The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Perry grad Farrell gets East-West invite
Despite “The Game” being canceled, Perry graduate Luke Farrell does have some good news: He received an invitation for the East-West Shrine Game, and he will soon get his degree from OSU.
Ohio State tight end Luke Farrell has received an invitation for the 96th annual East-West Shrine Bowl.
There’s no game this year, but the Perry product has an invitation.
In a crazy year like 2020, that’s good enough for the 6-foot-6, 258-pound, fifthyear senior.
Farrell said he received the i nvitation l ast week, but as part of the invitation came the notification that the game, originally scheduled to be played Jan. 23, 2021 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla., was canceled because of “challenges presented by COVID-19.”
Said Farrell: “The game got canceled, but it’s still a great honor to be picked for it. It would have been nice to have been able to showcase myself in the game, but it’s still an honor that I got picked.”
Farrell has three catches for 26 yards this year in the Buckeyes’ abbreviated season. Most of Ohio State’s passing yards have gone to receivers Garrett Wilson (34 catches, 572 yards) and Chris Olave (36 catches, 528 yards). Third on the list of receiving is junior tight end Jeremy Rucker’s nine catches.
The East-West Shrine game is an all-star game that features some of the
best senior college football players from around the nation. It’s a showcase of sorts for NFL scouts.
Farrell said he hopes to get his shot at the NFL, but that’s not anywhere near the forefront of his mind.
Ohio State (5-0) was scheduled to play Michigan on Dec. 12 in the final regularseason game of the year, but it was canceled Dec. 8 due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the
Wolverines’ program. A win in that game would have put the Buckeyes in the Big Ten championship game Dec. 19 against Northwestern.
Wins in each game likely means a spot in the college football playoffs.
“(The draft) is something I’m not thinking about a ton right now,” Farrell said. “It’ll be there when the season is over. I’m just working as hard as I can to play my best football right now for our team and our season. That’ll eventually pay off at the next level.”
Farrell will graduate Dec. 13 with a degree in Human Development and Family Science.
“It’s not going to be a huge ceremony — it’s all virtual,” said Farrell, who said he has a ‘3.7-ish’ GPA. “But it’s special. It’s a culmination of five years of work I put in for that degree on top of football. It means I’m on track to go to PT (physical therapy) school.”
That is, if the NFL doesn’t come calling first.