Long looked upon as the lesser of the College All-Star games, the East-West Shrine Bowl has nonetheless played host to scores of dynasty-relevant players. Players such as Brett Favre, Steve Smith, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Brock Purdy have taken the field in this charity contest on their way to NFL careers. Last year’s game featured numerous players who made an early impact in their NFL careers.
Tyrone Tracy Jr. stands out as a player who grabbed an early opportunity and ran with it. This year will once again feature a number of talented players taking the field in the name of charity. This article will highlight some of the bigger fantasy names and give you a primer ahead of this year’s contest. Without further ado, let us examine the players.
East-West Shrine Bowl Preview | QBs
Shedeur Sanders | QB | Colorado | 6’2” | 215 lbs
Shedeur Sanders is the highlight name of the 2025 East-West Shrine Bowl. The talented QB from Colorado has had an eventful college career. Beginning at Jackson State and continuing to Colorado, Sanders is a prolific playmaker. Many scouts believe that he is the top QB in the upcoming class. There is some ambiguity about his eventual destination with his father indicating that he would stand as an obstacle to Shedeur playing for certain teams.
Sanders is more of a traditional pocket-style QB, only rarely looks to run. However, that is not to say that he is immobile. Sanders has loads of functional mobility, with the ability to manipulate the pocket and deliver the ball downfield. He reminds me of a prime Aaron Brooks. He will absolutely be taken in the 1st Round of the 2025 NFL Draft and I look for him to make plays like the one above. Shedeur Sanders is worth the price of admission by himself!
Kyle McCord | QB | Syracuse | 6’3” | 220 lbs
For my money, Kyle McCord is the No. 2 QB at this year’s Shrine Bowl. Beginning at Ohio State before transferring to Syracuse, McCord has been a prolific passer. In fact, he led the entire nation in both passing yards and completions in 2024. With his massive Holiday Bowl performance, he even broke Deshaun Watson’s ACC single-season passing yards record.
McCord isn’t the type of QB that is going to get fans overly excited. However, he is the type of quarterback who could thrive in a West Coast scheme or someone from the Shanahan coaching tree. He is extremely competent playing within this type of structure. Think of a player along the lines of a Brock Purdy or a Kirk Cousins. In this year’s shallow QB class, who knows how the draft will go for a player like McCord? All he has to do is catch the right scout’s attention. The East-West Shrine Bowl will give him just that type of opportunity.
East-West Shrine Bowl Preview | RBs
Jaydon Blue | RB | Texas | 6’0” | 200 lbs
Jaydon Blue is an interesting player heading into the draft season. The talented ball carrier played sparingly during his time in Austin, TX. In fact, he only saw meaningful touches one time in his three seasons. That season was this past year, his Junior year. During that breakout, he handled less than 200 touches on the season.
One of the first things that jumps out on Jaydon Blue’s tape is that he is fast. He is the type of player that can take almost any carry to the house. He will almost certainly be one of the fastest RBs at the upcoming NFL Combine. Blue is also an excellent receiving back. You need look no further than his performance against Ohio State in the College Football Playoff. He only got 4 carries but managed to turn 5 catches into 59 yards and 2 TDs. Keep an eye on Jaydon Blue as he could be a dangerous playmaker in the NFL.
Tahj Brooks | RB | Texas Tech | 5’10” | 230 lbs
Tahj Brooks is a bruising running back. This 230-pound bowling ball of a running back had one of the quietest 1,500-yard rushing seasons you will ever see. In fact, he did it twice. Brooks was the centerpiece of the Texas Tech offense the past two seasons. He has never been prolific as a receiver but he can catch the ball, as evidence by his 103 career catches.
When I watch Brooks I see a fun player. He runs with a nice pad level as you would expect from a runner of his size. He also has a really nasty jump cut in the hole. I saw him on numerous occasions use that cut to bounce a run into the next gap before putting his foot in the ground and getting north in a hurry. Despite his excellent productivity numbers, I do not think he will be a full-time starter in the NFL. However, he could carve out a nice role with the potential to be a short-term starter, much like Khalil Herbert.
Phil Mafah | RB | Clemson | 6’1” | 230 lbs
Phil Mafah is one of those players who always leaves you wanting more. He certainly has some talent, as evidenced by his 1,115 rushing yards this past season for the ACC Champion Clemson Tigers. He has great size at 230 pounds. Mafah is also a capable pass catcher, even though he isn’t overly explosive after the catch.
