April 24, 2007

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Cleveland, Ohio - Adi Filipovic, an offensive lineman from Furman University, and Darren Schmidt, a defensive end from Columbia University, have been chosen as the recipients of the annual Division I Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association (FCS ADA) Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award. Each will receive a $5,000 postgraduate scholarship. Filipovic and Schmidt were selected from a group of eight finalists. They will receive their awards during the FCS ADA luncheon on Thursday, June 7 at the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) Convention at the World Center Marriott Resort in Orlando, Florida.

"The FCS Athletics Directors Association is proud to present these scholarships to these two outstanding student-athletes," said Don Kaverman, chair of the FCS ADA Academic All-Star Team Selection Committee and athletics director at Southeast Missouri State University. "They represent the outstanding student-athletes found in Football Championship Subdivision football."

There were a total of 54 Football Championship Subdivision players selected to the FCS Academic All-Star Team in December. Eight of those players were finalists for the scholarships that Filipovic and Schmidt were selected from. Nominees were required to have a minimum grade point average of 3.20 (on a 4.00 scale) in undergraduate study and have been a starter or key player with legitimate athletics credentials. They must have reached their second year of athletics and academic standing at the nominated institution and have completed a minimum of one full academic year at the nominated institution. They must also have participated in 50 percent of the games played at their designated position.

Filipovic graduated Summa Cum Laude from Furman in June 2006 with a 3.92 grade point average in mathematics and economics. He is currently attending graduate school and studying international monetary fund. He was the 2005 recipient of the Furman Arthur Magill Economics Award, recorded the highest GPA on the football team two years in a row, was named to the 2006 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® First Team, was a 2006 Draddy Award semifinalist and a four-time Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll honoree.

Filipovic was a four-year letterman at Furman and helped the squad compile a 35-15 overall mark. The Paladins made three NCAA I-AA playoff appearances, won the 2004 Southern Conference Championship and earned three top-15 rankings.

Schmidt is a political science major with a 3.758 GPA. He was named Academic All-Ivy League and was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Second Team. On the field, Schmidt led the Ivy League and was 12th in the FCS in tackles for loss per game. He also led the league and the team in sacks. Prior to this year, Schmidt had played in just three career games before becoming one of the nation's leaders. For his efforts, he earned honorable mention All-Ivy League in 2006.

A special Review Committee of Football Championship Subdivision athletics directors was responsible for selecting the all-star team and scholarship finalists. Completing this task were Greg Burke, Northwestern State; Peter Fields, Montana State; Don Kaverman, chair, Southeast Missouri State; Marilyn McNeil, Monmouth; Jim Murphy, Davidson; and Tim Van Alstine, Western Illinois.

Now in its 14th year, the Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association's mission is to enhance Football Championship Subdivision football. The Association is administered by NACDA, now in its 42nd year. NACDA is the professional and educational association for more than 6,100 college athletics administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. More than 2,000 athletics administrators annually attend the NACDA Convention.