Editor's Note: the Big 33 High School All-Star game pitting a team of Pennsylvania All-Stars against a team of Ohio All-Stars was held this past Saturday in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The Hokies had two players competing in the game for the Pennsylvania team, running back Kevin Jones and wide receiver Fred Lee.

Jones and Lee both contributed to Pennsylvania's thrilling 31-29 victory, but there is bad news for Hokie fans: Jones was hurt, suffering an injury that received a preliminary diagnosis as a strained Achilles tendon. BeamerBall.com is now reporting that it is a high ankle sprain.

For an AP wire report on the game, please click this link. For a detailed eye-witness account, Jeff Ouellet's report follows.

As I was standing on the field after the 44th annual Big 33 game, I saw a friend of mine from the Pittsburgh media. He has been a lifelong fan of the Pittsburgh Panthers, and likewise knew of my allegiance to Virginia Tech. Something he said probably best summarizes the evening from the Virginia Tech perspective. He came up to me, shook his head and said "We're gonna kick the crap out of you guys - in 2005."

Although I am certainly not guaranteeing any wins over a resurgent Pitt program (much less four in a row), in this game, in a field full of special, game-breaking athletes, two of the very best -- running back Kevin Jones and wide receiver Fred Lee -- are headed to Blacksburg. Tech offensive coordinator Rickey Bustle is going to look very smart for the next few years.

The game began as the Kevin Jones show. On the first play of the game, KJ had a five yard rush. The next time he touched the ball, Jones went 52 yards for a touchdown.

"The play was designed to go to the right, but I saw the lane [on the left] and made a quick cut," Kevin said after the game. The play was a reminder that, despite his chiseled physique, Jones is very much a natural born runner. He made a terrific cut and then used his world class speed to out race everyone to the end zone. The Pennsylvania offensive line did a fantastic job on the play, as Kevin was not touched until he was mobbed by his teammates in the end zone. The stadium was buzzing as all 17,000 spectators realized they were seeing something special.

Ohio had a three and out and then was forced to punt back to Pennsylvania. The next play was, at least in this game, a defining moment. It stamped Kevin Jones not as a good back, not even as a very good back, but as a "man among boys" type of athlete. Virginia Tech fans know that feeling - the last guy that wore #7 had exactly that same type of athletic ability.

Jones took the handoff and started left behind the guard. He was stood up at the point of attack by the Ohio line, but he pushed forward and broke through a couple of arm tackles. He used his off hand to regain his balance, and then cut across the entire length of the field. Once he got to the outside, Kevin destroyed the pursuit angle with his 4.2 speed. Sixty-four yards later, he was in the end zone. The run flashed power, vision and speed. To see that run from field level was unbelievable. The television announcer called it "Houdini-like."

Three carries, one hundred and twenty one yards, two touchdowns. And that pregame hype - well, it was deserved.

I happened to be on the sideline for the game, and many former Big 33 coaches and players were there. I asked three legendary, hall-of-fame bound high school coaches on the Pennsylvania sideline about Jones. All three indicated they had never seen anything like him, and one of them has been coaching for 40 years.

With the game at 14-0, Ohio was on the ropes. After another three and out, Ohio punted and Pennsylvania was on the move. That's when Fred Lee started to get involved. On the first play of the drive, Syracuse-bound quarterback Cecil Howard completed a seventeen yard pass to Freddy. Fred got off the line cleanly and appeared to be running a fly pattern. Howard left the ball short, and Fred made the adjustment to come back to the ball. Although it wasn't a touchdown pass, it was reminiscent of a "stop fade" pattern in which the quarterback leaves the ball short intentionally (although I think Howard was supposed to throw it deeper).

The next play was another nifty twelve yard run by Kevin Jones. He was bottled up inside and bounced the play outside and was one defender away from scoring a touchdown on his third consecutive carry. Eventually, though, the drive stalled, and Ohio's Simon Fraser forced a Howard fumble on fourth down that was returned for a touchdown. The score was 14-7.

Pennsylvania got the ball back and drove down the field. The two big plays were passes from Howard to Michigan-bound Tim Massaquoi, a David Terrell lookalike. Massaquoi is 6'4", 219 lbs. and all athlete. Expect him to make some serious noise in Ann Arbor. Howard scored a touchdown on a nifty six yard scramble making the score 21-7.

Ohio responded on the next position, capping a 4 play, 80 yard drive with a 54 yard explosion by Ohio State bound Maurice Hall. Hall has blazing speed, and you can see why he was highly recruited and on many national lists. As noted in the game broadcast, Hall put up some major numbers - over 3,000 yards rushing and 51 touchdowns - in his senior year. So, the score stood at 21-14 and the game wasn't yet four minutes into the second quarter.

