The Cowboy Connection - Testaverde, George, and Coakley

What do new teammates Eddie George, Vinny Testaverde, and Dexter Coakley all have in common? All three came up through the football program at Fork Union Military Academy in Fork Union, Virginia.

Fork Union, VA (PRWEB) July 31, 2004 -- Now that Eddie George has been signed to the Dallas Cowboys along with veteran quarterback Vinny Testaverde, it raises an interesting coincidence. What do new teammates Eddie George and Vinny Testaverde have in common in their football careers?

Yes, both men won college football's coveted Heisman trophy and went on to be franchise players in the National Football League, but that's not the only thing their careers have in common. In fact, Eddie George, Vinny Testaverde and the Cowboys' outstanding linebacker Dexter Coakley all three have this very same thing in common.

All three of these current Cowboys came up through the football program of Fork Union Military Academy, in Fork Union, Virginia, wearing the grey uniform of a FUMA cadet.

Fork Union is the only secondary/prep school in the nation to boast two Heisman winners in the past sixty years, and Fork Union came close to producing a third winner when Cincinnati Bengals first-round draft pick Chris Perry, another former FUMA cadet, was named a Heisman finalist last year. Only one other high school in history has produced two Heisman winners; Woodrow Wilson High School in Dallas, Texas was the starting place for Tim Brown (winner in 1987) and Davey O'Brien (winner in 1938).

Testaverde entered Fork Union in 1981 to play football on their postgraduate team while preparing athletically and academically for a Division I college to offer up a scholarship. After an outstanding season playing in the prep league, Testaverde was signed by the University of Miami. He won the Heisman in 1986.

George came to Fork Union in 1989, playing two years of high school football. When college recruiters paid little attention to him (he received only one scholarship offer from a small school in Pennsylvania) Eddie decided to stay at Fork Union for another postgraduate year, running circles around his Prep League competitors until Ohio State signed him in 1992. George won the Heisman Trophy in 1995.

Coakley played on Fork Union's postgraduate team in 1992-93, the year after George left. Coakley went on to Appalachian State in 1993. He signed with the Cowboys in 1997 and has played in three Pro Bowl games during his eight seasons there.

Fork Union Military Academy may have produced more NFL football players than any other secondary/prep school in the nation. Dating back to Steve Meilinger, the Redskins first-round draft pick in 1954, on through Sonny Randle of the Cardinals who caught more touchdown passes than any other NFL player in the 1960s, and familiar names like Don Majkowski of the Packers and Mike Quick of the Eagles, Fork Union has been a starting point for dozens of pro players. Last season alone, more than 25 active NFL players could find their photo in Fork Union's high school yearbooks.

Fork Union sends more than two dozen athletes to Division I colleges each year from its football and basketball programs. Student athletes who need an additional year to prepare physically or academically for top college programs will often come to Fork Union for a prep or postgraduate year, earning college credit while improving high school grades and test scores.

Founded in 1898, Fork Union Military Academy is a leading college preparatory boarding school for young men in grades 6 through 12 as well as postgraduate. Located on 650 wooded acres in rural central Virginia, the school has long been a place where study and hard work have been ingrained in young men looking to succeed in college.

Eddie George often credits the structure and discipline of his military school experience with changing his life. "I don't know where I'd be, to be honest with you," George has said, if not for his mother sending him to Fork Union.

For photos of these three Cowboys during their days at Fork Union Military Academy go online to http://www.forkunion.com/athletics/cowboyconnection.html.

ABOUT FORK UNION MILITARY ACADEMY
Fork Union Military Academy in Fork Union, Virginia, is a college preparatory, military boarding school for young men in Grades 6 through 12 and postgraduates. Christian values are emphasized at this school and FUMA is affiliated with the Baptist General Association of Virginia but open to those of all religious denominations. Fork Union was founded in 1898 and has a rich tradition promoting character, leadership, and scholarship. Students in grades 6 through 8 follow a traditional six-class schedule while Upper School students follow a unique "One-Subject Plan" of study, concentrating on a single major subject every seven weeks.

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