Award recipients talk Dallas' draft

Sidney Moncrief had some news Tuesday afternoon for his fellow Legacy Award recipient Keith Jackson about the Dallas Cowboys' first-round pick in Thursday's NFL Draft.

"I have great news," said Moncrief, a former University of Arkansas basketball player and five-time NBA All-Star with the Milwaukee Bucks. "I was on the flight with Jerry [Jones] and Stephen [Jones]. We had a huge debate on what's going to happen with the No. 4 pick.

"And we've decided that you would be the No. 4 pick in the NFL Draft."

Jackson, a six-time Pro Bowl tight end, hasn't played in the NFL since 1996 when he won a Super Bowl ring with the Green Bay Packers. But the former Philadelphia Eagles star had a word or two to say about his former NFC East rival.

"The seating arrangement was all wrong," Jackson joked. "They sat me next to all Cowboys. You don't sit a Philadelphia Eagle next to a Cowboy."

While the Cowboys were a hot topic Tuesday, the reason Moncrief, Jackson and Stephen Jones -- the Dallas Cowboys chief operating officer and executive vice president -- were at the Doubletree Hotel in Little Rock was to be honored by Junior Achievement of Arkansas.

The three Pulaski County natives received the Legacy Award, given to individuals who have displayed exceptional leadership in supporting academic excellence in Arkansas. Junior Achievement of Arkansas is a nonprofit organization that helps children and teenagers establish a positive economic mindset.

As for who the Cowboys will take with the fourth selection, Stephen Jones said the team earned the pick "the hard way" after going 4-12 a year ago in a season that was plagued by numerous injuries, including to quarterback Tony Romo. Dallas has been projected to take running back Ezekiel Elliott or defensive end Joey Bosa, both from Ohio State, in several mock drafts.

"We have to take advantage of it," said Jones, whose Cowboys will have nine picks in the draft. "We're going to be looking at a really good player there. I'd be surprised if we'd move out [of the pick]."

Jackson was introduced by Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Publisher Walter E. Hussman Jr. Hussman told the crowd how Jackson would visit inner-city neighborhoods in Philadelphia with teammate Reggie White to help young people get on track. In 1993, Jackson founded P.A.R.K., a nonprofit organization that offers a year-round educational and community service-oriented program to at-risk youth in Little Rock.

Helping the youth in Little Rock has been rewarding for Jackson.

"If I can brag a little bit, we're going to have four kids who will graduate from the Walton Business School [in Fayetteville]," Jackson said. "We have a kid who's two years away from being our first doctor. We have five master's program kids. This year, we'll have our first kid graduating from the engineering program at the University of Arkansas.

"We'll also have our first valedictorian graduating from J.A. Fair High School."

Jones said he was honored to be included with Jackson and Moncrief in this year's Legacy Award luncheon. He added that the Cowboys provide a great platform to make a difference in young people's lives.

"The young people are our future," Jones said. "We have to pay attention and give our time and energy and resources to make these young people have the type of opportunity that guys like Keith Jackson and Sidney Moncrief had.

"I was fortunate to have a wonderful family that taught me all the things that you need to be successful in life."

Jerry Jones, the Cowboys owner and general manager, introduced his son. Stephen Jones, a former Little Rock Catholic standout at quarterback in the early 1980s who later became a four-year letterman at Arkansas, helped his father spearhead the Cowboys' efforts to build AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Since the stadium opened in 2009, it has hosted a Super Bowl, the NCAA Final Four, the College Football Playoff national championship game and is the home of the Southwest Classic football game between Arkansas and Texas A&M every September.

"Many, if not most, of the ideas, as well as the execution of them, have to do with Stephen Jones," Jerry Jones said.

Moncrief, a Little Rock Hall graduate, is the managing partner of Moncrief One Team, based in Dallas. He brought students from Stephens, Terry and Wakefield elementary schools to the stage to receive applause from the luncheon crowd.

"This is why we're here," Moncrief said. "We have individuals that are good students and good athletes. All they need to see is great things happen around them. This is what we're fighting for. This is our future."

Simmons First National Bank received the Nelson Summit Award for outstanding support of Junior Achievement's mission of inspiring and preparing Arkansas' youth for success in the global economy. Junior Achievement added founder Sheffield Nelson's name to the award this year.

Also, Simmons gave Junior Achievement $20,000 to go toward literacy programs in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Tennessee, where the financial institution has branch locations.

Sports on 04/27/2016