New Orleans, La. (March 1, 2024) … Darran Butts, Qwahsin Townsel, and Brandon Hardy made the most of their opportunities at the Allstate HBCU Legacy Bowl.

The three Hampton football standouts were invited to participate in the third annual event which was held Feb. 24 at Yulman Stadium in New Orleans, La. The game was attended by numerous pro scouts and NFL personnel.

In addition to the game, players toured historic sites in the New Orleans-area, participated in Habitat for Humanity's program to build homes for those in need, took in a New Orleans Pelicans game, and visited Dave and Buster's for a night of fun and competition.

Butts was a member of the game-winning Team Gaither squad which posted a 10-6 victory over Team Robinson in the game. Butts rushed for 1,582 yards and scored 10 touchdowns during his Hampton career. As a senior, the Suffolk, Va., native was Hampton's second-leading rusher with 670 yards (74.4 yards per game) with four TDs. His best game of the season was against Campbell on Oct. 7 when he rambled for 124 yards and a score.



Townsel played every second series and recorded five tackles with one tackle for loss as a member of Team Gaither. The Egg Harbor, N.J., was named Day 2 Winner during the week of practice leading up to the game. The linebacker was Hampton's leading tackler in each of the last two seasons. The senior led the team with 107 tackles in 2023. He transferred to Hampton from Villanova for his final two seasons.

Hardy started the first, third, and fourth quarters for Team Gaither. Hardy was a stalwart on the improved Hampton offensive line. The native of Vanceboro, N.C. helped open holes for Pirate running backs to rush for 216.4 yards per game, an improvement of 85.0 yards over Hampton's 2022 rushing totals. Hampton led the CAA in rushing in 2023.