Some answers to common questions about the Football Writers Association of America, its member benefits and award programs. If you don't see the answer to your question, send us an e-mail at webmaster@sportswriters.net.

About the FWAA

• Eligibility: The Football Writers Association of America is open to all accredited members of the media and members of schools and organizations directly affiliated with college football. Although we are the football writers, editors, radio and television broadcasters, publicists and even photographers are eligible to join. Please note that all applications are subject to the approval of the board of directors and the FWAA cannot guarantee that any paid dues will be refunded if your application is rejected. For new members, we encourage you to indicate if you were recommended by a colleague on your application. For questions about eligibility, contact Steve Richardson (tiger@fwaa.com or 214-870-6516).

• Dues: Annual dues are $50 and are payable with your application. Retired members are not required to pay dues and students are eligible for reduced dues of $25. Generally, the FWAA opens its application process each year on the second Monday in April. For dues payment, the FWAA accepts all major credit cards. Please do not send cash. For more information about joining the FWAA or to renew your membership, click here.

Membership in the FWAA does not grant you any accreditation nor does it promise you access or credentials to cover any event. Any and all access granted is subject to the decision of the school, conference or other governing entity of that event. If you have issues with access and/or credentials, contact Ron Higgins (rhigg@aol.com), the chair of the FWAA Ethics/Press Relations committee.

Partnering with the FWAA

• Founded in 1941, the FWAA has now grown to a record 1,200 members. With that growth, the FWAA has also been able to advance and support its member benefit and awards programs through partnerships and sponsorships above and beyond funds from membership dues. If you have interest in supporting the FWAA and any of its programs through sponsorships or partnerships, contact Executive Director Steve Richardson (214-870-6516 or tiger@fwaa.com) or Ted Gangi (ted@collegepressbox.com or 214-909-9314).

Publications

• Member Directory: The college football media "bible" is revised and edited each summer in time for the season. In order to ensure that you are included in the directory, you must pay your dues by June 25. The FWAA prints only a limited number of books and does not publish the directory online due to past abuses. The directory is generally mailed to the membership in mid- to late August. If you pay your dues after June 25, you are not guaranteed to be listed, nor can you be guaranteed to receive the directory in time for the start of the season. The FWAA does its best to ensure that all members get a copy of the directory in a timely fashion, regardless of when dues are paid. No member will receive a directory until dues are paid. For questions about the directory, its contents and distribution, contact Steve Richardson (tiger@fwaa.com or 214-870-6516).

• NEW! The Fifth Down Blog (the5thdown.com): Once you subscribe to this blog, you will be notified by email every time a new item or items have been posted on the blog. Merely go to the site above and enter your email on the right and the process will unfold with the email invitation. The blog replaces the .pdf Fifth Down that has been emailed to FWAA members. The advantage of the new system will allow us to get information concerning members to you quickly. For major awards and announcements you will still receive emails, and those items will be posted at fwaa.com. But consider this as a second, expanded channel as if you were watching television.

An archive of The Fifth Down dating back to 2001 is available on the website, fwaa.com and a significant historical archive exists with the eventual goal to include those past issues on the website. Ken Stephens is the editor of the blog. For questions about The Fifth Down Blog, its contents and distribution, contact Ken Stephens ken.stephens@sbcglobal.net.

Member Benefits

• NEW! College Football Hall of Fame: Complimentary admission to College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta and a discounted rate for accompanying guests with your membership card. Plus, 50 percent off the annual membership in the National Football Foundation, which includes voting privileges for the College Football Hall of Fame.

• NEW! ESPN Insider: Enjoy $10 off the annual subscription to ESPN.com's Insider. ESPN.com does not offer any other discounts on this subscription, so this is exclusive to the FWAA membership. The normal subscription rate is $3.33/month, so FWAA members will pay around $30 for the year.

• 247Sports.com: FWAA members now have complimentary network-wide access to 247Sports.com, a growing network of college team sites that has professional reporters/writers on the ground in local markets to cover their teams and recruiting. The company features innovative, social-media friendly technology and has an industry-leading mobile site for writers and fans to use on their phones or tablets. To activate your free subscription, visit the Member Center.

• Brooks Brothers Corporate Membership Card: All FWAA members have the opportunity to enroll for the Brooks Brothers Corporate Membership Card. This benefit was initiated to provide you with enjoyable incentives and an every day 15 percent savings when shopping for your wardrobe needs. As a Brooks Brothers Corporate Member, you will receive an every day 15 percent savings on regular price merchandise at Brooks Brothers U.S. and Canadian stores, by phone and online at BrooksBrothers.com. For complete information on how to activate the Brooks Brothers Coporate Membership Card program, visit the Member Center.

