Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
College football’s back with the East-West Shrine Game from St. Petersburg, Fl and gives fans their first action since the Discover BCS National Championship Game.
For those of you fellow football junkies that are in desperate need to see some action on the gridiron after the Manti Te’o story this weekend the East-West game could not come at a more perfect time.
The game is a showcase for the players looking to catch the eye of NFL scouts in advance of next month’s combine and the draft in April, and while it features a Heisman finalist in Collin Klein, not many of these players will be high draft picks.
Klein is the biggest name to play in this game, but his NFL future is in doubt and the Tim Tebow comparisons will be aplenty because neither throws the best ball and Klein may be forced to make a position switch at the next level. The former Kansas State quarterback will start for the East squad and was a highly productive runner in college like Tebow and is a great leader and winner, but his throwing motion and accuracy will make it difficult for him to be drafted before day three of the draft.
Sharing the backfield with Klein is former Pittsburgh running back Ray Graham who is coming off three consecutive 900-yard seasons and has 32 touchdowns in his college career and the 5-9 190-pound back would be a much higher pick if he were three inches taller and 20 pounds heavier.
Other notable players to keep an eye on in this game are former Texas Tech quarterback Seth Doege is Klein’s counterpart on the West squad and put up big numbers in that system, but doesn’t project to be one of the top 10 quarterbacks in the draft.
Doege will be throwing to former Mississippi State wide receiver Chad Bumphis who led the SEC in touchdown receptions and the 5-11 200-pound Bumphis could be a fifth round pick and find a home as a slot receiver at the next level.
To see the rest of the starting lineups you have to check out this clip from Key & Peele from their Comedy Central show of the same name.
The 3:32 clip will be all the entertainment you need to power through the second half of this game when the small school prospects start to enter the game and you get a little fatigued with the Klein-Tebow comparisons.
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Patrick is a diehard Chicago sports fan, and is the host of “The Wake-up Call,” on Sportstownchicago.com Wednesday 8-10am. View his show’s website here.
