On Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012, Wissahickon senior Tanoh Kpassagnon was recognized at a special news conference for signing a letter of intent to play football at Villanova University.
Tanoh Kpassagnon – Villanova University (Football)
Major: Business
Final list of colleges: Villanova, William & Mary, Lehigh
Reasons for choosing Villanova: “Villanova was the first to offer me a full scholarship, and their business school is ranked seventh in the nation, and I’m planning to study business. Just the environment – I liked the school, and the coaches were real nice. I took my official visit a couple of months ago, and the players were really nice. I got along with a lot of them. I met my professors, and we talked. It seemed like a good environment.”
What was the progression that led you to playing collegiate football? “I was debating between basketball and football. In 10th grade, I was thinking about just playing basketball, but the football coaches convinced me to play, and I liked it a lot.
“I started thinking about playing football in college last year when schools started offering me.”
Coach Jeff Cappa says: “Tanoh is a dedicated athlete who has worked hard in the offseason. Coming from the season that Wissahickon had of 1-9 to turning it around to 7-3 because of players like Tanoh and our senior leadership. He doesn’t settle for being a minimalist. He goes above and beyond whatever he can to help the football team, and that in turn has helped himself.
“His size is obvious, but along with his size is his athletic ability. Not too many 6-7, 250-plus pound players are as athletic as he is. We encourage multi-sport athletes with our football program, and he’s also a basketball player. Basketball makes him better for football, and you can see that on the field. He’s so quick on his feet, and he’s strong and athletic, and that’s really what sets him apart from other people.
“Wissahickon didn’t have a whole lot of leadership before. My coaching staff and I made a point to develop some leadership within our seniors. We had 19 seniors including Tanoh that really took ownership of the team.
“I think Villanova is an excellent fit for him. He’s an excellent student, he’s involved in the community within our school, and Villanova will offer the same opportunities for him. Athletically, there are not too many schools that are better than Villanova when it comes to their players. They make it a point to commit to their players, and their coaches have really committed to him, and that makes me feel comfortable as his head football coach guiding him to his next step in his life. I feel very comfortable with him going to Villanova because of their dedication to him.”
About Tanoh:
Favorite food: Mac and cheese
Favorite movie: Inception
Favorite music: Rap
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