Cocoa football head coach John Wilkinson yells out to the team during Sunday’s game in Cocoa.
Cocoa High football coach John Wilkinson finished second in the voting for statewide Florida Dairy Farmers Coach of the Year as announced Wednesday.
Wilkinson and Bruce Judson, Cocoa’s senior quarterback, won the top awards given to Class 4A by the organization earlier this month, becoming finalists for the top award in all classes.
The two were keys to Cocoa’s fourth state championship in football, won Dec. 8, 31-17 over Jacksonville Bolles.
Judson finished fourth among nine finalists for Mr. Football. It was won by Nick Tronti of Class 5A Ponte Vedra, which reached the state championship game in that class. Tronti got 12 first-place votes and 165 total points, while Judson received one of 23 first-place votes and 106 points.
This is the 25th year of the Florida Dairy Farmers awards, which recognizes the state’s top athletes in several sports as chosen by coaches and sports writers.
Wilkinson finished just behind Billy Rolle of Miami Southridge High, the first coach in state history to lead teams at three schools to state titles. Rolle got nine first-place votes and 164 points, while Wilkinson was first on five ballots and received 138 points.
Wilkinson previously won the all-class award in 2009.
Rafe Maccarone memorial events begin Thursday
Who We Play For, which raises money to screen young athletes for potential heart conditions, hosts its fifth annual December to Remember in honor of former Cocoa Beach soccer player Rafe Maccarone, who collapsed in a 2007 practice and eventually died due to heart complications.
At noon Thursday, a scramble golf tournament will tee off at Cocoa Beach Country Club with a registration fee of $60. An after-party will follow. The Play for Rafe soccer game, open to all Cocoa Beach graduates, will be played at 6 p.m. at the school’s stadium. The $25 fee will cover a game jersey.
Friday from 6 p.m. until 10, a block party will be held at Juice ‘N Java with music, games and a silent auction.
Rockledge grad honored
Joseph Williams, who graduated from Rockledge in 1992, recently became a member of the Norwich University Athletic Hall of Fame. He was a four-year letterman with the Raiders and is an infantry battalion commander in the U.S. Army.
At Norwich, located in Vermont, Williams played football and competed in track and field. He finished with 294 career tackles and six interceptions, graduating in 1996.
Contact McCallum at 321-242-3698 or bmccallum@floridatoday.com. Follow facebook.com/FLtoday.brianmccallum and @Brian_McCallum on Twitter.
