.png&width=32&height=32&type=webp)
The University of Mississippi Athletics
Five Rebels Set For All-Star Football Games
1/6/2005 | Football
Jan. 6, 2005
OXFORD, Miss. - Five members of the 2004 Ole Miss Rebel football team will be in upcoming All-Star games, it was announced Thursday.
Kicker Jonathan Nichols of Greenwood, Miss., and offensive tackle Marcus Johnson of Coffeeville, Miss., will participate in the January 29 Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., while wide receiver Bill Flowers of Pelham, Ala., tight end Eric Rice of Starkville, Miss., and punter Cody Ridgeway of Jackson, Tenn., will play in The Villages Gridiron Classic in Orlando, Fla., on January 15.
The Senior Bowl is played in Ladd-Peebles Stadium and The Villages Polo Stadium is the site for The Villages Gridiron Classic. Kickoff for the Senior Bowl is set for 3:00 p.m. (CST) on the 29th and will be shown by ESPN2. The Villages Gridiron Classic, also to be telecast by ESPN2, starts at 10:00 a.m. on the 15th.
Nichols set 15 Ole Miss records during his career and became the all-time leading scorer with 344 points, which also ranks sixth on the Southeastern Conference career scoring list. He finished his career with a streak of 117 consecutive PATs made, which ranked as the nation's longest active streak and fifth longest in SEC history. His 20 field goals led the SEC in 2004.
Johnson, who made 48 starts during his four-year career with the Rebels, developed into one of the SEC's finest offensive linemen. As a junior in 2003, his play helped Ole Miss rank first in the SEC in scoring (34.0), passing (286.0), and total offense (433.2).
Flowers finished his career second on the Ole Miss list for receptions with 149, and ranked sixth in career receiving yards with 1,795. He finished his career with a streak of 20 consecutive games with a reception, which rated as the fifth-longest streak in Ole Miss history.
Rice, who had 22 career receptions for 242 yards and two TDs from his tight end position, earned four letters with the Rebels. He also contributed to the offense with his blocking skills.
Ridgeway ended his four-year career at Ole Miss by ranking third in school history in career punt yards with 10,021. He finished third on the Ole Miss career list for punt attempts with 238, and his 42.1 yard punting average ranks sixth best for the Rebels. Ridgeway was also a first team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America selection.
The Senior Bowl has long been recognized as the nation's most unique football game and football's premier pre-draft event, annually featuring the country's best senior collegiate football stars and top NFL draft prospects on teams representing the North and South which are coached by the entire coaching staffs from two National Football League teams.
Senior Bowl practices are also attended by over 700 general managers, head coaches, assistant coaches, scouts and other front office personnel from the 32 National Football League teams, making Mobile and the Senior Bowl the week-long host to a one-of-a-kind NFL Coaches Convention.
For the first time ever, two winners of the Lou Groza Award, presented annually to college football's best kicker, will play in the game. Jonathan Nichols of Ole Miss, the 2003 winner, will kick for the South, and Mike Nugent of Ohio State, the 2004 winner, will be on the North roster.
Since the Senior Bowl's inception in 1950, a total of 75 Ole Miss Rebels have played in the contest, which ranks seventh among all schools in the nation and fourth in the SEC behind Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee and LSU.
Ole Miss' Jimmy Keyes made the first successful field goal in Senior Bowl history in 1968, and two Rebel quarterbacks -- Glynn Griffing in 1963 and John Fourcade in 1982 - have been named Senior Bowl MVP.
The Villages Gridiron Classic will feature 99 college seniors from 62 schools and represents all 11 Division 1-A conferences, as well as players from MEAC Champion Hampton and one senior each from Portland State, Samford, Southern Utah, and Tuskegee.
In only six years of existence, the game has produced more than 400 players that have gone on to play in the NFL.
