Jimbo Fisher to Highlight FSAA Spring Scholarship Banquet

Clarksburg native and Florida State head football coach Jimbo Fisher has been announced as the keynote speaker at the Fairmont State Athletic Association (FSAA) Spring Scholarship Banquet. The banquet will be held on Saturday, April 28, at 5:30 p.m., in Gym 1 of the Falcon Center. Tickets are $50 and can be purchased from an FSAA member or by calling (304) 367-4220. Net proceeds help support athletic scholarships at Fairmont State.

Fisher just wrapped up his second season as the head coach at Florida State after replacing Bobby Bowden, the second most winning coach in college football history. He led the Seminoles to a 9-4 record last season and finished ranked 23rd in the country. In his first season at Florida State, Fisher won the most games (10) by a first-year coach in Florida State history and is tied for the second-most by a rookie coach in ACC history. His first three recruiting classes have all been ranked among the top five in the country.

Prior to becoming the head coach at Florida State, he was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach under Bowden for three seasons. He held the same position at LSU from 2000-06 under Nick Saban and Les Miles. He also served as an assistant at his Samford (1991-92), Auburn (1993-98) and Cincinnati (1999) before joining Saban's staff at LSU. Fisher was an all-state player at Liberty before playing at Salem and finishing his career at Samford where he was the Division III Division III Player of the Year.

In addition to a keynote address from Fisher, the banquet will recognize David "Tuffy" Knight as the "Letterwinner of Distinction." That annual honor goes to a person who has received a degree from Fairmont State 25 or more years ago and earned a varsity letter, and who since leaving Fairmont State has distinguished themselves in their community or profession. Knight was inducted into the Canadian Hall of Fame in 2007 after coaching Wilfrid Laurier University (1965-83) and the University of Waterloo (1988-97). He won four Yates Cups as winner of the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) football conference (1972, 1973, 1978 and 1997). He was a three-time winner of the Frank Tindall Trophy as the top university football coach in Canada and, at the time of his retirement, he was the most winning coach in Canadian university football history with 153 career wins. The football stadium at Wilfrid Laurier, Knight-Newbrough Stadium, is named for him and fellow FSU alum Rich Newbrough.

The FSAA will also honor this year’s recipient of the L.O. Bickel Service Award at the banquet. Franc Stern, one of the founding members of the organization and a lead organizer of the annual elimination dinner, is this year's honoree.

The banquet will also recognize the male and female senior athletes who have done the most to promote the best interest of athletics at Fairmont State with the Jasper H. Colebank Award. The Eston K. Feaster Award will go to the top male and female senior letterwinners who maintained the highest grade-point average.

For more information about Fighting Falcons Athletics, visit www.fightingfalcons.com.

Jimbo FisherFranc SternRich NewbroughJasper H. ColebankEston K. FeasterL.O. Bickel Service AwardDavid 'Tuffy' Knight