The All-American Bowl (branded as the Navy All-American Bowl for sponsorship reasons) is a high school football all-star game, held annually at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Typically played in January, the All-American Bowl is played between all-star teams representing the eastern and western United States.
Seventeen All-Americans have been Heisman Trophy finalists, with over 450 later playing in the National Football League. Notable alumni include Andrew Luck, Adrian Peterson, Odell Beckham Jr., Eric Berry, Tim Tebow, Joe Thomas, Tyron Smith, Robert Quinn, C. J. Mosley, DeMarco Murray, and Chase Young.
The All-American Bowl was previously organized by All-American Games; in 2019, NBC Sports announced it had acquired the game and its assets.
History The All-American Bowl is an annual high school football all-star game. The All-American Bowl is usually played in January between all-star teams representing the eastern and western United States.
The First All-American High School Football game, held on June 25, 1994, at J. Birney Crum Stadium in Allentown, Pennsylvania marked a significant moment in the history of high school football. The event was orchestrated by Dale Dougherty, leading to the participation of high schools nationwide.
Background and organization
Dougherty's plan culminated in a national selection process. The selected players were divided into 33-player teams, segregated into East and West squads, with the Mississippi River serving as the geographical dividing line.
Roster and players
The event featured an impressive roster, with 63 out of the top 66 high school football players nationwide committing to participate. Lamont Green, Bo Barzilauskas, Rasheed Simmons, Ryan Clement, Amp Campbell, Marcus Nash, Jason McCullough, and Dan Drogan were among the participants, each boasting remarkable achievements in their respective positions.
Corporate sponsorship and television coverage
Efforts were made to secure corporate sponsorships, offering various packages ranging from $1,000 to $10,000 to involve businesses in supporting the event. Discussions with Prime Network/Sports Channel aimed for national exposure, targeting approximately 50 million households. Television coverage was secured through WFMZ-TV, Channel 69, for local broadcasting and ESPN2 for nationwide telecast.
Legacy and impact
Dougherty's brainchild evolved from an academic project during his sports administration studies at the United States Sports Academy into a major sporting event.
The game was first played on December 30, 2000, at Highlander Stadium in Dallas. In 2002, the game was moved to San Antonio, where it is played at the Alamodome. Since the game's inception, attendance has risen from 6,300 for the inaugural game in 2000 to a record 40,568 in 2017. The United States Army served as title sponsor of the game until 2017, when it announced that it would not renew its sponsorship past the 2018 edition. American Family Insurance became the new presenting sponsor the following year, and was succeeded by the United States Navy in 2025.
NBC started broadcasting the All-American Bowl in 2004. As a result, the game became a platform for participating college prospects to announce a verbal commitment to their future university. Prior to 2019, the All-American Bowl was organized by All-American Games. On February 25, 2019, it was announced that All-American Games had sold the game to NBC Sports Group for an undisclosed "seven-figure" amount. There were plans to leverage NBC's other platforms, including NBCSN and SportsEngine (a provider of digital media services oriented towards youth and amateur sports) as part of promotion and coverage of the game. This purchase did not include other events owned by All-American Games, such as the FBU National Championships (a youth football event) and the FBU Freshman All-American Bowl–both held annually in Naples, Florida, which were sold separately to All-American Games vice-president Steve Quinn and partner Erik Richards.
The 2021 game (originally scheduled for January 9, 2021) was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In place of the game, NBC scheduled an All-American Bowl: Declaration Day special on January 2, 2021, to honor top players of the 2020 season and air commitment announcements.
Awards
During the week of the game, a number of national awards are given at a formal awards dinner including: Ken Hall Trophy: Awarded to the nation's best high school football player and named after Ken "Sugarland Express" Hall, once the all-time leading rusher in high-school football history for more than five decades Bill Yoast Trophy: Awarded to the nation's top high school coach Glenn Davis Army Award (West) and Doc Blanchard (East) Awards: Recognizes an East and West player who best epitomizes the Army's high standard of excellence in community service, education, and athletic distinction Anthony Muñoz Lineman of the Year Award: Awarded to the nation's best high school offensive lineman or defensive lineman
After the conclusion of the game on Saturday afternoon, these awards are given: Herman Boone Trophy: Awarded annually to the winning team Pete Dawkins MVP Trophy National Coach of the Year
Selection process All-American Bowl players are chosen through a national "selection tour" and associated combine. The committee is headed by the national recruiting director, Erik Richards.
