Storm football players represent Crown and country in Mexico
By Luke Herbert
TOLUCA, Mexico – Crown Senior football players Drew Milner and Joey Latsha represented Crown College and the United States of America as members of Team Stars and Stripes, an all-star team made up of NCAA Division III senior football student-athletes from across the country. The American team played Saturday, December 18th, against the CONADEIP All-Stars, a Mexican team made up of players from the country’s network of private university systems.
The annual game is known as the Tazon de Estrellas or “Bowl of the Stars” and was played on the campus of Tec de Monterrey in Toluca, in a stadium known as La Congeladora or “The Freezer”. Milner and Latsha were selected from a pool of over 200 nominated players and were both excited to represent Crown, the USA, and Christ abroad.
“It will be fun to share something known as being ‘American’ with another culture” noted Sheridan, Wyoming native Drew Milner. “I’m also excited about the chance to represent the U.S. through football.”
Milner was a huge part of Crown’s success this year, leading the UMAC conference in receptions per game and hauling in 58 passes for 817 yards and 10 touchdowns on the year. He is also the career record holder at Crown for receptions (191), receiving yards (2864), and touchdown receptions (37).
Also representing Crown with Team Stars and Stripes was four-time All-UMAC offensive lineman Joey Latsha. Latsha was part of a Storm offense that led the UMAC in scoring offense, total offense, first downs, and third down conversions. Crown also allowed a conference low three sacks in 281 pass attempts on the year.
Before the trip, Latsha was asked about his thoughts on playing an American sport in a foreign country.
“There are athletes everywhere,” said Latsha, “the Mexican team won last year so we feel like we’ll be in for a good game.”
The team came together in Mexico on Sunday night, just six days before the Saturday, December 18th game, and had three days of “two-a-day” practices to prepare. The team was coached by former La Salle, Delaware Valley College, and Widener head coach Bill Manlove. In addition to prepping for the weekend contest, players participated in press conferences, visited ancient ruins, and even hiked a volcano.
After a week of build-up, the teams took to the field and a repeat of last year’s upset win by the CONADEIP All-Stars was not in the cards. The American team scored early and often, including the first four possessions of the second half, and held the Mexican team to only six yards rushing and 158 yards of total offense.
For their parts, Latsha played his usual offensive guard position and Milner caught two passes for 16 yards and took the second half kickoff back 30 yards. When it was all said and done, the US avenged their loss last year with a 48-7 victory.
It wasn’t all fun and games, though, as Latsha noted.
“We were in pads for 24 hours following six practices and I was seriously regretting my decision to come to Mexico. All I could think about at the end of each day was dinner.”
After the victory, the offensive lineman had a different take.
“We worked hard, and it was awesome to play with and against players who had superior skill and athleticism. Looking back, I enjoyed the whole experience…even practice.”
Upon returning, Milner described how special the trip was and that escaping the cold Minnesota winter was a definite perk.
“There were six to seven thousand Mexican fans at the game and afterwards the locals swarmed the field, asking for autographs and pictures. A little boy, no more than five, asked for my gloves so I signed them and gave them over. The look on his face made the trip even more special.”
The trip was an opportunity to represent their country, encounter another culture, visit a beautiful and historic part of the world, and make connections with players from across the country. Perhaps the biggest reward, though, was simple as described by Milner, who finished up his college career this past season.
“I got to play football for another week.”