Five MAC Students To Play In 2019 East-West Shrine Game On Saturday, Jan. 19
FIVE MAC STUDENTS TO PLAY IN EAST-WEST SHRINE GAME ON SATURDAY, JAN. 19TH
Buffalo’s Khalil Hodge, Akron’s Ulysees Gilbert, Toledo’s Cody Thompson and Ka’dar Hollman and Western Michigan’s John Keenoy to play in 94th annual game
Representing the MAC in the 2019 East-West Shrine Game will be Buffalo linebacker Khalil Hodge, Akron linebacker Ulysees Gilbert, Toledo wide receiver Cody Thompson and defensive back Ka’dar Hollman and Western Michigan offensive lineman John Keenoy. The game will be the 94th East-West Shrine game to be played on Saturday, Jan. 19, 2019 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla, with kickoff at 3:00 pm ET on the NFL Network.
Hodge was an All-MAC First Team selection and led Buffalo for the third straight season as the Bulls starting inside linebacker with 144 tackles. It also marked the third straight season Hodge eclipsed 100 tackles. In only three seasons, Hodge amassed 421 tackles to rank third in school history.
Gilbert is a three-time All-MAC honoree, team captain and played in every game of his collegiate career, tying the school record for most games played with 51. As a senior in 2018, Gilbert was an All-MAC Second Team selection and was one of nine Zips to start every game as he finished second on the team with 85 tackles, 7.5 TFL, two fumble recoveries, two touchdowns, and a break-up. Gilbert was a preseason first-team All-MAC selection by Athlon Sports, Gilbert was also named to the Chuck Bednarik Award and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch Lists.
Thompson was a two-time All-MAC First Team selection at wide receiver for the Rockets. Thompson caught 181 passes for 3,312 yards and a school-record 30 touchdowns in his career. As a senior, he had 48 receptions for 647 yards and 10 touchdowns, and was named second-team Academic All-America. He has also been invited to attend the NFL Combine in Indianapolis (Feb. 26-March 4).
Hollman was a three-year starter at cornerback at Toledo. For his career, Hollman compiled 114 tackles, two interceptions and 27 pass breakups. As a senior, he tied for the MAC lead with 12 breakups.
Keenoy has started every game played at Western Michigan since his freshman season (51 of 52 possible contests), only missing one game over the last four years due to injury. In 2018 Keenoy was an All-MAC Second Team selection. As a junior, he was a First Team All-Mid-American Conference selection and was named First Team All-MAC by Phil Steele. He earned Second Team All-MAC honors as a sophomore, helping lead WMU to a MAC Championship, Goodyear Cotton Bowl appearance and a No. 15 overall national ranking. He was named to watch lists for the Rimington Trophy and the Outland Trophy the last two seasons.
