By Stephen Spiewak
MaxPreps.com
When South Pointe quarterback Stephon Gilmore lines up behind center for the South Carolina team in the 2008 Shrine Bowl, there's no doubt he will be staring across at the most imposing defense he has ever seen.
Because not only will North Carolina’s squad feature defensive linemen Donte Moss lining up along side Chapel Hill High School star Jared McAdoo, but the Tar Heel State will be stacked with Division 1 talent at all three levels of defense.
Luckily, Gilmore himself will be surrounded by the cream of the crop from the Palmetto State when the Shrine Bowl kicks off Dec. 20 at Gibbs Stadium in Spartanburg, S.C.
That’s because the best of the best are called upon to represent their state in the Shrine Bowl, the long-standing rivalry game between North Carolina and South Carolina known as "America’s Original High School Football All-Star Game."
“Everybody that day is an all-star,” said Joe Sessoms, Public Relations Chairman for the Shrine Bowl. “And they play like one.”
Sessoms said that while some all-star games are not overly competitive and are taken less seriously, when it comes to the Shrine Bowl, the atmosphere is quite different.
“Every single player from these two teams will play their absolute best and bring nothing back with them,” he said.
The game, which has been played on the third Saturday in December for the last 71 years, always attracts the best players from both states, 44 on each side, and has seen many future college and NFL come through the ranks, including current Panthers star Julius Peppers and former running back Stephen Davis.
Gilmore, himself a University of South Carolina commit with a bright future, helped lead South Pointe to a 4A-II state title in South Carolina.
Alshon Jeffery, a dangerous wide receiver currently committed to Southern California, will be a target for Gilmore.
South Carolina’s defensive line is no slouch either; Clemson-bound Malliciah Goodman and Greenwood sensation Sam Montgomery will be the bookends and should provide a great pass rush.
While many of North Carolina’s strengths reside on defense, the offensive unit will include Jheranie Boyd, a game-breaking receiver from Ashbrook. Creating time and space for the offense to operate will be massive Jack Britt High School tackle and Gatorade Player of the Year Xavier Nixon.
The 6-foot-6, 275-pound Nixon is on the radar of many prominent college programs, though fans of UNC are hoping he stays in-state. Fans of North Carolina high school football are hoping he can help the Tar Heel State win its fifth Shrine Bowl in seven years.
However, the real winners this and every year are the children that are helped by the Shriners Hospital for Children, which consists of 22 top-notch pediatric facilities nationwide specializing in orthopedics and burn treatments.
Shriners, a group of Masons whose membership in the Carolinas is roughly 25,000, are involved in many fund raising activities throughout the course of the year that benefit the various hospitals.
The Shrine Bowl, which was first founded to re-create on the high school level the success of the collegiate East-West Shrine Game, has been very productive in raising both funds and awareness for the hospitals and the work they do.
“The great thing about this is that all of our patients in the 22 hospitals, we never ask their parents for a dime,” Sessoms said. “No insurance company pays a cent. The U.S. government does not contribute a nickel. All the hospitals are run by the great work the Shriners do and have done around the country.”
It is these children that often leave the biggest mark on the players from their Shrine Bowl experience. The players, who arrive a full week before the game, spend their second day in town visiting and spending time with the children at one of the Shriners' orthopedics hospitals.
“It’s a great learning experience for them,” Sessoms said. “I promise you this, when they go to the hospital on Sunday, they will not be the same when they leave it. That will make an impression that will last a lifetime.”
While the outcome on the field changes from year to year, the outpouring of love and compassion remains a constant, according to Sessoms.
“Every single year I never cease to be amazed,” said Sessom, who estimated that over 200 people will volunteer their time for this year’s game.
The prodigious volunteer squad ensures that all the money that the game raises goes back to the hospitals.
Since 1987, the Shrine Bowl has raised over $37 million, with last year’s game alone grossing $1.3 million.
A year of fundraising, countless hours spent volunteering, and a week of players gelling with teammates and patients alike each culminate with kickoff on game day, which makes it all worth it, Sessom said.
“There’s not a greater feeling in the world than watching these two teams demonstrate their skills as best they can,” he said.
Shrine Bowl 2008 Ticket Information
General admission tickets are currently available at all BI-LO stores in North and South Carolina. You may also purchase tickets from the Shrine Bowl office in advance for $20 reserve section and $10 general admission. Game day, reserve section $25 and $15 general admission. Stop in your local BI-LO store or order over the phone at 1-800-648-2695, or online at www.shrine-bowl.com. The game will be aired on a tape delay basis on ESPNU on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009 at 10 p.m.
