The South beat the North, 21-16, in the 2013 Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala. Florida State quarterback E.J. Manuel was named the game’s most outstanding player after completing 7-of-10 passes for 76 yards, including a 20-yard touchdown pass to Alabama tight end Michael Williams, who finished the game with two catches for 39 yards, to help the South build a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. Manuel also rushed four times for 10 yards, including a 2-yard touchdown to get the South on the board first.

Stanford’s Stepfan Taylor, who played for the South, was the leading rusher with nine carries for 53 yards, including a 20-yard dash.

UCLA’s Johnathan Franklin had 41 yards on five carries for the North, including a 20-yard touchdown run to cut into the South’s lead, 14-7.

BYU defensive end Ezekiel Ansah was the game’s defensive star, with several tackles, two sacks, a forced fumble and a pass breakup for the South. Ansah was unblockable and outplayed Wisconsin right tackle Ricky Wagner and San Jose State right tackle Dan Quessenberry.

Missouri linebacker Zavier Gooden and Georgia safety Bacarri Rambo had interceptions for the South, as did Southeastern Louisiana cornerback Robert Alford, who picked off Zac Dysert’s two-point conversion pass. Alford had an 88-yard kickoff return to start the game and set up the South’s first touchdown, and also had a pass breakup.

Utah State cornerback Will Davis had an interception for the North, picking off Manuel and returning the ball 25 yards before a touchdown-saving tackle was made by Oklahoma left tackle Lane Johnson, who was the game’s best offensive lineman in PewterReport.com’s estimation.

FIRST QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
• Washington cornerback Desmond Trufant had a touchdown-saving tackle on Southeastern Louisiana cornerback Robert Alford’s 88-yard opening kickoff return. He had a facemask penalty on the play, but showed tremendous hustle and competitiveness on the play.

• Rutgers LB Khaseem Greene kept excellent contain on an end around to prevent Terrence Williams from scoring from five yards out.

• Oklahoma left tackle Lane Johnson had a great block on SMU defensive end Margus Hunt and cleared him out on Florida State QB E.J. Manuel’s 2-yard touchdown run.

• Cal cornerback Marc Anthony showed great speed in going stride for stride with Texas wide receiver Marquise Goodwin on a deep incomplete pass from North Carolina State quarterback Mike Glennon.

• Trufant made a nice tackle to end Florida running back Mike Gillislee’s 13-yard breakout run.

• Alabama tight end Michael Williams had a 20-yard touchdown catch on a well-thrown ball from Manuel in the end zone. USC safety T.J. McDonald had decent coverage, but failed to make a play on the ball. Emanuel was 4-of-5 of 58 yards and a touchdown in the first half as the South took a 14-0 lead.

• BYU defensive end Ezekiel Ansah beat Wisconsin right tackle Ricky Wagner to tackle UCLA running back Johnathan Franklin for no gain.

• UConn linebacker Sio Moore had a body slam tackle tackle in the backfield along with UCLA defensive end Datone Jones on Stanford running back Stepfon Taylor to end the first quarter.

SECOND QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
• Florida International safety Jonathan Cyprien had a great tackle on Tennessee tight end Mychal Rivera for no gain on third-and-5 to force a punt.

• Houston linebacker Phillip Stewart had a 5-yard tackle for loss on Fresno State running back Robbie Rouse.

• Ansah impressively tracked down Rouse from behind to make a tackle after a first down. The BYU standout chased the play from the backside and ran 30 yards to make the stop.

• Georgia safety Bacarri Rambo, who had 16 career interceptions at Georgia, picked off Ryan Nassib’s deep pass intended for wide receiver Alec Lemon.

• Oregon State cornerback nearly had an interception in the end zone on a deep pass from Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson to Arkansas wide receiver Coby Hamilton.

• Illinois defensive end Michael Buchanan blocked a field goal for the North defense in the second quarter.

• Ansah sniffed out Michigan wide receiver Denard Robinson’s reverse to close quickly and tackled him for a loss.

• Georgia defensive end Cornelius Washington beat Syracuse left tackle Justin Pugh with an inside move for a sack on Miami (OH) quarterback Zac Dysert and forced a fumble on the play.

• Missouri linebacker Zavier Gooden picked off Dysert and returned the pick 30 yards. Dysert was pressured by Washington, who beat Pugh, on the play.

• Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones was pressured up the middle often by Purdue defensive tackle Kawann Short and was rattled into making several poor throws.

• Alford had great coverage on slant route by Kansas State wide receiver Chris Harper on an incomplete pass on third down by Dysert, who struggled in the second quarter.

• Nevada safety Duke Williams forced a fumble on Stanford running back Stepfan Taylor, who caught a screen pass. Williams had a stinger on the play, but later returned.

• Utah State cornerback Will Davis had a tremendous, diving pass breakup on a pass from Jones to LSU wide receiver Leslie Shepherd.

• Datone Jones and Penn State defensive tackle Jordan Hill sacked Landry Jones to end the first half.

THIRD QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
• Franklin had a pair of great perimeter runs of 12 yards and 20 yards – the last of which was a touchdown as he outraced Alabama safety Fred Lester to the pylon to get the North squad on the scoreboard and cut into the South’s 14-7 lead.

• Williams had a hard, touchdown-saving tackle on Gillislee’s 15-yard run down the sidelines.

• Short used his initial quickness made two tremendous tackles behind the line of scrimmage on Gillislee.

• Manuel’s pass to Hamilton was broken up by a diving Jordan Poyer, the feisty cornerback from Oregon State, and the ball was tipped to Davis, the Utah State cornerback, who returned the interception 25 yards before being pushed out by a hustling Oklahoma left tackle Lane Johnson.

• Glennon had a great 21-yard throw to Harper on the sidelines after he beat Allen in coverage, but Pugh negated that big play with a holding penalty on Georgia’s Washington.

• Glennon came back and hit Western Kentucky tight end Jack Doyle for 21 yards down the seam.

• Ansah ran through San Jose State right tackle Dan Quessenberry to sack Nassib and force a fumble on the final play of the third quarter.

FOURTH QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
• Moore, the linebacker from UConn, lined up at right defensive end and split a double team and raced by Arkansas Pine-Bluff left tackle to drop Jones for a sack on third down and force a punt.

• Alford had a great pass breakup on an underthrown pass from Dysert to Harper on a 20-yard out on third down to force a punt.

• Duke Williams, the Nevada safety, diagnosed an end around by Baylor wide receiver Terrence Williams and held him to a modest gain, and then made a nice tackle on Taylor on an interior, 2-yard run.

• OU left tackle Lane Johnson was dominant throughout the game and into the fourth quarter and may have been the best lineman in the Senior Bowl.

• Miami running back Mike James had a nice, 4-yard touchdown run in which he ran over Williams at the goal line to give the South a 21-10 lead.

• Ansah, rushing from right defensive end against Pugh, recorded his second sack of the game on a bull rush, dropping Dysert for a 3-yard loss. With a handful of tackles, two sacks, a forced fumble and a pass breakup, Ansah had an MVP-worthy performance on Saturday.

• Oregon State wide receiver Markus Wheaton made two nice catches on the right sidelines in the fourth quarter, and finished with a solid game with four catches for 47 yards.

• Dysert threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Oregon running back Kenjon Barner, who had seven catches for 59 yards. Dysert was 10-of-16 for 93 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

• Alford stepped in front of Wheaton and picked off Dysert on a two-point conversion attempt. Alford had a great game as a cover corner and a return man.

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