Numerous area players selected for all star game

The 12th Annual Toyota East-West All Star Classic is coming up on Friday, December 7 on the campus of Austin Peay State University in Clarksville and Shelby County will definitely be represented as 11 players and 1 coach will be on the sidelines for the West squad.

Congrats to:
Arlington-RB Kenneth Walker, coach Andrew Atkins
Briarcrest-OL Zach Yates
Cordova-OL Matthew Bedford
Germantown-WR Cameron Baker, LB Shomar Michael, TE Conner Richardson
Houston-OL Kip Franklin, OL Matt Needham
Whitehaven-WR Devin Boddie, DE Tyler Hunter, DE Jacobi Rice


Here is the press release about the game:


COLUMBIA, TN -- 88 of Tennessee’s top senior football players have been selected to play in this year’s Toyota East-West All-Star Classic, scheduled to be played at Austin Peay State University on December 7.

“We’re very excited for the players and coaches who have accepted an invitation to be a part of the state’s premier all-star event,” stated Tennessee Athletic Coaches Association Executive Director Bill Marbet.

“This year, more than ever, we have an incredibly long list of players who have committed to continue their education by playing football at numerous Power Conference schools. Our list of player commitments is very impressive,” he added.

For the better part of All-Star Week, players and coaches will spend their time in Clarksville practicing for the event that will be televised nationally on ESPN3.

Four practice sessions, a half-day at famed Ft. Campbell, home of the famed 101st Airborne Division, and walk-through sessions the day of the game help make up the agenda for those involved in the game.

“Not only does this game showcase to a national audience much of Tennessee’s high school football talent, it also gives a number of other players an opportunity to show colleges coaches from smaller division schools that they are worthy of consideration for scholarship offers,” continued Marbet.

“In previous years, we’ve had college coaches from more than two-dozen colleges attend our practice sessions. As a result, additional players in the game who did not already have college scholarship offers before the event walked away from All-Star Week with a firm offer to play college football,” he added.

Marbet was also very complimentary for those in Clarksville who make All-Star Week such a memorable event. “All of us involved in staging this event are most appreciative of the support that people at Austin Peay, Visit Clarksville and Ft. Campbell have shown us,” he continued. “The memories our players and coaches take away from this game will last a lifetime.”

More than a dozen of the Mr. Football semifinalists this year are scheduled to play in the game.
Kickoff for the game is set for 7 o’clock at Fortera Stadium. Area high school football players who are wearing their high school jersey and are accompanied by one of their coaches will be admitted free to the game.