under armour high school all american game 2009

ST. PETERSBURG - The 2010 Under Armour All-America game was like most other high school all-star games in that sloppy play prevented players from getting in any real rhythm. The Black Team defeated the White Team 32-7 in a contest that had 10 fumbles and nine total turnovers.

Dr. Phillips' Kenny Shaw had a nice day on the sidelines, as he committed to FSU during the game, but he struggled some on the field. Shaw began the fumble-filled day when he muffed the game's opening return. The wide receiver recovered the ball only to fumble it again but his White Team recovered the ball.

"You make mistakes but you have to bounce back after it," said Shaw. "That's what good players do. It didn't go our way but it was still a great opportunity to be out here."

The Black Team capitalized off of the game's first turnover when Florida commit Jonathan Dowling intercepted a Jesse Scroggins pass and returned it for a 56-yard touchdown. The ensuing extra point was missed, giving the squad a 6-0 lead in the first quarter.

After Nick Montana -- the son of NFL Hall of Famer Joe, who was in attendance -- threw a five-yard touchdown pass to Solomon Patton -- another Gators pledge -- the Black Team failed to convert another extra point attempt when the hold was botched.

The lone score for the White Team also came off a turnover. UF commit Demar Dorsey, who forced two fumbles himself, was stripped on a punt return by Da'Rick Rogers. Brandon Coleman scooped up the ball and returned it for a 25-yard score.

Darius White, who committed to Texas during the game, broke the game open with a 35-yard punt return in the third quarter, giving the Black Team a 19-7 lead. The Dunbar (Texas) wide receiver also had an 11-yard touchdown reception.

"At first everything was bumpy in the first half but then one of the coaches put me on punt return and he said to feel like I'm at home," said White. "I was like 'O.K. Coach' and that's exactly what I did."

The biggest surprise of the day came when Dominique Easley committed to Florida after it was speculated that Penn St., Oregon and Miami were the finalists for his services. Easley was dominant on the day, as he had four tackles, a sack, three tackles for a loss, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

For his efforts, Easley was named the most valuable player on the Black Team. Westlake's Michael Taylor had three tackles, one going for a loss and he was named the most valuable player for the White Team.

Central Florida's other marquee recruit, Lake Howell's Christian Jones, was on the losing White Team as well, but he'll always remember the experience of playing with some of the best high school players in the nation.

"It's cool talking to everybody, we've all gotten to know each other," said Jones, who had three tackles and a forced fumble. "Getting all that free stuff was even better, it was real tight. I think I did pretty good against of top players."

Quick hits

• The University of Florida was a hit in more ways than one. The Gators not only received commits from Staten Island (N.Y.) Curtis DE Easley and Pahokee WR Chris Dunkley but some of their current commits that played in the game were big factors. In the opening drive of the game, Demar Dorsey forced a fumble and also delivered a punishing hit on Michael Dyer, who also fumbled. Dowling had an interception return for a touchdown in the same series and Dorsey would have a pick himself in the fourth quarter. "This let us see what it's going to be like in a couple months," said Dowling. "It felt real good being out there with those guys. I heard they're comparing us to the (recruiting) class of Tim Tebow."
• John Fulton, a cornerback from Manning (S.C.), was the first player to make an in-game commitment. Fulton chose Alabama over South Carolina, Florida, Georgia and LSU. Other members of the Crimson Tide that participated in the game was Stanhope Elmore (Ala.) CB DeMarcus Milliner, Oscar Frommel Smith (Va.) QB Phillip Sims, West Brunswick (N.C.) DE Alfy Hill, The Woodlands (Texas) OG Chad Lindsay, Brookstone tight end (Ga.) Brian Vogler, and Norcross (Ga.) DE Adrian Hubbard. Florida had 8 commitments here coming into the game and 10 after the contest.
• Despite a large contingency of participants from Florida attendance was down from last year. In 2009's contest, which was held at the Citrus Bowl, there were 25,382 fans on hand, but only 21,221 showed up for this year at Tropicana Field.
• After the game, the press for Lake Howell's Christian Jones was on. Corey Miller, a Tennessee commit, was reminding Jones how he made him sing 'Rocky Top,' Tennessee's unofficial fight song. Dr. Phillips' Kenny Shaw will also turn his attention to Jones in an attempt to convince him to come to FSU now that he is a Seminole. "I'm working on it, I'm working on it," said Shaw.
• Neither Miami Northwestern OG Torrian Wilson nor Jacksonville Bolles School OT Brent Benedict participated in the game. Wilson had been hurt throughout his senior season and he attempted to play during the week but he was not able compete.
• Cody Riggs, a UF commit, was hurt in the last quarter of the game. The St. Thomas Aquinas corner back took a helmet to the hip and had to limp off the field.