2008 FOOTBALL FORUM OPENSDISCUSSION ON GAME'S KEY ISSUES

DALLAS (FWAA) For two days, some of the top coaches in college football · Ohio State's Jim Tressel, Kansas' Mark Mangino, Washington' s Tyrone Willingham and TCU's Gary Patterson · joined athletic directors Kevin Anderson of Army and Kevin White of Notre Dame along with Florida State president Dr. T.K. Wetherell and Big 12 Conference commissioner Dan Beebe to discuss pertinent topics involving college football. Approximately 30 different media and various other college football officials from schools, bowls, conferences, award groups and associations were also in attendance.


The transcripts of four different sessions conducted over the two days are available here.


The FWAA believes the 2008 Football Forum, the first to be conducted in the sport in many, many years, will be the springboard to a series of discussions among the media, coaches, presidents, athletic directors, bowl and award representatives, sports information directors and other college football officials. The health of the game is a concern to all those associated with it as well as how the media inter-reacts with those it covers.


During the off-season is a time to regroup and take measure of where the sport is going, how others view the recent changes that have occurred in college football, and what it all means. The NFF and its sponsors have provided this forum at DFW Airport in a convenient in-and-out spot at the Grand Hyatt. The FWAA salutes those who have helped put this event together and believes it will be a frequent staple of the college football scene.


The Football Writers Association of America, a non-profit organization founded in 1941, consists of more than 900 men and women across North America who cover college football for a living. The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas that include gameday operations, major awards, a national poll and its annual All-America team.


For more information on the Football Forum, contact FWAA executive director Steve Richardson (972-713-6198 or tiger@fwaa.com).