Now, one thing that you can absolutely tell from the highlights of his best career game is that Mafah runs with heart. He likes to deal out punishment and sometimes seems to seek out contact. His style is very old-school and he reminds me a little bit of former Bears starter Jordan Howard. The question will be how fast he can run. Health could also play a role as Mafah dealt with shoulder issues during his time at Clemson. For me, he is a late-round pick who will need an awfully soft landing spot to make some noise. That being said, he does look like an NFL RB.
Raheim Sanders | RB | South Carolina | 6’0” | 230 lbs
Raheim Sanders is yet another big, physical running back in the Shrine Bowl. Just a few short years ago, he was looked up at as one of the best RBs in the SEC. His 1,443 rushing yards and 10 TDs during his sophomore year put him on everyone’s radar. However, a knee and shoulder injury derailed his junior year, leading him to enter the transfer portal.
The 2024 season saw Sanders reemerge with the Gamecocks. He didn’t quite hit that 1,000-yard goal that every back shoots for, but he did show himself to once again be healthy. It will be interesting to see how NFL scouts view Sanders. He is more of a “one-cut and go” type of back, so he will be very scheme-dependent, in my opinion. It will be interesting to see how he does against the competition at the Shrine Bowl.
East-West Shrine Bowl | WR
Ja’Corey Brooks | WR | Louisville | 6’3” | 195
Ja’Corey Brooks was one of the top WRs in the ACC this past season. The talented receiver began his collegiate career at Alabama before entering the transfer portal prior to the 2024 season. At Louisville, he finally cracked the starting lineup and displayed the talent that saw him be recruited to Alabama in the first place.
Long and lean in his build, Brooks has the look of an excellent “Z” receiver in the NFL. When you watch him play the boundary, you can envision him taking the top off defenses at the NFL level. Brooks reminds me of Martavis Bryant. Both players are extremely fast and long with wingspans that allow them to pluck the ball away from defenders. In a class light at the WR position, Brooks could see his stock take a significant jump with a good showing at the Shrine Bowl.
KeAndre Lambert-Smith | WR | Auburn | 6’1” | 182 lbs
KeAndre Lambert-Smith is an intriguing WR in the 2025 draft class. Due to Auburn’s conservative offense, he didn’t manage to put up gaudy numbers in his one season at Auburn after transferring from Penn State but he certainly flashed some big play ability. Despite the moderate receiving numbers, he had the best receiving season for an Auburn WR since 2013! What I really liked about Lambert-Smith is his ability to raise the level of his play when facing top-level competition. KeAndre Lambert-Smith played his best when Auburn was facing ranked opponents.
Lambert-Smith feels like a player who has a ton of untapped potential. Throughout his collegiate career at PSU and Auburn, he found himself playing with offenses that couldn’t seem to properly utilize that potential. He has excellent contact balance and a good set of hands. KeAndre Lambert-Smith also has some nice YAC ability to boot. I personally believe this will be a player who will open some eyes at the Shrine Bowl. Keep an eye out for his name both during practices and the game as he will likely flash at least a couple of times.
Jackson Meeks | WR | Syracuse | 6’2” | 210 lbs
Jackson Meeks has had a very similar career arc to Ja’Corey Brooks. In the case of Meeks, he toiled away his early years in Georgia. He produced almost nothing until this past season when he transferred to Syracuse. Coupled with new QB Kyle McCord, Jackson Meeks exploded for 78 catches for 1,021 yards and 7 TDs.
Meeks seemed to click late in the season, putting up over 100 yards in 4 of his last 5 games. He has all the physical tools you look for in a traditional “X” receiver. I, for one, will be paying really close attention to this player throughout the draft process. The Shrine Bowl will give us a really nice look at how he practices against some of the other top completion entering the NFL. I believe there is some untapped potential in this player. Look for him to be a mid-to-late-round NFL draft selection.
Tre Harris | WR | Ole Miss | 6’3” | 210 lbs
Tre Harris is the silver tuna of this WR group. The talented Ole Miss pass catcher is one of my favorite receivers in the entire draft class. Big and physical-this is the type of player that will give you visions of former Dallas great Dez Bryant. Tre Harris has operated as Lane Kiffin’s top pass catcher for the last three seasons, going for over 900 yards in each season. 2024 was his best season, turning 60 catches into 1,030 yards and 7 TDs.
