ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target: Champion® Gridiron Kings Announces 2010 Roster
Former NFL and CFL Players to Coach Champion Gridiron® Kings Participants
—Media Credentials Available
ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target has revealed the roster for the second annual Champion® Gridiron Kings, an elite high school football event that features 65 of the best players in the game’s seven skill positions – quarterback, running back, tight end, wide receiver, linebacker, cornerback and safety. Champion® Gridiron Kings is scheduled for July 24-25 at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, the nation’s leading multisport venue for amateur and professional sports, in suburban Orlando, Fla.
Champion® Gridiron Kings is one of four elite events that anchor the ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target, July 14-27, and includes performance training, position-specific training, skills challenges and a 7-on-7 competition. Twenty-four of the 2010 participants are ESPNU 150 ranked including No. 10 Tony Steward (Pedro Menendez – St. Augustine, Fla.), No. 10 Tony Stewart (Pedro Menendez – St. Augustine, Fla.), No. 17 Quandre Diggs (Angleton – Angleton, Texas), No. 21 Karlos Williams (St. Thomas Aquinas – Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.), No. 22 Nick O’Leary (William T. Dwyer – Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) and No. 26 Ha’Sean Clinton-Dix (Dr. Phillips – Orlando, Fla.). Participants represent 19 states nationally including Mass., Mich., Mo., N.J., Utah and Va.
2010 Champion® Gridiron Kings Roster/Team:
| Player | Position | High School | ESPNU 150 | Team |
| Aaron Wallace Jr. | LB | Rancho Bernardo – San Diego, Calif. | n/a | West |
| Albert Louis-Jean | CB | Brockton – Brockton, Mass. | n/a | Midwest |
| Amir Carlisle | RB | The King’s Academy – Sunnyvale, Calif. | n/a | West |
| Anthony Wallace | LB | Skyline – Dallas, Texas | No. 141 | Southwest |
| Austin Seferian-Jenkins | TE | Gig Harbor – Gig Harbor, Wash. | No. 88 | West |
| Brandin Cooks | WR | Lincoln – Stockton, Calif. | n/a | West |
| Brandon Carter | Ath | Euless Trinity – Dallas, Texas | n/a | Southwest |
| Chet Moss | LB | Cedar Park – Cedar Park, Mo. | n/a | Southwest |
| Chris Barnett | TE | A. Maceo Smith – Dallas, Texas | n/a | Southwest |
| Christian Conley | WR | North Paulding – Dallas, Ga. | No. 134 | Southeast |
| Clifton Richardson | RB | Menchville – Newport News, Va. | No. 105 | Midwest |
| Conner Crowell | LB | North Point – Waldorf, Md. | n/a | Midwest |
| Corey Waller | LB | Long Beach Poly – Long Beach, Calif. | n/a | West |
| Curtis Grant | LB | Hermitage – Richmond, Va. | No. 44 | Midwest |
| Damiere Byrd | WR | Timber Creek – Sicklerville, N.J. | n/a | Midwest |
| Darian Miller | RB | Blue Springs – Blue Springs, Mo. | n/a | Southwest |
| DeAnthony Arnett | WR | Saginaw – Saginaw, Mich. | No. 53 | Midwest |
| Dee Hart | RB | Dr. Phillips – Orlando, Fla. | n/a | Southeast |
| Demetrious Nicholson | DB | Bayside – Virginia Beach, Va. | No. 91 | Midwest |
| Devon Blackmon | WR | Summit – Fontana, Calif. | No. 38 | West |
| Devondrick Nealy | RB | Jefferson County – Monticello, Fla. | n/a | Southeast |
| Donte Moncrief | WR | Raleigh – Raleigh, Miss. | n/a | Southwest |
| Doran Grant | DB | St.Vincents-St. Mary’s – Akron, Ohio | No. 67 | Midwest |
| Eilar Hardy | DB | Pickerington Central – Pickerington, Ohio | n/a | Midwest |
| George Atkinson Jr. | DB | Granada – Livermore, Calif. | n/a | West |
| Harvey Langi | RB | Bingham – South Jordan, Utah | n/a | West |
| Ha’Sean Clinton-Dix | ATH | Dr. Phillips – Orlando, Fla. | No. 26 | Southeast |
| Herschel Sims | RB | Abilene – Abilene, Texas | No. 100 | Southwest |
| Ifo Ekpre-Olomu | DB | Chino Hills – Chino Hills, Calif. | n/a | West |