Game records
Record category Record holder Year Record Highest Attendance 2017 2017 40,568 Longest Touchdown Pass Travis Waller to Derrius Guice 2015 92 yards Most Passing Yards Spencer Rattler 2019 234 yards Most Passing Touchdowns Graham Mertz 2019 5 TDs Most Rushing Yards Demetrius Hart 2011 100 yards (8 carries) Most Rushing Touchdowns Most Recently: Royce Freeman (tied with 3 others) 2014 3 TDs Most Receiving Yards Derrius Guice 2015 153 yards (2 receptions) Most Points, Single Player Most Recently: Royce Freeman (tied with 3 others) 2014 18 points Most Tackles De'Anthony Thomas 2011 8 tackles Longest Kickoff Return TD Ted Ginn Jr. 2004 98 yards Largest Margin of Victory East over West 47–3 2003 44 pointsLongest Field GoalDavid Olano202350 yards
Game results East victories are shaded ██ red. West victories shaded ██ gold.
DateSiteResultSeriesDecember 30, 2000 Highlander Stadium • Dallas, TexasWest 18–15West 1–0January 5, 2002 Alamo Stadium • San Antonio, TexasWest 26–6West 2–0January 5, 2003 Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasEast 47–3West 2–1January 3, 2004 East 45–28Tied 2–2January 15, 2005 Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasWest 35–3West 3–2January 7, 2006 Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasEast 27–16Tied 3–3January 6, 2007 Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasWest 24–7West 4–3January 5, 2008 Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasEast 33–23Tied 4–4January 3, 2009 East 30–17East 5–4January 9, 2010 Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasWest 30–14Tied 5–5January 8, 2011 Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasEast 13–10East 6–5January 7, 2012 Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasWest 24–12Tied 6–6January 5, 2013 Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasEast 15–8East 7–6January 4, 2014 Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasWest 26–8Tied 7–7January 3, 2015 West 39–36West 8–7January 9, 2016West 37–9West 9–7January 7, 2017Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasEast 27–17West 9–8January 6, 2018Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasWest 17–16West 10–8January 5, 2019Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasEast 48–14West 10–9January 4, 2020Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasWest 33–20West 11–9January 8, 2022West 34–14West 12–9January 7, 2023Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasEast 55–17 West 12–10January 6, 2024Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasWest 31–28West 13–10January 11, 2025West 13–7West 14–10January 10, 2026Alamodome • San Antonio, TexasEast 17–14West 14–11
Game MVPs A game MVP is announced after each year's All-American Bowl. In the past, the winner of the MVP award was given the Pete Dawkins Trophy, named for 1958 Heisman Trophy winner Pete Dawkins, but as of 2019 that award name is no longer active.
Season Player Position High school College Ref. 2001 Dominic Robinson WR Diamond Bar Florida State 2002 Vince Young QB Madison Texas 2003 Chris Leak Independence Florida 2004 Ted Ginn Jr. WR Glenville Ohio State 2005 DeSean Jackson Long Beach California 2006 Beanie Wells RB Garfield Ohio State 2007 Chris Galippo LB Servite USC 2008 Terrelle Pryor QB Jeannette Ohio State 2009 Tajh Boyd Phoebus Clemson Bryce BrownRBWichita EastTennessee 2010 Ronald Powell DE Rancho Verde Florida 2011 Demetrius Hart RB Phillips Alabama Colorado State 2012 Dorial Green-Beckham WR Hillcrest Missouri Cyler MilesQBMullenWashington 2013 James Quick WR Trinity Louisville 2014 Joe Mixon RB Freedom Oklahoma 2015 Derrius Guice Catholic LSU 2016 Shea Patterson QB IMG Ole Miss Michigan 2017 Hunter Johnson Brownsburg Clemson Northwestern 2018 Caden Sterns DB Steele Texas 2019 Graham Mertz QB Blue Valley North Wisconsin Florida 2020 Bryce Young Mater Dei Alabama 2022 Rayshon Luke RB St. John Bosco Arizona Fresno State2023 Dante Moore QB Martin Luther King Jr. UCLA Oregon2024Koi PerichSLincoln SecondaryMinnesotaOregon2025Keisean HendersonQBLegacy the School of Sport SciencesHouston2026Luke WafleDEHun School of PrincetonUSC
Notable participants Seventeen All-Americans have been Heisman Trophy finalists, with over 450 later playing in the National Football League.
