FLORENCE, Ala. (January 30, 2026) – The University of North Alabama Lions Athletic Club — the official booster club of UNA Athletics — announced Pro Football Hall of Famer
Ozzie Newsome as the keynote speaker for the 2026 Lion Pride Dinner and Auction.
The event will be held at the Renaissance Shoals Conference Center on Tuesday, May 19 beginning at 5 p.m. The event includes various speakers representing UNA, a press conference at 4:30 p.m., a silent auction and a keynote address from Newsome followed by a Q&A session. The UNA Foundation will be the presenting sponsor for the event.
"I look at this chance to come home to the Shoals as a real opportunity to touch base with a community I love and was so much a part of," said Newsome. "To be the keynote speaker for a UNA function like this is a real thrill and honor."
Sponsorship and meet and greet packages for the event are available immediately. Tables of eight are on sale for $1,240 each. Individual tickets are also on sale now.
To register,
click here.
For more information, contact
Megan Dye at (256) 765-4615 or at smlovelace@una.edu.
This will be the sixth consecutive year of the event at Renaissance Shoals Conference Center. Past keynote speakers include Pete Rose in 2021, Bill Walton in 2022, Archie Manning in 2023, Steve Spurrier in 2024 and Dale Murphy in 2025.
"The UNA Lions Athletic Club didn't have to look far to find an accomplished keynote speaker this year," said Lions Athletic Club Vice President Dan Penny. "Our very own Ozzie Newsome is one of the most accomplished individuals who ever donned an NFL uniform. His accomplishments on the field at Alabama and the Cleveland Browns led him to managerial success with the Baltimore group. His direction and leadership have proven his success. The LAC is honored to have him on board this year. "
ABOUT OZZIE NEWSOME
Executive Vice President — Baltimore Ravens
College: Alabama
Born: March 1956 in Muscle Shoals, Ala.
Experience (NFL/Ravens): 48/30 — 13 as a player and 35 in the front office
Ozzie Newsome's legacy is unlike any the game of football has produced. Simply put, "The
Wizard" will forever remain in a class of his own.
Flourishing at every point of his football career, Newsome has not just followed a successful
path, he has blazed the trail. Known throughout all of sports as a premier leader, Newsome
is a Hall of Fame player, the architect of Baltimore's Super Bowl XXXV and Super Bowl XLVII
championship teams and an elite personnel evaluator who became the NFL's first African
American general manager in 2002.
(In 2019, Newsome's longtime top lieutenant, Eric DeCosta, took over as the Ravens' EVP &
GM. However, Newsome maintains a significant role within the organization as its executive
vice president.)
"If Ozzie wasn't already in the Hall of Fame as a tight end, they would be putting him in as a
general manager," Hall of Fame GM Bill Polian stated.
"Ozzie is special as a person," former head coach John Harbaugh said. "Obviously, he's great at
what he does – that's proven. He's been great at everything that he's done. If you look at his
history, he's a Hall of Famer; he's in every Hall of Fame there is and still counting. For me, it
goes beyond that; it goes to who he is as a person – the type of husband he is, the type of
father he is, the type of friend he is, confidant, advisor, just all-around good person with a
great heart and a strong faith."
Newsome's remarkable football journey began in Leighton, AL, where he first stepped onto
the gridiron with the hope of playing college football. That dream turned into a reality when
he became a standout at Alabama under Bear Bryant from 1974-77. "Coach Bryant helped
me grow up," states Newsome, who has a sideline portrait of the legendary coach and
mentor on his office wall. "He pushed me further than I thought I could go, both on and off
the field."
In 1978, Cleveland selected Newsome in the first round (23rd overall) of the NFL Draft.
Playing 13 years for the Browns, he authored the most productive career for a tight end in
the game's history. A three-time Pro Bowler, his 662 receptions for 7,980 yards and 47 TDs
stood as NFL records by a TE until Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe surpassed those marks in
2001 (HOFer Tony Gonzalez now owns the catches and receiving yards marks, while Antonio
Gates holds the TDs record).
Following his storied playing days, Ozzie joined Cleveland's front office. His initial non-player
position came as an assignment scout in 1991. Two years later, he was promoted to
a comprehensive role – assistant to the head coach/offense/pro personnel. "I had to find
out which direction my career would go," Newsome explains. "Art [Modell] gave me the
opportunity to work with the coaches, and I enjoyed that. At the same time, I increased my
experience with the personnel department and decided that's where I wanted my career to
head."
In 1994, Newsome was named the Browns' director of pro personnel. Although he continued
to help on the field, Ozzie provided detailed studies on other NFL players and recommended
which players the Browns should try to acquire. When the franchise moved to Baltimore in
1996, Mr. Modell invited Newsome and promoted him to vice president of player personnel.
