Troy announces annual Lunch with Legends T-Day Panel
Published 10:15 am Friday, March 22, 2024
- Lunch with Legends this year will feature Rick Rhoades, Mike Turk, Willie Tullis, Lawrence Tynes and Jordan Chunn.
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In the past few years, there have been few T-Day activities that have garnered as much fan interest as the annual Lunch with Legends Panel and on Thursday, Troy University announced the 2024 panel, which will include champions and former NFL stars.
Lunch with Legends will take place from 11 am. until 12:30 p.m. on April 27 at a cost of $30 per person with lunch, drinks and admission to the legends panel included. This year’s panel will include former Troy coach Rick Rhoades and legendary Trojan players Mike Turk, Lawrence Tynes, Willie Tullis and Jordan Chunn.
Rhoades was recently inducted into the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Hall of Fame and is also a Troy University Sports Hall of Famer. Rhoades was the head coach of Troy’s 1987 Division II National Championship team and was also the defensive coordinator for the 1984 National Champion Trojans. His Troy squads went 28-7-1 during his tenure with the program with two conference championships and two Conference Coach of the Year Awards.
Rhodes – who spent more than a decade as a head coach at the high school level in Alabama – went on to coach at various other stops in college football including Alabama, Kentucky, Nicholls State and more. He also coached professionally for the Birmingham Thunderbolts of the XFL and overseas.
Turk, another Troy Hall of Famer, is considered to be one of the greatest Troy players in school history helping lead Troy to both the 1984 and 1987 National Championships. He left Troy second all-time in rushing and won numerous awards, including the Gulf South Freshman of the Year, All-Gulf South, Gulf South Offensive Player of the Year twice, Small College Player of the Year and ASWA Athlete of the Year. He went on to coach at Troy as an assistant for more than 10 years and has been the head coach at Huntingdon College since 2004.
Tynes is known as one of the most recognizable – and decorated – kickers in Troy history, at both the collegiate and NFL level. The Troy Sports Hall of Famer left school as the leader in single-season and career field goals and PATs. He went on to play for more than 10 years in the NFL, winning two Super Bowl rings with the New York Giants. He held a career 81.5 percent field goal percentage during his NFL career.
Tullis is also a Troy Sports Hall of Famer that played nearly a decade in the NFL. While Tullis became known in the NFL as a stellar defensive back, in college he was Troy’s first ever All-American quarterback. After throwing for more than 3,400 yards during his Troy career, Tullis was selected in the eighth round of the 1981 NFL Draft by the Houston Oilers.
Tullis was initially drafted as a kick returner and as a rookie, tallied more than 700 yards and one touchdown as a kickoff returner. He, however, found a role with the Oiler defense as a cornerback and started 31 of 32 possible games during his Oiler career, intercepting nine passes in 1983 and 1984. Tullis went on to play for the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts in later years and ended his career with 18 interceptions.
Chunn is Troy’s all-time leader in rushing touchdowns and still ranks third in school history in career rushing yards. He was one of the school’s most decorated running backs, winning Freshman All-American honors and twice being selected to the All-Sun Belt team. After his Troy career finished, Chunn played for the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL for two years. He also played for the Birmingham Stallions of the USFL in 2022.
Along with a lunch being served, fans will have a chance to get autographs from the Troy legends and ask them questions during the panel. Lunch with Legends will take place in the Stadium Club at Veterans Memorial Stadium. Tickets for the event can be purchased online, at TroyTrojans.com/LunchWithLegends.