Troy University Athletics
Troy To Be Well Represented in All-Star Games
1/14/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
College football season does not necessarily end once a national champion is crowned. Each year the best college seniors around the country set out to improve their stock for April's NFL Draft in a series of college All-Star games.
The Troy Trojans, fresh off their first bowl appearance, will be well represented in games from Orlando to Maui.
There are five all-star games scheduled for the next two weeks, starting with the Gridiron Sports Villages Classic in Orlando on Saturday, January 15. The game will be televised by ESPN2 at 10 a.m. Dave Pasch, Rod Gilmore, Trevor Matich and Heather Cox will provide game analysis.
The Trojans will be represented in the game by all-time leading rusher DeWhitt Betterson, a native of Starke, Fla., and one of the greatest interception artists in school history, safety Derrick Ansley, a native of Tallassee, Ala. Both players were named first team All-Sun Belt Conference in the Trojans' first year in the league.
Ansley finished his career at Troy with 306 tackles and 19 interceptions. He twice returned interceptions for touchdowns and his 19 career picks ranked third among all active players in 2004.
Betterson smashed Troy's all-time rushing record by becoming the first back in school history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in back-to-back seasons as well as the first back in school history to top 3,000 yards in a career. He finished his career with 3,441 yards on 653 carries (5.26 ypc) and 24 touchdowns. He rushed for more than 100 yards in a game 14 times in his career, including seven times this year, and he was named Offensive MVP of the Silicon Valley Football Classic after rushing for 150 yards on 25 carries.
Ansley and Betterson will be two of the five players with ties to Alabama who will play for Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer's South squad. Joining them will be UAB linebackers Nigel Eldridge and Zac Woodfin along with Ole Miss receiver Bill Flowers, a native of Pelham, Ala.
The East-West Shrine Game will also be played on Saturday, with a 1 p.m. kickoff on ESPN2. Only two players with Alabama ties are slated to participate in this game - Auburn defensive lineman Jay Ratliff and Arkansas defensive lineman Jeb Huckeba, a native of Searcy, Ala.
Two more All-Star games are slated for next weekend, starting with the inaugural Las Vegas All-American Classic. The game will be televised by CSTV with a 3 p.m. start on January 22. There are five players with ties to Alabama scheduled to play in the game, but none from Troy. The five players are: OL Danny Martz (Alabama), OL Danny Lindsey (Auburn), DB Corey Larkin (Tennessee/Opelika), DL Shamar Abrams (UAB) and DL Eric Scott (USM/Scottsboro).
The Hula Bowl-Maui will follow next weekend, with a 6 p.m. kickoff. That game will be televised by ESPN. Betterson will make his second All-Star game appearance and will be joined by Trojans defensive tackle Alfred Malone.
Malone, a Frisco City native, came to Troy as a transfer from Georgia Tech. In his lone season with the Trojans he made a great impact, helping the Troy defense to a top 10 national ranking against the rush. Malone started every game for the Trojans and was credited with 35 tackles, including 6½ for loss.
Oregon's Mike Bellotti and Georgia's Mark Richt will serve as head coaches for the game.
All-Star season will conclude on Saturday, January 29th, with the 56th Annual Senior Bowl in Mobile. The game will kickoff at 3 p.m. and will be televised by ESPN.
The opposing squads for the game will be coached by coaching staffs of the Oakland Raiders and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Complete rosters for the game have not yet been announced, but Troy will be represented in the game by standout defensive end Demarcus Ware (Auburn, Ala.). The 2004 Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year will be the sixth player from Troy to participate in the most prestigious college all-star game.
Past Troy participants in the game include: Leonard Wheeler, DB (1992), Kelvin Simmons, QB (1994), Pratt Lyons, DL (1997), Marcus Spriggs, DL (1999) and Mareno Philyaw, WR (2000).
Ware completed his stellar career at Troy as the school's all-time leader in both sacks (27.5) and tackles for loss (58). This year he had 53 total tackles, 19 of those for loss, and he was credited with 10½ sacks. He was selected as a finalist for the Ted Hendricks Award, which goes to the top defensive end in college football.
Rosters for the 2005 Senior Bowl will be announced on January 23.
