LSU will unveil a statue of the late Dr. Billy Cannon, the school's only Heisman Trophy winner, just outside Tiger Stadium on Sept. 28 — one night before the Tigers' Southeastern Conference matchup with Ole Miss.
The statue, which was made possible through donations to the Tiger Athletic Foundation, will commemorate the accomplishments of the most heralded football player in school history.
It was unanimously approved by the LSU Athletic Hall of Fame Committee in August 2017.
For nearly 60 years, Heisman Trophy winner Billy Cannon has been the standard by which all other LSU football players are judged.
Cannon led LSU to the 1958 national title and the following year won the Heisman as the nation's top collegian.
Cannon, who remains LSU's only recipient of the Heisman, had his No. 20 jersey retired by the university in 1959.
“It’s fitting that Dr. Cannon will be the first and, so far, only football player at LSU immortalized in this way,” athletic director Joe Alleva said in a university news release. “He and the 1958 team helped put LSU football on the map as a national powerhouse.”
A statue of Dr. Billy Cannon, D.D.S., a 1959 Heisman Trophy recipient who earned a spot in two halls of fame, will be erected on LSU's campus,…
The statue ceremony for Cannon, who died May 20, is open to the public and will get under way at 6:30 p.m. at the Championship Plaza on the west side of Tiger Stadium in lot 101.
The statue will serve as the centerpiece of an area recognizing LSU's many football accomplishments.
Many dignitaries and members of the 1958 national championship team are expected to attend the unveiling, which is set to take place at 6:55 p.m.
The day after his 80th birthday, LSU football legend Billy Cannon found out Thursday that the school is planning to erect a statue in his honor.
