ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Illinois State football All-Americans Davontae Harris and Dalton Keene have been practicing hard all week and meeting with representatives from several NFL teams this week, as the duo prepares to represent the Redbird football program at the 93rd East-West Shrine Game® on Saturday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.
The annual all-star game, which features some of college football's best prospects, will be broadcast live on the NFL Network and the East-West Shrine Game Radio Network, with kickoff slated for 2 p.m. CT.
Harris and Keene are the third and fourth Illinois State players, respectively, selected to play in the prestigious game, joining Chad Pegues (1998) and Boomer Grigsby (2004). The All-American duo joins an elite list of football greats, such as Tom Brady, John Elway, Brett Favre, and 74 NFL Hall of Famers, who have played in the East-West Shrine Game, in addition to more than 265 East-West Shrine Game alumni on NFL rosters each year.
For Harris, the experience throughout the week has felt like one long job interview with a career in the NFL at stake.
"It's been a great experience overall, and the whole thing feels like the biggest job interview or career fair of your life," Harris said. "You're constantly evaluated by several scouts at practice, and the hotel is filled with reps from each team conducting interviews from the dining room, up the stairs and all the way to the bus headed to a practice. Practices are even more intense, with scouts filling the entire sideline evaluating the way you play your position down to how you ask the trainers for a drink of water. All in all, the experience was hectic, but certainly memorable."
Harris two-time All-Missouri Valley Football Conference First-Team selection, Harris led the Redbirds and tied for second in the MVFC with 14 passes defended (12 PBU, 2 INT) during the 2017 season. He also ranked third on the team with 57 tackles, including two sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss, and was credited with three quarterback hurries. The Wichita, Kansas, native finished his ISU career with 208 tackles (152 solo stops), 38 passes defended, 10 tackles for loss, four interceptions and three sacks in 49 games played for the Redbirds.
Keene echoed his teammates' account of the week, and has taken time to reflect on the true purpose behind the Shrine Game: helping children in need.
"From the moment I got to the hotel the experience has been unbelievable," Keene stated. "The Shriners Hospital visit was by far my favorite part. Meeting the kids and their parents was truly life changing and humbling. Being a collegiate athlete is something only few of us are given the opportunity to experience, and sometimes we take it for granted. People look up to us because we do what they dream of doing, and it was a surreal experience for sure. Forming relationships with those kids and the guys who were selected to play in the game is something that I'll never forget."
Keene was a second-team All-America selection and finished third in the MVFC Defensive Player of the Year voting. The Jacksonville, Illinois, native led all defensive linemen and ranked second in the MVFC overall with eight sacks in 2017. He also tied for third in the MVFC with 13 tackles for loss and finished the season with 45 tackles, six pass breakups and eight quarterback hurries. He finished his career at ISU ranked No. 9 in sacks (17.5), No. 11 in tackles for loss (33.0) and with an even 200 total tackles.
A strong performance at the East-West Shrine Game can greatly impact a player's chances of a career in the NFL. More than 100 players from last year's game signed with professional teams this spring, and more than 70 made final NFL rosters. While the teams are divided by East and West, the players come together for the beneficiary of the event, Shriners Hospitals for Children®, an international pediatric specialty health care system that treats children in orthopedics, spinal cord injuries, cleft lift and palate, and burns, regardless of the families' ability to pay.
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