Team Red & Matis Gibson Shine in 5th Annual Senior Bowl

Duluth, GA– In the coldest game ever played (28 degrees at its conclusion) in Football Hotbed National Showcase history, Team Read, paced by the outstanding performance by 2025 TE Matis Gibson, won a defensive battle 14-6 over Team White in our fifth annual Senior Bowl presented by the Portal Media Group.  

The game’s scoring began when RL Ward, III, intercepted a Deron Benson pass and took it 35 yards for a pick-six.  The extra point attempt failed putting Team Red up 6-0.  

After several stalled drives, punts and interceptions, both teams failed to move the ball much.  Team White did have great success on the ground running behind Frank Vomero, Jr. who racked up 110 yards on the ground in an losing effort. However, penalties and an inability to convert on third downs led to no points. 

The Red team found the most success through the air.  Miami’s Gabriel Fraga hooked up with Gibson to the tune of 109 yards in the air and a touchdown.  Gibson, a former quarterback, also attempted a pass on offense.

Walking away with his first MVP award in three tries, Gibson put together his best performance in three outings at the Football Hotbed National High School Showcases.  He played H-back as a sophomore, quarterback as a junior last year and starred as a senior.  He currently holds three offers.

The lineman MVP of the game award went to Ocala, Florida’s Bernard Little. He provided consistent pressure for Red’s dominant defense that didn’t surrender a point until seven seconds left in the game. 

The defensive MVP award went to Jonesboro, Georgia’s Jayden Howard who had two interceptions on the night in a losing effort.  Each Football Hotbed Senior Bowl MVP received a brand-new HP Google Chromebook for use in college and beyond.  

watch a replay of the game via youtube

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Brandon Odoi is a tenured journalist. He's covered youth football since 8th grade, high school football since 2009 and began covering college football in 2011 as a beat writer for the University of Miami Athletic programs. In 2011, he founded Football Hotbed a national multi-media platform for football across the country. He's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and spent his first five years as a professional working at ABC Television Network, ending his career as a producer in Miami. He's married with two sons and resides in South Florida.

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