Ivan Maisel

Veteran  Ivan Maisel of  ESPN.com claimed his fourth FWAA writing first-place award  during his career in the results just announced for the 21st Annual FWAA Best Writing Contest.  Matt Hayes of the Sporting News also won first place, picked up an honorable mention and was one of three writers to be recognized in two different categories.

Matt Hayes

USA Today’s George Schroeder and  Aaron Brenner, now with the  Charleston Post  and Courier, each received two honorable mentions.  Ben Frederickson, now at Fox Sports Midwest, and Adam Lucas of Tar Heel Monthly captured the other first-place awards.

Maisel claimed his first place in the Game Category for a story on Baylor’s upset of Kansas State that knocked the Wildcats out of the national championship picture.  Hayes won top honors for a well-reported Enterprise Story on a behind- the-scenes account of Florida

Adam Lucas

football under Urban Meyer.  Frederickson was the Column winner for a touching story about a young Wyoming football fan who died of leukemia after losing his mother.  Lucas’ inspiring Feature story on North Carolina running back Gio Bernard was the other winning entry.

Ben Frederickson

The four complete winning stories appear in the September issue of the Fifth Down. Each first-place winner will receive a personalized football from the FWAA.  First, second and third-place winners will get cash prizes. All placers will receive certificates and will be honored at the FWAA Awards Breakfast on Jan. 6, 2014 in Newport Beach, Calif.

Later in the fall, the FWAA will name the Beat Writer of the Year Award, which goes to a worthy member.