To nominate Athlete of the Week, first find the official award program that covers your high school (such as a local newspaper, TV station or state athletic association), then follow its rules by submitting a short online form or email with the athlete’s name, school, sport, verified stats from that week, a clear game context (rivalry, comeback or playoff stakes), and a brief note on their leadership, academics and character so selectors can see a complete student-athlete, not just a box score.
High school sports are bigger than ever, with millions of kids competing and only a tiny fraction ever getting public recognition. On royalcontestvote.com I spend my days deep in online contests, helping coaches, parents and athletes turn “quiet” performances into highly visible wins.
Athlete of the Week campaigns are some of my favorites, because one smart nomination can change how a player is seen in their school, community and even by college recruiters. In this guide I’ll walk you through the complete process from picking the right program to writing a nomination that actually gets noticed.
How to Nominate Athlete of the Week: 3 strong Steps
Nominating an athlete for an athlete of the week award is easier when you follow a clear plan. These steps will help coaches, parents, and athletic directors move from noticing a great performance to sending a complete nomination that gets serious attention.
Find the organizer:
Before you can even think about how to nominate athlete of week, you need to know who actually runs the award in your area. The organizer might be a local newspaper, a TV sports desk, a radio show, a high school athletic association, or even a sponsor like a law firm or business.
Your goal at this stage is simple: stop guessing and identify one or two real, official programs that actually cover your school and sport. Getting this right means every nomination you write is aimed at someone who’s ready to receive it, not lost in a random inbox.
Start by going straight to the people closest to the action: coaches, athletic directors and school administrators. Ask them which Athlete of the Week or Student-Athlete of the Week features regularly include your school and how nominations are usually sent.
Most schools already have relationships with specific sports editors or associations, and they’ll often know the exact contact email or online form. This inside knowledge is a content gap most people never tap into, and it instantly saves you hours of blind searching.
Next, map out the local media and association options using a simple checklist:
- Look up your local newspaper, TV station, and radio network and search their sites for “Athlete of the Week” or “Player of the Week.” Each of these entities typically serves a defined region (city, county, conference), so verify your school is inside that coverage map.
- Check your state or regional high school athletic association for weekly honors or Player of the Week features, and note whether nominations must come from coaches or athletic directors.
- Pay attention to branding like “presented by [Sponsor]” because sometimes the nomination form lives on the sponsor’s site while the feature appears on the media site.
When you think you’ve found the right organizer, confirm the official nomination channel instead of assuming. Look for a dedicated nomination form, a clear “send nominations to” email address, or a coach-only portal mentioned in the rules. If anything is fuzzy, send a short, professional message: introduce yourself, your school and your role, and ask for the correct way to submit Athlete of the Week nominations plus any key guidelines.
This tiny bit of groundwork is what turns you from a random submitter into someone who’s clearly paying attention, and organisers notice that, especially when your nominations start arriving clean, complete and on time.
Learn the rules and deadline
After you’ve found the organizer and gathered your stats, the next crucial step in how to nominate athlete of week is understanding the rules and deadlines for that specific program. This is the boring part most people rush past, and it’s exactly where a lot of good nominations die quietly.
Every organiser has their own fine print, and if you ignore it, your perfectly written story might not even be considered. So before you type a single word into the form, slow down and study the guidelines like you’d study a scouting report.
Start by looking for the official rules section on the organizer’s page. You’re hunting for details about who is eligible (high school only, specific districts or conferences, varsity vs JV), what kinds of performances count (games, meets, tournaments), and how often the same athlete can be nominated or win.
Some programs say, for example, “performances from Monday–Sunday only” or “no repeat winners in the same season.” If you nominate someone for the wrong week or after they just won, your entry can be rejected even if the stats are amazing.
Next, focus on the deadline window, including time of day and time zone. Lots of people see “nominations due Sunday” and assume they’re safe until midnight, but the organizer might actually close submissions at 6 p.m., and in a different time zone than your school.
When I help with online contest campaigns, missed cutoffs are one of the most painful mistakes because they’re 100% preventable. Treat the deadline like game time: know the day, know the hour, and plan to “show up” early rather than last minute.
Also check for format rules that can quietly disqualify a nomination. Some organizers have word or character limits for the nomination text, require specific fields like coach contact information, or ask for certain types of photos only (no collages, no watermarks, vertical vs horizontal).
