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College Football Players Performance Analysis

One Month Until The U.S. Army All-American Bowl

Every year, football agents, scouts, GMs, etc. start following the local papers very closely to see which college seniors will be invited to play in various post-season college football all-star games.  Those games include the Senior Bowl, East-West Shrine Game, and my favorite title, Texas vs. The Nation Game.  It seems like proper sponsors would include Enron and Halliburton.  Anyway, I digress.  Those all-star games are important spotlights for seniors looking to raise their draft grades prior to the NFL Combine (if invited) and the NFL Draft.  Pro days at various institutions are also excellent opportunities for draft eligible players to show their attributes.  But let’s be honest.  We are following these athletes well before their final year of collegiate eligibility has elapsed.  We start focusing on these guys when they are high school seniors, and special attention is paid to the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

I remember just a few years ago sitting on my couch and watching a beastly linebacker named Brandon Spikes wreck havok on the opposing squad in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.  Now I cheer him on every Saturday as he leads a young Florida Gators defense to potentially a National Championship.  Will you be watching the next great collegiate players as they line up for battle in the trenches?  The U.S. Army All-American Bowl will be held on January 3, 2009.  All players taking part in the event will be trained by BJ Maack, ATC, CSCS, of Arkansas Sports Performance in Little Rock, Arkansas.  This is what Maack had to say about the opportunity:

“I’ve been around sports at the highest levels. To be asked to work with the U.S. Army All-Americans is as high an honor as I’ve had. I’m excited to be offered the chance to work with and take care of such talented athletes.

One athlete in particular that I’m eager to get to know is Darius Winston from Central High School in West Helena, Arkansas. Darius has signed to play at Arkansas next year and I have yet to see him play. He is from a team with a lot of talent, but was singled out as the best of the best by U.S. Army All-American Bowl selectors.”

Darius, among other very talented high school seniors, is someone you need to know.  He is 6’1 180lbs and runs a 4.3.  He is a powerful corner that has a lot of upside going into college.  Congratulations to BJ Maack for being selected as the lead trainer for the young men, and good luck to all participants in the event.  You know that all of us agents will be watching.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.