Four MAC Students To Play In 2019 Reese's Senior Bowl
FOUR MAC STUDENTS TO PLAY IN 2019 REESE'S SENIOR BOWL ON SATURDAY, JAN. 26TH
Buffalo’s Anthony Johnson and Tyree Jackson, along with NIU's Max Scharping and Sutton Smith to play in annual showcase game
Representing the MAC in the 2019 Reese's Senior Bowl will be Buffalo wide receiver Anthony Johnson, Buffalo quarterback Tyree Jackson, along with Northern Illinois offensive tackle Max Scharping and defensive end Sutton Smith. The Reese's Senior Bowl will be played on Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Ala, with kickoff at 2:30 pm ET on the NFL Network.
Johnson had another stellar season for the Bulls, leading the team with 57 receptions for 1,011 yards and 11 touchdowns. In only 25 career games, Johnson already ranks fifth in school history in career receiving yards with 2,367 and third in career touchdowns with 25. He is a two-time first-team All-MAC selection.
Jackson, who recently announced his intention to enter the NFL Draft, is coming off the best season of this career. The 2018 MAC Offensive Player of the Year threw for 3,131 yards and 28 touchdowns on the year. His 28 touchdowns were second in school history for a single season and his 35 combined passing and rushing touchdowns were the most in program history for a single season.
This marks the first time in Buffalo school history that the Bulls will have two players play in the Senior Bowl in the same season. In fact, prior to this season, Gerry Philbin was the only other Buffalo player to compete in the game, playing in the 1964 contest. Johnson and Jackson will be teammates on the south team.
Scharping and Smith are the seventh and eighth Huskies to participate in the Senior Bowl and the first since current San Francisco 49ers defensive back, and former first round draft choice Jimmie Ward, who played in the 2014 game. Huskie tailbacks LeShon Johnson (1994), Michael Turner (2004) and Garrett Wolfe (2006), offensive lineman Ryan Diem (2001) and defensive end Larry English (2009) also played in the Senior Bowl.
Scharping is a three-time All-MAC First Team selection who has started 53 consecutive games and played every snap (998 plays) and helped lead NIU to the 2018 Marathon MAC Football Championship. Scharping completed his master's degree in exercise physiology and fitness leadership in December. He earned his undergraduate degree in kinesiology with a 3.99 grade point average, and currently has a 3.89 mark in his master's coursework. Also in December, Scharping was named Academic All-America First Team and was honored in New York City at the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame Awards Dinner, where he was one of 13 National Scholar-Athletes across all divisions of college football, and was a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy. Scharping was named one of the Top 10 offensive linemen in the FBS by USA Today, he did not allow a sack or quarterback pressure versus Utah, BYU or Florida State in 2018. The Huskie left tackle also scored on a two-point conversion in NIU's 24-21 victory over Ohio.
Smith was a first team All-American selection by AP, ESPN, SI.com, CollegeFootballNews.com and a second team choice by Walter Camp, the AFCA, PFF and the FWAA in 2018 and was a consensus All-American in 2017. A native of St. Charles, Mo., Smith was the ninth Huskie to earn the Vern Smith Leadership Award given to the MAC's most valuable player and repeated as the MAC Defensive Player of the year.
