Josiah Trotter

MORGANTOWN — Penn State, once upon a time, was known as ‘Linebacker U’, producing All-American, All-NFL and Hall of Fame linebackers such as David Robinson and Jack Ham as consistently as Jimmy Dean produces sausages.

But when the Nittany Lions come to town on Aug. 31 for a noon opening game against West Virginia, they will be facing a linebacker who got away in WVU freshman Josiah Trotter, a kid out of Philadelphia’s St. Joseph’s Prep with regal linebacking bloodlines that would make him a triple Crown contender if he were a thoroughbred racehorse rather than a football player.

The game will mark the long-awaited college debut of the 240-pound son of former All-Pro linebacker Jeremiah Trotter of the Philadelphia Eagles and the brother of Jeremiah Trotter Jr., drafted in the fifth round this year by those same Eagles after starring at Clemson.

Trotter arrived at WVU last year and seemed headed for a starting job as a true freshman when he was put out of action with a spring knee injury that cost him the year, but now he is healed and ready to assert himself on the field the way his father and brother did before him.

“I want to bring physicality. I feel that was the reason I was brought here, but also smarts and leadership. I want to be the QB on the defense, to bring the guys together, to change the outcome of games,” he said in his first media session on Friday.

His signing was one of the biggest of Neal Brown’s five years at WVU, a true four-star player who was targeted by many big time football schools.

“I had a lot of big schools like Ohio State, Clemson, my brother’s school; Oregon, Notre Dame, South Carolina and the list goes on after me,” he said. “The crazy thing is West Virginia actually came in later, after I had all the big schools, and I never thought I’d be here until they started texting me a lot. I talked to my dad and decided to take a visit.”

Trotter knew what he wanted, and it had nothing to do with reputation or football history.

“I wasn’t looking for how big the school was or if it was local. I wanted to go somewhere who wanted me for me,” he said, a rather rational reason in an era where the talent often goes simply to the highest bidder. “I could fit within the scheme and the culture and make a big impact.”

Simply put, he wanted to go where he was wanted.

“They kept reaching out, I took a visit, I fell in love with it … the scheme, the coaches, the area and how the fans treated the team and what it meant to West Virginia. I loved seeing how Karl Joseph and Tavon Austin and all those older dudes really made an impact on this team and the state. I wanted to be able to do that.”

In the end, all of that merged into part of Trotter’s soul.

“You know when they need you and when they like you. That’s the biggest thing. You want to go where you’re needed, not where you are just liked. They didn’t just like me, they needed me and they wanted me and that’s what set them apart from everyone else.”

He was well prepared as the son of an All-NFL player. Football was a part of his life from the beginning.

You know how kids set out a lemonade stand in their front yard to raise some money? Well, the Trotters had football games and if they had been smart enough to charge admission they probably could have paid for college through that.

“There’s a bunch of memories, being in the backyard, in the living room, having hitting drills with each other, tackling drills. It wasn’t too fun for me (as the youngest brother) but it was probably fun for them,” he said.

Games in the yard made some sense. But in the living room? BANG! CRASH! BOOM!

“In the living room, we had to make sure we moved all the furniture out of the way. We put some cushions on the ground to make sure no one got too beat up. Dad would referee, watch it and make sure it never got too out of hand,” Josiah said.

Trotter was too young to remember much of his father’s playing career, his memories starting near the end when he was with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But he has seen the film and marvels at some of it.

Between his father and his older brother, he was always getting lessons in the life of a football player.

“I feel like we all have different games. We all take something from our dad that he instilled in all of us. It’s that physical part of the game and how they played the game back in the day. They did it in his day and still do … how to play the run game, how to destroy blockers, how to be a leader.

“Me and my brother, personality-wise we are like two different people. Also, our games are different. He’s good at a lot of things I’m not good at and I’m good at a lot of things he might not be good at. “I take a lot from his game and he takes a lot from my game.”

When he was old enough he would accompany his father to the facility or locker room, get to meet the players that others just look up to, become family with the likes of Brian Dawkins and others from the Super Bowl champion Eagles.

But his mission now is to create his own identity.

“One of the reasons I came here was to create a name for myself and do my own thing,” Trotter said. “A lot of people thought I’d follow my brother to Clemson and hook up with him, but I wanted to create my own name and path. I’ll always have my dad and brother, and I’m not afraid to be in anyone’s shadow, but I’m going to create a name for myself.”

After sitting out last year with the injury but staying attached through rehab, studying film and the playbook, attending meetings and asking questions, he’s now ready to begin making that name.

“I wanted to make an impact right away, no matter where I went. I had a chance to compete for a starting job. It went sideways, but I got it restarted and am back this year to make a statement,” he said.