| James Wilder | LB | Plant – Tampa, Fla. | No. 8 | Southeast |
| Jarvis Landry | WR | Lutcher – Lutcher. La. | No. 68 | Southwest |
| Jonathan Rose | DB | Leeds – Leeds, Ala. | n/a | Southeast |
| Josh Atkinson | DB | Granada – Livermore, Calif. | n/a | West |
| Josh Turner | CB | Millwood – Oklahoma City, Okla. | No. 87 | Southwest |
| Karlos Williams | DB | Ridge Community – Davenport, Fla. | No. 21 | Southeast |
| Kasen Williams | WR | Skyline – Sammamish, Wash. | No. 62 | West |
| Kendall Thompson | LB | Carthage – Carthage, Texas | n/a | Southwest |
| Lamar Dawson | TE | Boyle County – Danville, Ky. | n/a | Midwest |
| Lyndell Johnson | CB | Plano East – Plano, Texas | n/a | Southwest |
| Marcus Peters | DB | McClymonds – Oakland, Calif. | n/a | West |
| Marcus Roberson | CB | St. Thomas Aquinas – Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. | n/a | Southeast |
| Michael Bercovici | QB | Taft – Woodland Hills, Calif. | n/a | West |
| Michael Brewer | QB | Lake Travis – Austin, Texas | n/a | Southwest |
| Miles Onyegbule | WR | Arlington – Arlington, Texas | n/a | Southwest |
| Nick O’Leary | TE | William T. Dwyer – Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. | No. 22 | Southeast |
| Nick Waisome | DB | South Lake – Groveland, Fla. | No. 64 | Southeast |
| Patrick Coyne | QB | Badin – Hamilton, Ohio | n/a | Midwest |
| Phillip Ely | QB | Plant – Tampa, Fla. | n/a | Southeast |
| Quandre Diggs | S | Angleton – Angleton, Texas | No. 17 | Southwest |
| Quinta Funderburk | WR | Oscar Smith – Chesapeake, Va. | n/a | Midwest |
| Rahim Calif.ssell | LB | Lakewood – Lakewood, Calif. | n/a | West |
| Ramik Wilson | LB | Jefferson – Tampa, Fla. | n/a | Southeast |
| Rashad Greene | WR | St. Thomas Aquinas – Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. | No. 123 | Southeast |
| Ron Tanner II | DB | Eastmoor – Columbus, Ohio | n/a | Midwest |
| Savon Huggins | RB | St. Peter’s Prep – Jersey City, N.J. | No. 31 | Midwest |
| Shaquille Washington | ATH | Maple Heights – Maple Heights, Ohio | n/a | Midwest |
| Sheroid Evans | S | Dulles – Sugarland, Texas | No. 120 | Southwest |
| Stefan McClure | DB | Vista – Vista, Calif. | n/a | West |
| T.J. Thorpe | Ath | Charles E. Jordan – Durham, N.C. | n/a | Southeast |
| Tacoi Sumler | WR | Columbus – Miami, Fla. | No. 47 | Southeast |
| Tevin Mitchell | CB | Mansfield – Legacy, Texas | n/a | Southwest |
| Tony Steward | LB | Pedro Menendez – St. Augustine, Fla. | No. 10 | Southeast |
| Travis Hughes | LB | Kempsville – Virginia Beach, Va. | n/a | Midwest |
| Victor Blackwell | WR | Marter Dei – Santa Ana, Calif. | No. 56 | West |
2010 Champion® Gridiron Kings participants will benefit from on and off-field coaching/instruction and mentoring from former NFL/CFL players: Jeff Blake (QB – Jets, Bengals, Saints, Ravens, Cardinals, Eagles, Bears), Browning Nagle (QB – Jets, Colts, Falcons), Stacie Bailey (WR – Falcons), Terrence Mathis (WR – Jets, Falcons, Steelers), Lamar Thomas (WR – Buccaneers and Dolphins), Natrone Means (RB – Chargers, Panthers, Jaguars), Adrian Murrell (RB – Jets, Cardinals, Redskins, Cowboys), Chris Gizzi (LB – Packers, Broncos), Lonnie Marts (LB – Chiefs, Buccaneers, Oilers, Jaguars), Hardy Nickerson (LB – Steelers, Buccaneers, Jaguars, Packers), Louis Oliver (DB – Dolphins, Bengals), and Michael Fletcher (DB – BC Lions, Toronto Argonauts).
At the ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target, Target® will feature select product geared towards student athletes from its fall 2010 collection of C9 by Champion® performance wear. C9 by Champion is available exclusively at Target and Target.com. For more information about C9 by Champion visit Target.com/C9. Additional sponsors for the event include new sponsor EAS, the event’s official pre/post recovery/nutrition partner.
