FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TOP HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR QUARTERBACK CAPTURES
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP IN FINALS OF FIRST-EVER
FOOTACTION NFL HIGH SCHOOL QUARTERBACK CHALLENGE

ORLANDO, April 12 -- Of the 15 high school senior quarterbacks who won their hometown competitions and earned the right to advance to the national finals, Eric Hamilton today was named the national champion of the inaugural FOOTACTION NFL High School Quarterback Challenge.

Hamilton, of Garinger High School in Charlotte, NC, bested 14 of the nation’s top high school quarterbacks as the National Football League and Dallas-based athletic specialty retailer FOOTACTION USA concluded the 1997 series of competitions to identify the country’s top high school senior quarterback.

"I feel privileged, number one, just to be here, but winning makes me feel even better," said the 19-year-old Hamilton, who lettered in four sports at Garinger High School and plans to attend East Carolina next year. "I felt my chances weren’t real good but I felt I could come out here and give it my best, which is all you can do."

"Eric Hamilton put on quite a show today," said Ralph Parks, president and CEO of FOOTACTION USA. "The student-athletes here today represented the best in the country. It was a great conclusion to a tremendous series of national competitions. FOOTACTION USA looks forward to working with the NFL next year and making the 1998 FOOTACTION NFL High School Quarterback Challenge even better."

The high school standouts were tested in accuracy, distance and speed-and-mobility Saturday morning on the same course the pros competed on later that day. Pittsburgh Steeler quarterback Kordell Stewart was featured at the event, demonstrated the three events, signed autographs and spoke with the young quarterbacks.

Hamilton, whose combined score was 104 points, nipped Stephen Cooper of Wareham High School in Wareham, MA, by two points. Nick Matthewson of Live Oak High School in San Jose, CA, finished third with 96 points. Hamilton wowed the crowd with his quickness in the speed and mobility competition where he placed first (earning the maximum 60 points), tied for sixth in The Princeton Review long distance throw and tied for seventh in the accuracy portion of the event.

The FOOTACTION NFL High School Quarterback Challenge, which kicked off during Super Bowl XXXI festivities in New Orleans, featured the top 25-area high school senior quarterbacks in 15 markets. In addition to New Orleans, other markets which hosted events were Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, Denver, Jacksonville, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, South Florida, St. Louis and Washington, D.C. The quarterbacks were selected on recommendations from local writers and high school football experts.

Hamilton (6’2", 193) captured the March 15 regional competition in Charlotte to advance to today’s national finals at Walt Disney World. Highlights of the high school competition, filmed prior to the annual FOOTACTION NFL Quarterback Challenge television show, will air Saturday, July 27, and Sunday, July 28, as part of the popular FOOTACTION NFL Quarterback Challenge television show -- NBC’s highest-rated annual summer sports special.

FOOTACTION USA sponsors the FOOTACTION NFL High School Quarterback Challenge and provides support for the program. NIKE and The Princeton Review, the nation’s leader in SAT preparation, are associate sponsors.

STANDINGS FOR THE NATIONAL FINALS FOLLOW