Seniors Selected to Play in Postseason All-Star Games
12/1/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Bandiera was invited to play in The Villages Gridiron Classic Jan. 15, 2005 at the site of his last game- the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando. Cribbs and Mahl will take their talents west to the Las Vegas All-American Classic Jan. 22.
A four-year letter winner and three-year starter on the offensive line, Bandiera will suit up for the North team at the Gridiron Classic. The squad will be coached by Ohio States Jim Tressel. Frank Beamer of Virginia Tech will lead the South squad.
Both Cribbs and Mahl were recently named to the 2004 All-Mid-American Conference Team and will play for the East team in Las Vegas. The team will be coached by former AFCA Coach of the Year (2002) Jack Harbaugh. His son, former NFL quarterback and current University of San Diego head coach Jim Harbaugh, will coach the west team.
This is great for Kent State football, said head coach Doug Martin. Having three players invited to play in postseason games shows the progress and improvement this program has made.
The players will participate in four days of workouts under the watchful eyes of not only the coaching staffs, but also those of NFL coaches and scouts. Last season, over 155 NFL personnel attended the Las Vegas game, then called the Paradise Bowl and played in Utah. Over 80% of the participants in The Villages Classic have either been drafter or signed NFL contracts.
The coaching staff for the Las Vegas All-American Classic will be made up of former NFL players and coaches. In addition to coaches Tressel and Beamer, the staffs of The Villages Gridiron Classic will me comprised of professional assistant coaches from NFL Europe.
This is a real reward for Josh, Eric and Chad and the way they played at the end of the season, Martin added. The Golden Flashes won their final four games to finish 5-6 overall and 4-4 in the MAC in their first season under Martin.
Both all-star games will be shown on national TV. The Villages Gridiron Classic will be televised live by ESPN while the Las Vegas game will be seen by more than 50 million homes by Fox Sports Net.