Under Armour High School Softball All-American, Champion Gridiron Kings, AAU 17-under Boys Basketball Super Showcase presented by Champion® and Champion® High School Senior Showcase a US Lacrosse Event (boys event) events will be presented on ESPNU live and as pre-recorded shows; ESPN3.com will air live competitive events.
ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target will include an opening ceremony at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex on Saturday, July 17.
Media interested in covering the event should make credential requests to [email protected].
The ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target is a two-week-long elite and competitive level student-athlete focused event, anchored by four elite high school sports events: the Champion High School Showcase, a US Lacrosse boys and girls event, the AAU 17-under Boys Basketball Super Showcase Presented By Champion®, the Under Armour High School Softball All-America game and the elite 7-on-7 high school football event Champion® Gridiron Kings. The ESPN RISE Games’ competitive channel youth sports include boys and girls lacrosse, softball, football, baseball, basketball, field hockey and track & field. The ESPN RISE Games Presented by Target expects to host more than 13,000 student athletes during the 2010 event.
About ESPN RISE
ESPN RISE represents ESPN’s commitment to engage and elevate high school athletes by providing them with recognition, resources, information and inspiration that can motivate them to improve their skills and achieve their goals to be the best athletes they can. ESPN RISE assets include ESPN RISE, GIRL, Hardwood and Gridiron magazines; ESPNRISE.com, and more than 160 high school events including Elite 11, Elite 24, ESPN RISE Games, ESPN RISE National High School Invitational, Faster to First, Area Code Baseball and Nike Combines/Nike SPARQ Mini Camps. ESPN RISE is uniquely positioned to provide high school athletes and the company’s core fans with compelling high school sports content across all ESPN platforms.
About ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex
ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, which hosts more than 300 events a year, is the leading multi-sport venue for amateur and professional sports in the United States, accommodating 60 different sports and athletes from more than 70 countries. Designed to take youth sports to the next level, the 220-acre facility features: The Fieldhouse, a 165,000-square-foot field house which seats 5,500 for basketball; Champion Stadium ballpark (cap. 11,500); Hess Sports Fields, which include multiple baseball, softball and soccer fields; Jostens Center, an 80,000-square-foot multi-sport fieldhouse; and the Innovation Lab, a real-world testing ground for the ESPN Emerging Technology group to develop ground-breaking on-air products like Ball Track and ESPN Snap Zoom. In addition, the complex features 56 high-definition cameras (42 robotic, 10 handheld and four studio) and 40 high-definition video screens, including three jumbo screens, that can capture and display footage from any event taking place at the complex. The camera and video screens, as well as a 20-zone audio system, are controlled through the state-of-the-art Production Center that features eight edit bays and links to ESPN facilities in Bristol, Conn., New York and Los Angeles. For more information, visit www.wdwnews.com for releases, photos and videos. Follow us on Twitter at @DisneySports.
About Target
Minneapolis-based Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) serves guests at 1,740 stores in 49 states nationwide and at Target.com. Target is committed to providing a fun and convenient shopping experience with access to unique and highly differentiated products at affordable prices. Since 1946, the corporation has given 5 percent of its income through community grants and programs like Take Charge of Education. Today, that giving equals more than $3 million a week. At the ESPN RISE GAMES Presented by Target 2010, Target will feature the Fall 2010 collection of C9 by Champion performance wear geared toward student athletes. C9 by Champion is available exclusively at Target. For more information about C9 by Champion visit Target.com/C9.
Champion®
Since 1919 Champion athleticwear has offered a full line of innovative athletic apparel for men and women including sport bras, activewear, team uniforms, sweats and accessories. Champion athleticwear can be purchased at most sporting goods and department stores. For more information please contact us at 1-800-999-2249 or visit www.championusa.com. Champion is a brand of Hanesbrands Inc.
Under Armour® (NYSE: UA) is a leading developer, marketer, and distributor of branded performance apparel, footwear, and accessories. The brand’s moisture-wicking synthetic fabrications are engineered in many different designs and styles for wear in nearly every climate. The Company’s products are sold worldwide and worn by athletes at all levels, from youth to professional, on playing fields around the globe. The Under Armour global headquarters is in Baltimore, Maryland, with European headquarters in Amsterdam’s Olympic Stadium, and additional offices in Denver, Hong Kong, Toronto, and Guangzhou, China. For further information, please visit the Company’s website at www.underarmour.com.
