NEW ORLEANS (November 30, 2020) – The Allstate Sugar Bowl has announced this week’s Manning Award Futures – four local high school quarterbacks who turned in outstanding performances on the football field this past weekend. Fans now have the opportunity to go to Twitter (@SugarBowlNola) to vote for their favorite performance of the week.
VOTE on Twitter!
The Manning Award, which recognizes the top collegiate quarterback in the nation on an annual basis, was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in 2004 to honor the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. For the past decade, the Sugar Bowl and the Manning Award have recognized top collegiate quarterbacks on a weekly basis.
“Given the Sugar Bowl’s long-standing support of high school athletics in the state, we felt this was a natural,” said Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley. “There are so many great performances by high school quarterbacks in the New Orleans area each week that deserve recognition. Our partnership with the Manning family on the collegiate award has been special, and we think the Manning Award Futures can grow into something special as well. It should be fun.”
Manning Award Futures – High School QBs of the Week, 11/30/20:
Twillie Lovett, Belle Chasse (1-of-1, 6 yards)
Lovett, a McNeese State commit, ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns while also tallying eight tackles and snagging an interception that he returned 36 yards for a TD as the Cardinals defeated Carver, 35-14, in the first round of the LHSAA Class 4A playoffs.
Kendell Sampson, St. Augustine (11-of-22, 201 yards, 3 TDs)
Sampson also ran for 111 yards and a touchdown as he led the Purple Knights to a 47-14 win over Holy Cross in the first round of the LHSAA Division I playoffs.
AJ Samuel, Edna Karr (9-of-12, 221 yards, 5 TDs)
Samuel also rushed for a touchdown as he accounted for TDs on the only six possessions he played as the Cougars defeated Ellender, 42-0, in the opening round of the LHSAA Class 4A Playoffs.
Dawson Simmons, Country Day (6-of-13, 180 yards, 1 TD)
Simmons, a freshman who also ran for 90 yards and a pair of touchdowns, led the Cajuns to a 24-10 win over St. Mary’s in the first round of the LHSAA Division IV playoffs.
Caivyn Johnson from West Jefferson High School was last week’s top Manning Award Futures vote-getter. Johnson completed 10-of-15 passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-sealing 33-yard TD pass to lift the Buccaneers to a 31-12 victory over East Jefferson. The win clinched a playoff berth for West Jeff for the first time since 2013.
The Allstate Sugar Bowl has established itself as one of the premier college football bowl games, having hosted 28 national champions, 97 Hall of Fame players, 50 Hall of Fame coaches and 18 Heisman Trophy winners in its 86-year history. The 86th Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic, which will double as a College Football Playoff Semifinal, is scheduled to be played on January 1, 2021. In addition to football, the Sugar Bowl Committee annually invests over $1.6 million into the community through the hosting and sponsorship of sporting events, awards and clinics. Through these efforts, the organization supports and honors thousands of student-athletes each year, while injecting over $2.7 billion into the local economy in the last decade.
-AllstateSugarBowl.org-