Pennsylvania's next position was almost all VT. The kickoff was returned by Jones 28 yards to the Ohio 34 (Jones was the middle guy on the kickoff returns, but, not surprisingly, Ohio kicked away from him almost every time). After a 1 yard Jones run, PSU-bound quarterback Chris Ganter completed a nice nine yard quick out to Fred Lee. Fred was in the slot and made a quick break and the ball was right on the money. I think it is a play that VT fans will see a lot during his career. Two plays later, Ganter threw a beautiful pass to Fred on the sideline. He beat his man straight up on a fly pattern, and before you knew it he was in the end zone with a 53-yard TD reception.

I had a great view of the Lee touchdown pass. What was most impressive was the separation he got while the ball was in the air. In the first five yards after Ganter threw the ball, Fred turned on the burners and got the space needed to make the play. Even though Fred is very fast - he ran a sub 4.4 as a junior at Penn State's camp - his quickness is still more impressive than his straight-ahead speed.

The game was quickly developing into a track meet, and Ohio answered the Pennsylvania score with a 4 play, 66 yard drive. The big play was a 40 yard completion to Chris Harrell (PSU), and the drive resulted in a 1 yard touchdown by Brandon Schnittker, a fullback headed to Ohio State. The score was 28-21 Pennsylvania, and it remained that way until the third quarter.

Ohio got the ball to open the second half and did not move. On the first offensive play for Pennsylvania, Kevin Jones got injured. He immediately came to the sideline. The Pennsylvania trainer re-taped Kevin's ankle. Jones was told it was okay to return, although it was obvious watching him on the sideline he should not have been playing.

Both defenses started to assert themselves at this point in the game. The larger offensive linemen were starting to get fatigued, and Pennsylvania clearly lost something with the injuries limiting both Jones and, to a lesser extent, Massaquoi. At the end of the third quarter, it was still 28-21 Pennsylvania.

On Pennsylvania's first drive of the fourth quarter, Jones showed another aspect of his game. On a third and fourteen, Jones ran a circle route and blew past the Ohio linebacker covering him. Howard lofted the ball and made a poor throw, but Jones made a fantastic adjustment and made an over the shoulder catch. Making the catch forced him out of bounds, or Kevin probably would have taken it into the end zone. Pennsylvania ran the same play later in the drive on 3rd and 12, but the pass was off the mark and Pennsylvania was forced to punt.

Perhaps the most underrated aspect of KJ's game is his hands. Although many have made the Herschel Walker and Bo Jackson comparisons because of his size/speed combination, a better starting point might be former University of Miami and current Indianapolis Colts running back Edgerrin James. Much like James, KJ has great hands, terrific vision and great cutback ability.

With 6 minutes to go in the game, Pennsylvania got the ball at its own 13 yard line. The call was a quick pitch and the ball slipped through KJ's hands. The ball ended up back in the end zone, where a Pennsylvania lineman recovered it for a safety. The game score was 28-23 with just under six minutes to go.

Ohio then went on a five play, 48 yard drive that took slightly over one minute. The big play was provided by Maurice Hall (boy, he is quick) going 34 yards after a terrific cutback and taking the ball into the end zone.

The final Pennsylvania drive began with 4:40 on the clock. Kevin Jones ran the ball for a yard on first down, and second down was an incomplete pass to Tim Massaquoi. Third down brought the biggest play of the game.

Fred Lee lined up wide on the left side of the field and again went deep on the Ohio corner. Ganter left the ball a little short and Fred again made a tremendous adjustment and came up with the ball about 35 yards downfield. Then Lee started juking people, and cut towards the middle of the field. Eventually, the pursuit got him, but the catch and run accounted for 53 yards on a 3rd and nine.

That play was the primary reason many on-the-field media guys felt that Lee should have been the MVP (the voting was done by the media types in the press box).

Pennsylvania moved the ball down the field to the 1 yard line, but was unable to score a touchdown. Kicker Robbie Gould, a Penn State walk-on, drilled the game winning field goal with 43 seconds on the clock.

Ohio couldn't muster a final drive, and Pennsylvania won the game 31-29. It was a thrilling game full of big plays and great effort by all the young men playing.

I spoke with Fred after the game about his performance. "I just tried to adjust to the ball where it was thrown," he said. He certainly did that on many occasions. Fred will be a very difficult cover for anyone playing man-to-man.

When asked about he future, Fred said "I can't wait to get down there [VT]." He plans on leaving within the next 10 days. I asked him what he wanted to pass along to the Virginia Tech fans, and he said "Tell them to get ready for me. I just can't wait. Kevin and I are really excited."

While Fred would like to play right away, he understands that whether or not he redshirts will depend on how quickly he picks up the offense. Virginia Tech also has indicated to him that it has plans for him returning kicks, which makes sense if you see his elusiveness. He will remind Tech fans of Ronyell Whitaker on punt returns - super moves and not afraid to give ground to try to make a big play.

