Hixson grad Paul Apyan will tee off in the Classic on Thursday, where he'll become the first volunteer at the tournament to actually become a competitor in the Nationwide event.  It's only fitting because the Southern Miss golfer is always volunteering his time. This past spring Apyan was named the Southern Miss Male athlete of the year, thanks in part to his contributions off the course, which range from food drives to Habitat for Humanity.
"Well, I was sitting next to one of my friends on the soccer team, and she went, man you've got this. I said there is no way that I won this. You kind of see them pick up the trophy. I was like there's no chance they call my name. 
I was like, this must have been rigged, or it wasn't a fair vote. But I was very fortunate to win that. It was a great honor."
  This fall, Apyan wanted to do something special for our military.
"I was on a flight back from visiting my sister, and at that time, they were
charging for drinks on the flight. I went up to the flight attendant, and I
said if anybody in the military wants one, I'll be more than happy to buy it. They just put their lives on the line to come back here. That was the easiest thing I could do, and he said no one ever offers. About two days later, I went and sat with our athletic director. And 15 minutes later, he said I could do what I needed to do."
  So on November 21st, Apyan will help steer Southern Miss Military Appreciation Day, when The Golden eagles host Tulsa in football.
"We're trying to get four to 5,000 active and wounded military at the game as our way of saying thank you."
 This week, Apyan is playing in his first ever professional golf tournament,
and he admits he's a little nervous.
"Come tomorrow afternoon, I'm going to take a big deep, breath. Stand behind the ball, and say just have fun, and see where it goes."