FB: USA Football Junior National Team Roster Complete – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/14/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
America’s First Junior National Team in Football to Face the World’s Best in Canton, Ohio, in June
USA Football, the sport’s national governing body on youth and amateur levels, today completed its 2009 Junior National Team roster which will compete in the sport’s first junior world championship this summer.
Forty-five (45) graduating high school seniors soon to enter one of 33 college football programs have been selected to play on America’s first national team in the sport comprised of players aged 19 and under. USA Football announced its initial 36 players on April 14 and its remaining nine roster slots were confirmed today.
USA Football, the sport’s national governing body on youth and amateur levels, has built America’s first junior national team in the sport to compete in the eight-nation, four-continent 2009 International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Junior World Championship in Canton, Ohio, from June 27-July 5. National football teams from Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand and Sweden have qualified to join the United States to pursue the sport’s first world championship on the international junior level (19 and under).
USA Football’s Junior National Team is led by CHUCK KYLE, head coach of Cleveland St. Ignatius High School, who has led his Wildcats to 10 of Ohio’s past 21 large-school state titles, including two USA TODAY “national championships.”
“Much like the country we love and represent, this football team is composed of immense talent and strong character from small towns, big cities, and places in between,” said Kyle, whose team is assembled of players entering one of 13 college conferences, with the Big 10 having the most players on Team USA with nine. “This collection of young men proud Americans will become a team during our 13 days together before facing France on June 27.
“We realize coaches and players alike that we’re playing for something greater than ourselves. It is a privilege to represent the United States in this historic tournament, further propelling football’s international strength.”
All eight national teams will live and practice at Walsh University in North Canton, Ohio, throughout the tournament (June 27-July 5).
USA Football’s 2009 Junior National Team (*new player selection):
| Player | High School | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | Hometown | College & Head Coach |
| Oday Aboushi | Brooklyn (N.Y.) Xaverian | OL | 6-6 | 300 | Brooklyn, N.Y. | Virginia; Al Groh |
| Robert Bell | East Grand Rapids | LB | 6-0 | 222 | Grand Rapids, Mich. | Toledo; Tim Beckman |
| Prestin Brown* | Grand Prairie (Texas) | DE | 6-3 | 242 | Grand Prairie, Texas | Texas State; Brad Wright |
| Phillip Butterfield* | Lake Hamilton (Ark.) | QB | 6-2 | 210 | Hot Springs, Ark. | Arkansas State; Steve Roberts |
| Kevin Cummings | Encino (Calif.) Crespi | WR | 6-2 | 180 | Culver City, Calif. | Oregon State; Mike Riley |
| Zach Cutkomp | West Des Moines Valley | RB | 5-11 | 185 | West Des Moines, Iowa | Northern Iowa; Mark Farley |
| Jamal Davis | Coral Springs (Fla.) Charter | WR | 6-3 | 185 | Coral Springs, Fla. | Florida Atlantic; Howard Schnellenberger |
| Tyler Dippel* | Hartford-Union (Wis.) | FB | 6-4 | 250 | Slinger, Wis. | Wisconsin; Bret Bielema |
| Aaron Dobson | South Charleston (W.Va.) | WR | 6-3 | 185 | Dunbar, W.Va. | Marshall; Mark Snyder |
| Tariq Edwards | Marlboro (S.C.) County | LB | 6-3 | 215 | Cheraw, S.C. | Virginia Tech; Frank Beamer |
| A.J. Ferguson | South Brunswick (N.C.) | DE | 6-3 | 250 | Southport, N.C. | N.C. State; Tom O’Brien |
| Brian Fields | New Castle (Del.) William Penn | RB | 5-9 | 190 | New Castle, Del. | Western Michigan; Bill Cubit |
| Noel Grigsby | Los Angeles Crenshaw | WR | 5-11 | 175 | Los Angeles, Calif. | San Jose State; Dick Tomey |
| James Hall | Las Cruces (N.M.) | RB | 5-8 | 170 | Las Cruces, N.M. | New Mexico St.; DeWayne Walker |
| Chris Henderson | Dallas Carter | DT | 6-1 | 280 | Dallas, Texas | Texas A&M; Mike Sherman |
| David Herman* | Cincinnati St. Xavier | LB | 6-3 | 230 | Cincinnati, Ohio | Holy Cross; Tom Gilmore |
| Pat Hinkel | Cleveland St. Ignatius | S | 6-1 | 190 | Cleveland, Ohio | Miami (Ohio); Michael Haywood |
