March 8, 2010
ATLANTA – The fifth annual Atlanta Sports Awards ceremony, held at the Historic Fox Theatre Monday night, had a strong Georgia Tech flavor.
Georgia Tech’s Paul Johnson, who guided the Yellow Jackets to their first ACC championship since 1990 and an appearance in the FedEx Orange Bowl, was named Coach of the Year presented by Newell Rubbermaid. Freshman basketball standout Derrick Favors received the High School Athlete of the Year presented by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution for his performance last year as a senior at South Atlanta High School.
Tech’s football team, which went 11-3 and finished 13th in the national polls, earned Team of the Year presented by The Home Depot. Seniors Brad Jefferson and Sean Bedford, and junior Roddy Jones were on hand to accept the award on behalf of the Yellow Jackets.
Stewart Cink, a Georgia Tech graduate and the 2009 British Open champion, was named the Professional Athlete of the Year presented by SunTrust.
Derrick Morgan, the ACC’s Defensive Player of the Year and a first team All-American, was a finalist for the Collegiate Athlete of the Year presented by AT&T. That award went to University of Georgia gymnast Courtney Kupets.
This year’s 11 winners were recognized at the black-tie event created by the Atlanta Sports Council to honor the most accomplished athletes and teams at all levels throughout the metro Atlanta community. An all-star lineup of athletes, sports celebrities, coaches and media members were on hand at the event.
Other winners included:
Atlanta Braves pitcher Tim Hudson, for his endless off-the-field contributions, was honored as the Sports Person of the Year Presented by Champion Window and Patio Manufacturing.
Duluth resident Brad Nessler was named the winner of the Furman Bisher Award for Sports Media Excellence Presented by the Atlanta Sports Council.
Amanda Weir, who spent a year as a Bulldog, claimed Amateur Athlete of the Year Presented by Comcast/Charter Sports Southeast.
Real estate mogul Tom Cousins, a graduate of Georgia, was honored for the Lifetime Achievement Award Presented by Coca-Cola.
The High School Scholar Athletes of the Year Presented by Georgia Best Chevy Dealers went to Rawson Haverty (The Westminster Schools) and Megan Light (North Springs High School).
The Atlanta Sports Awards was created in 2006 when the Atlanta Sports Council came up with the idea of a gala-style event to honor the achievements of metro Atlanta’s best athletes, coaches and teams from all levels of competition. The event celebrates and recognizes these tremendous athletic feats on a yearly basis.
