Jan. 26, 2009

ANNAPOLIS, Md.-Navy senior slot back Shun White (Memphis, Tenn.) will be honored tonight at the annual Philadelphia Sportswriters Dinner in Cherry Hill, N.J. for being named the Most Valuable Player of the Army-Navy football game. White rushed for 148 yards on 13 carries and scored two touchdowns in Navy's 34-0 rout of Army.

White rushed for 1,092 yards and eight touchdowns during the 2008 campagin, becoming the first slot back in school history to rush for more than 1,000 yards and the first Navy player to rush for more than 1,000 yards since Kyle Eckel in 2004. His 1,092 rushing yards are the 10th-most in school history for a single-season. He averaged 8.27 yards per carry on the year, which was the second-best yards per carry average in the country, while his 348-yards rushing against Towson ranked as the best rushing performance in school history and was the 17th-best rushing day in NCAA history.

White will be part of a star-studded dais that will include Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel (Team of the Year), Phillies closer Brad Lidge (Outstanding Pro Athlete), Eagles hard-hitting cornerback Sheldon Brown (Good Guy Award), former Flyers great Bernie Parent (Living Legend), former Penn State football player Adam Taliaferro, who made an inspirational recovery from a devastating spinal injury suffered in a game his freshman year (Humanitarian of the Year), Steve Sabol of NFL Films (Lifetime Achievement Award), former NBA player Cuttino Mobley (Native Son), and Hall of Fame broadcaster Harry Kalas, who will be the MC of the banquet.