OCC players moving on
Orange Coast College upped its number of football players moving on to four-year schools to 10 on Wednesday, when six Pirates signed letters of intent, including defensive end Preston Hendry (Washington State) and safety Zoauntarrious Brunt (Colorado State).
Other Pirates signing Wednesday were Sharky Reza (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo), Sherrod Paige (Youngstown State), Josh Howell (Fort Lewis College), and Carlos Escobar (Bethany College).
Freshman receiver Joey Cox left at the semester to join Gannon University, while Pirates Will Martin (UC Davis), Ryan Eaches (UNC Charlotte) and Melvin Irby (Sterling College), signed in mid-December.
Hendry (6-foot-5, 225 pounds), was second-team All-Southern Conference as a sophomore, when he had 30 tackles, including three sacks, in eight games. He said he chose Washington State over Arizona State.
Brunt made 37 tackles as a sophomore, when OCC finished 3-7, 1-4 in conference.
Reza, an Edison High product, had a team-best four interceptions from his cornerback position last fall. He made 39 tackles on his way to earning second-team all-conference recognition.
Paige, a safety who joins former OCC receiver Stefan Derrick at Youngstown State, which reached the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision title game in 2016, led the Pirates with 54 tackles. He also had three interceptions.
Cox led OCC in receptions (51), receiving yards (630) and touchdowns (nine) in his only season last fall. Gannon is an NCAA Division II school in Erie, Pa.
Howell, who played linebacker and defensive line at OCC, where he earned a 4.0 grade-point average last semester, had a team-best 4.5 sacks among his 28 tackles. Fort Lewis is an NCAA Division II school in Durango, Colo.
Escobar was a reserve noseguard for OCC. He joins an NAIA program that was 1-10, 1-8 last season.
Twitter: @BarryFaulkner5
