In a football-rich family, Trotter learning from his father and brother
West Virginia linebacker Josiah Trotter was raised in a football family.
Trotter's dad, Jeremiah Trotter Sr. is a member of the Philadelphia Eagles Hall of Fame while his brother Jeremiah Trotter Jr., was a third-round selection by the Eagles in this year's NFL Draft.
"I feel like we all have different games but we all take something from my dad that he really instilled in all of us in that physical part of the game and how they really played the game back in the day," Trotter said.
The expectations for Trotter were high when he committed to WVU out of high school due to the name his dad and brother had made for themselves.
"Having my dad and then my brother who went to Clemson, that's one of the reasons I wanted to also come here, create a name for myself and do my own thing. A lot of people probably thought I would follow him to Clemson, team up with him, but I wanted to go somewhere else and kind of create my own name and path. No matter what I'm always going to have my dad and my brother but I'm not afraid to be in anyone's shadow but I'm going to create a name for myself," Trotter said.
Trotter's dad played in the NFL for eight seasons totaling 147 games played in the league. He played in three games for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2007, with that being one of the only moments Josiah remembers.
"When I was younger I really didn't remember as much. I was real young, especially around the time he retired is when the time I kind of remembered it. Only real vivid memory is when he was with the Buccaneers, one game there, but I was really young at the time," Trotter said.
While it might seems like a perfect world for an up-and-coming linebacker to be brought into with the talent in his family tree, it was not always easy for Trotter who would go against his older brother under the supervision of his dad.
"There's a bunch of memories, not even being in the backyard. Being in the living room, having to do tackling and hitting drills with each other when we were younger. Wasn't too fun for me, probably was fun for him but, lot of memories just growing up, doing tackling drills, practicing together, everything like that," Trotter said.
Trotter is set to return to the gridiron this fall as a redshirt freshman and there is a lot of excitement around the 6-foot-2, 238-pound linebacker from Philadelphia. Trotter said that part of the reason he's in the position he's at now is because of the guidance of his dad and brother.
"My brother he set a great example for me just growing up. How to work, how to handle your business, the consistency that it takes and what it is to be great. But also having my dad to show us the hoops of what it takes to be a pro, what you need to do, just the in and outs of everything. It really just set a groundwork. But at the end of the day it's really up to us if we wanted to put the work in and really wanted it. So we really had to put our foot first and take care of everything," Trotter said.
Trotter has gotten to learn from his dad but he's also learned from Pro Football Hall of Famer Brian Dawkins who was a teammate of Jeremiah Sr..
"I really look up to Brian Dawkins, that's one of the dudes I like to watch just from the standpoint of not only his mentality but what he brought to the game," Trotter said.
As Trotter now tries to create his own path starting this fall, he won't forget the plays his dad made and the impact his dad and brother have had on him.
"In the run game there's a bunch of plays, I'm like, dang, can't believe my dad did that because sometimes I just look at him as dad, especially when I was younger. But growing up and watching more of his highlights, seeing a lot of the players he went against and then former players just telling me how great he was it was kind of like dang. There's a bunch of plays I'm like, dang, I can't believe he did that," Trotter said.
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