All-American Bowl (high school football)
The All-American Bowl (currently branded as the All-American Bowl presented by American Family Insurance for sponsorship reasons) is a high school football all-star game, held annually at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Typically played in January, the All-American Bowl is played between all-star teams representing the eastern and western United States. Seventeen All-Americans have been Heisman Trophy finalists, with over 450 later playing in the National Football League. Notable alumni include Andrew Luck, Adrian Peterson, Odell Beckham Jr., Eric Berry, Tim Tebow, Joe Thomas, Tyron Smith, Robert Quinn, C. J. Mosley, DeMarco Murray, and Chase Young. The All-American Bowl was previously organized by All-American Games; in 2019, NBC Sports announced acquired the game and its assets. History The All-American Bowl is an annual high school football all-star game. Typically played in January, the All-American Bowl is played between all-star teams representing the eastern and western United States. The game was first played on December 30, 2000 at Highlander Stadium in Dallas. In 2002, the game was moved to San Antonio, where it is played at the Alamodome. Since the game's inception, attendance has risen from 6,300 for the inaugural game in 2000 to a record 40,568 in 2017. The United States Army served as title sponsor of the game until 2017, when it announced that it would not renew its sponsorship past the 2018 edition. American Family Insurance became the new presenting sponsor the following year. NBC started broadcasting the All-American Bowl in 2004. As a result, the game became a platform for participating college prospects to announce a verbal commitment to their future university. Prior to 2019, the All-American Bowl was organized by All-American Games. On February 25, 2019, it was announced that All-American Games had sold the game to NBC Sports Group for an undisclosed "seven-figure" amount. There were plans to leverage NBC's other platforms, including NBCSN, and SportsEngine (a provider of digital media services oriented towards youth and amateur sports) as part of promotion and coverage of the game. This purchase did not include other events owned by All-American Games, such as the FBU National Championships (a youth football event) and the FBU Freshman All-American Bowl – both held annually in Naples, Florida, which were sold separately to All-American Games vice-president Steve Quinn and partner Erik Richards. The 2021 game (originally scheduled for January 9, 2021) was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In place of the game, NBC scheduled an All-American Bowl: Declaration Day special on January 2, 2021, to honor top players of the 2020 season and air commitment announcements. Awards During the week of the game, a number of national awards are given out at a formal awards dinner, which include: Ken Hall Trophy: Awarded to the nation's best high school football player. This award is named after Ken "Sugarland Express" Hall, once the all-time leading rusher in high-school football history for more than five decades. Bill Yoast Trophy: Awarded to the nation's top high school coach. Glenn Davis Army Award (West) and