Others might insist that only coaches or athletic directors submit the entry, even if parents and fans can vote later. When you respect these details, you signal to the organiser that you’re serious and you make their job easier, which never hurts your chances.
To stay on top of everything, create a simple rules and deadline cheat sheet for each program you plan to use. Include eligibility notes, when the “week” starts and ends, the exact submission cutoff, who can nominate, and whether there’s public voting. Share this with your coaching staff, team managers, or parent leaders so everyone is on the same page.
That way, instead of arguing about “I thought it was due tomorrow,” you’re calmly working from the same game plan. Once you’ve nailed down the rules and deadlines, you can move into the fun part with confidence: actually writing and submitting a nomination that fits perfectly inside those lines instead of fighting against them.
Write One Focused Paragraph and Submit Smart
Now that you’ve done the homework, it’s time to turn everything into one focused nomination paragraph. Aim for five to seven clear sentences that tell the whole story, so even someone who has never heard of your school can see why this athlete deserves attention.
Start with a strong first sentence that includes the athlete’s name, school, sport, position and biggest achievement of the week. Then use two or three sentences to group the key stats and explain the game situation—rivalry, comeback, playoff stakes, or tournament pressure.
Finish with a couple of sentences that show the person behind the numbers. Mention leadership roles like captaincy, academic strengths such as GPA or honors, and any community or school service that proves this is a true student-athlete. Before you hit submit, double-check that your paragraph fits any word or character limits, that stats match official records, and that you’ve filled every required field on the form.
Try to submit at least a day before the deadline, and if there’s public voting involved, be ready with a simple plan to share the link through team chats, school channels and parent groups. That combination of a sharp paragraph and smart timing is exactly how to nominate athlete of the week in a way that feels polished and professional.
FAQs on How to Nominate Athlete of Week
Who is usually allowed to submit an Athlete of the Week nomination?
Most programs let head coaches, athletic directors and sometimes teachers or school staff submit official nominations because they can verify stats and eligibility. Some local media outlets also accept nominations from parents or fans, especially for online voting contests tied to sponsorships.
When you’re learning how to nominate athlete of the week, check the fine print carefully and look for phrases like “coach nomination required” or “open to public submissions” so you don’t waste time on the wrong process for your student-athlete.
How important are academics and character in Athlete of the Week selections?
For many programs, especially those branded as Student-Athlete of the Week, academics and character are the deciding factors when stats are similar. Editors and sponsors want to celebrate athletes who represent their schools well, not just those who fill up a box score.
When you’re planning how to nominate athlete of the week, always include one concise line about GPA, leadership or community work so selectors understand the full value of this student-athlete beyond the numbers.
How can we boost votes after an Athlete of the Week nomination goes live?
Once your athlete appears on a public ballot, treat it like a miniature campaign with a clear plan instead of just dropping a link on social media. Share the voting page through team chats, school newsletters and parent groups, and give people a simple call to action with the deadline and any daily voting rules.
In my work on Royal Contest Vote I’ve seen that consistent, polite reminders usually beat one loud announcement, especially when you pair them with quick updates on how your student-athlete is doing in the standings.
How often should we nominate the same athlete during a season?
You never want your nominations to feel like spam, but you also shouldn’t be shy about celebrating multiple legitimately huge performances. A good rule of thumb is to nominate the same athlete only when they’ve clearly had a standout week compared to their own baseline and the rest of the team.
If you’re wondering how to nominate athlete of the week in a way that feels fair, keep a simple log of top performances across your roster so you can spread recognition around while still rewarding truly exceptional stretches of play.
Final Thoughts on Athlete of the Week Nominations
Athlete of the Week isn’t just a line on a resume, it’s a way to spotlight the kids who put in extra work when no one’s watching and rally the community to vote for Athlete of the Week together. When you understand how local high school programs work, follow the rules, and write nominations that blend clear stats with strong character, your athletes have a real chance to stand out.
From years of running online voting campaigns, I’ve seen that the most successful schools aren’t the loudest, they’re the most prepared. They submit accurate info early, tell honest, specific stories about their student-athletes, and share voting links in a simple, respectful way. Use the playbook in this guide, adapt it to your local programs, and Athlete of the Week will turn from a mystery into a consistent, rewarding part of your season.
