MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

2000 Regular Session

To: Rules

By: Senator(s) Dearing

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING AND CONGRATULATING TONY BYRNE OF NATCHEZ, MISSISSIPPI, FOR HIS OUTSTANDING ATHLETIC RECOGNITION IN BEING VOTED MISS-LOU ATHLETE OF THE CENTURY.

WHEREAS, Tony Byrne, who was elected Mayor of Natchez, Mississippi, in 1968 and held that office until 1988, made football fields, basketball courts and football fields around Mississippi his own playground, setting state records in baseball and basketball at Natchez High School; and

WHEREAS, because of his accomplishments in the 1950's, Mayor Byrne was voted Miss-Lou Athlete of the Century by popular vote of the readers of the Natchez Democrat; and

WHEREAS, Tony Byrne was grace personified on the hardwood, as well as the gridiron, which is why he was All Big Eight in both sports while royally entertaining crowds playing both sports at Natchez High School; and

WHEREAS, Byrne is the only person to win a scoring title in football and basketball in the former Big Eight Conference, which was comprised of all of the big schools in Mississippi: in 1953, Byrne tallied 192 points in football, scoring a record 32 touchdowns as a senior, and in 1954, as a basketball senior he led Natchez to its second straight league championship, scoring a record 716 points; and

WHEREAS, when Tony set the new Big Eight Conference standard for single-season touchdowns in 1953, he rushed for 781 yards on touchdown runs alone (that's 24.4 yards per touchdown); he scored 4 touchdowns in 6 different games; he had 16 scoring runs of 20 yards or more; he had 11 scoring runs of 30 yards or more; he averaged 180 yards per game; on the season he had 1802 yards in 10 games (that was 1170 yards rushing on 130 runs for a 9-yard average); obviously the 1953 football season was very special and exciting for Natchez High School fans; and

WHEREAS, Tony Byrne's basketball exploits are also legendary; he set a new Big Eight Conference single-game scoring standard of 42 points and set a season scoring record of 716 points in a championship basketball season; and

WHEREAS, Tony plays excellent tennis in his retirement years, and says he appreciates more now the accomplishments he and his teammates achieved; and

WHEREAS, it is with great pride that we recognize this individual, whose intense athleticism and civic pride brought honor to his school, his community and to the State of Mississippi:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend and congratulate Tony Byrne of Natchez, Mississippi, for his outstanding athletic recognition in being voted Miss-Lou Athlete of the Century, and wish him success in all his future endeavors.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be presented to Mayor Tony Byrne and be made available to the Capitol Press Corps.