[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 12516]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        IN TRIBUTE TO BOBBY POPE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JIM MARSHALL

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 29, 2010

  Mr. MARSHALL. Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor of Mr. Bobby Pope, 
of Macon, Georgia, who is retiring after a long and illustrious tenure 
as Athletic Director of Mercer University. I rise to thank Bobby for 
his extraordinary commitment to Mercer Athletics, his promotion of 
academic and athletic excellence within the Atlantic Sun Conference, 
and his overall contributions to the local community.
  Madam Speaker, for over 20 years Bobby Pope, Dean of the Atlantic Sun 
Conference, has served as the Athletic Director for Mercer University. 
During his tenure, Mercer athletics have thrived, and its student-
athletes have achieved impressive success both on and off the field. 
The program now includes 14 NCAA Division I teams plus the addition of 
the first-ever fulltime coaches for men's and women's golf, tennis, and 
cross country. Largely thanks to Bobby, Mercer University will field 
Georgia's first NCAA Division I men's and women's lacrosse teams in the 
upcoming year. Bobby Pope's commitment to building and strengthening 
Mercer athletics can further be seen in the recent renovations of 
existing fields and the construction of a state-of-the-art facility for 
student-athletes and coaches.
  With Bobby Pope at the helm, Mercer University has twice won the 
Atlantic Sun Conference's All-Academic Trophy. Since its inception in 
2007, the Atlantic Sun Conference post-graduate scholarship recognizing 
excellence and integrity has been awarded to a Mercer student-athlete. 
During Bobby's tenure, the cumulative grade point average for Mercer 
Bear student-athletes never fell below 3.0--a testament to his 
commitment to academic excellence.
  Madam Speaker, Bobby Pope's passion and commitment to athletics and 
promoting sportsmanship extend beyond Mercer University. He has been 
very active in the Atlantic Sun Conference--twice serving as Conference 
President, as well as serving as a member on numerous Conference 
committees. Bobby has also made innumerable contributions to the local 
community as treasurer of the Macon Touchdown Club and through his 
service on the Mayor's Recreation Master Plan Committee, as well as the 
Georgia Sports Hall of Fame Authority. Indeed, he was recognized for 
his lifelong contributions to Middle Georgia Athletics when he was 
inducted into the Macon Sports Hall of Fame on April 28, 2006. Also, 
for over 35 years, his broadcast of local sports news on the ``Saturday 
Scoreboard'' gave us the good, the bad, and the ugly about our Georgia 
Bulldogs, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, and other middle Georgia sports 
teams.
  Also, for over 35 years, his broadcast of local sports news on the 
Saturday Scoreboard gave us the good, the bad, and the ugly about our 
Georgia Bulldogs, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, and other Middle Georgia 
sports teams.
  Madam Speaker, it is fitting for the Congressional Record to include 
this brief acknowledgement of the accomplishments of Bobby Pope as 
Athletic Director of Mercer University. As he assumes his new role as 
the Executive Director for the Mercer Athletic Foundation, Bobby will 
undoubtedly continue to contribute to the success and accomplishments 
of Mercer Athletics. Few leave such enduringly positive legacies.

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