• American Airlines BusinessExtrAA: The FWAA now has a BusinessExtrAA account. The association's participation in the program will allow it to accumulate points to be used for travel by FWAA officers to sanctioned events (annual meetings, CoSIDA Convention, etc.) The member benefit will be selected discounts offered by American Airlines for air travel to major events and meetings. All you need to do is add the FWAA account number (832783) to your personal AAdvantage profile. To do that, follow these simple steps:

• Go to aa.com and login to your American Airlines AAdvantage Account
• Under the "AAdvantage" tab, click on My Account.
• Click on "Reservation Preferences."
• Scroll down to "My Business ExtrAA Information."
• Click "Edit" on the right side of the page
• Add the FWAA's six-digit BusinessExtrAA Account Number: 832783
• Make your travel arrangements as you normally would on aa.com with your personal AAdvantage account. You never need to enter the FWAA account information again. You will continue to receive all of your AAdvantage miles as you normally would.

• Delta Airlines SkyBonus: The FWAA now has a SkyBonus account. The association's participation in the program will allow it to accumulate points to be used for travel by FWAA officers to sanctioned events (annual meetings, CoSIDA Convention, etc.) The member benefit will be selected discounts offered by Delta Airlines for air travel to major events and meetings. All you need to do is add the FWAA account number (US0033555) to your personal SkyMiles profile. To do that, follow these simple steps:

• Go to delta.com and login to your Delta Airlines SkyMiles Account.
• Scroll over your name in the upper right until a drop-down menu appears.
• Click on "Profile," which should take you to this page: https://www.delta.com/profile/index.action
• In the top middle part of the profile page, you will see a "FLIGHT PREFERENCES" box. Click on open.
• Scroll down to SKYBONUS and enter the following ID: US0033555
• Hit SAVE CHANGES.

Make your travel arrangements as you normally would on delta.com with your personal SkyMiles account. You never need to enter the FWAA account information again. You will continue to receive all of your SkyMiles miles as you normally would.

• Hertz Corporate Discount Plan (CDP) Card: As a member of the FWAA, you are entitled to discounts offered by Hertz. To take advantage of the discounts, simply enter the FWAA's CDP code (1597431) when you make your reservation. If you are a Hertz #1 Club member, you can enter the CDP code in your profile so you don't have to manually enter it each time you make a reservation. For questions about the Hertz CDP Card, contact Ted Gangi (ted@collegepressbox.com or 214-909-9314).

• Phil Steele Magazine: Since 2008, Phil Steele has extended a special offer to FWAA members. This season, you get complimentary expedited shipping with your purchase of the magazine (at retail price), which you will also receive two weeks in advance of it appearing on newsstands. It amounts to a $7.25 savings.

• Best Writing Contest: Each year the association conducts a best writing contest open to all active FWAA members. Generally, the contest includes four categories for stories written in the 12-month period between Feb. 1 and Jan. 31. Cash and other prizes are awarded at the annual FWAA Awards Breakfast on site at the National Championship Game. Entry rules are available on the FWAA website. For further questions about the collegepressbox.com Best Writing Contest, contact Ken Stephens at ken.stephens@sbcglobal.net. 

Award Programs

• All-America Team

• Outland Trophy presented by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases

• Bronko Nagurski Trophy

• Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week

• Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award

• Reveal Suits National Team of the Week

• Capital One Orange Bowl Courage Award

• Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl Merit Award

• Freshman All-America Team

• The 'Super 11' Awards (for SID's)

• collegepressbox.com Best Writing Contest: Each year the association conducts a best writing contest open to all active FWAA members. Generally, the contest includes five categories for stories written in the 12-month period between Feb. 1 and Jan. 31. Cash and other prizes are awarded to the winners and up to four runners-up in each category at the annual FWAA business meeting on site at the BCS National Championship Game. In 2010, collegepressbox.com will sponsor the contest. Entry rules are available on the FWAA website. For further questions about the collegepressbox.com Best Writing Contest, contact Ken Stephens (ken.stephens@sbcglobal.net).

• Bert McGrane Award: Winners of the annual Bert McGrane Award are honored in a display at the College Football Hall of Fame. The FWAA has presented its hall of fame award to one distinguished contributor since 1974. The award honors a member of the association that has made a significant contribution to the FWAA and to college football. For more information about the award, including the nomination and selection process, contact Mark Blaudschun (blauds@aol.com).

• Volney Meece Scholarship: The FWAA began awarding this scholarship in 1997. It is presented annually by the FWAA to a deserving son or daughter of an FWAA member. The four-year $1,000 annual grant is named in honor of the late Volney Meece, who served 22 years as the FWAA's executive director and was the organization's president in 1971. For more information about the Volney Meece Scholarship, including the nomination and selection process, contact Dave Sittler (davesitt@aol.com) of the Tulsa World.

CONTACT US FOR MORE INFORMATION