With the NFL’s regular season getting underway on Thursday (Vikings v. Saints), it’s timely that the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) is announcing its 2010 award honorees.

NBC’s Tom Brokaw is the recipient of the NFF 2010 Distinguished American award, bestowed on an individual “who has applied the character building attributes learned from amateur football in their business and personal life.” Brokaw was a high school quarterback.

NFF also named entertainer Bill Cosby, a former Temple University fullback, as its Gold Medal award winner.

Brokaw and Cosby will be honored at a ceremony in New York on December 7. That’s Pearl Harbor Day — an occasion sure to be noted by Brokaw, who paid tribute to World War II-era Americans in his 1998 book The Greatest Generation.

On Sunday September 20th, MSNBC will broadcast an special event entitled “About Our Children…” (7-9pmET), which will feature actor/comedian Bill Cosby. The special will be broadcast live from Howard University and will cover parenting, health care, and education as it relates to poverty in America.

The panel, which will be moderated by frequent “Hardball” guest Michelle Bernard, will include Harvard professor Dr. Alvin Poussaint, NAACP President Ben Jealous, author Terrie Williams, and American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten.

You can visit MSNBC’s site to submit your questions for the panel and Cosby.