EL PASO, Texas – West Liberty running back Branden Ore has been chasing his NFL dream since his days as a High School All-American in Chesapeake, Va.
Ore’s pursuit of the pros has brought him to Sun Bowl Stadium this week, where he will be suiting up for The Nation team in Saturday’s third annual Texas vs. The Nation All-Star Game.
The only man ever to lead the Atlantic Coast Conference and the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in scoring, the elusive 5-11, 212-pounder is one of only a handful of NCAA Division II and Division III player invited to this year’s event.
In just its third season of existence, the Texas vs. The Nation All-Star Game has established itself as a premier conduit to the pros for NFL hopefuls.
A total of 30 players from the first two games were selected in the 2007 and 2008 NFL Drafts and 102 of last year’s 128 all-stars were signed to NFL contracts.
Two players from last year’s game – running back Tim Hightower and offensive tackle Brandon Keith – will be suiting up for the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday when they take on the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII.
Ore earned his invitation by turning in a stellar senior season for Coach Roger Waialae’s Hilltoppers.
The Virginia Tech transfer ran for 1,257 yards and led the WVIAC in scoring with 20 TDs for 120 points – both school records. Ore also set the school single-game scoring mark of 30 points against Glenville while posting 8 consecutive 100-yard rushing games and 9 overall – also school records.
A first-team All-ACC selection during the 2006 season, Ore earned first-team All-WVIAC and All-Super Region I honors with West Liberty in 2008.
The Texas vs. The Nation All-Star Game features plenty of talent on and off the field.
The legendary Howard Schnellenberger is head coach of The Nation team while Gene Stallings, former head coach at Texas A&M and Alabama, will lead Team Texas.
College football fans will recognize many of the names on both rosters.
Joining Ore in the backfield for The Nation team will be quarterbacks Mike Teel (Rutgers), Curtis Painter (Purdue) and Drew Willy (Buffalo). Other running backs include Anthony Kimble (Stanford), Conredge Collins (Pitt) and Yonus Davis (San Jose State) while Penn State’s Gerald Cadogan is one of the offensive linemen.
The defensive side of the ball features linebacker Maurice Crum (Notre Dame), cornerbacks DeAngelo Willingham (Tennessee) and Tony Carter (Florida State) along with Penn State safety Anthony Scirrotto.
Team Texas, which features players who played their high school or college ball in the Lone Star State, has Ore’s former Virginia Tech teammate Sean Glennon as one of its quarterbacks.
He’s joined by record-setting Tulsa passer David Johnson and Chase Patton (Missouri). Penn State’s Jordan Norwood is one of the wide receivers and the Nittany Lions’ Lydell Sargeant is a cornerback. Ohio State is represented by defensive lineman Nader Abdallah.
Scouts from every NFL team will be on hand throughout the week. Players will practice with their teams each day but times have also been set aside for the scouts to conduct interviews and tests with the players.
The Texas vs. The Nation All-Star Game will be televised live nationwide by the CBS Television Network’s CSTV channel beginning at 3 p.m. (EST) on Saturday.
