Contact: Sammy McDavid
Roy H. Ruby (l) and Jack Cristil
Two of Mississippi State's best-known figures will be honored Dec. 13 as part of the university's 2002 fall graduation program.
The more than 1,400 degree candidates will share the 10 a.m. celebration in Humphrey Coliseum with storied football and basketball broadcaster Jack Cristil of Tupelo and veteran MSU administrator Roy H. Ruby.
Cristil, recently recognized for his 50 years of service as "The Voice of the Bulldogs," is receiving an honorary doctoral degree. Ruby, vice president for student affairs since 1985 who now is concluding his MSU career as dean of education, is the commencement speaker.
Approved for the special recognition by the Board of Trustees, State Institutions of Higher Learning at its Nov. 21 meeting, Cristil--who turns 77 on Dec. 10--becomes the eighth person to receive an honorary doctorate since MSU began bestowing the high tribute in 1999.
A Memphis, Tenn., native, Cristil studied broadcast journalism at the University of Minnesota in the mid-1940s before returning home to begin work as a minor league baseball announcer for several mid-South teams. After hearing of a job opening in August 1953, he sent audition tapes to legendary athletic director C.R. "Dudy" Noble, who hired him a short time later for that season's football games.
"Jack Cristil has been telling an important part of the Mississippi State story for the past half century," said Interim President Charles Lee. "In the process, he has become an important part of a major segment of the university's 124-year history."
Cristil's numerous accolades over the years include a record 21 separate selections as Mississippi Sportscaster of the Year and the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame's only non-coach/non-athlete inductee. He also has received the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association's Ronald Reagan Lifetime Achievement Award and the National Football Foundation's Chris Schenkel Award for excellence in college broadcasting.
"That unmistakable voice on the radio is as familiar and as comforting to multitudes of Bulldog fans as that of a dear friend," Lee said. "It gives one pause to reflect on all of the history that Jack has witnessed, but that escalates into amazement when we stop to consider that he has been much more than a passive observer.
"Jack Cristil has, in fact, been the best in the business during five tumultuous decades," Lee added.
Lee also expressed high praise for Ruby, a university alumnus who returned to work at his alma mater in 1964 and went on to hold a variety of leadership positions in the Division of Student Affairs.
"Countless university students, faculty, staff, and friends have had the opportunity to appreciate Dr. Ruby's tremendous interpersonal and administrative skills in one or more of the many offices he has held at Mississippi State," Lee said. "Beginning in 1964 as program director for the Colvard Union, he progressed to coordinator of student activities, assistant dean of men, associate dean for student development, assistant to the vice president for student affairs, and dean of student administrative services, among others.
"Let us not forget, that he also directed the MSU branch campus in Jackson for several years," Lee continued. "When this latest duty as dean of education is added to the list, I think we all can agree that Roy has had a most impressive career at Mississippi State."
Ruby, a Yazoo City native who was raised in Belzoni, holds bachelor's and master's degrees in political science from MSU and a doctorate in higher education and student personnel from the University of Mississippi.
Ruby is a retired officer in the United States Army Reserves and a former president of the board of trustees of the Starkville Public Schools.
Like Cristil, he has been honored by the National Football Foundation; in his case, the Contribution to Amateur Football Award. He also has been recognized as an alumnus of the year by MSU's Army ROTC program.
Ruby holds membership in Phi Kappa Phi, Omicron Delta Kappa, Phi Alpha Theta, Pi Delta Epsilon, Phi Delta Kappa, and Golden Key honor societies.