Indiana University Athletics
Hoeppner to Join Roethlisberger at ESPY Awards
7/12/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
July 12, 2005
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana head football coach Terry Hoeppner will accompany his former Miami (Ohio) quarterback and current Pittsburgh Steeler star Ben Roethlisberger to the 2005 ESPY Awards on July 13 at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, Calif. The ESPY Awards, presented this year by GMC and Under Armour, annually gather top celebrities from sports and entertainment to commemorate the past year in sports by recognizing major sports achievements, reliving unforgettable moments and saluting the leading performers and performances.
The ESPYs will take place on July 13, but ESPN will air the show on Sunday, July 17 at 9 p.m. EDT.
Roethlisberger, a three-year starter at Miami who closed his career by becoming the eighth All-American selection in school history, led the RedHawks to a 10-1 mark in 2003, capped by the Mid-American Conference and GMAC Bowl titles and a No. 10 final ranking in the Associated Press poll. The No. 11 overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft, Roethlisberger completed 66.4 percent of his passes for 2,621 yards and 17 touchdowns en route to NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year laurels and the Steelers' AFC North crown, The NFL Rookie record holder with 13 victories, Roethlisberger joins IRL driver Danica Patrick, tennis star Maria Sharapova and Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade for the ESPY's Breakthrough Award.
Hoeppner, who presented Roethlisberger at the Dapper Dan Sportsman of the Year Banquet last April in Pittsburgh, could not be happier for his former signal caller.
"Ben and I always had a special coach-player relationship, and I am pleased to see that relationship carry beyond his playing days for me," Hoeppner said. "I am certainly proud of his accomplishments on the field, but even those accomplishments take a back seat to the great way he approaches the game and how he handles things on and off the field. He's a class act."
That admiration is mutual.
"I can't say enough about Coach Hoeppner. He is an inspiration, a second father to me. I love him to death," Roethlisberger said after Hoeppner's hiring at Indiana on Dec. 17, 2004. "I told him that I will always support him, because he has always supported me. He's a wise man who made a wise decision. Going home (to Indiana) has got to be a good feeling. Indiana's players are getting a great coach and a great mentor. He's touched so many lives in so many ways. He's going to do great things at IU. The players are going to love him. He's a player's coach."
