Dec. 15, 1999
NOTRE DAME, Ind. — Six senior members of the 1999 Notre Dame football squad have been selected to play in postseason all-star games.
Free safety Deke Cooper, defensive end Lamont Bryant, center John Merandi and defensive tackle Brad Williams will play in the Dec. 25 Kelly Tires Blue-Gray All-Star Classic in Montgomery, Ala. That contest will be televised by ABC Sports.
Bryant also will play in the Hula Bowl All-Star Football Classic to be played Jan. 22 in Honolulu, Hawaii, and televised by ESPN.
Quarterback Jarious Jackson and cornerback Deveron Harper will take part in the All-Star Gridiron Classic Jan. 29 at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Fla.
Cooper (Evansville, Ind.) ranked fourth on the team in ’99 with 70 tackles, while intercepting a pair of passes, recovering a pair of fumbles and forcing three others.
Bryant (Georgetown, S.C.) made 53 tackles, tied for the team lead in sacks with four and made six other tackles for loss.
Merandi (Blue Jay, Calif.) started every game at center for the Irish in ’99 and keynoted an offensive line that helped Notre Dame rank 21st nationally in total offense at 419.67 yards per game.
Williams (Orange, Calif.) added 25 tackles to go with one forced fumble, a sack and two tackles for loss.
Jackson (Tupelo, Miss.) rewrote the Irish passing record books by setting single-season records for passing attempts, completions and yards (184 of 316 for 2,753), breaking the yardage record set in 1970 by Joe Theismann.
Harper (Orangeburg, S.C.) ranked fifth on the ’99 squad with 59 tackles, to go with a team-high four interceptions.