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Centennial Bank, Johnny Allison Donate $10M to A-State Athletics

2 min read

The Arkansas State University board of trustees on Monday approved resolutions renaming the football field and naming a planned athletics operations center following the donation of $5 million each by Centennial Bank and the family of Johnny Allison.

Allison is chairman of the bank’s parent company, Home BancShares Inc. of Conway.

The $10 million will be used to renovate and expand the north endzone of Centennial Bank Stadium on the Jonesboro campus.

The project is expected to cost $29 million, and no public funds will be used for it. Plans call for a 66,533-SF athletics operations facility, premium seating and several other enhancements.

The football field will be renamed Allison Field and the athletics operations center will be named Centennial Athletics Operations Center. Also, the naming agreement for Centennial Bank Stadium was extended by 10 years, to Dec. 31, 2037.

ASU System President Chuck Welch, several trustees, Athletics Director Terry Mohajir and Football Coach Blake Anderson thanked Allison and the bank at Monday’s announcement. 

Allison, an A-State alumnus, also spoke. He said, “This is about building together” and the donations are “the proof in the pudding” of the bank’s and intention to provide long-term support to the university. In 2014, Allison made the largest personal gift commitment in the athletics department’s history: $5 million.

He also said the partnership between the community and the bank had been mutually beneficial, as the bank “has grown by over $110 million dollars in this market last year.”

Including the donations announced Monday, Allison and Centennial Bank have contributed $20 million to the university, according to the trustees. 

Dr. Tim Langford, a trustee, thanked Allison for “changing the tractory” of the athletics program and the school as a whole through his generosity. He also said football fans should expect the team to win championships now that it has support of this magnitude.

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