2021 Under Armour All-America Game Canceled
A handful of high school football talent from the state of Georgia will no longer get the chance to showcase their skills on a national stage. The 2021 Under Armour All-America High School Football Game, set to occur on Jan. 3 in Orlando, has been canceled.
The official Twitter account for the event put out a statement surrounding the cancellation on Friday, explaining that “given the unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 global pandemic,” the decision was made to cancel.
The “safety of participants, coaches, staff and everyone associated with the Under Armour All-America Game” was cited as the most important factor in the minds of those in power to make the call.
The news impacts 100 high school seniors, including nine players from Georgia. Nyland Green, David Daniel, Kamar Wilcoxson, Chief Borders, Amarius Mims, Terrence Ferguson, Noah Jones, Lovasea Carroll, Cane Berrong, and Dacari Collins were all set to represent the Peach State in this season’s event. The only states to have more players on the 2021 roster are Texas and Florida.
Several of the players from the state of Georgia took to social media to express their disappointment with the news. Reactions ranged from Daniel’s simple two-emoji tweet of a sad face and broken heart to Borders’ sentiment of “dang 2020, what else do you want?”
It is no surprise that the young men are upset, as the game has historically been a place where elite athletes have added their names to a long list of talented players to participate. Julio Jones, A.J. Green, and Leonard Fournette are just some of the current NFL talent to have previously competed in the event.
Adding to the disappointment is the fact that scoring an invitation to participate is no small feat due to the extremely selective nature of the game.
In an effort to still supply those who were chosen with some recognition, the statement from the event claimed that “plans are in the works to celebrate these incredible athletes and honor them for their achievements as they prepare for the next steps of their football careers.”
The exact plans to recognize those selected will be made public in the coming weeks.
As the GHSA state playoffs draw closer, the players will now have extra motivation to show off their skills, as a large opportunity was unfortunately taken away due to the global pandemic.
The statement by those in charge of the All-America Game ended on an optimistic note, stating that they are looking forward to continuing the game in-person in 2022 to “once again deliver the best all-star game experience for the nation’s top seniors.”
Written by: Reagan Cofield
