Ferris State's Wyatt Ford Named To Fred Mitchell Award List Of Excellence

Fred Mitchell Award List

Big Rapids, Mich. - Ferris State University junior kicker Wyatt Ford (Montague) has been recognized for his efforts by being named to The Fred Mitchell Award list of excellence for the month of September.

Ford was one of only five Division II kickers to be honored during September on the list of 16 top placekickers across college football announced by The Fred Mitchell Award organization for excellence on and off the football field. Nominations are submitted by sports information directors across the country.

In addition, Ford is the only kicker from a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) school represented on the monthly list.

The monthly honorees are considered as potential nominees for the annual Fred Mitchell Award, which is provided to the nation's top collegiate place-kicker among more than 750 FCS, Division II, Division III, NAIA and NJCAA football teams at the end of the year. The award is named for Fred Mitchell, who was a record-setting place-kicker and Hall of Famer at Wittenberg University, who also was a sports columnist for the Chicago Tribune.

The recipient of The Fred Mitchell Outstanding Place-Kicker Award will be announced in December based on their performance on the field and in the community. 

Ford was nearly perfect during the opening month of the 2016 campaign as he converted all 15 of his PAT tries and made six-of-seven field goals (86%) for the Bulldogs. He converted a game-winning field goal with seven seconds remaining in FSU's 30-28 win at Michigan Tech (Sept. 10) and concluded that particular game by making three-of-three field goals, including two in the final eight minutes of play.

A three-year letterwinner, Ford is midst his first season as FSU's primary placekicker after serving as the Bulldogs' kickoff specialist at various times the past two campaigns. He was a member of the Bulldogs' back-to-back GLIAC Championship squads in both 2014 and 2015.

During his FSU career, Ford has also joined the football squad in a wide range of community service projects including the annual "Big Event" city-wide cleanup effort, helping incoming freshman move into campus residence halls as part of "Bulldogs In Action" and reading to children in classrooms during "March Is Reading" month. Last weekend, the Bulldogs also welcomed a young wheelchair-bound individuals during the "Coaches To Cure MD" initiative.

This week, Ford and the Bulldogs begin a two-game road swing by visiting the Findlay Oilers this Saturday, Oct. 1. The GLIAC contest is set for a 7 p.m. (ET) kickoff at Donnell Stadium in Findlay, Ohio. The Bulldogs are 3-1 overall with Findlay owning a 2-2 mark. 

Saturday's game will be carried live locally by the Bulldog Sports Network and Sunny 97.3 FM with the veteran broadcast team of Rob Bentley (play-by-play) and Sandy Gholston (color) calling the action. The contest will also be streamed with a free live audio feed online at FerrisStateBulldogs.com.