Former Bulldog, ‘96 Olympic CEO Payne honored

Billy Payne, a former Georgia football player and CEO of the 1996 Olympic Games, was named today as recipient of the Distinguished American Award presented by the National Football Foundation (NFF).

Payne, current Augusta National Golf Club chairman, will receive the award at the NFF awards dinner on Dec. 8 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City.

The award is presented to someone who has applied the character building attributes learned from amateur football in his business and personal life.

Payne becomes the 38th recipient of the award. Previous winners include Vince Lombardi, Bob Hope, Jimmy Stewart, Pete Rozelle and Pat Tillman.

A 1969 graduate of UGA, Payne lettered three years for the Bulldogs at receiver and defensive end. He led the team in receptions his sophomore season before moving to defensive end where he became an All-SEC and All-America performer. He played on two SEC championship teams.