Belhaven University is Ranked #21 in the First NAIA Football Coaches’ National Poll for 2013

Belhaven University, known in some circles as “a second chance school” for some good NCAA Division 1 players who need a second chance for various reasons, comes out of the first NAIA Football Poll swinging.  Belhaven is the highest ranked team of their division, though four other teams from the Eastern Division (and their opponents this year) are also ranked, three of which are in the top nine team.  Belhaven is ranked at #21 nationally and is picked to win its division.  The Blazers opened up at home in Jackson, Mississippi with a 36 to 26 win over Texas College on August 31st.  Here’s a look at the NAIA National Coaches’ Poll.

http://www.naia.org/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=27900&ATCLID=209108160

Robert Trotter, though still a Redshirt Freshman, saw some action in the game.  He hopes to see more action as the season progresses.

Robert A. A. Trotter, Wide Receiver

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Robert Trotter Trains at Athletes Performance Institute in Pensacola, Florida

     Robert Trotter is spending the next three weeks training at Athletes Performance Institute (API), the world renown training facility in Pensacola, Florida.  API has trained nearly 100 NFL First Rounders, including Robert Griffin, III, Andrew Luck, Trent Richardson, Matthew Stafford, and A. J. Green.  API focuses on Performance Training, Nutrition, and Physical Therapy with bigger, stronger, and faster always the targets.

Overall Number One Draft Choice Sam Bradford of Oklahoma University trained at API before being selected by the St. Louis Rams.  He stated this about Athletes Performance Institute:

“My experience at Athletes’ Performance has been wonderful. I don’t believe that there’s another facility in the country that could have integrated my rehab and workout programs the way they’ve done here in Pensacola. I believe this is definitely one of the best training facilities in the country and would recommend it to anyone looking to improve themselves.”

Trotter injured his back last football season after the first game.  Having played in only the first game due to the injury, the NAIA awarded him a medical redshirt.  This medical redshirt, along with his regular red shirt his first season, leaves Trotter with four years of collegiate eligibility left.  Trotter has been training very intensively since the end of April.  He trained one month in Columbus, Georgia; two months in Peachtree City, Georgia; and he will be training the next three weeks at API as he gets ready for the up-coming season with Belhaven University of Jackson, Mississippi.

Trotter has been hitting the weights and chowing down!

Belhaven finished 6 and 4 last season with two or three games which were in the balance until the end of the game.  The Belhaven coaches are very excited about this up-coming season, especially coming off a good recruiting year.  Belhaven‘s Isiah Wiley, a star defensive back and return specialist, was invited to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ training camp.  Wiley formerly started for the University of Southern California.  Another former Belhaven defensive back, Tramaine Brock, started for the San Francisco 49ers in this past year’s Super Bowl, and he and Belhaven‘s football program, along with Head Coach Joseph Thrasher, were featured in a New York Times article.  Belhaven offensive tackle, Matt Hall, appears to be headed to perhaps a  first day selection in the NFL Draft this coming Spring.  Hall formerly started for Ole Miss, and the 6′ 10″ and 325 pounder is being scouted heavily by many NFL teams.

Meanwhile, Trotter is determined to keep putting on more muscle to a 5′ 11″ frame that has essentially no body fat.  He signed with Belhaven at only 5′ 10″ and 150 pounds but is now a solid 5′ 11″ and 175.  Robert recently quipped, “I think that I will be tapping 180 when our summer camp starts at Belhaven.”

http://www.athletesperformance.com/programs/sport/collegiate/football/

http://blazers.belhaven.edu/index.aspx?path=football

Robert Trotter Expects To See A Lot Of Playing Time As Redshirt Freshman!

Coming off a good spring practice, Robert Trotter has been hitting the weights in an intense fashion the last few months. Weight training is done through football season, but the more intense training takes place when the fall season and spring practice is over. Trotter’s sure hands and athletic abilities are never doubted, but his size had room for improvement. In the last few months, Trotter has put on close to 20 pounds of muscle which has also increased his already good speed. He says that the catfish that he has been eating in Mississippi is the tops around, as far as he is concerned!

If Robert Trotter keeps hittin’ the books, the weights, and the Mississippi catfish, the future is his, by the grace of God!

Robert Trotter Signs With Belhaven University!

