Sixty media representatives from across Mississippi determine the Trophy recipient. All players at Mississippi's four-year college football programs are eligible on the first ballot. Previously, the top three vote-getters were listed on a second and final ballot, but starting with the 2011 award, each of the four-year colleges and universities in Mississippi that field football teams are represented by one finalist.[2] In 2013, fans were allowed to vote on the award for the first time. Fan voting accounted for 10 percent of the total vote.[3]
Voters are instructed to evaluate a player's entire regular season performance and ignore post-season honors or professional potential.
The trophy
The Conerly Trophy is a bronze casting, 19" high x 11" long x 7.5" wide, weighing 18.5 lbs. (8.4 kg).[4] The trophy was sculpted by Bruce Holmes Brady, a Brookhaven, Mississippi native and graduate of the
University of Mississippi.[5] The original trophy is on permanent display at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. A replica of the trophy is presented to the winner each year at the announcement dinner.[4]
Starting in 2013, the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame began awarding a second award, the
Kent Hull Trophy, for the best college
offensive lineman in Mississippi.[45]
Howell Trophy - award given annually to the best men's college basketball player in the state of Mississippi by the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame.
Gillom Trophy - award given annually to the best women's college basketball player in the state of Mississippi by the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame.
C Spire Ferriss Trophy - award given annually to the best men's college baseball player in the state of Mississippi by the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame.
^Talbott, Chris (2009-11-30).
"Dixon wins Conerly Trophy". SDNMSU.Wordpress.com. The Starkville Daily News Bulldog Blog. Archived from
the original on 2015-12-22.