Lance Barrow, a 10-time Emmy award-winning producer, 1977 graduate and Abilene Christian University Board of Trustees member, has been selected as the 2008 Outstanding Alumnus of the Year by the ACU Alumni Association. This award recognizes lifetime achievement that brings honor to ACU through personal and professional excellence and service to the university, church or community.
"Lance epitomizes the Outstanding Alumnus of the Year," said Dr. Jeff Duncum, past president of the Alumni Advisory Board and friend of Barrow. "He has been very active in his church, has maintained great involvement at ACU, and has become a pillar in the world of televised sports."
Barrow currently serves as the coordinating producer of the NFL and lead game producer for CBS Sports. Barrow joined the CBS Sports family in 1982, when he was hired as a broadcast associate. Three years later, he was promoted to associate producer and then to producer in 1994. Since then, Barrow has served in virtually every capacity of CBS Sports' golf production. In 2001 and 2004, Barrow was the replay director for CBS Sports' coverage of Super Bowl XXXV and Super Bowl XXXVIII. In 2007, he worked as coordinating producer and lead producer during CBS Sports' Super Bowl XLI broadcast.
In addition to his accomplishments in producing football and golf, Barrow has earned Emmy Awards for producing the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship, the Daytona 500 and various NFL games. Barrow has also produced events such as the 1994 Winter Olympics and numerous golf tournaments, including the Masters.
Barrow's love for Abilene Christian is apparent not only to the university, but to worldwide audiences. He has been known to brag on ACU whenever he has the chance, both on and off the air. In the 1980s, he once brought former NFL coach John Madden, to campus and offered him a taste of West Texas barbecue at Danny’s Bar-B-Q on the ACU hill.
"Lance’s reputation with his colleagues, sports announcers and athletes is unparalleled," Duncum said. "His pride in his university is apparent when you hear him or even other commentators mention Abilene Christian University with such fondness during broadcasts."
While at ACU, Barrow played football, baseball and served as the sports director at KACU-FM. During the summers, he served as a caddy at several PGA tournaments and occasionally worked as a spotter during ABC broadcasts. He had the opportunity to work as an assistant for Pat Summerall, then CBS’s top golf and football play-by-play announcer.
Barrow has remained connected to his alma mater, and he currently serves on the ACU Board of Trustees. Barrow has received many awards through the years. In 1994, Barrow received a Gutenberg Award from ACU’s Department of Journalism and Mass Communication, he was awarded the Young Alumnus of the Year Award in 1995, and recently had a room in Teague Special Events Center named after him.
"For more than 25 years, Lance Barrow has helped bring the world of professional football, golf and auto racing into millions of homes across America and throughout the world,” ACU director of athletics Jared Mosley said. "The work he has done and the honors he has earned for that work speak volumes about his ability, his professionalism and his love for his craft."
"Lance has also been a very generous donor and supporter of ACU athletics, and we’re proud of our association with him and his family," Mosley said. "We're proud of Lance and glad we can call him one of our own."
Barrow and his wife, Melissa, have two daughters, Katie, a senior at ACU and Caroline, a high school senior. Originally from Fort Worth, the Barrows now reside in the Dallas area.
Lance Barrow will be honored at The Alumni Day Luncheon, Feb. 22, in the Gary and Sylvia McCaleb Conference Center in ACU’s Hunter Welcome Center. Tickets are available for $20 each or $200 for a table of eight. For more information or to purchase tickets call 800-373-4220 or go online.
If you are a member of the media who would like more information about this release, please contact ACU's Public Relations Office or call (325) 674-2696.