    After a recruiting season that took him to South Carolina to Georgia to Florida to Michigan and to Mississippi, Robert Trotter of Fayette County’s McIntosh High School recently signed a Letter of Intent to play football at Belhaven University in Jackson, Mississippi of the Mid-South Conference.  After visiting the Belhaven campus and the city of Jackson, a city with nine colleges and universities  (including a law school and a medical school), Trotter decided that Belhaven was a natural fit for him.  Trotter said: “The coaches and the people associated with Belhaven are so friendly and caring that I just think that this is where I want to go to school.  Plus, Belhaven runs a wide-open offense, and this is any receiver’s dream.”  At this time, Trotter plans on majoring in Sports Administration with a coaching concentration.  Belhaven also has a Sports Medicine major.

     Belhaven was founded by the Presbyterian Church in 1883.  Across the street from Belhaven is Millsaps College, a Baptist institution.  Jackson State University with 8,500 students is also located in Jackson, Mississippi.  Jackson State is where Walter (Sweetness) Payton, the legendary NFL running back, carried the pigskin in college, and it also is the alma mater of Lem Barney, one of the greatest cornerbacks to ever grace the NFL.  Two Belhaven football players from the 2009 team signed NFL contracts, Tramaine Brock with the San Francisco 49ers and Jacob Phillips with Seattle Seahawks.  Cordario Calvin, a wide receiver with Belhaven’s 2010 class, is expected to also sign a contract with an NFL team this year.

     Robert Trotter played his first three years of varsity football at the Landmark Christian School which plays in the Georgia High School Association’s Single A division.  He led the team in receptions, reception yards, and total offense his junior year and was selected by the Region 5-A (now re-aligned) coaches as All Region (First Team) in three categories, Wide Receiver, Defensive Back, and Return Specialist.  When Trotter’s family moved next to McIntosh High, he transferred to McIntosh in January of 2010.  Trotter played his senior year for Coach Glenn Griffin of McIntosh and proceeded to lead the Chief in receptions, reception yards, and total offense as he did at Landmark, earning him honors on Fayette County’s All County Team (six teams) and on Region 3-AAAA’s All Sub-Region Team (eight teams).

     Durand Rice, one of Trotter’s coaches at Landmark, described Trotter as “an amazing athlete with a passion for the game  — and talents which make the game seem effortless.”  Coach Rice went on to say that Trotter’s “character off the field is just as impressive as his play on the  field.”  Coach J. C. Randall, one of Trotter’s former coaches who now works on the collegiate level, says that Trotter is “a gifted athlete” who has “an enormous competitive drive.”  Glenn Griffin who coached Trotter at McIntosh High noted that Trotter was a “special receiver” and “a valuable return specialist with great vision and the timing it takes to make big plays.”  Coach Griffin further states that Trotter is a “team man” who has “great character.”

     Coach Joe Thrasher returned to his alma mater to take over the head coaching job at Belhaven University in 2009.  His first Belhaven team finished with six wins and five defeats.  He red-shirted many players this past season who could have started or contributed heavily to the team, but he is building for the future like he did as the head coach at Bacone College in Muskogee, Oklahoma.  Prior to his coaching stint at Bacone College, Coach Thrasher won three straight National Deaf Championships at the Mississippi School for the Deaf in Jackson and was a two-time National Coach of the Year.

Robert Trotter Earns County and Region Honors!

McIntosh defeated Northgate this night, and Northgate went on to defeat a couple of tough teams in the tough Region 3-AAAA. Robert Trotter had a good game, and Cam Porter, McIntosh’s startring QB, returned from an injury this game, and he too had a good game.

Fayette County School System in Georgia has become a football powerhouse — perhaps the most potent football county per capita in Georgia which itself is a football haven for college recruiters. Sandy Creek High School has won the State Championship in AAAA and AAA the last two years respectively. Starr’s Mill High School finished # 2 in the State in AAAA this year. Sandy Creek’s Alex Chisum was selected Georgia Class AAA’s Offensive Player of the Year, and Whitewater High’s Josh Clemons was selected Georgia Class AAAA’s Offensive Player of the Year. Both are Fayette County student-athletes.

