[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 18]
[Senate]
[Pages 27201-27202]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                     CONGRATULATIONS TO JOSH HEUPEL

  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I rise today to congratulate South 
Dakota's Josh Heupel, quarterback of the Oklahoma Sooners, on his 
incredible season leading his top-ranked and undefeated football team 
to the National Championship game. I am tremendously proud of the 
achievements of a fellow South Dakotan and Aberdeen Central graduate.
  I am not the first and certainly will not be the last to praise Josh 
for his accomplishments. Josh passed for 3,392 yards and 20 touchdowns 
this season and led his team through a difficult schedule of worthy 
opponents. It is no surprise that Josh received so many honors this 
year: he was named Player of the Year by the Walter Camp Football 
Foundation; College Football Player of the Year by the Associated 
Press; and College Football Player of the Year by the Sporting News.

[[Page 27202]]

  Most recently he was the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy, South 
Dakota's first Heisman Finalist. While he may have felt some 
disappointment in not winning, Josh handled himself with the maturity 
and grace that has molded him into a fine young leader and allows him 
to put team accomplishments and goals before his personal feats.
  I believe Josh's success at the national level is the result of 
natural ability coupled with hard work and drive. But he has not been 
content with excellence simply in the athletic realm. He has also 
committed himself to civic duty, visiting sick children in hospitals 
and coordinating food drives, and has been a dedicated student. More 
than that, he lives by ideals instilled in him by his family--his 
parents Ken and Cindy, and sister Andrea--and the values and life 
experiences gained in South Dakota. He is an inspiration to all of us, 
young and old, teaching us to follow our dreams but stay close to our 
values.
  I speak for South Dakota when I say that we proud of Josh Heupel and 
we wish him the best of luck as he leads his team into the National 
Championship game on January 3d and in his future athletic and academic 
endeavors.

                          ____________________