A Coach MUST nominate a Wrestler. An application consists of 2 parts: The Coach nomination and the Student-Athlete nominee forms below. Please make sure you click on the appropriate nomination form for the award you are applying for. Note: the Student-Athlete nominee must have (2) reference letters to upload with their nomination form. Please READ all instructions on the forms.
The deadline is midnight January 12, 2025
Coach
Nominate a senior for WRESTLER OF THE YEAR
Student-Athlete
Complete your nominee form for WRESTER OF THE YEAR
Coach
Nominate a senior for CLIFF RAMOS PERSERVEANCE AWARD
Student-Athlete
Complete your nominee form for CLIFF RAMOS PERSERVERANCE AWARD
Scholarships
FCA Wrestler of the Year Award
History of the FCA Wrestler of the Year Awards
Funded by the Mike Knox Memorial Fund
Effective February 2013, Fellowship of Christian Athletes Wrestling Georgia has annually designated a Georgia high school senior, “FCA Wrestler of the Year.” The honor will be accompanied by a college scholarship grant. The children of Michael E. Knox have established an endowed fund memorializing their late father, an active advocate of the sport of amateur wrestling and supporter of FCA. They have designated FCA Wrestling Georgia as recipient of fund proceeds each year for furthering a deserving wrestler’s education.
Mike’s children Niki, Will, and Joey Knox have each participated in the development of wrestling in the southeast. Will and Joey were high school and college wrestlers; Joey is a high school wrestling coach. Niki is a ready volunteer at tournaments. The Knox family is recognized for their active support of the growth of amateur wrestling in Georgia, particularly in colleges. Niki said, “Our dad felt close to both FCA and the sport of amateur wrestling. We are glad to remember him this way.”
Wrestling coaches from Georgia high schools will nominate the candidates for the award in the fall of the year. FCA Wrestling Georgia and FCA Girls Wrestling will announce the inaugural scholarship recipients at the Annual FCA Breakfast, at the GA State Championship finals.
FCA Wrestling and FCA Girls Wrestling is sport-specific ministries of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, headquartered in Kansas City (see fca.org). Georgia is home of the first FCA Wrestling organizations, with notably successful camps, clinics, and father-son retreats.
The Knox endowment is administered by Georgia Baptist Foundation.
The Cliff Ramos Perseverance Scholarship Award
History of the Cliff Ramos Perseverance Scholarship Award
Coach Cliff Ramos was one of the most successful high school wrestling coaches in the nation, let alone in Georgia. He was the “National Wrestling Coaches of America” association’s “National High School Wrestling Coach of the Year” in 2011. But more importantly, he was a great man and a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. For the third consecutive year, the FCA Wrestling Cliff Ramos Perseverance Award is offered to honor the life and career of Coach Cliff Ramos, and to continue the legacy of his unwavering devotion to his Lord & Savior, Jesus Christ.
Cliff was a man of faith and honor, who truly loved people. During his 42-year coaching career he coached many champions and impacted thousands of young lives for the Lord. Any wrestler who ever competed on a Coach Ramos team would agree, he knew how to help young people reach their God-given potential. He had the respect of his wrestlers, fellow coaches, and his entire community. In fact, Cliff’s influence ranged way past his local community to the wrestling world at large, across Georgia and around the nation.
In the spring of 2018, at the age of 65, Coach Ramos was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. On October 15, 2020, the Lord called Cliff home to heaven. During his battle with cancer, Cliff fought valiantly, giving it his very best effort to the very end. He never lost sight of his long-term goals, to love God, to love and inspire his family, and leave a godly legacy for thousands in the wrestling world to follow.
When FCA Wrestling was first founded in the summer of 2008, Coach Ramos was one of the first people we tapped into. He was always a critical asset to our summer wrestling camps, to our tournament devotions strategy, and to our process of impacting wrestling coaches for the Lord. Cliff was an invaluable asset to the ministry of FCA Wrestling right up until his “homecoming” in October of 2020. He will always be deeply appreciated and profoundly missed. Cliff was “one of a kind”.
Now, his wife, Kathy, and his children Taylor, Trevor, & Kara (all married with young families), and many of the wrestlers he coached continue Cliff’s legacy of impacting the wrestling community for Christ.
THE COACH CLIFF RAMOS “PERSEVERANCE AWARD” requirements:
Please note that this is a scholarship award for Senior Wrestlers Only! Coaches must nominate the student athlete.
All nominations must adhere to the following guidelines:
- The award nominee must be a senior in high school.
- The nominee can be male or female.
- The nominee must have demonstrated a significant amount of courage and perseverance in their effort to endure in the sport of wrestling during their high school wrestling career. This effort could have been over a span of one season, or all the way through their high school wrestling experience. The main point is to recognize a student-athlete’s perseverance in fighting through pain and challenge to reach their goal of wrestling for their team.
- The nominee must have maintained a GPA of at least a 2.5 (C+) or better during their high school experience.
- The nominee must have demonstrated a dynamic personal Christian faith, with which he or she sought to positively influence their coaches, teammates in wrestling, and their classmates for the Lord.
- The nominee must have been a faithful and hard-working member of their high school wrestling team for a minimum of 3 years (3 full wrestling seasons). This does NOT mean that they had to wrestle for the Varsity line-up, only that they were a hard-working and positive contributor to the team over a period of at least 3 seasons. They may never have made the Varsity line-up, but if they faithfully attended all practice, came to matches, supported, and encouraged their wrestling teammates, they may qualify as a candidate for this scholarship award.
- IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: This award is designed to evaluate a student-athletes courage and perseverance in overcoming physical challenges (like serious injuries, handicaps, or illnesses). It is NOT to evaluate the stability of a candidate’s homelife or family financial picture. For liability reasons, NO information on a candidate’s financial situation, or their family’s stability (or emotional health) will be considered. Do NOT mention any of these factors in your candidate’s nomination forms. To do so could eliminate your student nominee from consideration for this award.
Student athletes MUST also submit (2) reference letters in addition to the completed “Nominee Information Form” to be considered.
Please call or email Lisa Hankins with any questions, 706-255-7521
Standing atop of the podium – JESUS Is The Champion!
this 2023 season!
“Blessed is the man who trusts the Lord, whose confidence is in Him” – Jeremiah 17:7
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