Thoughts on the HBCU All-Star Bowl
December 19th, 2011Atlanta – Once again we had another exciting HBCU All-Star Bowl. First and foremost the HBCU All-Star Bowl Committee does an outstanding job with the event. The players are treated in a first-class manner the entire week, which includes a combine conducted by NFL scouts on Tuesday to a financial literacy seminar, etc. It is indeed a first-class event and it would be nice to see that reflected in the stands and through sponsorships.
Twenty-nine of the 32 NFL teams were represented during the week and all of the Canadian Football League teams were represented.
The East defeated the West for the third-straight year, 23-13.
With CFL coaches serving as coaches for the East and West All-Stars, I thought it may be more of a wide open game. (Actually both of the coaches are defensive coordinators; Chris Jones of the Calgary Stampeders and Tim Tibesar of the Montreal Allouettes.) On Saturday during media day, Bethune-Cookman defensive end Ryan Davis said this would be a defensive game, one to his liking, and he was right. He was certainly one of the stars on defense with two sacks on West quarterbacks, including the sack of Albany State’s Stanley Jennings that ended the game. I’m sure Norfolk State quarterback Chris Walley was glad that Davis was on his team in this game.
Speaking of Walley, he was having a solid game, until he twisted his knew trying to avoid a sack in the second quarter. He finished 5-of-9 for 79 yards and hooked up with Howard wide receiver Willie Carter for a nice pass and catch on the opening drive for the East that stalled and led to a 46-yard field goal by Trevor Scott of Florida A&M. Carter was very impressive in the game and I would vote him the offensive MVP as he had four catches for 76 yards. Scott was 3-of-3 on field goals, making two from 46 yards.
The East had more of a balanced attack as they ran the ball 32 times and passed 29. Delaware State’s Jaashawn Jones was the workhorse and was solid with nine carries for 50 yards. Savannah State’s Justin Babb, who for the last couple of years has been one of the more underrated running backs in HBCU Football because SSU was not in a conference, got some work with seven carries for only 10 yards, but had the biggest and most exciting play of the day, when Alcorn State’s Arturo Tamayo’s 55-yard field goal attempt fell short and Babb caught it five yards deep in the end zone and took it back down the left sideline for a touchdown, bulling his way inside the left pylon as a West defender tried to tackle him at the last minute. That was with nine seconds left in the third quarter and gave the East a 20-10 lead.
As is typical in the SWAC and SIAC, it was more of an air it out style. I was disappointed that Jackson State quarterback Casey Therriault did not play in the game nor did Prairie View A&M defensive end Adrian Hamilton who leads the nation with 20.5 sacks. Albany State quarterback Stanley Jennings did get a majority of the work. He was 13-of-30 (43 percent) for 170 yards. He has a really strong arm and is a very nimble runner, but similar to his regular season numbers (49 percent completion) he completed less than 50 percent of his passes.
I would like to have seen more of Kentucky State quarterback Jared Nolan. He has a great arm as well, hooking up on the West’s opening drive with Morehouse’s Derrick Hector for a 54-yard pass play. Nolan played a handful of series and was 5-of-12 for 110 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Hector (3 rec. 66 yards), Mississippi Valley State’s Paul Cox (3 rec. 63 yards), Alabama State’s Nick Andrews (3 rec. 46 yards) and Fort Valley State’s Demario Barber (3 rec. 24 yards 1 TD) all had solid performances.
Last year it was a player from Southern that was impressive defensively. Jordan Miller, who is now on the Chicago Bears practice squad, had a great game last year. Linebacker Jamie Payton was all over the field in this game, making tackle after tackle. Alabama State’s Kynjee Cotton (five tackles) had a strong game as did teammate Donovan Masline. Can’t wait to see their teammates Kejuan Riley and Saeed Lee in next year’s game.
Finally a player who really impressed throughout the week and had a great game was Fort Valley State punter Marquette King. King averaged 43.7 yards per punt and had a long of 65. Scouts really like his hang time and with continued work has a legitimate shot to play in the NFL.
That was the last game of the football season. As for 2012: “Can’t wait!”
Donal Ware is the host of the nationally syndicated FROM THE PRESS BOX TO PRESS ROW that can be heard on radio stations around the country. Click the following link http://boxtorow.com/affiliates.php to find out which station in your locale carries the show or go to www.boxtorow.com and click on the listen live link Saturdays from 1 – 2 p.m. ET. The show also airs Friday from 1-2p ET on H.U.R. Voices SiriusXM Channel 141. On August 20, 2011, FTPBTPR celebrated 6 years of the best of HBCU Sports talk and pro sports talk. August 20, 2005 – August 20, 2011.
