MBS to Become “Official Blood Services Provider” for the Bulldogs
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Mississippi State Athletics ushers in the 2014-15 athletic season with an expanded association with Mississippi Blood Services (MBS), which will be recognized as the “Official Blood Services Provider of MSU Athletics” moving forward.
The renewed and expanded partnership, overseen by MSU Athletics’ multimedia rights holder, Learfield Sports’ Bulldog Sports Properties, will recognize student donors throughout the year and play host to a friendly, on-campus blood drive competition featuring Mississippi State against rival in-state University of Mississippi and Southern Miss. Students will be encouraged to participate in that fall blood drive event, affectionately named the “Transylvania Bowl”, as in other times throughout the year, to donate whole blood or platelets. Transylvania Bowl awards scholarship funds to the university with the most donors.
“Being the official blood services of Mississippi State University is very important to Mississippi Blood Services,” said MBS PR Manager Merle Eldridge. “Working together, we will be able to save more lives by reaching more donors across the state. Every blood donation can save up to three lives…imagine how many lives Bulldog fans will be able to save through this partnership. An endless amount!”
Mississippi Blood Services, a not-for-profit blood service founded in 1979, provides a safe and adequate supply of voluntarily donated blood and blood components for patients in hospitals. It also offers related services to local hospitals and other medical facilities. MBS, the only FDA licensed blood center headquartered in Mississippi, operates seven drawing stations across the state with distribution hubs in Jackson, Oxford and Greenville.
“We’re pleased to heighten our level of involvement with Mississippi Blood Services, an extremely vital organization that depends on local blood donors to help supply the local hospitals,” said said MSU Senior Associate AD/External Affairs Scott Wetherbee.
“We trust our students, alumni and entire campus community will rally behind this partnership as we set forth to become a significant driver in blood donation for MBS. We’re proud they’ve chosen to support the Bulldogs and support our brand, and hope we are intentional about giving back to them as well.”
To learn about off-campus blood drives going on at any time, Bulldog fans are encouraged to call (800) 817-7449. They can also visit the MBS website at www.msblood.com, call (888) 90-BLOOD (902-5663) or go to the organization’s Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/give2live to learn about upcoming events. All donors must be at least 17-years-old (16 with signed parental consent—forms available at drive locations and online), weigh at least 110 pounds and have a valid ID.
Bulldog Sports Properties is a property of Learfield Sports, which manages the multimedia rights for nearly 100 collegiate properties throughout the U.S. In its four decades, Learfield has developed trusted, long-term relationships with some of the most revered institutions and associations in the world of collegiate athletics. For more information about its history, collegiate portfolio or support of the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup, visit www.learfieldsports.com.