Monmouth College kicker Nate Palkovic has been selected to play for
the American Football Coaches Association’s Division III all-star
team that will represent the United States against the Mexican
National Team in the 2007 Aztec Bowl on December 8 in Chihuahua,
Mexico.
Palkovic, a senior from Peoria, Ill. (Woodruff), averaged 41.9
yards per punt and 62.4 yards per kickoff this season for the Scots.
He also converted 9 of 14 field goals, including a long of 46 yards
and 35 of 36 extra points.
Palkovic is one of 50 NCAA Division III seniors from around the
country who will make up this year’s team. Former Widener, Delaware
Valley and LaSalle Head Coach Bill Manlove will coach this year’s
team.
This year’s game is scheduled to kick off at 6 p.m. CST on
December 8 at Estadio Olimpico Universitario in Chihuahua.
The Aztec Bowl is the traditional season-ending game for Mexico’s
college football season. The game has been played 36 times since
1947 with the last 10 contests featuring the United States-Mexico
match-up. The United States is 9-1 in the series and defeated
Mexico, 28-7, in the 2006 game in Aguascalientes.
USA Football, the sport’s national governing body leading its
development on a grassroots level, will team with the American
Football Coaches Association for the first time to co-sponsor the
United States Division III National Team at the Aztec Bowl.
USA Football’s involvement is part of its broader international
program that includes organizing the first U.S. senior national team
in the sport of football earlier this year. That team captured the
gold medal at the 2007 World Championship of American Football in
Kawasaki, Japan. Five members of the 2006 Aztec Bowl squad were
members of that team.
Aztec Bowl Webcast: Chitwood Sports Media of Jefferson, Texas
will again provide a live webcast of the Aztec Bowl in 2007. Along
with the game webcast on December 8, announcers Charlie Chitwood and
Ned Fratangelo will provide 90-minute preview shows on December 5,
6, and 7. The preview shows will originate from the Team USA hotel
and will begin each night at 6:30 p.m. CST.
The preview shows and game webcast can all be accessed via the
AFCA’s website at
.
The AFCA was founded in 1922 and currently has more than 10,000
members around the world ranging from the high school level to the
professional ranks. According to its constitution, the AFCA was
formed, in part, to "maintain the highest possible standards in
football and in the coaching profession" and to "provide a forum for
the discussion and study of all matters pertaining to football.
For more information on the AFCA and its programs, log on to the
AFCA’s website at
