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REESE’S SENIOR BOWL ANNOUNCES 2024 SCOUTING STAFF

Mobile, AL – The Reese’s Senior Bowl, whose rosters have included over 100 drafted players and 40 percent of the past three NFL Draft classes, is excited to announce its scouting staff for the 2024 game cycle.  The upcoming 75th Anniversary Game kicks off at 12 p.m. CT at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Alabama on Saturday February 3, 2024. 

The first staff move of the offseason was replacing Director of Football Operations Matt Kelly, who was hired this offseason by the Minnesota Vikings as the west coast area scout, with former Las Vegas Raiders College Scouting Coordinator Jack Gilmore. 

Gilmore worked the past four years with the Raiders organization and returns to the Senior Bowl after serving as a scouting assistant in 2019.  In his role, Gilmore’s responsibilities will include overseeing administration of scouting staff, serving as liaison with all 32 NFL clubs, coordinating player equipment and travel needs, and playing a role in the prospect evaluation process. 

In addition to Kelly’s departure, former west coast area scout Brian Zeches was recently hired by the Atlanta Falcons as player personnel coordinator and former scouting assistant Tanner Chastain accepted a similar full-time role with the Indianapolis Colts.  With those three additions, the Reese’s Senior Bowl now has 20 former staff members currently in full-time scouting roles with NFL clubs.

“First off, we’re excited to bring Jack back to Mobile. He’s a good young football man and the Senior Bowl is very important to him, like it is to our entire community, so we feel fortunate to get him back home,” says Reese’s Senior Bowl Executive Director Jim Nagy. 

The veteran scouting staff for the 2024 game cycle has over 200 years of collective NFL front office, coaching, and playing experience, consists of the following (in alphabetical order): DJ Boisture, Chris Caminiti, Colton Chappelle, Mark Gorscak, Brad Jackson, Walter Juliff, James Kirkland, Scot McCloughan, TJ McCreight, Chris Prescott, and Julius Pruitt.  This year’s staff will also be supported by in-house scouting assistants Michael Newsome, Chris Smith, and Matt McCreight.  Smith and McCreight are currently serving training camp scouting internships with the Kansas City Chiefs and Chicago Bears, respectively. 

“There was very little movement in front offices around the league this offseason so this is the first time since we started assembling veteran NFL staffs where some of the scouts will be returning for a second season with us.  It will be nice to have familiarity with our process within the staff.  We owe players across college football the best possible evaluation process and this year’s staff is very well-connected and incredibly proven,” adds Nagy.

Director of Football Operations Jack Gilmore – In his role as director of football operations, Jack returns to the Senior Bowl after spending the last four years with the Las Vegas Raiders. A native of Mobile, Alabama, Jack attended St. Paul’s Episcopal School and later earned an Education Degree from the University of Alabama. While at Alabama, Jack played linebacker for the 2013 National Championship team and then served as a recruiting specialist for the team until 2016. 

Prior experience:

  • 2016: Buffalo Bills (Football Operations Internship)
  • 2017: University of North Alabama (Graduate Assistant/Assistant DB Coach)
  • 2018: Buffalo Bills (Football Operations Internship)
  • 2019: Senior Bowl (Scouting Assistant)
  • 2019-2023: Las Vegas Raiders (Scouting Coordinator) 

