Placekicker Sean Williams On Watch List For Fred Mitchell Award

Springfield, Ohio — Wittenberg University football placekicker Sean Williams, class of 2013 from Plainfield, Ind., is one of 44 student-athletes named to the preseason Watch List for the Fred Mitchell Award, given annually to the top player at the position in the Football Championship Subdivision, NCAA Division II and III and National Junior College Athletic Association.

Named for Wittenberg University Board of Directors member Fred Mitchell, class of 1969, the award was introduced in July 2009. A selection committee that includes members of the professional and/or college football halls of fame, evaluates the nominated kickers and selects a winner to be announced at the annual National Football Foundation Chicago Metro Chapter Awards ceremony in February 2013. A college tuition scholarship, with financial support primarily provided by corporate and individual donations, is presented to the recipient's college or university.

Williams was a semifinalist for the award in 2011 after he produced a record-breaking season for the Tigers. He led the team in scoring with 75 points after successfully converting 12-of-14 field goals and 39-of-41 point-after attempts (PATs). Over the course of two seasons, Williams broke the school records for consecutive field goals (19) and PATs (50). Williams, who earned second-team All-North Region honors from d3football.com a year ago, enters the 2012 season with the best PAT percentage in program history for placekickers with at least 40 attempts, and he ranks sixth in school history with 154 career points by kicking, just 12 behind Mitchell for a spot in the top five.

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Williams lines up an extra point attempt against Carnegie Mellon on Oct. 22, 2010.

File Photo | Erin Pence

Williams, a second-team All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) honoree in 2010 and a first-team selection in 2011, has tied the school record for field goals in a season (12) each of the last two seasons, and he enters the new season ranked fifth in career field goals (24) and career field goal percentage (.750). The Tigers report to training camp on Wednesday, Aug. 8, as they begin preparations for the season opener at Capital University on Saturday, Sept. 1.

Wittenberg is coming off an 8-2 season in 2011, including a mark of 5-1 and a second-place finish in the NCAC. The Tigers are expected to welcome 14 starters and more than 45 letterwinners back to the roster in 2012.

The Fred Mitchell Award takes into account more than just performance on the field. Williams is majoring in biology at Wittenberg, and he has worked as an intern at the Springfield Regional Medical Center and the Rocking Horse Community Health Center. He also has donated his time to a youth football camps in both his hometown and in Springfield, and he has performed volunteer work with Habitat for Humanity in Springfield.

A 1995 Wittenberg Athletics Hall of Honor inductee, Mitchell is a sports columnist with the Chicago Tribune and author of nine books. The All-American Football Foundation named him Outstanding Sportswriter of the Year in 2000.

Mitchell was one of the first placekicking specialists in the college game between 1965 and 1968. As a collegian, Mitchell set an NCAA College Division record for career points by scoring, in addition to 12 school records and five Ohio Athletic Conference marks. His school record of 106 career extra points held up for 30 years, while his record of 166 career points by kicking lasted for more than 20 years.

Written By: Ryan Maurer

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