2001
East Chauncey Davis – Florida State Jason Davis – Illinois Trai Essex – Northwestern Patrick Estes – Virginia Dustin Fox – Ohio State Anttaj Hawthorne – Wisconsin Marlin Jackson – Michigan Kevin Jones – Virginia Tech Craphonso Thorpe – Florida State Leon Williams – Miami Pierre Woods – Michigan
West Lorenzo Alexander – California Derek Anderson – Oregon State Michael Clayton – LSU Shaun Cody – USC Cedric Griffin – Texas Tommie Harris – Oklahoma Derrick Johnson – Texas Marcus Spears – LSU Andrew Whitworth – LSU Ben Wilkerson – LSU
2002
East Jason Avant – Michigan Will Blackmon – Boston College Ahmad Brooks – Virginia Levi Brown – Penn State Thomas Clayton – Kansas State A.J. Davis – NC State James "Buster" Davis – Florida State Anthony Fasano – Notre Dame Nick Mangold – Ohio State Tyler Palko – Pittsburgh Brady Quinn – Notre Dame
West Haloti Ngata – Oregon Justin Blalock – Texas Kamerion Wimbley – Florida State Vince Young – Texas
2003
East Andre Caldwell – Florida Antonio Cromartie – Florida State Vernon Davis – Maryland Chris Leak – Florida Ryan Mundy – West Virginia Greg Olsen – Miami John Sullivan – Notre Dame Joe Thomas – Wisconsin Donte Whitner – Ohio State Tom Zbikowski – Notre Dame Shawn Crable – Michigan University
West Sam Baker – USC Tarell Brown – Texas Reggie Bush – USC John Carlson – Notre Dame Leon Hall – Michigan LenDale White – USC
2004
East Ryan Baker Connor Barth Tony Carter Dan Connor Ted Ginn Jr. Chad Henne Chris Long Zach Miller
West Early Doucet Adrian Peterson Matt Tuiasosopo Marcus Freeman
2005
East Brian Cushing – USC Rashard Mendenhall – Illini Zoltan Mesko Tony Moeaki – Iowa Eugene Monroe Michael Oher – Ole Miss Kenny Phillips
West Travis Beckum Martellus Bennett Jamaal Charles – Texas DeSean Jackson – California Rey Maualuga – USC David Nelson Mark Sanchez – USC Jonathan Stewart Ndamukong Suh – Nebraska
2006
East Matt Bosher – Miami Brandon Graham – Michigan Percy Harvin – Florida LeSean McCoy – Pittsburgh Jared Odrick – Penn State Myron Rolle – Florida State Andre Smith – Alabama Brandon Spikes – Florida C. J. Spiller – Clemson Tim Tebow – Florida
West Perrish Cox – Oklahoma State Kai Forbath – UCLA Michael Goodson – Texas A&M Sergio Kindle – Texas Taylor Mays – USC Gerald McCoy – Oklahoma DeMarco Murray – Oklahoma J'Marcus Webb – Texas
2007
East Arrelious Benn – Illinois Noel Devine – West Virginia Eric Berry – Tennessee Anthony Davis – Rutgers Marcus Gilchrist – Clemson MarQueis Gray – Minnesota Greg Little – North Carolina Stefen Wisniewski – Penn State