Senior Bowl

The Senior Bowl is a post-season college football exhibition game played in Mobile, Alabama which showcases the best NFL draft prospects of those collegiate players who have completed their eligibility. First played in 1950 in Jacksonville, Florida, the game moved to Mobile's Ladd Peebles Stadium the next year. Produced by the non-profit Mobile Arts & Sports Association, the game is also a charitable fund-raiser benefiting various local and regional organizations with over States dollar|US$" target="_blank" >^*5.9 million in donations over its history.

The telecast will move to the NFL Network from ESPN beginning in 2007.

Background

Two teams, representing the North and the South, are coached by select coaching staff from two NFL teams.

The week-long practice that precedes the game is attended by key NFL personnel (including coaches, general managers, and scouts), who oversee the players as possible prospects for pro football. At one point the Senior Bowl was the first chance its participants had openly to receive pay for participation in an athletic event. This was one reason that participation was limited to seniors whose eligibility for further participation in collegiate football had expired, and the game was also their first exposure to the slightly different professional rules. Players who wished to participate in collegiate spring sports had to avoid participation in the Senior Bowl. The significance of all of this has waned in recent years as there has been some lessening of the former strict separation of professional and amateur athletes.

For many decades, the Senior Bowl was the final game of the college football season, but in recent years has been the next-to-the-last game (followed the following week by either the Hula Bowl or the Gridiron Classic). Currently, however, the Senior Bowl is scheduled as the season's final game, as it has always been traditionally set for the week before the NFL's Super Bowl, which itself is now played in February.

Scores of Senior Bowls

1950s

1950 North, 23-22*
1951 South, 19-18
1952 North, 20-6
1953 North, 28-23
1954 North, 20-14
1955 South, 12-6
1956 South, 12-2
1957 South, 21-7
1958 North, 15-13
1959 South, 21-12

1960s

1960 North, 26-7
1961 South, 33-26
1962 South, 42-7
1963 South, 33-27
1964 South, 28-21
1965 tie, 7-7
1966 South, 27-18
1967 North, 35-13
1968 South, 24-21
1969 North, 27-16

1970s

1970 tie, 37-37
1971 North, 31-13
1972 North, 26-21
1973 South,3 33-30
1974 North, 16-13
1975 tie, 17-17
1976 North, 42-35
1977 North, 27-24
1978 tie, 17-17
1979 South, 41-21

1980s

1980 North, 57-3
1981 North, 23-10
1982 South, 27-10
1983 North, 14-6
1984 South, 21-20
1985 South, 23-7
1986 North, 31-17
1987 South, 42-38
1988 North, 21-7
1989 South, 13-12

1990s

1990 North, 41-0
1991 AFC, 38-28
1992 AFC, 13-10
1993 NFC, 21-6
1994 South, 35-32
1995 South, 14-7
1996 North, 25-10
1997 North, 35-14
1998 South, 31-8
1999 South, 31-21

2000s

2000 North, 24-21
2001 South, 21-16
2002 South, 41-26
2003 North, 17-0
2004 South, 28-10
2005 North, 23-13
2006 North, 31-14

(25-24-4 in favor of the South) (*) indicates the first game was played at Jacksonville, Florida.

From 1991 to 1993 the two teams were designated "NFC" and "AFC" to distinguish where their coaching staffs were from and to stress the professional nature of the game. This was confusing to some, as the game occurred well before the NFL draft and there was no way of determining which conference the players were actually going to wind up in to start their professional careers. In 1994 this was dropped and the designations were reverted to the traditional "North vs. South" format.

External links

Official Senior Bowl Website

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