November 30, 2006.

JACKSON – Scott Eyster carried himself with class Wednesday night at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum for the 11th annual Conerly Trophy presentation.

The Delta State senior quarterback had been here before – a record four times. Each time, he sat on the dais and watched another of the state’s fine football players win the Mississippi’s equivalent to the Heisman Trophy.

As a wide-eyed freshman, he embraced being a finalist before losing to Ole Miss standout Eli Manning. The Ole Miss quarterback shattered records during his career in Oxford, winning the Conerly as both a sophomore and a senior.

As a sophomore, Eyster still had the gleam in his eye of being chosen as one of the top three players in the state. Current Atlanta Falcons linebacker Michael Boley, a Southern Miss product, drove home with the trophy that night.

As a junior, the skepticism began to creep into his mind. Mississippi State superstar Jerious Norwood, a current Atlanta Falcon, took the hardware.

When told he was a finalist for a fourth time, Eyster, the realist, looked at his competition and had no pipe dreams of winning the award. Ole Miss linebacker Patrick Willis is up for nearly every national defensive award available, making the Bruceton, Tenn., native an obvious choice for the Conerly.

Eyster never frowned. He never let his disappointment creep in. He thought of his wife and 2-year-old daughter sitting with his parents in the upper level of the museum. He thought of Delta State’s Division II quarterfinal matchup with unbeaten North Alabama on Saturday.

Even Willis, a finalist last season who watched Norwood take home the prize, praised the Division II quarterback.

When Hall of Fame executive director Michael Rubenstein called Willis’ name. Eyster smiled slightly. His parents, the same ones who waved hands and took pictures while their son’s highlight tape played, were turned to tears; mom leaning on dad’s shoulder for consolation.

At first, the disappointment seemed to hit the parents more than the son.

Until Willis accepted his award.

Instead of grandstanding or touting his own accomplishments, Willis turned slightly and honored his counterpart.

&#8220On the ride over here, I kept thinking, ‘for a guy to make it here four years in a row, he’s got to get it. He has to,’” Willis said.

Eyster’s family again rose, this time to honor Willis’ classy act, to honor his competition.

All the while, Eyster stood in the background as he had done for four years in a row. No disappointment this year. He knew the odds were against him.

But he thought of his family, his wife, his daughter and he smiled not to mask the disappointment, but to realize there are bigger tragedies in life than not winning an award.

Though he never won the Conerly, Eyster will go down in Mississippi history as the first four-time finalist for the award. He will be remembered as much for his prolific statistics as the way he handled himself in defeat.

Eyster plans on pursuing a career in the NFL as far as it will take him.

If it doesn’t work out, well, he’s been down the road of disappointment before. Like each time he got passed over for the Conerly, he’ll shake it off, think of his wife and daughter and continue to carry on his life with class and dignity.