TAMPA, Fla. – Illinois State seniors Luther Kirk and James Robinson have accepted invitations to play in the East-West Shrine Bowl™ on January 18, 2020, at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. The game will be broadcast live on the NFL Network.
Kirk and Robinson are the fifth and sixth ISU players, respectively, to be selected to play in the prestigious showcase. Current Denver Broncos defensive back Davontae Harris and Dalton Keene both represented Illinois State in 2018, and former ISU standouts Chad Pegues (1998) and Boomer Grigsby (2004) also played in the game.
A two-time team captain, Kirk was named a Missouri Valley Football Conference First-Team selection at safety in 2018 after he tied for the MVFC lead with five interceptions. In 10 games in 2019, the Garland, Texas, native leads the Redbird defense with 65 total tackles on the season, while adding a sack, two tackles-for-loss and six pass breakups.
Robinson is a two-time MVFC First-Team selection and was tabbed as an All-American by several organizations after the 2018 season. Last year, the Rockford, Illinois, native led the conference with 1,290 rushing yards and tied for second in the league with 12 rushing touchdowns. Through 10 games in 2019, Robinson has run for 1,079 yards and scored a career-high 15 touchdowns. He ranks in the top 10 in the FCS in rushing touchdowns, yards, yards per game and total touchdowns.
Formerly called the East-West Shrine Game, the event has been played since 1925 to benefit Shriners Hospitals for Children and its mission to provide advanced care for children with specialized medical needs. In any given season, approximately 300 East-West Shrine Bowl alumni are on NFL rosters, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame has inducted 77 former players from the game.
With more than 300 NFL scouts, coaches and agents in attendance, the East-West Shrine Bowl is a pivotal training and interview event for top college athletes seeking careers in professional football. Among the hundreds of notable college all-stars who have played in the East-West Shrine Bowl and gone on to illustrious NFL careers are Tom Brady, Walter Payton, Brett Favre, Gale Sayers, John Elway, Dick Butkus, Roger Staubach, Mike Ditka, Mark Brunell, Troy Vincent and Willie McGinest.
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