The Santa Clara and Wilcox football teams were well represented at the 47th Annual Charlie Wedemeyer All-Star Game on Feb. 5.
The Chargers, who came one win shy of a state title, had seven players named to the North team: Aliejah Diaz, Luther Glenn, Charlie Carlson, Pace Nelson, DJ Aguirre, Erik Baez and Keishawn Ford. Diaz was one of five players named co-captain of the North team.
Santa Clara had two players on the North team: Dino Beslagic and Michael Rios.
Even playing against all-stars from around Santa Clara County, Glenn continued to dominate offensively. He opened up the scoring on the first drive of the game.
On third down on the North’s own 34-yard line, Glenn sprinted down the field and broke away from his coverage. Mountain View quarterback Jackson Steffen hit the Wilcox running back in stride and Glenn did the rest, taking the ball 66 yards for the first touchdown of the game.
Other local players were impactful on the other side of the ball. Both Rios and Aguirre made strong defensive plays, while kicker Beslagic contributed on the special teams.
Beslagic went one for one on extra points, but his biggest play of the game was when he punted the ball close to the end zone, forcing the South team to start on their own 1-yard line. That allowed the defense to go to work, tackling the South’s quarterback in the end zone for a safety.
The North won the annual football matchup 15-14.
The Wedemeyer Classic is named after former Los Gatos High School head coach Charlie Wedemeyer. Wedemeyer was diagnosed with ALS – also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease – in 1978. He continued to coach and teach for several years afterward. Wedemeyer died in 2010.
Wedemeyer’s wife and family were at Los Gatos High School on Saturday night to greet the players before they took the field.
The annual football game divides the top high school senior football players in Santa Clara County into two teams – North and South. Players come from all over the county to participate in the game.
The Wedemeyer Classic is a charity football game. Proceeds go to ALS research and Coaches Against Cancer.
Coaches Against Cancer was founded in 2009 with the “mission to raise money and support the research and fight against cancer.” Over the years, it has donated over $500,000 to the American Cancer and National Brain Tumor societies.
In addition to selling tickets, the game was live-streamed on YouTube.
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Congratulations to the Santa Clara and Wilcox High School students who participated in the Wedemeyer Classic. It is great to see students giving their all to not only support their respective teams but to support such a great organization. They should be proud of their participation in helping to raise funds used for ALS and Cancer research. It is a shining moment in their lives.