Troy University Athletics
Photo by: Joshua Thurston
Football Adds Four Mid-Year Transfers
12/18/2013 12:11:00 PM | Football
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TROY, Ala. – Troy bolstered its high-powered offense with four mid-year transfers, head coach Larry Blakeney announced Wednesday. The Trojans added a pair quarterbacks, a wide receiver and an offensive lineman to a unit that has led the Sun Belt Conference in total offense four of the past five seasons.
Troy signed the quarterbacks from the top two ranked junior college teams in the country in East Mississippi's Dontreal Pruitt (5-11, 180) and Iowa Western's Connor Bravard (6-1, 195). The impressive mid-year class also included Itawamba Community College wide receiver Jarvis Bentley (6-5, 195) and Ole Miss offensive lineman Ethan Hutson (6-4, 315).
Pruitt earned first team All-America honors after guiding East Mississippi to the NJCAA National Championship. He completed 64.3 percent of his passes for 3,939 yards and 45 touchdowns with just seven interceptions. The Laurel (Miss.) High School product also rushed for 507 yards and six touchdowns on 103 carries. The Lions finished the season 12-0 and set a NJCAA record with 7,327 yards of total offense. East Mississippi defeated Georgia Military College 52-32 in the Mississippi Bowl to win the NJCAA title.
Bravard helped lead Iowa Western to an 11-1 record and a victory over No. 5 Butler in the Graphic Edge Bowl; the Reivers finished the season ranked No. 2 in the NJCAA Poll. A native of West Des Moines, Iowa, Bravard completed 62.1 percent of his passes for 2,555 yards and 23 touchdowns with only nine interceptions. Bravard, who prepped at Dowling Catholic High School, also rushed for four touchdowns.
Bentley led Itawamba with 49 receptions for 502 yards and a touchdown in 10 games as the Indians advanced to the MACJC semifinals. Bentley, who began his career at UMass, is a native of Columbus, Ga., and attended G.W. Carver High School. In two seasons at Itawamba, Bentley caught 86 passes for 799 yards and two touchdowns.
Hutson graduated from Ole Miss in two-and-a-half years and will be immediately eligible at Troy with two years of eligibility remaining. The Destrehan, La., native has played in five games for the Rebels over the past two seasons and received the Scholar-Athlete Award by the Ole Miss Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame last spring.
Hutson, who is the son of Oakland Raiders' assistant coach Mark Hutson, was a U.S. Army and PrepStar All-American out of Destrehan (La.) High School. He was rated as the No. 8 center in the country by Rivals.com and the No. 11 player in the state of Louisiana by SuperPrep his senior year.
Troy finished the 2013 season bowl eligible for the sixth time in the past eight seasons.
TROY, Ala. – Troy bolstered its high-powered offense with four mid-year transfers, head coach Larry Blakeney announced Wednesday. The Trojans added a pair quarterbacks, a wide receiver and an offensive lineman to a unit that has led the Sun Belt Conference in total offense four of the past five seasons.
Troy signed the quarterbacks from the top two ranked junior college teams in the country in East Mississippi's Dontreal Pruitt (5-11, 180) and Iowa Western's Connor Bravard (6-1, 195). The impressive mid-year class also included Itawamba Community College wide receiver Jarvis Bentley (6-5, 195) and Ole Miss offensive lineman Ethan Hutson (6-4, 315).
Pruitt earned first team All-America honors after guiding East Mississippi to the NJCAA National Championship. He completed 64.3 percent of his passes for 3,939 yards and 45 touchdowns with just seven interceptions. The Laurel (Miss.) High School product also rushed for 507 yards and six touchdowns on 103 carries. The Lions finished the season 12-0 and set a NJCAA record with 7,327 yards of total offense. East Mississippi defeated Georgia Military College 52-32 in the Mississippi Bowl to win the NJCAA title.
Bravard helped lead Iowa Western to an 11-1 record and a victory over No. 5 Butler in the Graphic Edge Bowl; the Reivers finished the season ranked No. 2 in the NJCAA Poll. A native of West Des Moines, Iowa, Bravard completed 62.1 percent of his passes for 2,555 yards and 23 touchdowns with only nine interceptions. Bravard, who prepped at Dowling Catholic High School, also rushed for four touchdowns.
Bentley led Itawamba with 49 receptions for 502 yards and a touchdown in 10 games as the Indians advanced to the MACJC semifinals. Bentley, who began his career at UMass, is a native of Columbus, Ga., and attended G.W. Carver High School. In two seasons at Itawamba, Bentley caught 86 passes for 799 yards and two touchdowns.
Hutson graduated from Ole Miss in two-and-a-half years and will be immediately eligible at Troy with two years of eligibility remaining. The Destrehan, La., native has played in five games for the Rebels over the past two seasons and received the Scholar-Athlete Award by the Ole Miss Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame last spring.
Hutson, who is the son of Oakland Raiders' assistant coach Mark Hutson, was a U.S. Army and PrepStar All-American out of Destrehan (La.) High School. He was rated as the No. 8 center in the country by Rivals.com and the No. 11 player in the state of Louisiana by SuperPrep his senior year.
Troy finished the 2013 season bowl eligible for the sixth time in the past eight seasons.
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