South Carolina alum wins MVP as part of strong Gamecock day at East-West Shrine Bowl
On Thursday night, the Gamecocks put on a show in Texas. South Carolina football products O’Donnell Fortune, Tonka Hemingway, Kai Kroeger, Rocket Sanders, Josh Simon, and Bam Martin-Scott were in Dallas’ AT&T Stadium for the 100th edition of the East-West Shrine Bowl. In the end, a former Gamecock picked up an MVP honor, and a couple more improved their draft stock.
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Thanks primarily to a 65-yard pick-six in the second quarter, cornerback OD Fortune earned Defensive Player of the Game. In a way, he was one of the game’s most valuable offensive players, too, as he scored more points for his team than the entire West team in the shutout victory. For South Carolina football fans who might be concerned, there were no flags on Fortune’s play. (Though, there could have been a flag as defensive lineman Tonka Hemingway was held on the play.) You can watch the play below.
Hemingway had a nice performance as well. The USC defensive lineman helped the East pitch their shutout with a big sack on one of the West’s top drives of the day. As he so often did during his South Carolina football career, Hemingway had a well-rounded performance in this one. He also added two passes defended and another tackle to his ledger. You can watch his sack below.
Punter Kai Kroeger had a nice showing. On four kicks, he averaged 47.5 yards per attempt but dropped two of them inside the West team’s 20-yard line (one inside the 5-yard line). When given a little more space, Kroeger also boomed one kick 56 yards with tons of hang time.
Tight end Josh Simon earned the start for the East squad but didn’t log any statistics. Linebacker Bam Martin-Scott picked up a pair of tackles for the West team. Running back Rocket Sanders had a good week of practice, but, according to the official East-West Shrine Bowl box score, did not play on Thursday night.
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Sanders, Simon, Kroeger, and Hemingway all picked up some well-deserved praise during practice this week, as well.
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All six players are vying to hear their names called during the 2025 NFL Draft. Alongside the three Senior Bowl participants (TJ Sanders, Nick Emmanwori, and Kyle Kennard) and several other Gamecock upperclassmen, this group could help South Carolina set a new program record for players selected in one draft. In both 2009 and 2013, USC had seven players drafted.
This year’s NFL Draft begins on Thursday, April 24th and will run through Saturday, April 26th. ABC, NFL Network, and the ESPN family of networks will broadcast the draft festivities.
