Kenny Pickett, Desmond Ridder Lead National Team to Senior Bowl Win

MOBILE, Ala. — Cincinnati’s Desmond Ridder threw two touchdown passes and Kenny Pickett threw one to lead the National Team over the American Team, 20-10 at the 2022 Senior Bowl at Hancock Whitney Stadium on the campus of South Alabama.

Pickett, who started the game for the National Team after being named the top quarterback on the squad during the week of practice, threw a touchdown pass on a dump-off to Baylor running back Abram Smith in the first quarter for a 20-yard score.

Pickett led all National passers with 89 yards and was a perfect 6 for 6 throwing for a 279.6 passer rating. He was sacked one time.

Ridder followed Pickett, taking the second quarter for the American squad. He led a long scoring drive, capped off by a six-yard touchdown pass to Colorado State tight end Trey McBride to make it a two-touchdown lead for the American team.

He added a second touchdown in the fourth quarter on a 25-yard pass to Wisconsin tight end Jake Ferguson. Ridder finished 4 of 6 for 68 yards and the two scores.

Liberty’s Malik Willis started the game for the American Team, and made some impressive plays with his legs, but was unable to lead his squad into the end zone. Willis finished 2 of 4 for 11 yards and rushed four times for 54 yards as the game’s leading ballcarrier.

North Carolina quarterback Sam Howell followed and threw nine times, completing six for 67 yards. He ran five times for 29 yards, including a two-yard keeper that brought the American Team back to within one score at 13-7. Howell was sacked three times and fumbled twice, though his team was able to recover both times.

Nevada quarterback Carson Strong was third off the bench for the National Team. He completed 6 of 11 passes for 67 yards and threw the game’s first interception, a badly under-thrown passed picked off by Tennessee’s Alontae Taylor.

Western Kentucky’s Bailey Zappe was 8 of 13 for 103 yards as the third quarterback for the American Team. He led a scoring drive, as Texas kicker Cameron Dicker added a 38-yard field goal late in the third quarter to make the game 13-10. He led the American squad’s final drive before being intercepted by Baylor defensive back J.T. Woods with 19 seconds to play to end the game.

Arizona State’s Rachad White led the the National Team with 52 yards on 11 carries. Smith had 44 yards on nine carries. For the national team, Utah’s TJ Pledger was the most-prolific running back with 33 yards on five carries.

Ferguson was the top National receiver, with three catches for 62 yards. Tennessee’s Velus Jones Jr. led the American squad with four catches for 53 yards.

Defensively, Wyoming linebacker Chad Muma had eight tackles to pace the National Team. Appalachian State’s D’Marco Jackso had six to lead the American squad.

Three players had two sacks each, all from the National Team: Penn State’s Jesse Luketa, Minnesota’s Mafe Boye and Oklahoma’s Perrion Winfrey.

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