In a twist of irony, a football legend will serve as the keynote speaker at next year’s Humboldt State Annual Celebrity Dinner & Sports Auction.

The school announced this week that former San Francisco 49er linebacker Keena Turner will be the guest speaker at the event, which funds scholarships for the school’s sports teams.

The dinner and auction will be held on April 6 at the Sequoia Conference Center in Eureka. Individual tickets are $100 and will go on sale on Jan. 7.

It will be the first annual dinner and sports auction since the school eliminated its football program after the 2018 season.

Turner is a four-time Super Bowl champion, who played on the legendary San Francisco teams of the 1980s.

Turner joined the 49ers in 1980 and logged all 11 seasons of his career with the team. 

The linebacker helped San Francisco win Super Bowls XVI, XIX, XXIII, XXIV, and was a Pro Bowl selection in 1984. 

Turner accumulated 19.5 sacks and 11 interceptions during his time with the team. Following his playing career, he coached three seasons with Bill Walsh at Stanford (1992-94) before returning to the 49ers in a front office role in 1998. 

Turner currently serves as a team vice president and a special advisor to general manager John Lynch after serving six seasons as vice president of football affairs.

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Ray Hamill writes at humboldtsports.com, where you can read lots more about sports in Humboldt County.