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Miami, FL — The states of Florida and Georgia have historically produced top-level talent. In the top ten football hotbeds of 2020, Florida and Georgia ranked third and fourth respectively and the states have continuously produced top-level talent on the high school, college, and pro levels.
In the 90s, the Florida Vs. Georgia All-Star High School Football Game was an event that was considered one of the premier all-star games in the nation. Players like Emmit Smith, Deion Sanders, Derrick Brooks, Fred Taylor, Hines Ward, and Champ Bailey participated in this annual event. In 2021, the game returned to South Florida at Traz Powell Stadium with plenty of top tier talent on both sides of the football.
In the fourth quarter, Team Florida had a chance to take the lead after their defense was able to hold Team Georgia to a red-zone field goal on the previous possession to make it a 13-10 game. Quarterback Colin Blazek (Venice, FL) rolled to his right and was hit hard by Cameron Bergeron (Westover, GA) dislodging the football. Cameron Ball (Tri-Cities, GA), the big defensive tackle (6-6, 305) caught the football after the hit and rumbled quickly into the end zone for the touchdown. All of his teammates joined him in the end zone to celebrate and Georgia would go on to beat Florida 26-10 in the border war between the states. Team Georgia had 23 players committed or signed with D-1 level programs as opposed to 13 for Florida in Sunday’s all-star game.
“I saw him stepping up in the pocket and he rolled out,” said Okpala. “One of my teammates came, he hit him, I guess the quarterback just threw it in the air. I saw it and attacked it and I took it to the crib man.”
Team Georgia seals the @FLvsGAGame with this pick-six by @RazorbackFB commit Cameron Ball. Georgia leads 20-10 with 41 seconds left in the game. pic.twitter.com/KG68y4fddY
— Marcus Benjamin (@_BenjaminReport) January 17, 2021
Team Georgia would add a second pick-six to completely put the game out of reach. Bergeron jumped in front of an errant throw and bolted to the end zone ultimately ending the game with seconds to go.
“I was happy for the kids to end the game that way,” said Georgia Head Coach Robert Edwards III. “After the pick-sixes, the whole team rushed the end zone. They were just excited and having fun man. That’s what this game was all about. Every kid here makes big plays at their particular high school, so for those kids to make those two big plays in this type of game, it was big for our whole team.”
Like many all-star games, this was a defensive battle as both teams failed to score touchdowns in the first half. Both teams would manage to score field goals with Daniel Gibbs (Veterans, GA) and John Cannon (Tru Prep, FL) kicking it through the uprights for their teams. Yulkeith Brown (Miami Central, FL) provided the offensive fireworks for Team Florida and took home MVP honors. The Texas A&M signee provided sparks with big gains where he would jump high for the football making tough contested catches. Brown was not on the original roster for the game and decided to join the team midweek leading up to the game. Brown will play as a slot receiver at Texas A&M and played this game with his U.S. Army All-American helmet.
“At first I was going to just enjoy my weekend and just hang out,” said Brown about his change of plans. “I just wanted to have fun and play ball. They [invited me] to practice, I learned the plays, I already knew the OC, it all came together.”
Another big catch by @AggieFootball signee @Jumpboyyul1 in the @FLvsGAGame. #hegotmossed pic.twitter.com/Lc4wxZOGSe
— Marcus Benjamin (@_BenjaminReport) January 17, 2021
In the second half, Leo Blackburn Jr., would give Team Georgia their second lead of the game. The senior receiver from Westlake High School would make an acrobatic catch down the sideline that would set up his team deep in Florida territory. The Georgia Tech signee would score on the next play on a hitch route.
Leo Blackburn JR. catches this one for a big gainer in the @FLvsGAGame. The @GeorgiaTechFB commit scored on the next play to help give Team Georgia a 10-3 lead late in the third quarter. pic.twitter.com/Tby4yCQ5r9
— Marcus Benjamin (@_BenjaminReport) January 17, 2021
“We knew it would take pretty much a half for us to get both offenses rolling,” said Coach Edwards. “Offense came out in the second half, put together some drives, we were fortunate enough to get the first score, but they came right back and scored as well. In the fourth quarter, we were able to get some stops and get the three points. But the defense scored the last two touchdowns. It was a defensive game and our defense ended up playing the best.”
Phillip Johnson of Temple HS helps get Team Georgia in the red zone but GA settles for a field goal. Georgia leads 13-10 with less than 2 minutes left in the game. pic.twitter.com/b9JqFfVJPx
— Marcus Benjamin (@_BenjaminReport) January 17, 2021
The hosts would tie the game with a Jaquez Moore (Suwannee, FL) three-yard-touchdown early in the fourth quarter. The passing game had its moments with Kiael Kelly (Gaither, FL), Nick Vattiatio (Tru Prep, FL), and Blazek at quarterback, and Khalil Brantley (Miami Northwestern, FL) and Brown on the receiving end, but it was the Georgia defensive line, led by Neto Okpala (Loganville, GA) that would halt any consistency on offense for Florida. The Arkansas signee Okpala and uncommitted Cedric Wynn (Lee County, GA) would take home MVP trophies.
“That’s really what my main goal was [to penetrate the offensive line],” said Okpala. “My coach said the same thing…he expects a sack from me on every play.”
Defensive battle so far in the @FLvsGAGame. Georgia leads Florida 3-0 after one quarter of play. Neto Okpala, the @BostonCollege commit, getting the sack on this play for team Georgia. pic.twitter.com/IByNu6tWi8
— Marcus Benjamin (@_BenjaminReport) January 17, 2021
The Florida Vs. Georgia Game will move to Orlando in 2022 on January 16th.
