LMT sets its new high for first-place finishes at 2026 TME awards

Pictured is Laredo Morning Times, located at 5711 McPherson Rd #203A in Laredo, Texas.

Jason Mack/Laredo Morning Times

Laredo Morning Times won six awards this past weekend, including three staffers winning their respective categories, as it continued its run as the state’s most successful sports section over the past five years.

Jason Mack, Louis San Miguel and Billy Woods each earned best in Texas honors at the 2026 Texas Managing Editors/Headliners Excellence in Journalism Contest, giving the paper three first-place finishes for the first time.

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The event was held April 24–26 in El Paso.

“At the Texas Managing Editors/Headliners Excellence in Journalism Contest this past weekend in El Paso, Laredo Morning Times scored the most LMT first-place finishes it has ever received,” LMT Publisher Bill Green said. “For sports writing: Billy Woods and Jason Mack each had one first-place finish, while Louis San Miguel was again selected Designer of the Year. Moreover, LMTeam News won honorable mention for team effort as LMT’s versatility was recognized in several areas.”

Laredo Morning Times set its new high winning three first-place awards at the 2026 Texas Managing Editors/Headliners Excellence in Journalism Contest in El Paso, Texas from April 24-26, 2026.

Louis San Miguel earned Designer of the Year for the third consecutive year, Jason Mack won Sports Column Writing for LMT’s fourth win in the category in five years, and Billy Woods secured LMT’s first Celeste Williams Star Sportswriter of the Year honor.

Zach Davis/Laredo Morning Times

The recognitions bring LMT to 23 TME awards over the past five years. Among those are eight first-place honors, which rank fifth among all Texas newspapers in the 2A division — made up of newspapers that publish at least four times per week or web-only organizations with up to 19 journalists.

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LMT’s sports section has been a mainstay atop the state rankings over that same span, and the paper built on that run with the latest awards. In the three total 2A categories for sports writing, LMT now has 12 awards and five first-place finishes since 2022 — both of which rank first in the state. Lubbock Avalanche-Journal (7), Bryan-College Station Eagle (6), Clute, The Facts (5) and Waco Tribune-Herald (5) round out the top five in those categories, while Clute, The Facts and San Antonio Report are the only other newspapers with multiple first-place finishes at two apiece.

“I am very proud of our sports section for continuing to bring quality, award-winning content to our community,” LMT Managing Editor Zach Davis said. “Winning even one total award at this event is difficult in a field full of deserving newspapers all across Texas. The fact we’ve been able to have the success we’ve had in this area consistently over the past five years shows how well the team has performed.”

Mack took first place in Sports Column Writing, giving LMT its fourth win in five years. It is his first time taking first place in a TME category, while his five total awards rank 17th in the state out of the 217 individuals who have earned an award over that span.

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Mack — a 21-year veteran in the newspaper industry, including the last 14 at LMT — began his journalism career in sports, covering the University of Toledo athletics, the Toledo Mud Hens and Walleye, and more for outlets including the Toledo Free Press and Toledo Blade. He also developed a background covering arts and entertainment news, which he has been able to explore further along with hard news at LMT in his current role as reporting editor.

Mack won the category for his work on the following stories:

“Three very different and very good columns,” a TME judge said. “The first does such a good job of presenting a case that is clearly close to the writer, making a case and not getting into that ‘making it about me’ territory that columns can fall into. All three were excellent reads.”

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Meanwhile, Woods made his mark in his first full year with LMT, taking the top overall spot as the Celeste Williams Star Sportswriter of the Year. It is the first time an LMT staffer has taken home first place in this category.

Woods joined LMT in 2025 after coming from the Edwardsville Intelligencer in Illinois, a fellow Hearst newspaper, where he was originally hired as an intern in 2021 following his graduation from Lindenwood University.

Woods took home the honor off the following stories:

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Mack and Woods also placed among the top entries for overall sports feature. Woods took second place for his story on how Jalen Garcia’s legacy lives on with the United football program, while Mack placed third for his look at how local racers survived hypothermia and 35 hours of racing to win the Baja 1000 in Mexico.

The LMT newsroom was also honored for its collaboration. In the team effort category, LMT received an honorable mention for its coverage of a local tragedy, as six different bylines spanned more than 10 stories throughout 2025 on a woman’s death in Laredo after she was allegedly killed by her ex.

San Miguel also continued his recent dominance at the TME awards for design, securing the Designer of the Year award for the third consecutive year, while also taking second in 2023. San Miguel ranks No. 1 in the state in both total awards (4) and first-place awards (3) in this category over that span. Killeen Daily Herald also has four awards with one first-place honor, while Temple Daily Telegram is the only other organization with multiple total awards with two.

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As the special sections editor, San Miguel — a 15-year veteran including nearly 10 years at LMT — supplements the main and sports sections of the daily newspaper. His efforts are extensively featured in products including LMT Kids, Art of Living, Dvino Living, Salud and Dvino Magazine.

To earn the honor, San Miguel was highlighted for his work on the 2025 LMT High School Football Preview, as well as his designs on the front page of the daily newspaper, including stories featuring research challenging the famed story of Jovita Idar, the fifth anniversary of COVID-19, a look at Black Pumas’ artist Adrian Quesada and Proposition A of Laredo’s 2025 bond referendum.

A photo illustration created by Louis San Miguel as part of the Laredo Morning Times on March 16, 2025.
San Miguel was named Designer of the Year for the third consecutive year at the 2026 Texas Managing Editors/Headliners Excellence in Journalism Contest.

A photo illustration created by Louis San Miguel as part of the Laredo Morning Times on March 16, 2025.