Of all the WRs at this year’s Shrine Bowl, Harris is the player with the best chance of being drafted on Day 1. The big thing for Harris will be just how fast he runs. His draft slot will fall somewhere between Dez Bryant and Treylon Burks. I believe he will fall closer to the former, although I do not believe that he has the same ceiling as Dez Bryant. Harris has the potential to be one of the top 5 WRs taken in the upcoming draft and should go somewhere in the 1st to 2nd round turn in your rookie drafts. Check him out at the Shrine Bowl. His practice reps should be fun to watch.
East-West Shrine Bowl Preview | TEs
Luke Lachey | TE | Iowa | 6’6” | 247 lbs
Luke Lachey is next in the vaunted line of Iowa tight ends. He is big and physical with adequate speed for the position. Coming out of Iowa, you know that he is a well-rounded player. Lachey is an excellent blocker along with a decent playmaker, despite his lack of big numbers while in college. Oh, and did I mention that he comes from excellent bloodlines? His father played a decade in the NFL as an offensive tackle, winning a Super Bowl as a member of Washington’s Hogs.
His aforementioned lack of production in college means that Lachey will need to be seen as a project player by an NFL team. Fellow Iowa alum George Kittle once had similar numbers. Now I’m not saying in any way that Luke Lachey is George Kittle, but he comes from the same line, and I am willing to give any Iowa TE a fair look, shouldn’t you?
Mitchell Evans | TE | Notre Dame | 6’5” | 260 lbs
Notre Dame tight end Mitchell Evans has come on well down the stretch for the Fighting Irish. This massive player made a number of big splash plays in the College Football Playoffs, going for over 50 yards in the last two rounds. He doesn’t have the elite upside of the top TE options in this draft, but as you can see below, he is a very capable pass catcher in his own right, going for over 400 yards in back-to-back seasons.
Evans might not be in the same class as Tyler Warren, Colston Loveland, or Harold Fannin Jr., but this player has the ability to be a solid NFL starter. Think former Minnesota TE Kyle Rudolph. I expect Evans to go sometime on Day 2 of the draft with early Day 3 as a floor. I would expect that he will also go somewhere in the 3rd Round of your rookie drafts if he lands in a decent spot.
Oronde Gadsden II | TE | Syracuse | 6’5” | 236 lbs.
Oronde Gadsden II is a really unique player in this season’s draft. He is listed as a TE, but it is fair to wonder if he would be served as a WR at the next level. At 236 pounds, he will need to put on some bulk if he means to play TE in the NFL. But, there is no denying his talent. He managed to put up two 900+ yard seasons, bridged by a year lost to injury. In 2024, he showed he was indeed health again, turning 73 catches into 934 yards and 7 TDs.
Gadsden is a matchup nightmare and will be a fun player to watch at the Shrine Bowl. Linebackers won’t be athletic enough to cover him consistently, and secondary players will get bullied by his size. If the right team selects him and develops him well, he could turn into a unicorn-type player in the NFL. I would liken Gadsden to former Raider and Giant Darren Waller, who was originally drafted as a WR by the Ravens before finding his natural spot in Vegas. Look for Gadsden to be a mid-to-late-round NFL pick. This is the type of player I would love to select in TE premium leagues in the later rounds of rookie drafts to stash on my Taxi squad.
You Can be an All-Star by Donating!
This year’s East-West Shrine Game is no different than any other year. There will be plenty of players grace the field who will be drafted to NFL squads during the 2025 NFL Draft. While this game has often been somewhat of an afterthought compared to the Senior Bowl, it is an excellent contest nonetheless. The Shrine Bowl not only has the honor of being the oldest college all-star game, it also has the distinction of benefitting Shriners Hospitals.
As a Shriner myself, I would like to make a pitch to our readers to consider donating to Shriners Hospitals. These facilities are 100% free to Children and their families. There is no more noble cause than helping children in need. The fact that we can get some All-Star football on top of that is pretty special as well. Do yourself a favor and check out the latest installment of the East-West Shrine Game. You might just find the next great sleeper.
