Live updates: 76th annual Reese’s Senior Bowl

FIRST QUARTER

The Nationals won the toss, chose to take the football and got right down to business by moving 67 yards in 10 plays for a touchdown. Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon II had four carries for 17 yards in the drive, but his big play was a 32-yard halfback pass for a touchdown to Iowa State tight end with 9:48 left in the first quarter. Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel then tossed a conversion pass to Miami (Fla.) tight end Elijah Arroyo to give the Nationals a 7-0 lead. Gabriel had two first-down completions on the drive – to Higgins and Southern Cal running back Woody Marks. NATIONAL 8, AMERICAN 0

The Americans’ opening possession ended in a lost fumble. It appeared Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard from Fairhope had his third first-down completion of the series, but Georgia wide receiver Arian Smith fumbled after the reception, and Iowa safety Sebastian Castro returned the football to the American 49-yard line to start the Nationals’ second series with 5:17 left in the first quarter.

The Nationals’ second possession ended with a three-and-out punt after getting sidetracked by a false-start penalty and done in by a dropped pass on third down. Florida’s Jeremy Crawshaw punted 40 yards for a fair catch at the American 12-yard line with 3:27 left in the first quarter.

PREGAME

The 76th annual Reese’s Senior Bowl will kick off at 1:30 p.m. CST Saturday with a temperature in the mid 60s and virtually no breeze at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile. NFL Network is televising the game.

The all-stars are divided into American and National teams. The Nationals are wearing white jerseys and pants with two orange stripes bordering a blue stripe on the shoulders and down the legs. The Americans are wearing orange jerseys and gray pants with red, white and blue stripes on the shoulders and down the legs.

Each helmet bears a sticker with the No. 7 in tiger stripes in memory of Princeton standout Tiger Bech, who was killed in the New Year’s Eve terrorist attack in New Orleans. His brother, TCU wide receiver Jack Bech, is on the American team.

The American is the home team, at least in makeup. Twenty-five of the American’s players are from the SEC. The Americans also have all 14 of the all-stars on the game-day roster who played at Alabama high schools and colleges:

Auburn linebacker Eugene Asante

Alabama punter James Burnip
Alabama tight end CJ Dippre
Auburn running back Jarquez Hunter

Florida wide receiver Shemar James (Faith Academy)

Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard (Fairhope)

Auburn linebacker Jalen McLeod
UCF cornerback Mac McWilliams (UAB 2020-2023)

Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe

South Alabama wide receiver Jamaal Pritchett (Jackson)

Tulane safety Caleb Ransaw (Sparkman, Troy)

Alabama defensive tackle Tim Smith

Alabama A&M offensive tackle Carson Vinson

Jacksonville State guard Clay Webb (Oxford)

Two players with Alabama football roots who participated in practice this week are not on the game roster – Ole Miss cornerback Trey Amos, who played at Alabama before joining the Rebels, and Oregon wide receiver Tez Johnson, who starred at Pinson Valley before playing at Troy.

Alabama safety Malachi Moore of Hewitt-Trussville could not participate because of an injury.

The head coach for the National team is Mike Kafka, the offensive coordinator of the New York Giants. The head coach of the American team is Bubba Ventrone, the special-teams coordinator of the Cleveland Browns.

The Senior Bowl coaching staffs consist of assistants from around the NFL.

The Senior Bowl assembled a quarterback set of Leonard, Milroe, Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart and Memphis’ Seth Henigan for the American team and Laurier’s Taylor Elgersma, Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel and Louisville’s Tyler Shough for the National team.

Leonard and Gabriel are the scheduled starters.

Hancock Whitney Stadium is serving as the site of the Senior Bowl for the fifth time. South Alabama opened its 25,450-seat stadium in the 2020 season. For the second year in a row, tickets for the Senior Bowl sold out.

The first Senior Bowl was played at Gator Bowl Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1950. The next 70 games were played at Mobile’s Ladd-Peebles Stadium, which is about 9 miles east of South Alabama’s facility.

Hancock Whitney Stadium has proven providential for the National team, which has not lost a Senior Bowl game there.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.