Note: This is the seventh story/announcement in the CoSIDA Special Awards feature series which will highlight all 2013 Special Award recipients. All recipients will be honored at the
CoSIDA Convention (June 12-15) in conjunction with the NACDA and Affiliates Convention at Orlando's Marriott World Center.
See the full list of recipients and features schedule.
by Fred Nuesch
Texas A&M University-Kingsville
CoSIDA Special Awards Committee member
Mike Kirk is in his 26th year as the Director of Athletic Media Relations at the University of Central Oklahoma. For his longtime service to the athletic communications field, Kirk will receive his 25-year Award at the CoSIDA Convention in Orlando, Fla., in June. Kirk will be honored during the CoSIDA Special Awards Luncheon on Friday, June 14.
Kirk began his career in sports information as a student at Oklahoma State University from 1978-82. He worked in the OSU SID office from 1978-82 and received a journalism degree in 1982.
Kirk worked as a sportswriter for newspapers in McAlester, Okla., and Lawton, Okla., for five years before becoming the SID at Central Oklahoma in 1987.
He has been an active member of CoSIDA throughout his career and has served on numerous committees. His media guides have received 58 CoSIDA publication awards, including 27 "Best in the Nation" citations.
Throughout his career, Kirk has been recognized for his outstanding service and work with amateur
and collegiate wrestling.
Kirk was inducted into the Oklahoma Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame for Lifetime Achievement in October of 2012. He has spent his career promoting the sport of wrestling, beginning as a student worker in the OSU sports information office where he was in charge of wrestling publicity the last three years. Kirk is married and he and his wife, Debbie, have two children, Alex and Jessica. (
Pictured, above, is the Kirk family in October when Mike was inducted into the Hall of Fame.)
Among those 27 "Best in the Nation" media guide awards he has accumulated, 16 of them have been for his wrestling media guides.
He is in his third year as a member of the NCAA Wrestling Championships Committee, serving as NCAA Division II chair in 2012-13.
Kirk served as press information manager for wrestling at the 1996 Olympic Games and also has held the position of NCAA Division II wrestling team/individual rankings coordinator since 1992.
His service has also included being the regional representative for several Daktronics all-region teams in various sports.