LADY LAKE, Fla. – LSU quarterback Marcus Randall hopes the NFL scouts took note that he’s a quick study.

After being introduced to a new offense five days ago, Randall completed seven of 11 passes for 88 yards to earn MVP honors at the Gridiron Classic and lead the South to a 24-21 win over the North on Saturday.

“That just shows my knowledge for the game is real,” said Randall, who passed for 2,765 yards and 18 touchdowns with the Tigers. “I know how to play this game.”

During the week, more than 200 scouts were on hand to see and talk with the 97 players.

“They did a lot of personal interviews and so forth with the pro people,” said Ohio State coach Jim Tressel, co-coach of the North squad. “They did all they could do to get someone to notice them so they might get a chance come draft day.”

In a second half that saw four lead changes, UNLV running back Dominique Dorsey’s 28-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter provided the difference.

For the North, Hampton receiver Jerome Mathis scored on a 26-yard reception and a 38-yard run off a reverse. Mathis had 108 yards of total offense – 59 yards receiving on two catches, and 49 yards rushing on two carries.

“Every time I step on the big stage, I get even better,” said Mathis, one of just 10 players who didn’t come from Division I-A programs.

Shrine Game

East 45, West 27

SAN FRANCISCO – When Stefan LeFors was flushed from the pocket, he forgot all of his all-star game etiquette. The quarterback saw just one receiver: J.R. Russell, his Louisville teammate and his biggest target in the East-West Shrine Game.

LeFors threw two of his three touchdown passes to Russell, and Purdue’s Taylor Stubblefield also caught two scoring passes Saturday in the East’s 45-27 victory over the West in the 80th edition of the game. Teamwork typically is at a minimum in such games, with dozens of stars worrying mostly about their own numbers in a simple game plan. Quarterbacks are expected to keep everybody as happy as possible – but the East squad rolled to 45 points in the first three quarters.

Purdue quarterback Kyle Orton hit Stubblefield for a touchdown and 103 of his 145 yards passing in the first quarter – on plays called by Boilermakers coach Joe Tiller, no less. LeFors, who went 10-for-17 for 165 yards, tied the Shrine Game record for touchdown passes in just one quarter of work.

He made his two best throws on broken plays to Russell, who caught scoring passes of 37 and 36 yards.

Tiller helped to make all of the East stars look awfully good for the dozens of NFL scouts in attendance. Stubblefield had seven catches for 128 yards as Tiller’s squad racked up 553 yards, and the teams combined for 1,013 yards in the highest-scoring matchup since 1979.

“We’re no fools,” Tiller said. “We know when (LeFors and Russell) are on the field, they know where their eyes are going, which is natural.”

Tiller also relished the chance to make the most of his own prolific duo in one last game.

“Even when they’re not on the field, they can tell other guys what to do,” Tiller said. “When you come to a game like this … it’s certainly a big help, and every coach should be afforded that opportunity.”

LeFors also hit Stubblefield for a 7-yard score – and Stubblefield even completed a 37-yard pass to Florida State’s Dominic Robinson, who had five catches for 112 yards.

Orton and LeFors hope strong performances in the postseason all-star games and the NFL scouting combine will push them into consideration with California’s Aaron Rodgers and Utah’s Alex Smith among the top quarterbacks in the draft.

“Both of them are very good quarterbacks,” Stubblefield said. “You could tell they were going to have impressive games. I just tried to keep getting open.”

Southern Illinois’ Brandon Jacobs rushed for 102 yards, including a 52-yard touchdown run, for the West, and Utah’s Paris Warren caught a TD pass from Oregon State’s Derek Anderson. Hawaii receiver Chad Owens was the West’s offensive star, catching eight passes for 134 yards.

Sam Houston State’s Dustin Long completed a 48-yard TD pass to Owens in the final minutes. Timmy Chang, Owens’ teammate and the NCAA’s career passing yardage leader, was just 7-of-20 for 81 yards with an interception.

Chang had to remember how to take snaps under center after spending his college career in the Warriors’ four-receiver shotgun offense.

“It’s something I’ve got to get used to, especially if I want to go to the next level,” Chang said.

Duke safety Alex Green was named the defensive MVP for the East.

Players from both teams struggled to keep their footing on the sod placed on top of the infield at SBC Park, home of the San Francisco Giants. But Florida State’s Chauncey Stovall had no such problems in the third quarter when he changed directions four times in the backfield while rushing for a thrilling 29-yard score for the East.

“I was just thinking I couldn’t let them tackle me,” Stovall said. “After all that juking and jiving, I had to make something out of it.”

AP-ES-01-15-05 1904EST