|
Frye Leads North To 23-13
Victory Over South
In 2005 Senior Bowl
Akron QB throws for 138
yards and a touchdown to lead North to win.
[Complete
Senior Bowl Coverage at ESPN.com]
[Complete Senior Bowl 2005 Game Stats &
Play-By-Play]
[2005
Photo Gallery]
[2005 Rosters]
Akron’s Charlie Frye was named
the 2005 Senior Bowl MVP in leading
the North to a 23-13
victory.
MOBILE, Ala. (January
29, 2005) -- Charlie Frye made the most of the opportunity when he finally
got a chance to play in the postseason.
The Akron quarterback was nearly flawless
in the 2005 Senior Bowl, played before a sellout crowd of 40,646 in
Mobile’s Ladd-Peebles Stadium, completing 10-of-12 passes for 138 yards
and a touchdown to lead the North to a 23-13 victory over the South and
earned the game’s overall Most Valuable Player Award.
Frye seized the spotlight after his Zips
were the 57th team in the NCAA's 56-team bowl sweepstakes, the only
eligible team snubbed by the bowls. But he downplayed any effect
Saturday's performance had on his hopes of becoming the next Mid-American
Conference quarterback to make it in the NFL.
“I'm not worried about that," Frye said.
"I just came in here to have fun and I just look forward to having a
chance to play in that league."
The contest capped the Senior Bowl’s
annual week-long series of practice sessions and special events, annually
featuring the nation’s top senior NFL draft prospects representing the
North and South which are coached by the entire coaching staffs of two NFL
teams.
Oakland Raiders head coach Norv Turner
and his staff coached Frye’s North team to victory in the contest, while
Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Jon Gruden and his staff coached the South
team.
Senior Bowl Week 2005 was also attended
by over 700 National Football League general managers, head coaches,
assistant coaches, scout and other front office personnel from the 32 NFL
teams making Mobile and the Senior Bowl host to a one-of-a-kind NFL
convention.
In addition to Frye, the contest also
wound up showcasing the game's smallest player, Kansas State's Darren
Sproles, who's trying to prove he can play in the NFL.
The 5-foot-5 Sproles outplayed bigger
tailbacks, darting through the middle for 24 yards and the game's first
touchdown with 10:07 left in the third quarter, immediately ripping off
his helmet to celebrate the score.
His goal for the week "was just to show
people that I could play, that it doesn't matter what my size is," said
Sproles, who had 55 yards on five carries and was selected North offensive
player of the game.
Frye led the North on three scoring
drives during the contest, and hit Northwestern's Noah Herron with a
22-yard touchdown pass in the final minutes to cap his performance.
Frye also joined a distinguished list of
players who have won the game’s Most Valuable Player award, including such
current NFL stars as running back LaDainian Tomlinson of the Chargers,
quarterback Chad Pennington of the Jets and Buccaneers’ linebacker Derrick
Brooks, as well as Pro Football Hall of Famers Jim Taylor, Terry Bradshaw,
James Lofton and Dan Marino.
Ohio State's Mike Nugent, the Lou Groza
Award winner as the nation's top kicker, booted field goals of 25, 36 and
41 yards. Frye was impressed by his fellow Ohio product.
“If you get it inside the 40, he's not
going to miss," said Frye, who set up one field goal with a 40-yard pass
to Stanford tight end Alex Smith.
Bill Swancutt of Oregon State was the
North's defensive player of the game, with a 3.5 tackle performance which
included 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 quarterback sacks.
Jason Campbell of Auburn completed
9-of-13 passes for 116 yards and set up two field goals by Mississippi's
Jonathan Nichols to earn top offensive honors for the South.
Clemson's Leroy Hill was the team's
defensive player of the game, finishing with 3.5 tackles.
Georgia's David Greene hit former
Arkansas star Matt Jones, a college quarterback who played receiver in the
game, with a 5-yard touchdown pass with 1:05 to play. Greene, Division I's
winningest quarterback, was 11-of-16 for 102 yards.
Campbell, who led the Tigers to a 13-0
record and a controversial -- at least in their eyes -- No. 2 finish after
three up-and-down seasons, also had another drive going early, but West
Virginia's Kay-Jay Harris fumbled away a handoff.
The defenses came up with the majority of
the big plays in the first half, forcing three turnovers. Howard's Ronald
Bartell stripped the ball from Georgia's Fred Gibson on a late kick
return, setting up Nugent's second field goal -- a 36-yarder -- with 34
seconds for a 6-3 North lead at the half.
The 57th annual Senior Bowl, presented by
Food World, is scheduled for Saturday, January 28, 2006. For further
information, access the bowl’s website at
www.seniorbowl.com |
