OCC’s Coleman, Finney, Heyer, Albers moving on

Orange Coast College sophomore defensive end Vince Coleman has signed a national letter of intent to continue his football career with Youngstown State, OCC Coach Mike Taylor announced Wednesday.

Offensive lineman Kyle Finney and tight end Nolan Heyer are additional OCC sophomores headed for four-year programs, as is offensive tackle Andrew Albers, who previously had committed to Utah.

The 6-foot-3, 235-pound Coleman led the Pirates with 8.5 sacks and 15.5 of his 61 tackles were for losses in 2012. The Long Beach Poly product earned second-team Southern Conference recognition for the Pirates, who finished 3-7, 1-5 in conference play.

Finney, a two-year starter at guard, is bound for Southeast Missouri State after earning second-team all-conference laurels last fall. Finney helped tailback Robert Penny amass 827 rushing yards in 2012. In 2011, Finney, a 6-3, 295-pound Edison High product, helped pave the way for Domenic Betts to produce a school single-season record 1,847 rushing yards.

Heyer, a 6-4, 230-pounder out of Edison who did not catch a pass for the Pirates in an injury-plagued career, will walk on at Arizona. Heyer played offensive guard as a senior at Edison in 2009, when he weighed 268 pounds.

Taylor said several OCC players are making official visits to schools over the next few weeks.

— From staff reports