The College Gridiron Showcase (CGS) is an independently operated annual post-season

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

event hosted each January in

Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According ...

. The event consists of

NFL draft The National Football League Draft, also called the NFL Draft or (officially) the Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the league's most common source of player recruitment. Each team is given a position in the drafting o ...

prospects who have completed their eligibility in

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

NCAA Division III NCAA Division III (D-III) is a division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States. D-III consists of athletic programs at colleges and universities that choose not to offer athletic scholarships to their stu ...

, and the NAIA. CGS also hosts the Pro Gridiron Showcase for non-draft eligible free agents. The event originated as a post-season all star game in 2015, but switched to its current drill showcase and "controlled scrimmage" format in 2016. In addition to on-field drills, the event also features educational seminars including those on financial acumen and marketing.

History

2015

The inaugural CGS event, an All Star Game format was held in Addison, TX. Of the 104 participants, 10 were selected in the NFL Draft, 53 signed as undrafted free agents, and 22 were rookie camp invitees. The event also featured the number one overall pick in the 2015 CFL Draft, Alex Mateas. Notable participants

2016

The 2016 CGS was held at Pennington Field in

Bedford, Texas Bedford is a city located in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, in the "Mid-Cities" area between Dallas and Fort Worth. It is a suburb of Dallas and Fort Worth. The population was 46,979 at the 2010 census. Bedford is part of the Hurst-Euless-Bedf ...

and was the first that featured the showcase format as opposed to all star game. Notable participants in the 2016 College Gridiron Showcase include CFL stars

Juwan Brescacin Juwan Brescacin (born January 10, 1993) is a professional Canadian football wide receiver for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He has played in three Grey Cup games and was a member of the 106th Grey Cup champi ...

Romar Morris Romar Morris (born October 21, 1992) is an American professional gridiron football running back who is a free agent. He was signed by the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent at the conclusion of the 2016 NFL Draft. Morris was the NCHSAA Ma ...

, Eric Temple, Robert Porter, Marvin Hall, Jr., and

Reggie Begelton Reggie Begelton (born August 31, 1993) is a gridiron football wide receiver for the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Lamar. He has also played for the Green Bay Packers of the National Fo ...

, NFL players Jakeem Grant, Trevor Williams, Jackson Branden, Andrew Adams, and JD McKissic, as well as the

XFL XFL may refer to: Sports * XFL (2001), a defunct American football league that played its only season in 2001 * XFL (2020), a professional American football league Vehicles * Bell XFL Airabonita, a 1940 U.S. Navy experimental interceptor aircra ...

's Kenneth Farrow and Jake Shenandoah.

2017

The 2017 CGS was held at Pennington Field in

. Lake Erie's

Anthony Kukwa Anthony Kukwa (born October 30, 1992) is an American football long snapper who is a free agent. He initially attended Ball State Cardinals football, Ball State University and later transferred to Lake Erie College, where he played long snapper a ...

was named offensive MVP. Arkansas State's

Chris Odom Chris Odom (born September 16, 1994) is an American football defensive end for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Arkansas State Red Wolves football, Arkansas State. Odom has also been a memb ...

was the defensive MVP. Notable participants

2018

The 2018 College Gridiron Showcase was held at Greenhill School in Addison, TX. Notable participants

2019

The 2019 OTA-style format was held January 5–9, 2019 at McNair Stadium in Fort Worth. In addition to the regular showcase and symposium, the 2020 event saw the addition of a "Small School Invitational Showcase" to provide a scouting forum for players from lower tier conferences. Running back AJ Ouellette from Ohio University and defensive end Kevin Thompson from Bethune-Cookman were named offensive and defensive MVPs, respectively. Notable participants

2020

CGS 2020 was held January 3–8 at McNair Stadium in Fort Worth. Notable participants

References

{{reflist

External links

Official Website
College football all-star games Recurring sporting events established in 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football NCAA Division II football NCAA Division III football