U.S. Army All-American Bowl Selects 2016 USAAB National Coach and Player of the Year

SAN ANTONIO, Jan. 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Army All-American Bowl Selection Committee has announced Matt Logan from Centennial High School, Corona, CA, as the 2016 U.S. Army All-American Bowl National Coach of the Year and Jacob Eason (Lake Stevens High School, Lake Stevens, WA) as the 2016 U.S. Army Player of the Year. The Coach of the Year award honors the nation's top high school football coach, recognizing exceptional coaching abilities and leadership skills as well as serving as a positive influence to the youth of America on and off the field. The Player of the Year title is given to the nation's most outstanding senior in high school football.

"The coaches chosen for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl are highly accomplished and respected leaders, who like our Army Soldiers, base their leadership on a set of core values," said Mark S. Davis, deputy assistant secretary of the Army for marketing. "We congratulate Matt on being recognized as the Coach of the Year and thank him for his dedication. Additionally, we recognize Jacob for demonstrating character, leadership and athletic excellence as the 2016 U.S. Army Player of the Year."

Coach Logan will receive the Yoast Award, named after the legendary Coach Bill Yoast, who along with Coach Herman Boone was immortalized in the movie Remember the Titans. Coaches are nominated and selected by the U.S. Army All-American Bowl Selection Committee. Other nominees this year included: Justin Alumbaugh (De La Salle High School, Concord CA), John Holecek (Loyola Academy, Wilmette, IL), Gary Joseph (Katy High School, Katy, TX), Scott Lehnhoff (Byron P. Steele High School, Cibolo, TX), and Kenny Sanchez (Bishop Gorman High School, Las Vegas, NV).

Eason, a 6'6" University of Georgia commit, ended his high school football career in tremendous fashion. While leading his team to a Washington State 4A runner-up finish, he tallied 3,587 passing yards and 43 passing touchdowns, completing 235 out of 338 passes. On the ground he also managed to rack up 184 rushing yards while scoring four more touchdowns. To add to an already impressive resume, Eason was named 2015-2016 Gatorade National Player of the Year, USA Today Offensive Player of the Year, a finalist for the MFC National Player of the Year award, and he received All USA Today First team honors.

The Player of the Year selection process began this past fall as players were evaluated by the U.S. Army All-American Bowl Selection Committee and by coaches from around the country. Past U.S. Army Player of the Year winners include Kevin Jones (2001), Lorenzo Booker (2002), Chris Leak (2003), Ryan Perrilloux (2005), Mitch Mustain (2006), Jimmy Clausen (2007), Terrelle Pryor (2008), Bryce Brown (2009), Dillon Baxter (2010), Demetrius Hart (2011), Dorial Green-Beckham (2012), Max Browne (2013), Elijah Hood (2014), and Martez Ivey (2015).

For 16 years, the U.S. Army All-American Bowl has been the nation's premier high school football game, serving as the preeminent launching pad for America's future college and NFL stars. Andrew Luck, Odell Beckham Jr., Jamaal Charles and Derrick Henry made their national debuts as U.S. Army All-Americans, and a total of five U.S. Army All-American Bowl alumni were drafted in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft. The 2015 U.S. Army All-American Bowl drew a crowd of 35,687 to the Alamodome.

The U.S. Army All-American Bowl is owned and produced by All American Games, a New Jersey-based sports marketing and event management company. The U.S. Army is the title sponsor of the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, and American Family Insurance is the lead national sponsor and presenting sponsor of the telecast on NBC. Other national sponsors include adidas, Gatorade, San Antonio Visitors Bureau, 247Sports, XOS Digital, NCSA, Lockheed Martin, Xenith, Battle Sports Science, NewTek and Football University. National sponsors of the U.S. Army All-American Marching Band include: The National Association for Music Education, Drum Corps International, Jupiter Band Instruments, Mapex Marching Percussion, Majestic Concert Percussion and DeMoulin Uniforms.

For more information on the U.S. Army All-American Bowl and its related events visit  www.usarmyallamericanbowl.com and www.goarmy.com/events/aab or the official Facebook and Twitter.

For more information contact: 
Anna Negron 
All American Games 
C: 609-364-3097 
O: 973-366-8448 x302 
E: [email protected]

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SOURCE U.S. Army