BENTON, IL (WSIL) -- The High School football season is just a few weeks away. Local players who recently graduated are spending this week preparing to showcase their skills one last time on the High School football field in the 2022 Southern Illinois East/West All-Star football game.
The game features top 2022 graduates from local high schools including Carbondale, Johnston City, West Frankfort, Benton and many more.
The athletes are split into two teams: red and blue. The blue team is holding their practices at Benton High School and red at Johnston City.
This year's honorary coaches are Bruce Reeder from Nashville High School and Carroll Kelly, the Head Coach of Sesser-Valier's football team.
Practice for Friday night's game got underway on Sunday night, and came to a close Wednesday evening. The practice brought together athletes and coaches from around the area to work on drills and run plays.
Two players spoke about what it is like getting to play with guys they usually play against in one last high school game.
Practice for both teams wrapped up on Wednesday. The 2022 All-Star game will be played Friday night at 7 p.m., at Carbondale High School.
