With the East-West Shrine Game and the Senior Bowl in the books, these less famous and lower profile All-Star games go pretty much unnoticed. Like, for instance, the Players All-Star Game taking place this week, by me. So, I went and read up on it. Apparently it's today. There are some major conference players and some small-school guys sprinkled in for a nice opportunity for some deep player scouting, if you can find it on whatever cable setup you've got. It's on Comcast/Charter Sports Southeast (CSS), Cox Sports Television (CST) at 1:00pm PST and is happening in Little Rock, Arkansas. If you are watching it, go ahead and chat about it below.
For what it's worth, I guess most, if not all, NFL teams had scouts and personnel evaluators there this week and there are certainly some players worth keeping an eye on. I've included some reading below from Optimum Scouting, Crystal Ball Run, and the National Football Post if you'd like to read up on it. .
Word.
Players All-Star Classic Weigh-in Results | National Football Post
Who were the weigh-in standouts?
Players All-Star Classic Practice Notes | National Football Post
A breakdown of day one from Little Rock, Arkansas.
Players All-Star Classic Practice Notes: Day Two | National Football Post
A breakdown of day two from Little Rock, Arkansas.
Ranking the All-Star Classic’s Top 10 prospects | National Football Post
And what NFL teams are good fits for each?
Players All-Star Classic: Stock Watch | National Football Post
Three up and three down from this past week.
2012 Players All-Star Classic Preview: South Defense | Articles
In an NFL that is increasingly becoming more pass oriented, the emphasis of adding elite pass rushers has become a top priority for teams around the league. During this advent of the pass game, the 3-4 defense also rose to extraordinary popularity around the NFL.
2012 Players All-Star Classic Preview: North Defense | Articles
As the Players All-Star Classic kicks off onn Tuesday (today), lets take a look at the North Defense that features some likely draft selections and a variety of notable and talented position switchers. Scott Smith of Texas Tech is a fanastic athlete on the defensive line, two Temple products hope to show they can play in a variety of NFL systems, and a variety of non-FBS prospects hope to prove they are tops at their position on this North Defense.
2012 Players All-Star Classic: North Offensive Preview | Articles
Even though the Shrine Game and Senior Bowl are completed and the "major" All-Star games are complete, another All-Star game that NFL teams are certainly aware of and are attending is still on the dockett with the "Players All-Star Classic" in Little Rock, Arkansas and run by the same people that ran the Texas vs. Nation game a season ago. This game once again features some outstanding small school talent, especially on this North offense.
2012 Players All-Star Classic: Weigh-In Results | Articles
The Weigh-In Results and some Weigh-In notes for the 2012 Players All-Star Classic are UP!
2012 Players All-Star Classic: Tuesday South Practice Notes | Articles
In sharp contrast to the North’s first practice, the South performed at a much higher tempo. Pads were clicking in 1 on 1 drills with linebackers and running backs, and I finally got to see o-line and d-line match ups in the pit drill. The big winners coming from the South’s first practice were Jordan Jefferson, Darius Reynolds, Jeremy Lane, Coty Sensabaugh, Daryl Richardson, Sammy Brown, and Aston Whiteside.
2012 Players All-Star Classic: Tuesday North Practice Notes | Articles
Kicking off the Player’s All-Star Classic practices at 11:30, I focused mainly on the quarterbacks, receivers, and defensive backs for the North squad. I wasn’t able to get a great feel for the trench players, backs, or linebackers today, all of which will be my focus tomorrow. Practice was a bit sluggish, but that is to be expected on day 1 and I’m hoping for more contact tomorrow. The big winners today were Alex Tanney, Marcus Rivers, Clarence Laster, Cyhl Quarles, and Zach Nash.
2012 Players All-Star Classic: Wednesday North Practice Notes | Articles
The North practice finally got the pads clicking during pit drills today, and there were a number of defensive standouts among the group. Linebackers Korey Toomer, Tahir Whitehead, and Caleb McSurdy looked great all practice and benefited from the increased intensity today. Big winners from day 2 were Julian Talley, Anthony Miller, Christo Bilukidi, Ronnie Cameron, Tahir Whitehead, and Brett Roy.
2012 Players All-Star Classic: Thursday South Practice Notes | Articles
After not being able to finish Wednesday’s practice, the South squad showed up early today to get in some much needed offensive/defensive team install. During practice I couldn’t help but notice how empty the stands were, but considering NFL teams are beginning to do in-house work, prepare for free agency and the draft, it’s no surprise scouts did in fact leave early.
2012 Players All-Star Classic: Thursday North Practice Notes | Articles
It was the final day for me at the North (and South) Practices, as only myself and SportingNews.com's Russ Lande were the non-NFL scouts left. It was great to get one final look at these prospects, getting a chance to see every position somewhat in-depth. The biggest winners were Dominique Davis, Julian Talley, James Hanna, Brett Roy, Tahir Whitehead, and Derrius Brooks.
All-Star Season Wraps Up With The Player's All-Star Classic | February
It’s always sad when the All-Star season ends, this year we’ve gone through all of the previous five game and will end this series with a sixth game this Saturday in Little Rock, Arkansas at the Player’s All-Star Classic will kick off for the first time ever. The Player’s All-Star Classic is being run by the same people who have brought you the Texas v. The Nation game, however that game is on a one year hiatus and is set to return next year. Here are the five players that stand out the most to us at the Player’s All-Star Classic: