Huntingdon’s Anthony, McDowell and Pearcy set to play in All American Bowl

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Playing in an NFL stadium is something most football players grow up dreaming about.

It's certainly something Cody Pearcy thought about when he was growing up in Phenix City. Keith Anthony and Willie McDowell had the same dreams when they were growing up in Eclectic.

On Saturday, the three Huntingdon College seniors will get that opportunity when they take the field at the Metrodome as part of the 16th annual All American Bowl.

"Words can't describe it," Pearcy said. "You grow up dreaming of the opportunity to play in a stadium like that. Even in college, you work hard but you never really think that dream will come true. It's just an amazing and awesome feeling to know we're going to be playing there on Saturday and the Minnesota Vikings will be playing on the same field on Sunday."

The All American Bowl began serving as an All-Star game for Division III, Division II and JUCO players in 1996. Saturday will feature two games at the Metrodome's Mall of America Field. The DII/DIII game is scheduled for 10:05 a.m. with a Free Agent/Semi-Pro game to follow at 1:05 p.m. Both games are scheduled to be broadcast on http://www.champssportsnetwork.com.

"That's going to be crazy," Anthony said. "Getting to play on an NFL field is going to be a new experience. It's going to be fun and exciting."

Pearcy, Anthony and McDowell will play for the Red team, or the Stripes team, and will play against the Stars team.

"I'm very excited to have this opportunity," McDowell said. "It's a privilege and an honor to be chosen from all of the players that are out there. What makes it even better is having Cody and Keith here. We want to have fun and represent Huntingdon well. Anything we can do to give the school more recognition is a good thing."

Huntingdon head coach Mike Turk said the three seniors are ideal ambassadors for Huntingdon.

"First off, to have three of our guys invited to play in this game is awesome," Turk said. "They've worked hard for us and it's great to see them recognized with this opportunity.

"All three of them are really good players and great kids. They are the kind of guys you want to represent your program. I just want them to have a fun time and I hope it is a great experience for all three of them."

Anthony, McDowell and Pearcy each left their mark on the Huntingdon program.

Anthony, a standout safety, led the Huntingdon defense with 64 tackles and six interceptions this season. In four seasons, he set the Huntingdon record for interceptions in a season (nine in 2009) and interceptions in a career (19) and is the second all-time leading tackler (255).

Pearcy and McDowell were both playmakers at receiver. Pearcy had 46 receptions for 766 yards and eight touchdowns as a senior and finished as the program's career leader in receptions (147), receiving yards (2,632) and receiving touchdowns (25). He also holds the school-record for receiving yards in a game (233) and a season (1,078).

McDowell finished his senior season with 27 receptions for 368 yards and seven touchdowns. He and Pearcy have both tied the school-record for touchdowns in a game (three) and rank first and second in career average yards per reception. Pearcy is first at 17.90 and McDowell is second at 17.49.

McDowell also finished his career ranked seventh in career receptions (57) and fifth in career receiving yards (997) and receiving touchdowns (12).