The East-West Shrine Bowl, in partnership with the NFL, announced the 2021 coaches who will participate in this year's East-West Shrine Bowl Professional Development Opportunity. The strengthened program is designed to continue growing the game through the development of personnel and increasing engagement with players through all levels of their athletic life cycle.
At the conclusion of the NFL regular season, clubs nominated active assistant coaches who were reviewed by a panel of NFL Football Operations staff, East-West Shrine Bowl leadership and members of the NFL's General Managers Advisory Committee to serve as coaches for this year's event.
The 96th annual East-West Shrine Bowl had been scheduled for January 23, 2021, at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, and was cancelled due to challenges presented by COVID-19.
The student-athletes chosen as players will still participate in various virtual training/ informational drills with current NFL coaches and members of the NFL Operations staff. Some 2021 all-stars will also participate in various virtual experiences with Shriners Hospitals for Children patients in recognition of the game's nearly century-long commitment to supporting the health care system's life-changing mission.
Two of the coaches chosen have previously played in the East-West Shrine Bowl: Jerrod Johnson in 2011, and Troy Walters in 2000.
2021 East-West Shrine Bowl Coaches
Cincinnati Bengals: Ben Martin, Brad Kragthorpe, Jordan Kovacs, Troy Walters
Denver Broncos: Jett Modkins, Justin Rascati
Indianapolis Colts: David Overstreet, Frank Ross, Jerrod Johnson, Parks Frazier
Las Vegas Raiders: Austin King, Byron Storer, Nick Holz, Tim Berbenich
Miami Dolphins: Anthony Campanile, Brendan Farrell, Gerald Alexander
Minnesota Vikings: AC Patterson, Christian Jones, Nick Rallis
New England Patriots: DeMarcus Covington, Troy Brown
New York Giants: Anthony Blevins, Bobby Blick, Jody Wright, Mike Treier
Philadelphia Eagles: Mathew Harper, Nathan Ollie
San Francisco 49ers: Brian Fleur
In conjunction with the NFL, virtual training sessions will begin next week.
"This is an outstanding lineup of coaches to work with our East-West Shrine Bowl selections during this trying year," said Bob Roller, executive director of the East-West Shrine Bowl. "The virtual presentations and forums that we are providing, in partnership with NFL Operations, will be critical for these young men's professional development as they prepare for the next phase of their football careers."
The East-West Shrine Bowl is the nation's oldest all-star game for college seniors aspiring to play in the NFL. Ninety-eight players from the 2020 East-West Shrine Bowl signed with an NFL team in the fall. In addition, there are more than 300 Shrine Bowl alumni playing prominent roles on all 32 NFL teams, and 78 Pro Football Hall of Famers have played in the game. To learn more, please visit shrinebowl.com.
For the 2021 East-West Shrine Bowl player roster, please visit shrinebowl.com/players.
