After earning All-America recognition and winning the 2024 Fred Mitchell Award as the best kicker among over 750 non-FBS colleges, Gabe Panikowski from Idaho State finally has been able to rejoice.
Happiness, you see, was not always part of his young life.
I had so many questions.
What was it like coaching the inimitable Caitlin Clark at the University of Iowa?
What are some of your favorite memories from winning three Stanley Cup titles with the Chicago Blackhawks?
Did you ever believe you would become a Hall of Famer after starring with the Chicago Bulls during their championship years of […]
Lee Smith knew something was wrong.
Shortness of breath, lost weight.
“I thought I had cancer,” said Smith, who spent most of his Hall of Fame career as a closer with the Chicago Cubs. Turns out it was his heart, pumping only about five percent of the blood that it should have. And on July 4, 2024, […]
The chants emanating from the lower level of Club 400 sounded eerily familiar for longtime Chicago Cubs fans.
“Sammy! Sammy! Sammy!”
Former Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa made a rare appearance in the Chicago area last weekend, visiting hospitals, greeting fans on the street and signing autographs for some of his most ardent fans from a quarter of […]
By CAROLE CARLSON
The Gary Sports Hall of Fame grew by six new members, including a former NBA player, two MLB players and a woman who spent 20 years as a leader of the Indiana High School Athletic Association.
The Class of 2024 inductees include NBA player Winston Garland, baseball players Wallace Johnson and Nick Strincevich, girls’ […]
Former Chicago Bears defensive tackle Steve “Mongo” McMichael realized a life-long dream when he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Aug. 3.
Suffering from the ravages of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), which is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, McMichael is unable to walk […]
Without the names and numbers on their uniforms, some of the members of the 1984 Cubs found it difficult initially to recognize all of their former teammates.
Yet soon the memories and recognition returned during last weekend’s 40-year celebration of one of the franchise’s most iconic seasons. The ’84 Cubs won 96 games en route to […]
Two former members of the Super Bowl champion 1985 Chicago Bears were among the inductees to the Gridiron Greats 2024 Hall of Fame.
Mike Singletary, a Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker, and stellar tight end Emery Moorehead joined former Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Steve Largent in the select fraternity during a ceremony […]
Congratulations to Matt Cotiguala for becoming co-chairman of the Fred Mitchell Award selection committee, joining incumbent Rob Perry.
Matt was the 2015 winner of the Fred Mitchell Award for his kicking exploits and exceptional community involvement. As co-chairman of the FMA Selection Committee, Cotiguala will assist Perry with the daunting task of identifying worthy […]
Fred Mitchell is an award-winning sportswriter and columnist who spent over 41 years with the Chicago Tribune. He is the author of 12 books, including biographies with Bears Hall of Famers Gale Sayers and Richard Dent and Cubs Hall of Farmers Billy Williams and Ryan Sandberg.
Hired in 1974 as the Tribune’s first African-American sportswriter, Mitchell’s […]