Team Long Island will play Team NYC on Saturday in the...

Team Long Island will play Team NYC on Saturday in the National Football Foundation All-Star Classic at Hofstra. Credit: Newsday/Benjamin Dickson

The summer’s premier high school football all-star game has returned.

The first National Football Foundation All-Star Classic will pit 50 Long Island seniors against their New York City counterparts at 1 p.m. Saturday at Hofstra’s Shuart Stadium.

The game replaces the Empire Challenge, which was organized by the Boomer Esiason Foundation and played for 24 years. It was canceled due to COVID-19 in 2020 and never resumed.

“The game itself, we have the blueprint in place and we're following everything exactly the same way we did,” said game coordinator Pete Blieberg, who had the same role with the Empire Challenge. “Because if it wasn't broke, why fix it?”

The Xs and Os of that blueprint differ from the typical high school game.

The game will feature 15-minute quarters. The clock will stop on all incomplete passes and out-of-bounds plays then resume when the officials re-spot the ball, which will always be in the middle of the field. The last four minutes of each half will operate with normal stoppages.

When it comes to style of play, expect fireworks.

Defenses will have a mandatory 4-3-4 alignment, and no blitzing nor stunting is allowed. Only the four interior linemen in four-point stances can pass rush. The free safety must remain between the hash marks. There are other restrictions in place as well, and penalties will be assessed for each violation.

“The rules are kind of devised to help the offense out,” Blieberg said. “We want scoring. We don't want a 7-0 defensive battle. We want scoring to keep the crowd interested.”

Offensively, at least one back must be in the backfield at all times.

On special teams, fake punts are not allowed. Each team is allowed only two punts in each half. Fake field goals are permitted. Onside kicks can be attempted in only the last four minutes of the game.

Tickets for the game are $20. If children wear their youth jerseys, they can get in for $10. Tickets can be purchased at GoFan.co or at the gate Saturday. Orlin & Cohen is the game’s title sponsor.

The LI team, led by Garden City coach Dave Ettinger, had three walkthroughs at West Islip High School last week. They held three vibrant practices at Hofstra this week before Friday’s final walkthrough. Carey coach Mike Stanley is the offensive coordinator, and former Sayville coach Reade Sands is running the defense.

“I think you're going to see an exciting brand of offense with Coach Stanley and what he does over there at Carey, and Coach Sands has got the guys prepared,” Ettinger said. “I think we're going to line up right and do the best we can in an all-star game.”

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