The Seattle Seahawks will donate all proceeds from their August 2nd scrimmage game to support Play It Smart programs in the Seattle area.

2008 Seahwaks Scrimmage to benefit Play It Smart

"We thank the Seahawks for their contribution to Play It Smart, and we look forward to continuing our relationship with them in the future" said Len Stachitas, Executive Director of Play It Smart and NFF Vice-President.

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With major financial support from the NFL and the NFL Players Association, and a broad-coalition of corporations, communities, individuals and organizations, the program has quickly become one of the most comprehensive and effective youth mentoring programs, achieving dramatic results that include:

• 96% of seniors graduating high school, compared to 76% of their peers;



• 79% of seniors enrolling in college compared to 63% of their peers;



• Participants completing more than 69,000 hours of community service annually;



• Participants earning more than $8 million a year in scholarships; and



• 190-plus graduates earning places among the elite collegiate ranks during the 2007 season on Football Bowl Subdivision rosters.

Prominent alumni include Ohio State’s Ted Ginn, Jr. (Miami Dolphins), Rutgers’ Ray Rice (Baltimore Ravens), California’s Desean Jackson (Philadelphia Eagles), Miami’s Leon Williams (Cleveland Browns), LSU’s Craig Davis (San Diego Chargers) and Super Bowl champion Jay Alford, who attended Penn State, and currently plays with the World Champion New York Giants.

Play It Smart builds on the positive peer influences of team sports and a participant's interest in football. The program's academic coaches are trained in a set of guiding principles and a variety of tactics, which are designed to make academic achievement the norm. Working closely with the direct support of a team's head coach and others in the community, academic coaches hold one-on-one goal setting meetings, career and life skills sessions, mandatory study halls, SAT/ACT prep classes, community service projects and other team building events.

ABOUT PLAY IT SMART
Play It Smart is an educational program established in 1998 by The National Football Foundation. The program's mission is to help student-athletes take responsibility for their futures through lessons learned on the playing field, in the classroom, and in service to others. At the heart of the program is a year-round academic coach, an official member of a team's staff, who serves as a direct link to the classroom by helping players and the team set and achieve their academic and personal development goals during the entire school year. Learn more at www.PlayItSmart.org.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL FOUNDATION & COLLEGE HALL OF FAME:
With 120 chapters and 12,000 members nationwide, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame, a non-profit educational organization, runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in young people. The NFF presents the MacArthur Trophy, the Draddy Trophy and releases the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) Standings. NFF programs include the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., Play It Smart, and scholarships of over $1 million for college and high school scholar-athletes. Learn more at www.footballfoundation.org.