TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — The Capital City Classic basketball tournament is underway at Tallahassee State College, and it's helping several local students attend universities.
- The Capital City Classic uses high school basketball as a vehicle to raise scholarship funds for local students' college education.
- The 35-year-old showcase has consistently supported Big Bend students, awarding 14 scholarships last year.
- Watch the video below to hear from the Chairman of the Capital City Classic and former congressman Al Lawson.
Capital City Classic tips off at TSC, raising scholarship money for Big Bend students
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Holiday Hoops is a tradition for basketball players around the country, including right here in the Big Bend.
I’m Justin White, your college town neighborhood reporter at Tallahassee State College, where the Capital City Classic tipped off Friday.
"I started it 35 years ago. And first, I was doing college, and then I decided the best thing to do was to switch it over to high school," said Al Lawson, the chairman of the Capital City Classic and a former congressman.
Inside the Eaglesdome at TSC, the Capital City Classic brings schools from the Big Bend to come participate in a high school basketball showcase, but this showcase isn't just about basketball.
Lawson told me it's about raising scholarship money for graduating seniors in our community to continue on to higher education.
“Proceeds that we raise from the tournament, graduated seniors get a chance to get a scholarship to go to FSU, FAMU, Tallahassee State College. And we have them at the University of Florida and University of South Florida, they're all over, so it’s a great thing to help them out to be able to go to school," Lawson said.
And just last year,
“We were able to give 14 college scholarships, you know, and that means a great deal,” Lawson added.
And Assistant varsity coach Michael Chukes at Robert F Munroe told me what this classic meant.
"This is an awesome opportunity. It's been around for years. Even when I played basketball at Havana Northside High School, we always came to the Capital City Classic, and also they give out a scholarship at the end, which is very, very phenomenal," said Michael Chuase.
The classic will wrap up day one, with a Friday night matchup between Rickards and Treasure Coast and will pick back up Saturday morning at 11 am with Godby taking on Treasure Coast.
From Tallahassee State College, I’m Justin White, ABC 27.
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