Rockmart alum finding place at the next level

Fans of college football should keep an eye out this fall, as several Rockmart alumni are playing at the next level this season. Seven former Yellow Jackets are making an impact on college football teams across the nation.

Deacon Allen is a freshman offensive lineman at Division I Akron University in Ohio. The 6-foot-1, 263-pound mauler was a three-star recruit that enrolled at Akron in January 2020.

Allen, a reserve lineman, has not received any playing time yet but could be in line for more opportunities as soon as next season. The Zips, a member of the Mid-American Conference, are 2-6 this year and 1-3 in conference play.

After last week’s 45-10 loss to Buffalo, the Zips will enjoy this week off before hosting Ball State on Tues., Nov. 2.

Jay Hinkle is listed as a sophomore defensive end at Newberry College. The 6-foot-1, 230-pound athlete originally signed with Notre Dame College of Euclid, Oh., and spent the 2019 and 2020 seasons with the Falcons as a backup defensive lineman.

He has seen more opportunity with the Wolves, a Division II program in Newberry, S.C. Hinkle has tallied nine tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, one sack, and one fumble recovery in six games played this season.

The 6-2 (5-1) Wolves are coming off a homecoming win against Carson-Newman

and will travel to Erskine in South Carolina this Saturday at 1 p.m.

A student-athlete at Doane University in Crete, Neb., Chandler Cooper is currently in his junior season as a wide receiver with the Tigers program. The 6-foot-2, 174-pound target has reeled in three receptions for 90 yards on the season.

The NAIA Tigers are 4-4 against Great Plains Athletic Conference foes in 2021 and just defeated Mount Marty 28-7. Cooper caught a 39-yard pass in that victory. They will play their penultimate game this Saturday at Midland University in Fremont, Neb., starting at 2 p.m. EST.

Jourdan Rachel began his career at Concordia University Chicago in Illinois before transferring to Shorter University last year. Now a sophomore H-back, the 5-foot-11 213- pound

sophomore has seen playing time in three games with the Hawks. He ran three times in the season-opening win over Brevard and has also seen the field in games against West Alabama and Mississippi College. Rachel and 2-6 Shorter, who lost at West Florida 45-23 last week, will head Cleveland, Miss. for a Gulf South Conference meeting with Delta State at 3 p.m. this Saturday.

Lataevion Thompson and Sherman Davis are both listed as freshman defenders at Hanover College in Indiana this fall. Thompson, a 6-foot, 225-pound defensive back, recorded one tackle for loss and 0.5 sack in the Panthers’ blowout win over Defiance on Oct. 16. Davis, a 6-foot, 260-pound defensive lineman, has played in five games this year. He has seven tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and 0.5 sack as a freshman.

The Panthers are 4-3 overall and 3-1 in Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference play. Hanover won 41-10 at Bluffton last week and will return home this Saturday to host Manchester University at 2:30 p.m. EST.

Javin Whatley, a standout at quarterback in his days as a Yellow Jacket, is now a freshman wide receiver at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga. The 5-foot-11, 159-pound athlete has yet to see the field this season and will likely be redshirted in his first season as a Moc.

UTC is 4-3 overall, 3-1 against Southern Conference opponents, and are

coming off a 55-13 drubbing of Samford in Birmingham. The Mocs host Furman this Saturday for Homecoming. The game will kick off at 1:30 p.m. on ESPN+.