STANFORD, Calif. -- None of the 10 players who got Heisman Trophy votes this season accepted an invitation to the East-West Shrine Bowl, the oldest college all-star game.

East coach Steve Spurrier says the reason is simple: Money.

"This is one of the few all-star games at which the coaches and players are not paid. We do it because it's a wonderful cause," said Spurrier, who led Florida to a 9-4 record this season.

"Nowadays, unfortunately, society is such that a lot of people don't look at it that way, and they say, 'What's in it for me?' or 'How much are you going to pay me to do it?"'

In its 75th year of benefitting Shriners hospitals across North America, the game was rejected by many of the nation's top players.

The lack of financial incentives is just one of the reasons that East-West game rosters, which in the past featured players ranging from Don Meredith to Brett Favre, have been diluted in recent years.

Some stars are siphoned off by competing all-star games, and others are held out by agents who feel players should wait until the NFL combine to show off for pro scouts rather than risk injury in all-star games.

The players who will be performing in Saturday's game have a variety of motivations for accepting their invitations.

Stanford quarterback Todd Husak is eager to play one more college game on his home field. Ohio State cornerback Ahmed Plummer wants a little more national exposure after a disappointing season that included no bowl game for his Buckeyes.

For Michigan quarterback Tom Brady, it's the first chance to play before his neighbors since high school. Brady is from nearby San Mateo.

"The only time we played in California while I was at Michigan was in the Rose Bowl, and a lot of people from this area didn't get a chance to see me in that game," he said.

And for California cornerback Deltha O'Neal, who grew up nearby in Palo Alto and Milpitas, it's the fulfillment of a childhood dream. As a youngster, some of his college heroes played in the East-West game.

"I would come up here and watch them. I got tickets through the Boys and Girls Club, because my mom used to work there," O'Neal said. "I'd be up there running around with a little football, wishing I was playing."