MAYO CLINIC COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR PROGRAM
WEEK 8 NOMINEES
2017 KARE-11 FEATURE ON MUSTAFA ADAM

MINNEAPOLIS -- Augsburg University football linebacker Mustafa Adam (SR, River Falls, Wis./River Falls HS) was named on Tuesday as one of 30 nominees for the Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award, honoring college football players who have returned to the field of play after overcoming major life challenges.

Adam was one of three players named as nominees for the award on Tuesday, during the eighth week of the 10-week program. According to the award webpage: "Inspiring student-athletes from all levels of college football who have overcome injury, illness or other challenges will be recognized as Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Nominees." Adam is one of five NCAA Division III players to be named among the 24 nominees announced so far.

At the end of the season, nine finalists will be selected from the 30 nominees, and three will be chosen as Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award-winners, who will be honored at the 2019 PlayStation Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Ariz., on Jan. 1, 2019. A total of $30,000 will be donated by the Mayo Clinic to the general scholarship funds for the finalists -- $5,000 each for the three winners and $2,500 each for the six other finalists. The award is sponsored by the Mayo Clinic, the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), the Associated Press, Touchdown Illustrated magazine and the Fiesta Bowl.

A senior linebacker and team co-captain in both the 2017 and 2018 seasons, Adam has had to battle cancer three times in his young life, including once when he was in high school and once just before he enrolled at Augsburg. The cancer forced him to miss his initial collegiate season, but he did play the entire 2016 and 2017 campaigns.

After the conclusion of the 2017 season, in which he finished second in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in tackles with 93, the cancer returned for a third time. This past winter, Adam underwent chemotherapy and had to have his right ear amputated to prevent the cancer from spreading.

Adam returned to the team once again this season and played in all 10 games, recording 22 tackles, including three tackles for-loss, a fumble recovery, and a sack. The sack came in his final collegiate game this past Saturday against Hamline University.

In 30 games in his career, Adam finished with 135 total tackles (53 solo), with 8.5 tackles for-loss, 2.5 sacks, a forced fumble, fumble recovery. Adam is a business/economics major and international relations minor at Augsburg.