ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – It was a stellar day for Illinois State football senior All-American standouts Luther Kirk and James Robinson, as both made big impacts for the West squad at the prestigious 95th East-West Shrine Bowl™ Saturday afternoon at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Kirk had two tackles and an interception (with another wiped out due to penalty) to earn Defensive Most Valuable Player honors. Robinson accumulated 136 total yards (80 rushing, 56 passing) and scored the longest touchdown in the history of the game with a 63-yard score that gave the West team the lead until late in the contest.
"It was an amazing experience going out to the hospital and seeing those kids with smiles on their faces with all the adversity they face," Kirk said. "Learning from all the NFL coaches and competing against the top talent in the country was great for us. I think James and I proved ourselves and showed that we more than belonged here."
"Being here all week in Tampa was an awesome experience and it was great learning from our NFL coaches," Robinson stated. "It was fun meeting with the Shriners patients earlier this week and seeing the way they go through life facing some difficult challenges put a lot of things in perspective. Today was great for me and Luther and we love the doubters. For all the FCS players out there, remember playing at small schools doesn't mean anything keep working hard and show how talented you are."
Kirk and Robinson were the fifth and sixth ISU players, respectively, selected to play in the prestigious game and the second pair of Redbird teammates. Current Denver Broncos defensive back Davontae Harris and Dalton Keene both represented Illinois State in 2018 at the Shrine Bowl, and former ISU standouts Chad Pegues (1998) and Boomer Grigsby (2004) also played in the game.
"It was a great performance by those guys today and certainly did not come as a surprise to anyone here," ISU head coach Brock Spack said. "They've had tremendous careers at Illinois State and have always represented themselves and this program well. It was great to see the Redbird logo on NFL Network so much today and those two showed just how good Redbird football, the MVFC and FCS can be. I think both those guys helped themselves out a lot in the eyes of scouts and pro evaluators and it was certainly a great day for the Redbirds."
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.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
