All-star football game comes to Lowndes on Saturday

VALDOSTA �" High school football will return to Martin Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Lowndes High's football stadium will host the Georgia-Florida Border Wars All-Star Football Game, a game between teams of graduating seniors from southern Georgia and northern Florida. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.
“I expect a great matchup between some of the top talent from South Georgia and North Florida,” game organizer Bobby Latmore said.
A number of local players are scheduled to play for the South Georgia team.
Lowndes will have eight players on the team �" running backs Khary Franklin and Robert Anderson, defensive end Riyadh Moore, offensive linemen Justin Browning, Michael Miller, Layne Grant and Cale O'Neal and long snapper Jackson Dalton. Lowndes head coach Randy McPherson will be the defensive coordinator.
Valdosta offensive linemen Brandon Freeman, Jordan Jenkins and Taylor McQuaig and defensive lineman Davion Baynard will also be playing.
Brooks County running back Keith Christopher, the Region 1-AA Offensive Player of the Year, will line up in the backfield, as will his brother, fullback Kendrick Christopher. Linebacker Rodney Thomas and defensive lineman Dontae West will also represent the Trojans in the game.
Berrien will have five players competing �" wide receivers Asa Adkins, Trey Harris and Kirby Riley and offensive linemen Dustin Vickers and Eric Exum.
Running back Armad Turner and defensive backs Waylon Chester and Ladale Abernathy will represent Cook .
Lanier County running back Lance Davis and defensive back Burtrum Knight will also be competing in the game.
There will also be players from Fitzgerald, Tift County, Colquitt County and Coffee playing for the South Georgia team.
The team's head coach is Berrien assistant coach Tony Long. His coaching staff includes McPherson and Lowndes assistants William Davis, Terry Quinn and Hiram Johnson, as well as Berrien assistants Sean Calhoun, Brian Simmons and Kelvin Blackshear, Coffee head coach Ken Eldridge and Fitzgerald assistant Mike West.
The North Florida team will be coached by Lake City Columbia head coach Craig Howard. Howard's team will consist primarily of players from the Lake City and Gainesville areas.
Latmore says the purpose of the game is to give senior football players a chance to showcase their talents in an all-star game, in front of a number of college coaches that are expected to attend.
“It's for the kids to get out and showcase what they can do for college scouts,” Latmore said.
Latmore said that his company, Varsity Sports Management, has also held similar games in Thomasville (between teams of players from southwestern Georgia and the Tallahassee, Fla. area) and Kingsland (between players from southeastern Georgia and the Jacksonville area). Last year, 72 players who played in the Thomasville game wound up being offered college scholarships. There were 58 players from last year's game in Kingsland that were offered scholarships. He hopes the players in Saturday's game will receive similar interest.
The game will be played with 15-minute quarters, like college. There will be no blitzes, and teams will not try to block field goals or punts.