| Storm Klein | Licking Valley (Ohio) | LB | 6-2 | 225 | Newark, Ohio | Ohio State; Jim Tressel |
| Corey Lillard | Bealeton (Va.) Liberty | S | 5-11 | 205 | Remington, Va. | Virginia; Al Groh |
| Mike Loftus | Anaheim (Calif.) Servite | P/K | 6-2 | 190 | Villa Park, Calif. | SMU; June Jones |
| Erik Lora | Miami Christopher Columbus | WR | 5-11 | 175 | Miami, Fla. | Eastern Illinois; Bob Spoo |
| Jordan Lynch | Chicago Mount Carmel | S | 6-2 | 205 | Chicago, Ill. | Northern Illinois; Jerry Kill |
| J.R. McConico | Los Angeles (Calif.) Venice | CB | 5-9 | 175 | Los Angeles, Calif. | SMU; June Jones |
| Jack Mewhort | Toledo (Ohio) St. John’s | C | 6-6 | 285 | Toledo, Ohio | Ohio State; Jim Tressel |
| Khaled Mheisen | Detroit Catholic Central | DL | 6-5 | 290 | Canton, Mich. | Undecided |
| Chris Norman | Detroit Renaissance | LB | 6-2 | 225 | Detroit, Mich. | Michigan State; Mark Dantonio |
| Matthew Page | East Chicago (Ind.) Central | OL | 6-6 | 300 | East Chicago, Ind. | Ball State; Stan Parrish |
| Chris Payne | Columbia (S.C) | S | 5-10 | 173 | Columbia, S.C. | South Carolina; Steve Spurrier |
| Bryce Petty | Midlothian (Texas) | QB | 6-3 | 220 | Midlothian, Texas | Baylor; Art Briles |
| John Plasencia | Tampa Jesuit | TE | 6-5 | 245 | Tampa, Fla. | Northwestern; Pat Fitzgerald |
| Jordan Poyer | Astoria (Ore.) | CB | 6-1 | 180 | Astoria, Ore. | Oregon State; Mike Riley |
| Aaron Price* | Bloomington (Ind.) South | OL | 6-4 | 285 | Bloomington, Ind. | Indiana; Bill Lynch |
| Tevin Reese | Temple (Texas) | WR | 5-11 | 160 | Temple, Texas | Baylor; Art Briles |
| Micajah Reynolds | Lansing (Mich.) Sexton | G | 6-5 | 310 | Lansing, Mich. | Michigan State; Mark Dantonio |
| Jordon Roussos | Carlynton (Pa.) | DE | 6-4 | 240 | Carnegie, Pa. | Bowling Green; Dave Clawson |
| Bryce Schwindt | Columbine (Colo.) | OL | 6-3 | 280 | Littleton, Colo. | Northern Colorado; Scott Downing |
| Brandon Sharpe* | Ocean Lakes (Va.) | DE | 6-2 | 220 | Virginia Beach, Va. | Syracuse; Doug Marrone |
| Brian Smith | Cuyahoga Falls (Ohio) Walsh Jesuit | OL | 6-7 | 277 | Medina, Ohio | Northwestern; Pat Fitzgerald |
| Kurt Stottlemyer | Bothell (Wash.) | S | 5-10 | 165 | Bothell, Wash. | Yale; Tom Williams |
| Evan Swindall | LaFayette (Ga.) | C | 6-3 | 290 | LaFayette, Ga. | Mississippi; Houston Nutt |
| Phillip Thomas* | Miami (Fla.) Edison Senior | CB | 6-0 | 185 | Miami, Fla. | Syracuse; Doug Marrone |
| Shamarko Thomas* | Ocean Lakes (Va.) | CB | 5-10 | 198 | Virginia Beach, Va. | Syracuse; Doug Marrone |
| David Wilson | Danville (Va.) George Washington | RB | 5-11 | 192 | Danville, Va. | Virginia Tech; Frank Beamer |
| Brian Winters* | Hudson (Ohio) | OL | 6-5 | 310 | Hudson, Ohio | Kent State; Doug Martin |
| Nick Zachery | Sheridan (Ind.) | CB | 6-1 | 200 | Sheridan, Ind. | Indiana; Bill Lynch |
Players selected for USA Football’s Junior National Team were nominated by high school and college coaches from around the country. Roster selections are ultimately determined by USA Football’s coaching staff, which collectively possesses 33 state titles and 155 high school head coaching seasons of experience.
USA Football’s Junior National Team Coaching Staff:
| COACH | POSITION | HIGH SCHOOL |
| Chuck Kyle | Head Coach | Cleveland St. Ignatius |
| Steve Specht | Defensive Coordinator | Cincinnati St. Xavier |
| Gary Swenson | Offensive Coordinator | West Des Moines (Iowa) Valley |
| Tom Bainter | Running Backs | Bothell (Wash.) |
| Marcus Boyles | Wide Receivers | Wayne County (Miss.) |
| Ed Croson | Offensive Line | West Hills (Calif.) Chaminade |
| Jeremy Gold | Defensive Line | Ann Arbor (Mich.) Pioneer |
| Frank Lenti | Offensive Line | Chicago Mount Carmel |
| Chris Merritt | Defensive Backs | Miami Christopher Columbus |
| Allen Wilson | Linebackers | Dallas Carter |
With national football federations in existence worldwide for decades, IFAF, the sport’s international federation, was created in 1998 to organize and further develop the game through global cooperation and competition. All IFAF Junior World Championship games will be played in Canton’s historic Fawcett Stadium, home of the NFL’s annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Game, adjacent to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Action kicks off on Saturday, June 27, and continues on Wednesday, July 1 and Saturday, July 4, before the Championship Game on Sunday, July 5.