McIntosh High plays in Region 3-AAAA, arguably the best AAAA region in the State. Fayette’s Starr’s Mill High, Whitewater High, and Fayette County High also play in this region. This region had four teams which finished in the Top 16 teams in the State, including Starr’s Mill which finished # 2. This region furnished six players on the First Team AAAA All State Team, including Griffin High’s Xzavier Dickson who played in the Under Armour All American Game and was recruited by major programs throughout the country and recently committed to Alabama. (Incidentally, Griffin High has produced more NFL players than any high school in Georgia.) Harris County High in this same region had two defensive players whom Coach Nick Saban personally called upon at the school on different occasions trying to get them to commit to Alabama.  One of these players was Georgia Bulldog star linebacker, Jordan Jenkins.  Robert Trotter had a big game against this Harris County Defense, scoring the first TD of the game, hauling in several big time receptions, and even completing a pass for 30 yards.

Starr’s Mill has two Georgia Tech commits on its teams, one of whom was Jeffrey Greene who made 2nd Team All Fayette County at WR along with Robert Trotter, although the Associated Press named Greene as 2nd Team All State in AAAA. This is just how competitive Fayette County is. The 1st Team All County WRs are Alex Chisum (the State’s AAA Offensive Player of the Year and a Cincinnati commit) and Eric Lauderdale (non-committed as of yet).

An All Region Team was not selected for Region 3-AAAA but the All Fayette County Team is quite comparable (especially with the addition of AAA State Champion Sandy Creek which had five of its players on the First Team AAA All State Team). Fayette County has five public high schools and one private high school.  [Note:  Since the publication of this article, the coaches of Region 3-AAAA got together in January to select two All Sub-region Teams for the large Region 3-AAAA.  Robert Trotter was selected to the All Sub-region 3B-AAAA, Second Team.]

Last year Robert Trotter was named as First All Region in three categories (WR, DB, and Return Specialist) in a good single A region. Single A football in Georgia has produced some great players like Herschel Walker (Heisman Trophy recipient), Garrison Hearst (Heisman Trophy First Runner-up), and Champ Bailey (Consensus All American). Trotter’s transition this year to McIntosh High School and to AAAA football went smoothly. He led McIntosh High in scoring, receptions, reception yards, and all-purpose yards, and he was recognized with All County honors in a football-rich county in the Metro Atlanta, Georgia area. Trotter played the last three games of the season on a sprained ankle. The team’s 2nd Team All County quarterback was also hurt for several games and did not play.

In three years as a Varsity starter, Robert Trotter never gave up the football a single time — and was used as a receiver, kick returner, punt returner, defensive back, and occasionally as a runner, punter, and even passer. Trotter is the quintessential “athlete” who thrives under pressure, is a leader, has great character, is popular among his teammates, respects his teammates and his coaches, and is a “yes sir” and “no sir” student-athlete all the way.

Prior to attending the last three semesters at McIntosh High School (consistently in the top five public high schools academically in Georgia), he attended Landmark Christian which is a very reputable school both academically and athletically. He is a Christian kid who won’t cause you any headaches. His grades are decent and he made a decent score on the SAT. He loves hanging out with his many friends and particularly playing Madden Football and FIFA Soccer on X-Box 360.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLO5IBOtRBw

The above link is to Robert Trotter’s Senior Highlights put together by Matt Day of Scout.com.

Robert Trotter Displays Amazing Agility!

Meet Robert Trotter. The Person. The Athlete.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt0rpxW3rYM

This is Robert Trotter’s football  highlight video.  Robert Trotter will be playing for McIntosh High School in his senior year (2010 Football Season).  McIntosh is in Georgia High School Association’s Region 3-AAAA.  McIntosh is located in Fayette County (metro Atlanta), Georgia.  This past football season, Sandy Creek High School was in the same region as McIntosh.  Sandy Creek won the AAAA Football title in Georgia this past season.  Sandy Creek is home of several NFL players, including the Lions’ Calvin Johnson.  Sandy Creek, because of lower student enrollment, dropped to AAA for the coming season.

McIntosh is in the same region as Griffin High School, another school which has produced NFL athletes like Willie Gault of  the 1985 World Champion Chicago Bears.  The McIntosh football schedule is located near the end of this video.  McIntosh’s head football coach Glenn Griffin’s contact information is also provided at the end of the video. 

The video is less than ten minutes.  Sit back and enjoy!  Robert Trotter’s play does indeed seem to be effortless, as his Landmark coach Durand Rice noted.  As Coach J. C. Randall (now with the Texas Tech football program) also observed, Robert Trotter is “a gifted athlete.”  More than this, though, he is a young man of sterling character!  A “yes, sir,” “no, sir,” “please,” and “thank you” type kid.