December 23, 2006

JACKSON, Miss. - Nicholls was represented well at the Magnolia Gridiron All-Star Classic in Jackson, Mississippi on Saturday afternoon with the strong play of Colonel standouts Jacob Bender and Toney Edison. Bender took every snap at left tackle and Edison only came out of the game twice.

"I thought that both of them did a good job and helped their stock in this game," said defensive coordinator Steve Ellis, who came in to watch the came. "Both of them turned heads all in this game."

Edison, who had played strong safety at Nicholls, started the game at free safety, and finished with a game high eight tackles and two pass breakups for the Division I-AA all-stars. Edison did drop a sure fire interception early in the game, and was the main catalyst on a successful fake punt conversion by catching a pass for seven yards.

"Coming out here and playing free safety just added another dimension to my game and what I can offer on a professional level," said Edison. "I think that having this opportunity helped my draft stock a lot, and I am happy to have had this chance."

Bender went up against defensive end Kevin Howe the whole game, and for the most part did fend off the talented Division I-A pass rusher from Eastern Michigan. Bender will get another opportunity to show case his talents at the North-South All-Star Classic in Houston, Texas on January 13, 2007.

The Division I-A all-stars defeated the I-AA all-stars handily by the score of 32-14, but that score did not reflect the play of Bender or Edison.

"Jacob has a tremendous upside. He's big and athletic, and once he learns how to pass block he will be a good NFL player," said Ellis. "Toney played hard too and I think that he turned a lot of heads with his strong play today."

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