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June 24, 2009

Kosy Connection: Ole Miss quarterback signee’s family has deep Attala Co. roots

By Austin Bishop

It didn't take Raymond Cotton Sr. long to realize his namesake was going to be an athlete.

But, it was a crucial moment as a 6-year-old that led Raymond Cotton Jr. down the road to football and an eventual scholarship with Ole Miss.

"He actually cried the first time he got hit," Cotton said of his son's first football practice at the tender age of six. "He came up to me and told me he didn't want to play football anymore."

That's when the elder Cotton used a little wisdom and motivation to encourage his son to stick it out. "There was this big kid named Buzzy," Cotton said. "We'll never forget his name. He was older than everyone else and was hitting everyone hard. I told him (Raymond Jr.) 'The first time you get a chance I want you to hit him as hard as you can.'

"He put a big hit on Buzzy and everybody started clapping," Cotton said. "The rest is history."

Yes it is, and quite a history at that.

Raymond Cotton Sr. is a 1983 graduate of Kosciusko High School who played running back on the football team and guard on the basketball team. After two years at Holmes Community College he decided to join the Coast Guard. Two years later, in 1987, he married the former Gwen Clark, a graduate of Ethel High School.

The Cottons have three children — Raymond Jr., Anthony and Adrian — and are currently living in Fort Meade, Md., where Raymond Sr. is now stationed.

Raymond Sr. is the son of the late Lavell and Julia Anderson Cotton, while Gwen is the daughter of the late Oliver Clark Jr. and Theresa Clark of the Center Community, located in the Southeast portion of Attala County.

When Raymond Jr. was born he was nearly 11 pounds. As a small child Raymond Sr. could see his son had some skills.

"I could see he could run and he wasn't uncoordinated," Cotton said. "So I began to sign him up for sports. He tried all kinds of things."

In the end, it was football where Cotton chose to focus his talents.

He started as a freshman at Blount High School in Mobile, a city the Cottons called home for a dozen years. As a junior he transferred to Faith Academy in Mobile, then the Cottons moved to Maryland before the athlete's senior year.

Cotton had committed to Auburn early, but decided to check out his options.

As a senior he passed for 2,243 yards and ran for 668 more and was ranked the No. 11 dual-threat quarterback in the nation by Rivals.com and the No. 22 among all quarterbacks by Scout.com.

Although Syracuse, Maryland, Virginia Tech and West Virginia tried to get into the picture after he moved to Maryland, the elder Cotton said his son always intended to play in the Southeastern Conference

"There was no doubt about it," Cotton said. "He wanted to play against the best in the best conference."

After his son decided not to attend Auburn, Cotton sent out e-mails to schools his son might be interested in.

"Kent Austin (offensive coordinator at Ole Miss) was the first to respond," he said. "He said they were very interested."

Eventually Austin and head coach Houston Nutt made a visit to Fort Meade and when it came time to sign, Cotton chose to play for the Rebels.

While the SEC was a big draw to Cotton, playing in front of friends and family was a factor as well.

"He wanted his folks to be able to see him play," the elder Cotton said. "We are very family oriented. That was very important to us."

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