MOBILE, Ala. – Former ACU wide receiver Edmond Gates is one of three NCAA Division II standouts who have been invited to participate in this year's Under Armour Senior Bowl, which will be played Jan. 29 at Mobile's Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
Gates will be joined by fellow Division II all-America athletes Brandon Fusco (offensive lineman, Slippery Rock) and Cedric Thornton (defensive lineman, Southern Arkansas).
The 62nd annual game that showcases the top senior talent in the country for every team in the NFL will be played next Saturday and will be broadcast to a national TV audience on the NFL Network. The network will also air practice sessions during the week beginning Monday.
Gates and Thorton will play for the South under the direction of Buffalo Bills head coach Chan Gailey and his staff. Fusco. meanwhile, will suit up for the North squad, which will be coached by Marvin Lewis and his Cincinnati Bengals staff.
Gates is the Wildcats' second ever Senior Bowl invitee, joining ACU alum Johnny Perkins ('77 Senior Bowl) on the game's all-time roster. The wide out put up huge numbers in 2010, reeling in 66 catches for 1,182 yards and 13 touchdowns in helping the Wildcats to an 11-0 regular season record. He was just the seventh player in school history to break the 1,000-yard receiving mark and the fifth player to have more than 60 catches. Gates leaves Abilene Christian ranked second in career receiving yards (2,885), third in receptions (158), tied for first in touchdown catches (27) and fourth in scoring (194 points).
Fusco is the first player from Slippery Rock to earn a Senior Bowl invitation. The offensive center won the Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the Year Award this year in addition to the Division II Rimington Award, which goes to the nation's best center. He was named to the Associated Press' Little All-America Team and was an AFCA Division II first team All-American. The Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania native was part of an offensive line that helped pave the way for the fifth-leading rusher in Division II this season (Akeem Satterfield).
Thornton is the first player from Southern Arkansas to be invited to the Senior Bowl. The first team All-Gulf South Conference selection recorded 52 tackles, 13 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks from his defensive tackle position this year. He ranked 16th in Division II and first in the GSC in tackles for loss (1.63 per game) and was 15th in the conference in total tackles (6.5 per game). Thornton had a monster junior year for the Muleriders, leading the team in tackles (80), tackles for loss (23), and sacks (8.5).
