The heir apparent

Robinson's Marcello Trigg will hold the area record for most career touchdown passes if he throws two more.

By SCOTT PURKS
Published November 1, 2005

	[Times file photo]
	Despite having thrown for nearly 7,000 yards and 78 touchdowns in his career, no college has offered 5-foot-11 quarterback Marcello Trigg an athletic scholarship.

TAMPA - Marcello Trigg's hair stands as tall as his stats, especially when it comes to touchdown passes.

According to the meticulous calculations of Robinson coaches, Trigg - who years ago told his mom he couldn't cut his hair because he gets strength from it, "like Samson in the Bible" - has thrown 78 career touchdowns.

That's one behind the tightly cropped 'do of former Land O'Lakes quarterback Drew Weatherford, who graduated in 2004 with 79 to set the Tampa Bay area prep record.

Friday night Trigg threw one touchdown in a 42-3 victory over Jesuit to pass Tampa Catholic's Kenny Kelly, who with an almost-shaved head in 1996 set the Hillsborough County mark with 77.

So, who is this kid with the big hair? And why aren't any colleges offering him football scholarships?

He has the grades (a 4.4 GPA with numerous advanced placement math courses), the stats (nearly 7,000 career passing yards) and the leadership skills.

" "Definitely the leadership," said Robinson receiver Darrell Stevens, who is being pursued by several major Division I schools. "Nobody on this team commands more respect than Marcello. We listen to whatever he says."

What Trigg doesn't have, it appears, is height. The roster lists him at 5 feet 11, but that could be skewed by the hair standing up a good 6 inches.

Could make you wonder, is he trying to make himself look taller with the big hair?

"The hair is just the way I like it," Trigg said, grinning. "That's all it is."

Robinson coach Mike DePue said, "The thing you need to understand about Marcello is that he's his own person. He's not a follower. He just wants to be the best person and quarterback he can be.

"And he really doesn't care about the records. All he wants to do on Friday night is help his team win, however that might be. As for the hair, well, I think that kind of shows his strength as a person. Not everybody could pull that off. But he does.

"Anyway, for all those reasons, we love him."

His mother, Sylvia Johnson, said she also loves him for countless reasons, not the least of which is that he cares so much for people.

"Always has," Johnson said. "I remember when he was in Little League football and there was a boy on his team with muscular dystrophy, and somehow Marcello's team heard the other team was going to try and take advantage of that little boy's weakness.

"Marcello gathered his team around and said, "(This boy with muscular dystrophy) is part of our team, and that means we have to protect him.' And Marcello's team really responded to that. They protected that little boy like you wouldn't believe."

Now, as his high school career winds down with one more regular-season game Friday against Plant and at least one playoff game after that, Johnson said her son has been okay with not getting a scholarship offer.

"It's almost like he's used to proving himself because he's always been smaller," Johnson said. "But once he's gotten a chance he's always done well. So all he needs is a chance. If a football scholarship doesn't come through, hopefully an academic scholarship will."

If it comes down to it, Trigg said he will walk on somewhere because he wants to play on the next level, which according to his coaches could mean an Ivy League school because of his intelligence.

"Wherever he ends up I truly believe he will make somebody very happy when they gave him a shot at quarterback," Robinson offensive coordinator Rob Burns said. "People don't seem to understand how well he reads defenses and how well he senses defenders around him.

"We knew we had something special when as a freshman he threw for 300 yards against Hillsborough (perennially one of the area's best defenses). Since then he's gotten stronger, throws the ball harder and farther and has gotten even smarter, which is saying a lot because he was already smart."

So, is it the hair?

"No," DePue said. "It's just Marcello."

[Last modified November 1, 2005, 06:43:40]