From that point, Ozzie's reputation as a supreme talent assessor grew quickly.
In the Ravens' first-ever draft, Newsome tabbed T Jonathan Ogden and LB Ray Lewis (fourth
and 26th selections, respectively). Combining to produce an amazing 24 Pro Bowl honors,
Ogden became the first Ravens' draft choice elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
(2013), while Lewis was enshrined in 2018. Fittingly, the duo joined Newsome, who was
inducted into the Hall as a Brown in 1999.
Another top Newsome draft pick, S Ed Reed (2002), received a gold jacket in 2019, giving the
Ravens three first-ballot Hall of Famers – all selected by "The Wizard."
In the Ravens' brief history with Newsome at the helm, he drafted 25 players who earned Pro
Bowl honors in Baltimore. When including 2006 Pro Bowl LB Bart Scott, Pro Bowl K Justin
Tucker (2013, 2016 & 2019-23), Pro Bowl LS Morgan Cox (2015-16 & 2019-20) and Pro Bowl
FB Patrick Ricard (2019-22, 2024), who signed as rookie free agents in 2002, 2012, 2010 and
2017, respectively, Baltimore produced 29 homegrown Pro Bowlers under Newsome's
leadership.
NFL PLAYER: 1978-90: (with Cleveland) Newsome retired after 13 years as a premier NFL
tight end…Entering 2025, his 662 receptions (ninth) and 7,980 receiving yards (10th) are
among the most all time by a TE (each mark also stands as the most ever by any player in
Browns history)…Newsome also caught 47 career TD passes, fourth most in Browns
annals…Ended his career as the fourth-leading NFL receiver of all time…Earned three Pro
Bowls (1981, 1984-85) and was a four-time winner of the Cleveland Touchdown Club's
Offensive Player of the Year award (1978, 1981 and 1983-84)…His streak of 150-consecutive
games played with a catch by a TE is the second longest in NFL history (Tony Gonzalez,
211)…Winner of the 1990 Byron "Whizzer" White Award as the NFL's top community
volunteer…Newsome, who was named to the All-NFL team of the 1980's (second team),
consistently received All-AFC and All-NFL honors throughout his career…He was a 1978 No.
1 draft choice (23rd overall), along with LB Clay Matthews (12th), and the two are among an
elite group of Browns to play for three decades…The others are Gene Hickerson (1958-60,
62-73), Dick Schafrath (1959-71) and Don Cockroft (1968-80)…Until former Ravens TE
Shannon Sharpe broke his records in 2001, Newsome's pro career was the most productive
of any TE in NFL history…Was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999…Calvin
Hill (Dal., Was. & Cle.), a close friend, introduced Newsome at the ceremony.
COLLEGE: Newsome graduated from Alabama with a degree in recreation
administration…During his four-year career with the Crimson Tide, he posted 102 receptions
for 2,070 yards and 16 TDs…Newsome also helped Alabama capture three SEC
Championships…As a senior in 1977, he was named team captain and the Southeastern
Conference's Lineman of the Year…Newsome also earned All-American honors at WR…He
was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame (South Bend, IN) in 1994.
PERSONAL: Attended Colbert County (Leighton, AL) HS…Winner of the 1990 Byron
"Whizzer" White Award as the NFL's top community volunteer, he is widely known for his
willingness to help those in need…In 2021, in partnership with the Black College Football
Hall of Fame, the NFL created the annual Ozzie Newsome General Manager Forum...Also in
2021, Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti and his wife, Renee, honored Newsome by making a $4
million gift in his name to Maryland's four Historically Black Colleges and Universities
(HBCUs)…Through The Stephen and Renee Bisciotti Foundation, the $4 million donation
created the Ozzie Newsome Scholars Program, which funds scholarships for Baltimore City
Public Schools graduates who attend an HBCU in Maryland...In 2017. Newsome has gained
induction into nine Halls of Fame: Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, OH (1999), National
Football Foundation College Hall of Fame (1994), NCAA Hall of Fame (1994), State of
Alabama Hall of Fame (1995), National High School Hall of Fame (2014), National Federation
of State High School Associations Hall of Fame (2014), Colbert County High School
(Leighton, AL) Hometown Hall of Fame (2012), Little League Baseball Hall of Fame (2008)
and The Baltimore Sun Business and Civic Hall of Fame (2020)…An avid golfer, Ozzie's
dream foursome would include Bear Bryant, Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan and
himself…Newsome and his wife, Gloria, live in Cockeysville, MD…Their son, Michael Ryan,
graduated from Alabama.
NOTE: Biography courtesy of Ozzie Newsome and the Baltimore Ravens
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
