By ATLANTA, Jan. 22, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- With the college basketball season heating up, the buzz is growing in anticipation of NCAA® March Madness® and the Naismith Student Section of the Year Award, where fans across the nation will have a say in determining the best student section in college basketball.
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Fans can vote for the Naismith Student Section of the Year Award in three ways:
1. Via a direct link: www.mystudentsectionrocks.com or http://bit.ly/1fzbsNx
2. Via College Colors on Facebook: www.facebook.com/collegecolors
3. Via Twitter: Using your designated school-specific hashtag and
#beststudentsection within a tweet. School-specific hashtags can be found
upon placing an initial vote at www.mystudentsectionrocks.com.
The Naismith Student Section of the Year Award, which is presented through a partnership between the Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), the licensing affiliate of IMG College, and the Atlanta Tipoff Club, administrators of the Naismith Awards, is dedicated to celebrating student fans that support their college basketball team with passion and devotion.
The Naismith Student Section of the Year Award will be determined through two rounds of public voting, combined with a scoring of the finalists by the Naismith Awards Board of Selectors. The Board of Selectors will review criteria such as rank during the two rounds of public voting, video submission showcasing the spirit of the student section, any organized efforts to promote voting for the award, as well as the group's support of any philanthropic organization during the season. Complete details on the selection process can be found at facebook.com/collegecolors.
"We couldn't be more pleased with the level of participation and excitement surrounding the Naismith Student Section of the Year Award as the contest enters its third year," said Eric Oberman, Executive Director of the Atlanta Tipoff Club. "Now is the time for students, alumni, and fans of these schools across the country to make their votes count and help push their schools to victory."
"College basketball student sections embody the energy, passion and enthusiasm that create a uniquely coveted home court advantage, and we want to celebrate that," added Catherine Gammon, Senior Vice President of Brand Development for CLC. "We are encouraging all fans to make sure the students of their favorite school are recognized for the spirit they display by casting votes daily."
Besides bragging rights, the winning student section earns a $10,000 donation to their school's general scholarship fund and will be honored during a home basketball game. In addition, the school with the highest number of public votes in each represented conference will earn a $250 donation to their school.
The 2014 campaign marks the third year of the Naismith Student Section of the Year Award. The University of Kansas won the inaugural award in 2012, while Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) took home top honors in 2013.
Participating schools include:
Abilene Christian Kansas State San Jose State
Air Force Kennesaw State Santa Clara
Alabama Kent State Savannah State
Alabama A&M Kentucky Seattle
Alcorn State La Salle Siena
Arizona Lamar SIU Edwardsville
Arizona State Lehigh SMU
Arkansas Liberty South Alabama
Arkansas State Lipscomb South Carolina
Army Long Beach State South Carolina State
Auburn Longwood South Carolina Upstate
Ball State Louisiana at Lafayette South Dakota State
Baylor Louisiana Tech South Florida
Belmont Louisville Southeastern
Bethune-Cookman Loyola Chicago Southern
Binghamton Loyola Maryland Southern Illinois
Boise State Loyola Marymount Southern Miss
Boston College LSU Southern Utah
Boston University Maine Stephen F. Austin
Bowling Green Manhattan Stetson
Bradley Marist Stony Brook
Bryant Marshall Syracuse
Bucknell Maryland TCU
Butler Massachusetts Temple
BYU McNeese State Tennessee
Cal Memphis Tennessee State
Cal Poly Mercer Tennessee Tech
Cal State Bakersfield Miami (FL) Texas
Cal State Fullerton Miami (OH) Texas A&M
Cal State Northridge Michigan Texas A&M - Corpus Christi
Canisius Middle Tennessee State Texas Southern
Central Michigan Minnesota Texas State
Charlotte Mississippi State Toledo
Chattanooga Mississippi Valley Towson
Cincinnati Missouri Troy
Citadel (The) Missouri State Tulane
Clemson Monmouth Tulsa
Cleveland State Montana UAB
Colorado Montana State UALR
Colorado State Mount St. Mary's UAPB
Columbia Murray State UC Davis
Coppin State Nebraska UC Irvine
Creighton Nevada UC Santa Barbara
Davidson New Hampshire UCF
Delaware New Mexico UCLA
Denver New Mexico State UConn
Detroit Niagara UIW
Drexel North Dakota ULM
Duquesne North Dakota State UMass Lowell
East Carolina North Texas UMBC
East Tennessee State Northern Arizona UMES
Eastern Illinois Northern Colorado UMKC
Eastern Kentucky Northern Iowa UNC Asheville
Eastern Michigan Northern Kentucky UNCG
Fairfield Northwestern UT Arlington
Fairleigh Dickinson Oakland Utah
Florida A&M Ohio Utah State
Florida Atlantic Oklahoma Utah Valley
Florida Gulf Coast Oklahoma State UTEP
Florida International Old Dominion UT Martin
Fordham Ole Miss UTPA
Fresno State Omaha UTSA
Furman Oregon Valparaiso
Georgetown Oregon State Vanderbilt
Georgia State Pacific VCU
Georgia Tech Penn Vermont
Gonzaga Penn State Villanova
Grambling Pittsburgh Virginia
Grand Canyon Portland State Virginia Tech
Green Bay Prairie View A&M Wagner
Hartford Providence Wake Forest
Hawaii Purdue Washington State
Holy Cross Quinnipiac Weber State
Idaho Rhode Island West Virginia
Idaho State Rice Western Carolina
Illinois Richmond Western Michigan
Illinois State Rider Wichita State
Indiana Sacramento State William & Mary
Iowa Saint Joseph's Wisconsin
Iowa State Saint Louis WKU
IPFW Saint Mary's (CA) Wofford
Jackson State Sam Houston State Wright State
Jacksonville Samford Xavier
Jacksonville State San Diego State Youngstown State
Kansas San Francisco
About the Collegiate Licensing Company
CLC is a division of global sports and entertainment company IMG. Founded in 1981, CLC is the oldest and largest collegiate trademark licensing agency in the U.S. and currently represents nearly 200 colleges, universities, bowl games, athletic conferences, The Heisman Trophy and the NCAA. The mission of CLC is to be the guiding force in collegiate trademark licensing and one of the top sports licensing firms in the country. CLC is dedicated to being a center of excellence in providing licensing services of the highest quality to its member institutions, licensees, retailers and consumers. Headquartered in Atlanta, CLC is a full-service licensing representative, which employs a staff of more than 90 licensing professionals who provide full-service capabilities in brand protection, brand management, and brand development. For more information on CLC, visit: CLC.com or IMGCollege.com.
About The Atlanta Tipoff Club
The Atlanta Tipoff Club, an Atlanta Sports Council property, is committed to promoting the game of basketball and recognizing the outstanding accomplishments of those who make the game so exciting. The Atlanta Tipoff Club, founded during the 1956-57 season, has presented the Naismith Trophy every year since UCLA's Lew Alcindor first won the award in 1969. Old Dominion's Anne Donovan won the inaugural Women's Naismith Trophy in 1983.
The Naismith Award has become the most prestigious award in all of college basketball, recognizing the Men's and Women's College Basketball Player of the Year, Men's and Women's College Basketball Coach of the Year, as well as awards for outstanding achievement in high school basketball, officiating, and contribution to the game.
SOURCE Collegiate Licensing Company
