Colorado University Athletics
CU Athletic Communications Wins 10th 'Super 11' Award From FWAA
May 04, 2023 | Football, General, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — The University of Colorado's Athletic Communications Department has once again been recognized as one of the best in the nation, honored with its 10th "Super 11" award from the Football Writers Association of America.
The awards are presented annually to the best performing College Sports Communicators departments in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision.
The FWAA began honoring the nation's best departments in 2009. Winners of the award are deemed by FWAA observers to have provided excellent accessibility to coaches, players and administrators on a regular basis, as well as outstanding press box services and consistent, timely information.
Colorado and Clemson were both recognized a 10th time, with Nebraska winning its ninth award. Navy won for the sixth time, Kansas State and Pitt each a fifth time and South Carolina, UAB and West Virginia each a second time. First-time recipients were BYU and TCU.
CU's award is a fitting farewell for long-time Colorado Sports Information Director David Plati, who retired from his full-time post in January after 40 years in the department. Plati, long considered to be one of the best in his profession, now works in an emeritus role as the department's historian. He was honored with the FWAA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018.
"When I came to CU in April 1979, David impressed me immediately with his skills in managing the details of the sports information profession as a 19-year-old student," said long-time FWAA member Tim Simmons, former SID at CU. "In my second year with the Buffs in 1980 and David's sophomore year at CU, I turned over the press box operation to him.
"What makes David so special is 'encyclopedic' recall. David is amazing with statistics and is so creative in presenting facts to the media and the sporting public. David's involvement with all sports has made him one of the most recognizable sporting individuals in the 'Centennial State.' If you think of David, you think of the following: his creativity; his humor and his mentoring/teaching. The Sports Information profession has produced a lot of GOATs, and David is one of them."
In addition, the FWAA presented its Super 11 Coach of the Year Award to Sonny Dykes of TCU, who won most of the FBS national coach of the year honors, including the FWAA's Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year and Steve Spurrier First-Year Coach awards. Dykes, who granted outstanding access to his program during the 2022 season, is the fifth head coach to win this award since its inception during the 2018 season.
Also, Virginia has been awarded a special commendation for its media access after the tragic shooting deaths last fall on campus of three Cavalier football players and the injuries of two others.
A second special commendation goes to IIllinois' Kent Brown, who is retiring after 36 years in sports information in June. Most of his career was at Illinois for 32 years. Kent is expected to remain around the Illinois athletic program in some capacity in the future.
The complete press release from the FWAA can be found here.
