Ralph Zobell honored with CoSIDA Lifetime Achievement Award

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Longtime BYU media relations director Ralph Zobell was honored Thursday in Washington DC with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Zobell, who is retiring from BYU at the end of this week after a 41-year career, was one of six CoSIDA members to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award during the 2018 CoSIDA Hall of Fame Luncheon at the Gaylord Resort and Conference Center.

“It’s nice to be honored,” Zobell said. “There are many people that contribute to it and many lessons you learn along the way. It’s been a great profession. I didn’t know it would end like this, but it’s been a pleasure and I’m very grateful.”

Hosted by ESPN’s Maria Taylor, Thursday’s awards banquet recognized 2018 CoSIDA Hall of Fame inductees and special awards recipients during the association’s annual national convention. During the luncheon, the late BYU women's sports information director Ellen Larsen was honored with a moment of silence. 

Veteran CBS Sports broadcaster Jim Nantz followed Zobell onto the stage Thursday to receive the Jake Wade Award, which is presented annually to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution in the media to the field of intercollegiate athletics.  Nantz and Zobell first got to know each other when Nantz worked at KSL television early in his broadcast career.

Over Zobell’s 41-year career with BYU Athletics, the Cheyenne, Wyoming, native worked 1,065 baseball games, 242 football games and 320 basketball games for the Cougars. Zobell was instrumental in the promotion of hundreds of student-athletes for All-America and major national awards like the John Wooden Award, won by Danny Ainge in 1981, and 16 major national football awards including the Heisman Trophy, won by Ty Detmer in 1990.

Zobell was president of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) in 1990, and received the organization’s 42nd Wilbur Snypp Award at last year’s College World Series for his outstanding contributions to college baseball.

Read more about Zobell and his award-winning career