GETTING THE VOTE OUT

Three football greats kick-off “Century in the Making” voting

By Steve Pate

January 18, 2010

Former Cowboys Charlie Waters and Rayfield Wright and the great Abner Haynes cast the Century In The Making’s first honorary ballots Monday afternoon in voting for “The 100 Greatest Moments in the History of North Texas Football.”

The trio joined Fort Worth’s leading duo, the Hon. Mayor Mike Moncrief and wife Rosie, and Ed Bass, chair of the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo, near the main entrance of the Amon G. Carter Exhibit Hall on Martin Luther King Day.

With Scott Murray serving as emcee and Bill Lively representing the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee, the team of celebrities answered a few questions, then cast the same ballots that the public will use in voting booths all over North Texas this season.

Physical ballots are being sponsored by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. American Airlines will also be sponsoring an online website for balloting in the near future.

Haynes, Waters and Wright made selections from the high school areas of the ballot of 250 memorable moments. Fan voting will run through this fall’s State Fair of Texas, and the Top 100 will be announced in order ahead of when Super Bowl XLV hits North Texas next February.

Bass said he was thrilled to have public balloting officially begin at the Stock Show because the annual affair will again be riding high a year from now during the very height of Super Bowl Week for Super Bowl XLV.

“The best thing about Texas,” Waters told the crowd huddled around them, “is the people that live in this state.”

And that’s why fans will be making the choices to select the top 100 moments. Fans are encouraged to vote as often as they wish.

Haynes integrated football in North Texas in his days at North Texas State. Then a half-century ago he led the Dallas Texans of the old American Football league to the area’s first pro championship. Waters and Wright were teammates on the great Cowboys teams of the 1970’s.