"Rotunda’s name might be familiar to Troy
fans who also follow professional wrestling. He is the son of Mike
Rotunda, who was an All-American in both wrestling and football at
Syracuse, and is the nephew of Barry Windham. His grandfather is pro
wrestling hall of famer Blackjack Mulligan."
Trojans Welcome Seven To Campus For Spring Semester
Ricky Hazel 01/06/2007
www.troytrojans.com
TROY, Ala. – When classes for the spring semester begin on the Troy
University campus on Monday the Trojans football squad will welcome
seven new players to the team.
The group includes four mid-term junior college signees and three
players who were originally members of the 2006 signing class but will
count as a part of the 2007 class.
Two other players who were members of the Trojans’ 2006 Sun Belt
Conference championship team have also been awarded scholarships for
2007. They will also count against the 2007 signing class.
"Our most pressing need in recruiting this year is on the offensive
line," Troy coach Larry Blakeney said. "We have to replace four starters
and five veteran players along the offensive front, and these mid-term
signees will certainly help fill that void."
Three of the four junior college transfers are offensive linemen, while
the other is a receiver.
The offensive linemen are Windham Rotunda, a 6-3, 310-pound guard
from Brooksville, Fla., Mark Cogburn, a 6-4, 286-pound tackle from
Visalia, Calif., and Dion Small, a 6-2, 290-pound lineman from Americus,
Ga.
The receiver is Kennard Burton (5-9, 180) from Pahokee, Fla. Burton
played at Dodge City Community College this past season, recording 55
receptions for 645 yards and three touchdowns while also returning 12
kickoffs for 239 yards.
Dodge City CC is the same school that produced 2006 Sun Belt Conference
Player of the Year Omar Haugabook, who was a mid-term signee for the
Trojans last January.
Rotunda and Cogburn played side-by-side at the College of the
Sequoias in Visalia, Calif. Rotunda’s name might be familiar to Troy
fans who also follow professional wrestling. He is the son of Mike
Rotunda, who was an All-American in both wrestling and football at
Syracuse, and is the nephew of Barry Windham. His grandfather is pro
wrestling hall of famer Blackjack Mulligan.
In two seasons at COS Rotunda started 16 games. He started his time
there playing behind Ofa Moheatu, who was considered the top junior
college lineman in the nation and started at Texas Tech this past
season.
Like his father, Rotunda was a state wrestling champion at Hernando
High School in Florida.
Cogburn prepped at Central Valley Christian where he helped his team to
an undefeated season in 2003 while playing both offensive and defensive
line.
Small was a three-year starter at Americus High School before playing at
Georgia Military College. He was rated as the top offensive line
prospect in the state of Georgia coming out of high school and was
recruited by many Southeastern Conference schools. He helped his squad
to an 8-3 record this season, including a 24-3 victory over the Troy
junior varsity.
The three previous Troy signees who will be joining the team are running
back Sam Sellers from Pike Liberal Arts Academy and defensive linemen
Akeen Brown (Brunswick, Ga.) and Jeremy Jenkins (Gainesville, Fla.).
Sellers and Jenkins sat out the fall and will have five full seasons to
play four while Brown spent the last year working to gain his
eligibility and will have four years to play three seasons.
The two members of the 2006 Troy squad who were awarded scholarships are
quarterback Tanner Jones (Crawfordsville, Fla.) and punter Adrian Vera
(Conroe, Texas). Jones redshirted in 2006 and will have four years
remaining while Vera saw action in one game and will be a senior next
season.
National signing day for college football is set for Wednesday, February
7. The Trojans are expected to sign as many as 16 more players on that
day.
Original article located here:
http://www.troytrojans.com/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=15&url_article_id=1896&url_subchannel_id=&change_well_id=2
www.troytrojans.com
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