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Pitt’s Darrin Hall, Qadree Ollison to Play in East-West Shrine Game

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Darrin Hall and Qadree Ollison, Pitt’s duo of senior running backs, have spent the last four years together splitting carries in the Panthers’ backfield.

After their Pitt swan song in the Sun Bowl on New Year’s Eve, they’ll get one final chance to play alongside one another

Both Hall and Ollison have accepted invitations to play in the 2019 East-West Shrine Game, a college football all-star game that will be played at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida on Jan. 19, 2019.

With one game remaining in their Pitt careers, Hall and Ollison have already left their impact on the Panthers’ record books. This season, they became the first rushing duo in Pitt history to both clear the 1,000-yard plateau.

Ollison became just the sixth Pitt player to rush for multiple 1,000-yard seasons, joining the likes of Tony Dorsett, Curvin Richards, LeSean McCoy, Dion Lewis and James Conner. His 2,836 career rushing yards is seventh all-time in Pitt history and he needs just 25 yards in the Sun Bowl to pass Lewis for sixth place.

Ollison also set the record for the Panthers’ longest run from scrimmage with a 97-yard touchdown against Virginia Tech, breaking the record that Hall set with a 92-yard score against Duke in 2017. The previous record had stood for 100 yards before Hall broke it.

They finished the 2018 regular season ranked second (Ollison) and fourth (Hall) in the ACC in rushing yards, second (Hall) and fourth (Ollison) in yards per carry and fifth (Ollison) and eighth (Hall) in rushing touchdowns.

The Shrine Game is one of the few opportunities for NFL scouts to evaluate college players in full pads and helmets after there collegiate season ends and is usually attended by scouts of each NFL team.

The last Pitt players to play in the Shrine Game were tackle Jaryd Jones-Smith, cornerback Avonte Maddox and wide receiver Jester Weah a year ago. Tight end Scott Orndoff and defensive end Ejuan Price played in the game in 2017.

Sandy Schall, Coldwell Banker
 
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