The very first Shrine Game took place in 1925. This will be the 86th game in history to be played. The West Team leads the series at 45-35-5. A majority of these games have taken place in the Northern California Bay Area; either San Francisco or Palo Alto most of the time. In 2006, they relocated to Texas and last year the game was moved to Orlando, Florida which is where this afternoon's game will take place.

Each year talented players are invited to this event. And each year players are able to boost their draft stock up a few slots. On the other side of that, players that are hyped a bit more than their capacity fall flat decreasing where they may be drafted. There will still be the NFL Combine for most of these guys as well. So even if some of them have a sub-par performance today, it's still possible for them to regain some ground at the NFL Combine and, or their respective pro days. One thing is certain, there will be players on both sides of that spectrum this afternoon.

Most fans that will be watching are either die-hard NCAA football fanatics and this will be, besides the Senior Bowl, the last time to watch some of their favorite college players. Some of them may also be watching because they want to see who potentially could be on their favorite pro teams roster come April. There are also some, like myself, that will be watching for both reasons.

Several NFL Teams will be in search of a quarterback to resurrect their franchises. And several pro scouts will either be in attendance or watching the game extremely closely on their televisions. They will be paying attention to detail. The mechanics, fundamentals, and just sheer on field presence will be looked at under a microscope.

The guys who will be playing in this game will without question have the adrenaline flowing. This is a huge opportunity for a lot of them. Particularly the guys who have not received a ton of the mainstream media hype.

After the jump, I will list each roster followed up with a watch list of players that will carry the most intrigue.

East Team
Coach: Dan Reeves

West Team
Coach: Wade Phillips

EAST PLAYERS TO WATCH:

#99 Marvin Austin -- UNC -- DE

#14 Mario Butler -- GEORGIA TECH -- CB

#51 Akeem Dent -- GEORGIA -- ILB

#17 Patrick Devlin -- DELAWARE -- QB

#7 Jermale Hines -- OHIO STATE -- SS

#31 Brian Lainhart -- KENT STATE -- FS

#83 Cliff Matthews -- S. CAROLINA -- DE

#86 Olong Ogbu -- PENN STATE -- DT

#10 Cecil Shorts -- MT. UNION -- WR

#5 Tyrod Taylor -- VIRGINIA TECH -- QB

#22 Evan Royster -- PENN STATE -- RB

#80 Terrence Toliver -- LSU -- WR

WEST PLAYERS TO WATCH:

#14 Cortez Allen -- CITADEL -- CB

#77 Joseph Barksdale -- LSU -- OT/ OG

#80 Armon Binns - CINCINNATI -- WR

#44 Chris Carter -- FRESNO STATE -- OLB

#10 Nathan Enderle -- IDAHO -- QB

#22 Jeron Johnson -- BOISE STATE -- SS

#55 Dontay Moch -- NEVADA -- OLB

#7 Brandyn Thompson -- BOISE STATE -- CB

#16 Scott Tolzien -- WISCONSIN -- QB

#19 Winston Venable -- BOISE STATE -- OLB

#8 Ryan Whalen -- STANFORD -- WR

#9 Nate Williams -- WASHINGTON -- SS

#23 Jefferey Maehl -- OREGON -- WR

FINAL THOUGHTS: Out of both of these "watch" list, I am sure there will be a player or two that was left off. Just about every year, a guy or two that hasn't gotten the attention he deserved because he played at a smaller school, will emerge in today's spotlight. It should be a fun filled game with lots of action. There has only been a handful of games out of the 85 that have been played before this that have not been very high scoring. Either way, scoring or not, I hope to see more than all the punters showcasing their talents.