2024 REESE’S SENIOR BOWL SCOUTING STAFF

  • DJ Boisture – Boisture comes to the Senior Bowl after over a decade with the New York Giants, where he started as a pro personnel intern and served as the team’s west coast area scout the past seven years.  During Boisture’s time covering the west coast, the Giants picked 2022 first-rounder Oregon DE Kayvon Thibodeaux and other key starters like TE Daniel Bellinger and CB Darnay Holmes from his area.
  • Chris Caminiti – Caminiti brings over 30 years of football experience having served in a variety of roles throughout his career. He most recently finished his second stint with the Patriots and coach Bill Belichick covering the west coast as an area scout for Patriots. Three of the team’s first four picks in the 2023 draft were from Caminiti’s area. In 2019 and 2020, he worked on Anthony Lynn’s Los Angeles Chargers staff as the senior coaching assistant, working primarily with the head coach and on special teams. Prior to his time with Chargers, he spent seven seasons with the UCLA Bruins working with both Jim Mora Jr. and Chip Kelly, starting as the special teams analyst and finishing as the associate athletic director for the football program. Prior to UCLA he had stints with the Kansas City Chiefs, Cleveland Browns, and Patriots.
  • Colton Chappelle – Chapple joins the Senior Bowl after nine years in the Cleveland Browns personnel department.  After graduating from Harvard, Chapple joined the Browns staff in 2013 as a scouting assistant then moved into an area scout role in the Midwest and Southeast regions for the next eight seasons. Chapple played quarterback for four years at Harvard and earned Ivy League Player of the Year his senior season.
  • Mark Gorscak – Gorscak, a 28year veteran scout—all with the Pittsburgh Steelers—is best known in football circles as the official 40-yard dash “starter” at the NFL Combine the past two decades.  Over his career, Mark scouted the entire United States and he went to four Super Bowls, winning Super Bowl XL and XLIII.  Prior to joining the Steelers, Mark coached on the high school and college levels for 16 years and in 1987 he was the first general manager of the Pittsburgh Gladiators in the inaugural season of the Arena Football League. He graduated with a degree in psychology from Dickinson and received a master’s degree in sports administration from St. Thomas University in Miami, Fla.  Also, ESPN the Magazine profiled Mark in the 2010 NFL Preview magazine as one of the 90 Faces of the NFL.  In 2022, he was named the recipient of the C.O. Brocato Memorial Award for Lifetime Service for NFL Scouting. 
  • Brad Jackson – Jackson, a 1998 Senior Bowl alum as a player and two-time participant of Senior Bowl Scout School initiative, played six years in the NFL with the Baltimore Ravens and Carolina Panthers.  He started five games at linebacker during the 2001 NFL season for the historic Ravens defense that helped defeat the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV.  He was a two-sport athlete at the University of Cincinnati where he lettered in both football and basketball.  He finished his career as the third-leading tackler in Bearcats history and was selected in the third round (No. 79 overall) of the 1998 NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins. Jackson has participated in the Bill Walsh Minority Coaching Fellowship Program with the Indianapolis Colts (2007) and the Atlanta Falcons (2010).  He has also worked extensively in the Baltimore area media since retiring. 
  • Walter Juliff – Entering his second season with the Senior Bowl, Juliff, who has scouted for 38 years in the National Football League, including his last three seasons as senior advisor with the Las Vegas Raiders, is one of the most experienced personnel men in professional football.  Prior to his time with the Raiders, he served the previous 31 seasons in the Dallas Cowboys personnel department, where he worked under every head coach in franchise history, from Tom Landry to Jason Garrett.  He held numerous roles with the Cowboys (southeast area scout, national scout, and assistant director of college and pro scouting) and helped build rosters for 11 NFC East Championships and three Super Bowl winning clubs.  He originally broke into the NFL as a combine scout with the Pittsburgh Steelers and prior to that he coached at the college (Angelo State) and high school levels in the state of Texas.
  • James Kirkland – Kirkland brings 12 years of NFL experience to this year’s Senior Bowl staff.  His longest stint came with the Cleveland Browns, where he worked on both the college scouting (area scout) and pro personnel (assistant director) sides.  He also worked three years as an area scout for Chicago Bears and one season as a pro scout for the Tennessee Titans.  Since leaving the NFL in 2016, Kirkland has spent five seasons as director of player personnel at the University of Illinois under longtime NFL Head Coach Lovie Smith and two seasons  as assistant director of player personnel at Michigan State University.  Currently, Kirkland serves as Associate Director of Enforcement and Football Development for the NCAA in Indianapolis.
  • Scot McCloughan – McCloughan, the former general manager of the San Francisco 49ers and Washington Commanders, is one of the most respected evaluators in pro football and brings a wealth of executive level experience to this year’s Senior Bowl staff.  During his time running the draft for the Niners, McCloughan picked all-time franchise greats like linebacker Patrick Willis, running back Frank Gore, and offensive lineman Joe Staley.  In his 23 years in the league, McCloughan was part of Super Bowl XXXI (Green Bay 1996) and Super Bowl XLVIII (Seattle 2013) champion teams.
  • Matt McCreight – McCreight will be joining the Senior Bowl after finishing up a scouting internship during training camp this year with the Chicago Bears. He is a recent graduate of Bucknell University, where he played wide receiver.  McCreight’s work experience includes serving as a group leader at the 2023 Senior Bowl and as a scouting assistant with the United States Football League (USFL).  He also briefly served as a coaching intern for the Arizona Hotshots of the AAF in 2019.
  • T.J. McCreight – McCreight is entering his second season with the Senior Bowl.  He has held numerous high-ranking scouting roles in his 24 years in the NFL, most recently five-year stint as player personnel executive with the Philadelphia Eagles.  He broke into the league with the Baltimore Ravens in 1997 as the east coast area scout and eventually became the team’s national scout his final two years (2003-2004).  He also served in key decision-making roles as director of player personnel with the Cleveland Browns (2004-2008), pro personnel director for the Arizona Cardinals (2009-2011), and director of college scouting for the Indianapolis Colts (2012-2016).  He played college football at Liberty University. 
  • Michael Newsome – Newsome is entering his second year as an in-house scouting assistant. Prior to his time with the Senior Bowl, Michael has spent time on both the Baltimore Ravens and Jacksonville Jaguars scouting staffs. Newsome played defensive line at The University of Alabama from 2011-2014, where he was a member of back-to-back National Championship teams.
  • Chris Prescott – Prescott, entering Year 2 with the Senior Bowl, spent 19 years in the NFL with Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Jets, and Chicago Bears.  His career began as a scouting intern for the Jaguars in 2002 and spent several years with the club as an area scout.  He then spent three years as an area scout with the Jets before landing a promotion as national scout for the Bears. He was a four-year letterman at safety for Western New England University.  
  • Julius Pruitt – Pruitt joins the scouting team after taking part in the game’s Senior Bowl Scout School program the past two summers, as well as serving as a group leader during game week last year.  Pruitt, who played wide receiver for four seasons with the Miami Dolphins, stepped down as running backs coach at his alma mater Ouachita Baptist this offseason to pursue a career in the scouting profession.  Pruitt was part of a Ouachita Baptist staff last year that helped lead the team to an undefeated 11-0 season and conference championship.  He was an All-American at Ouachita Baptists and still holds the school’s single season records in receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns.
  • Chris Smith – Smith is entering Year 2 as an in-house scouting assistant and he will rejoin the Senior Bowl staff upon completing a training camp internship with the Kansas City Chiefs this summer.  Before joining the staff last fall, Smith also did a training camp internship with the Miami Dolphins.  Smith, who was a four-year letterman at linebacker for Temple, has also worked at the University of Maine, as well as his alma mater, prior to joining the Senior Bowl.

Author

Ronald Wallace

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