Cullowhee, N.C. – Catamount senior defensive back
Rod Gattison has accepted an invitation to play in the 9th Annual Trillion Tropical Bowl, while classmate wide receiver
David White Jr., who recently played in the 2024 Caribe Royale Orlando Hula Bowl in Orlando, Fla. back on Jan. 13, will play in the 2024 East-West Shrine Bowl.
Gattison is one of four players representing the Southern Conference in the game, joined by Samford QB Michael Hiers, Mercer receiver and return specialist Devron Harper, and Chattanooga offensive lineman Nicholas Cerimele all on the same team. He is slated to play for Team National Black under head coach Jim Collins of Wittenberg University, who is a former offensive coordinator at Dayton and director of player personnel at Army West Point.
After beginning his collegiate career at Georgia Military College, Gattison transferred to WCU before the 2020 season that was altered by COVID. Over four seasons in a Catamount uniform, the Hartsville, S.C., product played in 37 games and recorded 121 career tackles including 85 solo stops and a combined eight tackles for loss with three sacks. Gattison finished with 20 passes defended with five interceptions, capping his career with a pick in his final game at VMI back on Nov. 18.
The 2024 Tropical Bowl is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 20, with a Noon kickoff at Municipal Stadium (3917 LPGA Blvd.) in Daytona Beach, Fla. Practices for the bowl game will be held Jan. 18-19 at Celebration High in Orlando, Fla. Scouts from the NFL and other professional football teams are slated to be on hand for the practices and game.
The Tropical Bowl game will be available on pay-per-view video stream online at
www.tropicalbowl.com/tv.
David White Jr., earned his second collegiate all-star game bid by accepting an invitation to play in the 2024 East-West Shrine Bowl game. The 99th annual East-West Shrine Bowl game is scheduled for Thurs., Feb. 1, 2024, at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, the worldwide headquarters and training facility for the Dallas Cowboys. The game will be televised in primetime on the NFL Network.
Since 1925, the East-West Shrine Bowl has benefited Shriners Children's and its mission to provide excellent specialty care for children, while showcasing the next generation of potential NFL talent. An invitation to take part in the annual East-West Shrine Bowl is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the best collegiate senior football all-stars in the country to showcase their talents in front of top representatives from NFL teams and other professional football scouts.
The East-West Shrine Bowl (
www.shrinebowl.com) is the nation's oldest college all-star football game – and next to the historic Rose Bowl Game, it's the nation's second-oldest college football game.
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