FLOWOOD, Miss.- The 22nd Annual Southwestern Athletic Conference Legends Awards and Roast will be held at the Sheraton Refuge Hotel and Conference Center on Saturday, May 17, 2025 in Flowood, Miss. The hotel is just minutes from the Jackson-Medgar Evers International Airport. The event is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Six former stars with ties to SWAC institutions will be honored, including three with the Roscoe Nance Lifetime Achievement Award – L.C. Greenwood (posthumously), Robert Brazile and Alvin Moore.

Greenwood, a native of Canton, Miss., played defensive end for the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. He went on to NFL superstardom as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ famous “Steel Curtain” defense in the 1970s.

Brazile, an outstanding linebacker for Jackson State University, was one of two JSU first round draft picks in the NFL’s 1975 draft. The other was running back Walter Payton.  Payton was selected fourth by the Chicago Bears, and Brazile was selected sixth by the Houston Oilers.  Both are Hall of Famers.

Moore was an extraordinary offensive lineman for the Alcorn State University Braves from 1968-70. During that span, the Braves won two outright SWAC championships and tied for the league title once.

Wilbert Ellis, a former Grambling State University baseball coach, will receive the Dennis E. Thomas Distinguished Service Award, the highest honor bestowed upon an individual by the SWAC Alumni Association. In 26 seasons as the Tigers head baseball coach, Ellis compiled a 737-413-1 record while winning three SWAC championships.

Eddie James, Jackson State University’s longtime press box announcer for home football games, will receive the Charles “Chuck” Prophet Wagon Master Award. James is also an accomplished track and field announcer who served as announcer for several SWAC track and field championships through the years.
 
The highlight of the evening will be the Legends Roast, where Patricia Cage-Bibbs will be the Roast Guest of Honor. Bibbs was a very successful women’s basketball coach at Grambling, Hampton University and North Carolina A&T State University, amassing more than 500 wins during her illustrious career.

Tickets for the event are $75 each and can be purchased by contacting Alvin Moore at amprint1949@aol.com or by telephone at (205) 222-1044.

The Association’s Legends Awards and Roast annually honors former student-athletes as well as former or current coaches, athletics administrators or staff members who have had positive impacts on the historic conference.

Proceeds from the Legends Awards and Roast benefit the SWAC Alumni Association’s Degree Completion Scholarship Fund, which provides financial support to student-athletes in the conference whose eligibility has expired and who are within 30 hours of graduating.

About the SWAC
The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is considered one of the premier HBCU conferences in the country and currently ranks among the elite in the nation in terms of HBCU alumni playing with professional sports teams.
 
Current championship competition offered by the league includes competition for men in Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field and Tennis.

Women’s competition is offered in the sports of Basketball, Bowling, Cross Country, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field, Soccer, Softball, Tennis and Volleyball.
 
Follow the SWAC
For complete coverage of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, please follow the SWAC on social media at @TheSWAC (Twitter), @TheSWAC (Facebook), and @TheSWAC (Instagram) or visit the official home of the Southwestern Athletic Conference at www.swac.org.