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North Blanks South 27-0 In
58th Annual
Under Armour Senior Bowl
Penn State running
back Tony Hunt earns MVP honors as nation’s premier senior draft
prospects take their next step to the NFL.
Complete Game Statistics and Play-By-Play
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 MOBILE, Ala. (January
28, 2007) -- The North used a dominating defense, some big plays on
offense and an MVP performance by Penn State’s Tony Hunt to shut out the
South 27-0 in the 58th annual Under Armour Senior Bowl Saturday
afternoon in Mobile’s Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
Although rain fell on the sellout crowd of 40,646 throughout the
contest, the North didn’t seem to care. Led by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’
coaching staff, the North wasted little time making a statement going on
a nine-play, 75-yard drive touchdown march on the game’s opening
possession and never looked back.
By the time the first half was finished, the North was up 20-0 and was
showing even less signs of letting up on the South squad, coached by the
San Francisco 49ers staff, than the rain.
Penn State running back Tony Hunt was
named the 2007 Under Armour
Senior Bowl
Most Valuable Player in helping lead the
North to a 27-0
victory.
The contest capped off another highly-successful Senior Bowl Week in
Mobile, as 100 of the nation’s top senior NFL Draft prospects took
advantage of the opportunity to spend a week being coached by the
Buccaneers and 49ers entire coaching staffs. They also were able to
display their talents in front of over 800 National Football League
general managers, head coaches, personnel directors, scouts and other
front office personnel who once again flocked to Mobile for football’s
premier pre-draft event.
After the half, the weather conditions hampered both team’s
effectiveness, leading to12 total fumbles and a stunted passing game
from both sides. Still, the North managed to increase its lead in the
second half, ultimately claiming a lopsided victory over the South team.
The shutout was the result of an impressive performance by the North on
both sides of the ball, as they out-gained the South in total yards,
264-93.
Hunt was named the game’s most valuable player, rushing eight times for
39 yards and the one touchdown. The North offensive MVP went to Michigan
State quarterback Drew Stanton, who was 8-12 passing for 63 yards and a
touchdown, and the defensive MVP was awarded to Michigan cornerback
Leon Hall, who had four tackles and one pass break-up.
Michigan's Leon Hall was the North's
Defensive MVP, recording four tackles and
one pass breakup.
South MVP’s were Auburn offensive lineman Ben Grubbs for the offense,
and Ole Miss linebacker Patrick Willis was the defensive MVP, as he led
all tacklers with 11, seven solos, and added a forced fumble.
Led by Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith, the Heisman Trophy winner who
started the game, the North offense took to the air early, passing on
five of the game’s first seven plays. After missing on his first two
attempts, Smith connected on a nice out pattern by East Carolina wide
receiver Aundrae Allison for 15 yards and a first down.
That drive-extending play seemed to settle Smith and the North down.
Head Coach Jon Gruden then dialed up some early-game trickery, opting
for a reverse to Washington State wide receiver Jason Hill, who ran down
the field for a 35-yard gain.
Later in the drive, Rutgers running back Brian Leonard converted a
fourth-and-one, plunging into the middle of the line for five yards. On
the very next play, Hunt ran off right tackle for seven yards and a
touchdown.
Michigan State quarterback Drew Stanton
was
8-12 passing for 53 yards and one touchdown
and won North Offensive MVP honors.
The South would find no answer to Hunt’s score for the remaining 56
minutes, thanks greatly to an aggressive and speedy North defense that
relentlessly pressured South quarterbacks. In total, the North tallied
eight sacks, led by three from Nebraska defensive end Jay Moore. The
South did not record a sack.
The North defense set the tone early, allowing only four first downs in
the first half while limiting the South to 61 of their eventual 93
yards. For the game, the North defense surrendered a total of six first
downs. Michigan linebacker David Harris was seemingly everywhere, and
19-year-old defensive tackle phenom Amobi Okoye looked impressive. The
ultra-quick Louisville defensive tackle showed excellent burst as he
exploded through the South’s offensive line for a sack of Florida
quarterback Chris Leak on the South’s first offensive possession.
In his first two series, Smith completed four of 13 passes for 45 yards,
and his best play may have come when he managed to buy time with his
feet on a fourth-and-seven from the South’s 37-yard line. Avoiding the
oncoming pressure, Smith bounced forward, then back and to his left
before finding Leonard on the sideline. The Rutgers back hauled in the
pass and rumbled for 13 yards and a first down. The North would
ultimately settle for a field goal by Colorado’s Mason Crosby on the
drive.
Down 10-0, the South could never get things going thanks to stellar play
by several North defenders. Michigan cornerback Leon Hall looked sharp,
and made a good open-field tackle of Auburn running back Kenny Irons to
force a punt. And Nebraska defensive end Jay Moore had a big hit on Leak
to force a fumble that Maryland defensive back Josh Wilson recovered for
the North.
Ole Miss linebacker Patrick Willis led
all
defenders with 11 total tackles and was
named the South's Defensive MVP.
The North continued to fire on all cylinders, taking advantage of the
Leak turnover, this time led by Michigan State passer Drew Stanton.
Going three-for-three on the ensuing possession, Stanton capped off the
drive by throwing a perfect seven-yard fade to Allison in the corner of
the end zone for the North’s second touchdown of the game.
Pittsburgh quarterback Tyler Palko also found success upon entering the
game, making several nice plays to keep a North drive alive before the
half. On a third-and-six, Palko completed a nice out to Notre Dame wide
receiver Rhema McKnight for 13 yards and a first down. Two plays later,
Palko again faced a third down, this time needing eight yards to move
the chains. Seeing the middle of the field unmanned, the Pitt passer
used his feet to make something happen, scrambling 16 yards down to the
15-yard line.
Later in the drive, Palko would proceed to do his best impression of
Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre, shoveling the football
backhanded and on the run to Kansas State running back Thomas Clayton,
who caught the impromptu pass and ran to the four-yard line. The drive
would eventually stall there, forcing another Crosby field goal.
The North would go on to score once more in the game when Smith
re-entered the game and threw a seven-yard touchdown to Hill midway
through the third quarter. The South never got any closer to paydirt.
All in all, it was an impressive performance by an obviously inspired
group of future NFL draftees.
Despite being shutout, some South
offensive
stars had good games including Auburn
guard Ben Grubbs, named the South's
Offensive MVP.
During the all-important week of practice leading up to the Under Armour
Senior Bowl, many of the North’s players remarked on how much they were
learning from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers coaches. Saturday it showed, as
they made good on Gruden’s final words to them before the game: “Make
plays and win the game.”
Portions of this story first appeared on
www.buccaneers.com.
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