Football: California Showcase to take place in Irvine Feb. 21

As many as 500 high school football players are expected to participate in the third annual California Showcase at the Orange County Great Park in Irvine on Feb. 21.

The free one-day, non-profit event is presented by former UCLA head coach Terry Donahue and the National Football Foundation. It is intended for high school seniors to display their skills to Division II, Division III and NAIA football programs throughout the country.

Donahue, a Balboa Island resident, and the National Football Foundation believe that the opportunity of playing college football while earning a college degree has a profound effect on changing young peoples’ lives.

The Showcase will be organized and managed by quality football coaches hand selected by Donahue. A series of tests and drills will be run that will best display each player’s various talents at their respective positions. Following the activities, players and universities will meet to discuss scholarship opportunities for the participating athletes.

Student athletes from across California will register online prior to the Showcase. They must be a graduating high school senior and have not accepted a scholarship offer from a Division I football program. In addition they must meet following qualifications:

one of the two

•Have a 2.5 GPA or higher.

•Have an SAT score of 1000 (math and verbal only) or higher.

•Have an ACT of 18 or higher.

Last year, 139 players received financial aid (either scholarships, work study, federal aid or a combination of those) to attend college and play football. The value of all financial aid was more than $2.5 million.

Admission will be restricted to the athletes, participating coaches, visiting high school and college coaches, college administrators, and the media.

To sign up, go to: https://cashowcase.org/students.html

— From staff reports