Bush, Vilma of New Orleans and Manning, Clark of Indianapolis Highlight Group
Nineteen players whose collegiate teams participated in the FedEx Orange Bowl will return to South Florida for this year’s Super Bowl XLIV match-up between the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts. Thirteen of those players are active, three are on injured reserve and three more are on the practice squads.
The NFC Champion Saints have 11 players on their roster and an additional two players on their practice squad whose collegiate team played in the FedEx Orange Bowl during their career while the AFC Champion Colts have five and one practice squad player.
New Orleans’ Orange Bowl veterans include: Stanley Arnoux (Wake Forest, 2007), Remi Ayodele (Oklahoma, 2005), Jammal Brown (Oklahoma, 2005), Reggie Bush (So. California, 2005), Sedrick Ellis (So. California, 2005), Jonathan Goodwin (Michigan, 2000), Bobby McCray (Florida, 2002), Garrett Hartley (Oklahoma, 2005), Pierson Prioleau (Virginia Tech, 1996), Chip Vaughn (Wake Forest, 2007) and Jonathan Vilma (Miami, 2004). Amoux and Vaughn are on injured reserve. The two practice squad players are: Earl Heyman (Louisville, 2007) and Glen Sharpe (Miami, 2004).
Indianapolis’ Orange Bowl veterans include: Dallas Clark (Iowa, 2003), Dwight Freeney (Syracuse, 1999), Peyton Manning (Tennessee, 1998), Fili Moala (So. California, 2005) and Bob Sanders (Iowa, 2003), who is on injured reserve. The practice squad player is Isaac Smolko (Penn State, 2006).
All of this year’s veterans will be playing on the same field they played on during their Orange Bowl appearance with the exception of the Colts’ Freeney, whose Syracuse squad played against Florida at the old Orange Bowl Stadium in 1999.
In the previous Super Bowls, Orange Bowl veterans have gone on to claim the MVP nine times, most recently Indianapolis’ Manning, as he was selected MVP of Super Bowl XLI. New England’s Tom Brady (Michigan 2000) was named MVP of the XXXVIII and XXXVI games and Baltimore’s Ray Lewis (Miami 1995) was selected the MVP of the XXXV game.
Other former Orange Bowl players to win MVPs include: Bart Starr (Alabama, 1953), the MVP of the first two Super Bowls, followed by fellow Crimson Tide alum Joe Namath (Alabama, 1963, 65), who was the MVP of Super Bowl III. Franco Harris (Penn State, 1969, 70) was MVP of Super Bowl IX and John Riggins (Kansas, 1969) was MVP of Super Bowl XVII.
The 2011 FedEx Orange Bowl will be played on January 3, 2011 at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, the site of Super Bowl XLIV. The 2011 game will be the 77th Orange Bowl played in South Florida and the 10th Super Bowl. The Orange Bowl Committee will also host its 20th National Champion when the the 2013 BCS National Championship comes to Sun Life Stadium.