan, who has led Delta State to a 9-1 record and a first-round bye in the NCCA Division II college football playoffs, will represent the Statemen as a 2014 C Spire Conerly Trophy finalist.

Joining Sullivan will be Southern Miss senior defensive end Dasman McCullum, who leads USM with 4.5 sacks and four forced fumbles and Daniel Williams, a sophomore wide receiver at Jackson State with 63 catches for 909 yards and eight touchdowns as finalists for the award honoring the state's top college football player.

Six of the 10 Conerly Trophy finalists have now been named by their respective schools. Earlier this week, Mississippi State quarterback and All-America candidate Dak Prescott, Belhaven's Greg Livingston and Mississippi College's Dylan Klibert were selected by their coaches as finalists for the annual award.

Mississippi's 10 football-playing senior colleges have until Nov. 24 to name their respective finalists. Still to come are submissions from Ole Miss, Alcorn State, Mississippi Valley State and Millsaps.

DSU's Sullivan, a Louisville, Miss. native, has personally accounted for 31 touchdowns in leading one of the nation's most productive offenses. He has completed 247 of 382 passes for 3,098 yards and 24 touchdowns. His TD to interception ratio is 24-12 and h has seven rushing touchdowns.

McCullum, a senior from Hebron, Miss., has been a consistent leader for the USM defense. For his career, he has 7.5 sacks, 24.5 tackles for loss, seven pass breakups, five fumble recoveries and two blocked kicks. JSU's Williams ranks third in the SWAC in receiving with 82.6 yards per game.

The C Spire Conerly Trophy will be awarded Dec. 2 at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Among past winners were such prominent future NFL standouts as Deuce McAllister, Eli Manning, Jerious Norwood, Michael Boley, Patrick Willis, Anthony Dixon and many others. Last year's winner was Mississippi State offensive lineman Gabe Jackson, now with the Oakland Raiders.

For the second time in the award's history, fan voting will count for 10 percent of the award and a panel of statewide media will make up the remaining 90 percent. Fan voting will begin on Nov. 25 at 8 a.m. and conclude on Dec. 1 at 8 a.m. Just as the media voters do, fans will vote for a first place, second place and third place winner. Fans will be able to vote by Facebook, Twitter (News - Alert) and via text messaging. Fans may submit up to three votes per day during the voting period; however, only one entry is allowed per day for each of the social media methods. For entry rules and qualifications on fan voting, go to www.cspire.com/conerly beginning on Nov. 25.

The C Spire Conerly Trophy banquet is nearing a sellout, but still has limited seating for the Dec. 2 program at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. The second annual Kent Hull Trophy also will be presented to the top college lineman in Mississippi at the event. A 5:30 p.m. reception will be followed by the 6:30 p.m. dinner program. Coaches and finalists from all the schools are expected to attend. For ticket availability or more information, call 601-982-8264.

Now in its 19^th year, the Conerly Trophy presented by C Spire is named after the late Charlie Conerly - the only football inductee in the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame who was an All-American at a Mississippi university, an NFL rookie of the year and NFL All-Pro member and quarterbacked a team to a world championship. C Spire has sponsored the outstanding player awards program for all major college sports in Mississippi since 1998.

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