#SCTop10Day: “Greatness can happen anywhere, by anyone.”

ESPN has declared today, Oct. 10, as SportsCenter Top 10 Day.

Over the last month, ESPN has been traveling to the hometowns of youth athletes whose plays have been featured on SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays.

Today during the noon ET hour of SportsCenter, anchor John Anderson interviewed high school softball player Brooke Bearden in Liberal, Mo. She returned to the field just months after open heart surgery and a stroke; her accomplishment was celebrated on SportsCenter.

Front Row spoke with Peter Mulally, director, ESPN Brand Marketing, to learn more about the campaign.

How did the idea to feature these youth athletes come about?
It’s all part of SportsCenter’s push to prove that greatness can happen anywhere, by anyone. We knew from the get-go that we had the incredible opportunity to inspire the next generation of SportsCenter fans by welcoming real, every day, Gen-Z athletes into the Top 10 club.

With so many to choose from, how did you decide who would be honored in their hometowns?
It was very much an equation of finding the right plays, the right people and the right locations. We were so fortunate to have such a big base to work off with so many incredible moments and stories from the last year, it turned into a labor of love to find the right mix of diversity in sports and region. Once we landed on our ten, the overwhelming support in each respective community reinforced why this initiative is so special to so many people.

Why was it important to create experiences in each of the athletes’ hometowns?
It was imperative for us to authentically show up where the play occurred. Activating locally brought the entire community together to celebrate one of their own, and reinforced how the stature of an iconic brand like SportsCenter can bring it all to life.

What has been the most rewarding part about working on this campaign?
The most rewarding part was absolutely the reactions on site from the kids, the families and the communities. Sometimes we forget how meaningful the brand of ESPN is to people, so to see it first-hand validated that we found something special with this initiative.

ESPN Production produced the video above.

The First Nine Honorees

Katie Starr’s great catch resulted in her #SCTOP10 story being told on the fence. (Nathan Bolster @bolsterphoto)

Waianae, Hawaii resident James Kahaleua’s Pop Warner Football play earned him a citation. (@HonoluluCreativeMedia)

Former Booker T. Washington basketball star Jaila Roberts of Pensacola, Fla., recreates the buzzer-beating shot that earned her honors. (@vividbridge)

Emery Dupes’ volleyball heroics for Walton High in Marietta, Ga., earned her SportsCenter recognition. (Nathan Bolster @bolsterphoto)

Covington, Tenn., resident Kyle Jen was honored for his baseball play. (Nathan Bolster @bolsterphoto)

Miami’s Henry Parrish Jr.’s tackle-breaking run for Columbus High resulted in this unique plaque. (Diego Texera @diegotexera)

Before Missouri high school softball player Brooke Bearden was honored on the noon ET edition of SportsCenter today, nine other youth athletes were celebrated in their local communities earlier this year. Some of them are highlighted in the slideshow above; more photos are available at ESPN Press Room.

• Fran Belibi (Aurora, Colo.) – Sunday Sports Zone on KDVR (FOX)
• Ashlynn Jolicoeur (Whitby, Ontario, Canada) – Global News
• Emery Dupes (Marietta, Ga.) – 11 Alive
• Henry Parrish, Jr. (Miami, Fla.) News at 6 PM on WFOR (CBS)
• Jaila Roberts (Pensacola, Fla.) – WKRG News 5 (CBS); News at 6PM on WEAR (ABC)
• Katie Starr (Berwick, Pa.) – WNEP.com
• Teddy Townsend (Eden Prairie, Minn.) – Eyewitness News at 10PM on KSTP (ABC)
• Kyle Ginn (Covington, Tenn.) – High School Sports Zone on WHBQ-MEM (FOX)
• James Kahaleua (Waianae, Hawaii) – KITV 4 News at 6 PM on KITV-HON (ABC)