Dixon Named Comeback Player of the Year & Male Athlete of the Year
12/18/2018 12:01:00 PM | Football
The College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), in association with The Associated Press (AP), selected Kent State wide receiver Antwan Dixon (Fort Myers, Fla.) as one of three Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year winners December. Dixon was recognized at the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 1, in Glendale, Arizona, where the Mayo Clinic pledged donate $5,000 to a general scholarship fund at Kent State in his name.
Later in December, the Touchdown Club of Columbus announced that Dixon would be named Male Athlete of the Year at its 64th annual awards banquet on Feb. 9.
As a teenager, Dixon began battling aplastic anemia, a rare blood disorder that interrupted his high school football career. Blood transfusions and medication helped get him back on the field, where he earned a scholarship offer to Kent State.
Late in his freshman year of 2015, Dixon led the team in receiving yards (355) as his symptoms returned and took a turn for the worse. He was forced to leave school and missed the 2016 and 2017 seasons. Confined to a hospital bed, Dixon's weight dropped to 125 pounds and nine of his teeth were removed to stop some of his bleeding.
In April of 2017, Dixon needed a life-saving bone transplant from his father (Anthony Dixon) that first required eight days of chemotherapy treatments. The road to recovery was long and demanding.
However, on Sept. 1, 2018, Dixon played for the first time in almost three years. He caught three passes for 48 yards at Illinois, including the Golden Flashes' first touchdown of the year. By season's end, he led the team with 52 receptions for 532 yards.
"This means the world to me and my family," Dixon said. "And I appreciate everyone who has supported me and sent out prayers to me while I was going through my tough times."
Seth Simmer of Dartmouth and Antonio Wimbush of Carson-Newman wias also honored at the Fiesta Bowl. They were among the 30 nominees unveiled throughout the season. Dixon and Simmer were selected in a vote of AP College Football Poll Voters, while Wimbush was chosen by a vote of the CoSIDA small-college advisory board.
"We commend Antwan, Seth, Antonio and all of the inspiring student-athletes we recognized this season for sharing their personal stories of overcoming adversity to help fans better appreciate the roads these young men have traveled," said Doug Vance, executive director of CoSIDA. "We hope these stories of achievement can inspire other people to meet the challenges in their own lives."
"We understand how challenging it can be for student-athletes to return from injury or illness," says Dr. Michael Stuart, co-director, Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine. "The 30 student-athletes we recognized this year are representative of the motivation, determination and perseverance that student-athletes all across America demonstrate on a daily basis."
Dixon's teammate Woody Barrett will also be honored by the Touchdown Club of Columbus as a 2019 Mid-American Conference Player to Watch.