As for Kevin, speaking with him after the game was difficult. He was mobbed by fans, but I did have a chance to talk with him briefly. Kevin is enjoying his time at Virginia Tech, and he knows that he made the right decision. He loves his new teammates and looks forward to being part of something special in Blacksburg.

I also had the opportunity to speak with Kevin's father, Thomas Jones. Tom had very good things to say about Virginia Tech, and Tom has played a huge part in Kevin's development as a player. He is a weight training guru in his own right, but he looks forward to seeing Kevin "Gentrified" (his word, not mine). Just watch the numbers that Kevin has in freshman testing at Tech in August.

Even more than the ability of both VT recruits, I was impressed by their demeanor. I had to wait more than an hour after the game to speak with Fred and Kevin because of the enormous crowds around both of them. Yet they both were very accommodating and were fan favorites with many of the kids. Posing for pictures, signing autographs, and talking to well-wishers can be very tough, but neither of them flinched. The crowds around Kevin were unbelievable, and he took the time to talk to every single kid that approached him. Kevin did this despite the fact that his Achilles clearly was bothering him (he had his shoe off and it was iced).

One other thing that might put a smile on the face of Virginia Tech fans - Kevin signed his autograph as "Kevin Jones #7 VT." I think there will be many, many youngsters in Pennsylvania about 10 years from now that will want to sign "#7 VT" as well.

As for the injury, after I pressed him, Kevin admitted that it hurt "a lot" but that he wanted to play. I know Mr. Jones was going to have it immediately looked at after the game.

I know this has been long, but I will provide some very brief reports on non -VT recruits in the game. I can't include everyone, but here are some of the more noteworthy players:

Cecil Howard - Syracuse QB - many publications have him starting as a true freshman. He's a terrific athlete and can be a good player, but he lofts the ball an awful lot. Passing wise, he's not there. If he starts from game one, Syracuse will have a tough time. Pasqualoni may need to start him to show the future is bright to anxious alumni, but look at that non-conference slate in September - Georgia Tech, Tennessee, Central Florida, East Carolina and Auburn. Long year for the 'Cuse.

Chris Ganter - Penn State QB - he's not a throw-in because his Dad's the offensive coordinator. He's a solid, smart quarterback with a nice arm. His biggest problem is that Michael Robinson from Varina High School in Virginia (a former VT target as a recruit) is up there, and he's been tremendous thus far. Robinson will be the number three qb this year, but expect him to be the future for the Nittany Lions. He has drawn raves from the staff.

Lamar Stewart - Penn State FB/LB - played fullback here and looked great. Very strong and physical. He'll be a good one.

Tim Massaquoi - Michigan WR - he will be tremendous. He may or may not stay at wide receiver, but he's a terrific physical specimen.

Pennsylvania's D-line - Charles Rush (PSU), Tyler Reed (PSU), Troy Banner (Pitt), Scott Paxson (PSU), and Dethrell Garcia (PSU) - they came in with a great reputation, but for two quarters, they were outplayed. But these kids showed tremendous character and really played well at the end of the game. One respected scribe on the sideline indicated to me that he thought many of them might play sooner rather than later (i.e. no redshirt).

Scott McClintock - Michigan LB/FB - he played a very good game. Very active and pursues well. A Pittsburgh writer told me Michigan had him slated for fullback. If he's better at fullback than linebacker, he must really be something.

Marlin Jackson - Michigan CB - maybe the most impressive defensive player for Pennsylvania. Man to man coverage in an all-star game is Darwinism at its finest, and he didn't get beaten. In fact, he didn't get challenged much, and when he did, he laid the wood to folks. He's going to be special.

Maurice Hall - Ohio State TB - Ten carries, 127 yards, two touchdowns, Ohio's MVP. He is very quick and can cut on a dime. Explosive in the open field.

Chris Harrell - PSU WR/DB - nice game for him. Wasn't as highly acclaimed as many other Ohio wideouts, but had the biggest reception (40 yards) and played well on defense.

Zack Strief - Northwestern OL - 6'9", 340 lbs, and he destroyed people in the first half. He was playing against some good defensive lineman and overwhelmed them. In short yardage situations, his team ran behind him. He didn't play quite as well in the second half (fatigue, maybe?), but I still left impressed.

Ohio's D-line - Simon Fraser (OSU), Jamal Bryant (Bowling Green), Andree Tyree (OSU), Pat Massey (Michigan) and Pierre Woods (Michigan). They also came in with a big reputation, and lived up to it after KJ's first quarter show. Fraser played very well and scored a touchdown. Woods wasn't as productive as I thought he would be, but he clearly showed his athleticism, as not many defensive ends consistently make tackles as the first player down on the kickoff team.

Chase Blackburn - Akron LB - he made a lot of plays and helped clean up after the defensive line occupied blockers.

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