Auburn Memorial Stadium comes to life Saturday with the third annual Tanoa Bowl all-star football classic.

The games feature 140 top high school players from Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Washington, including the Tri Cities Elite and Washington Warriors youth select teams.

Action begins at noon with the Elite taking on the Warriors. Oregon plays Alaska at 2:45 p.m., and at 5:30 p.m. the Washington all-stars try to avenge last year’s 45-24 loss to Utah.

The Tanoa Bowl – the brainchild of Auburn resident Simi Stickland, the founder of Ultimate Edge Sports, a select youth football program – has become a premiere showcase.

Local participants include Auburn Mountainview’s Domenic Rockey, Devin Bryant and Nick Aumua, Auburn’s Neko Reynon and Kentwood’s Ryan Dozier.

Open to players of any ethnicity, the Tanoa Bowl’s roots (a tanoa is a traditional

Action begins at noon with the Elite taking on the Warriors. Oregon plays Alaska at 2:45 p.m., and at 5:30 p.m. the Washington all-stars try to avenge last year’s 45-24 loss to Utah.

The Tanoa Bowl – the brainchild of Auburn resident Simi Stickland, the founder of Ultimate Edge Sports, a select youth football program – has become a premiere showcase.

Local participants include Auburn Mountainview’s Domenic Rockey, Devin Bryant and Nick Aumua, Auburn’s Neko Reynon and Kentwood’s Ryan Dozier.

Open to players of any ethnicity, the Tanoa Bowl’s roots (a tanoa is a traditional wood-carved serving bowl common in Samoa, Tonga and Fiji) are firmly planted in Polynesian culture.

“We are building family and brotherhood with our Polynesian roots and have opened our arms to all of our brothers to come and celebrate,” Strickland said.

“This is their chance to showcase what they can do on the field and to build new friendships and brotherhoods. Once they come join our Tanoa family, they will always have a place with us here.”

Tickets are $10 for adults. Children 10 and under are free.

For more information, visit www.tanoabowl.com