Aycock's James, Goldsboro's Montgomery selected for Shrine Bowl

By Andrew Stevens
Published in Sports on November 6, 2010 11:11 PM

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SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Goldsboro High School running back Andre Montgomery and Charles B. Aycock offensive lineman Jarrod James have been selected to play in the 74th annual Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas.

Montgomery and James learned of their selections Thursday afternoon. They'll join 80-plus players for the yearly affair which features the best players from North and South Carolina. The contest is Dec. 18 at Gibbs Stadium on the Wofford (S.C.) University campus.

Kickoff is 1 p.m.

Forest Hills head coach John Lowery will coach the North Carolina team. Mickey Moss from Blacksburg High School will direct the South Carolina squad.

North Carolina won 24-14 a year ago, but South Carolina leads the all-time series 40-24-4.

A 5-foot-10, 219-pound senior, Montgomery has rushed for 1,394 yards this season and 22 touchdowns. He rushed for 2,021 yards and 22 touchdowns as a junior. During his sophomore season, Mongtomery finished with 1,132 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns. He has 62 career rushing touchdowns.

Goldsboro went 22-6 during the previous two seasons and rushed for more than 4,000 yards in each of those years with Montgomery as a part of its vaunted rushing attack. Montgomery is the first Cougar to be selected to the Shrine Bowl since 1998 and the first running back since Montrell Coley in 1996.

"It's an honor to just be selected," said Montgomery. "I have been working really hard all season and it's nice to be recognized for that."

James, a 6-foot-4, 270-pound University of North Carolina signee, was part of a Golden Falcons' team that went 10-3 last season and reached the second round of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 3-A playoffs. He was a vital part of an offensive line that paved the way for tailback Marcus Cobb, who rushed for nearly 2,000 yards and 28 touchdowns in 2009.

"You work for something so hard, you pray for something so hard and you put four years into it and you get your reward," said James. "Nothing is going to compare to playing in Wayne County. I don't care where I go. I've been here for life. I've made a lot of friends here and I just pray I go represent them."

James is Aycock's first Shrine Bowl selection since defensive back Cortez Gilbert in 2005. He joins Gilbert and Ken Grantham as the only Shrine Bowl selections in school history.

"It's hard to imagine," said James. "I look up to Cortez. I look up to him a lot. Just to be part of a select few, it's a huge blessing. I'm thankful for every day for it. I don't know why I was chosen, but for whatever reason I'm going to do it and do it hard."