DALLAS (SMU) - SMU alumnus Paul B. Loyd Jr. was honored with the 2014 SAM Award on Jan. 17 at the SMU men's basketball game against East Carolina. The award was presented at halftime on behalf of the SMU Lettermen's Association by SMU President Gerald Turner and Director of Athletics Rick Hart.

Loyd was a member of SMU's 1966 Southwest Conference Championship football team that played in the 1967 Cotton Bowl Classic, and was elected team captain of the 1967 team. In 1968, Loyd graduated from SMU's school of business with a degree in economics, and went on to complete his MBA at Harvard University before building a successful career in the energy services industry.

He currently serves on the Board of Trustees and as Chairman of the Athletic Committee at SMU and is a member of the executive boards for the Cox School of Business and the Annette Caldwell Simmons School of Education and Human Development. He also serves as co-chair of the Second Century Campaign Steering Committee for Athletics and as honorary chair and member of the Second Century Campaign Steering Committee for Houston.

Loyd was honored with SMU's Mustang Award in 1999, Cox School's Distinguished Alumni Award in 2001 and SMU's Distinguished Alumni Award, which is the highest and most prestigious award the University can bestow upon its alumni, in 2012.

In 2004, Loyd was honored as the Man of the Year at Fort Benning by troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan for his contribution in setting up satellite computers for the troops to communicate with loved ones at home, as well as funding of much needed equipment not readily available at that time to troops in the field.

In 2009 Paul, along with his wife Penny, created The Loyd Charitable Foundation to support charities in the Houston and Dallas areas as well as international charitable organizations. From goodwill mission trips in American Samoa to generous donations to the Baylor College of Medicine, Paul's generosity knows no bounds. Loyd serves on the board of directors of Houston Children's Charity, Goodwill Industries of Dallas, the Boys and Girls Clubs of American Samoa and the Marshall Plan Charities for Afghanistan Recovery as well as advisory boards of the June Jones Foundation, the College Football Assistance Fund, the Eddie G. Robinson Foundation, the Dikembe Mutumbo Hospital Foundation, Opportunity International, the Linda Lorelle Scholarship Fund, the United Way and Boys and Girls Country. He is also the Chairman of the Navy SEAL Legacy Foundation national advisory committee and chaired the Inaugural Navy SEAL Golf Tournament held in Houston in 2012. Paul has worked with numerous Houston charities and organizations including Theatre Under the Stars, in which Paul and his wife Penny are the host of the TUTS Annual Scotch Tasting party and is an underwriting chair. He has also hosted The Bayou Preservation Association's 2011 Gala and the Houston Zoo Asante Society's 2011 cocktail reception in his home.

Paul and his wife have five children and two grandchildren. They attend Chapelwood United Methodist Church in Houston and Trinity Church in Dallas.

The annual award, which was initiated in 1991, is the most prestigious award given by the Lettermen's Association. To be selected as the SAM Award winner, an individual must have graduated from SMU at least 25 years ago and made a significant, positive and lasting impact on his/her community.