By Keith_Osso. Published Tuesday, January 26th, 2010

Defending state champion Jake Trotter is used to throwing guys around the wrestling mat, but all the while there’s music playing in his head.

“I have a recording studio in my basement, I actually just got done putting a song together before I came to this practice, it’s just something I really like to do in my free time,” Trotter said.

Whether he’s strumming the guitar, bass, playing the piano or singing Jake Trotter does it all.

“Actually, I like it,” Trotter’s coach Phil McLean said. “I am pretty much country, but it’s pretty good.”

“I don’t like to focus on one genre, I like playing all sorts of stuff,” Trotter said.

Music is just part of what makes Trotter a well-rounded student-athlete.

“He’s a 4.0 student, academic state champ, all-league football guy and he’s really an intellectual kid,” Coach McLean said.

“Balancing everything for me hasn’t really been too hard. Twenty-four hours in a day is longer than everyone makes it out to be,” Trotter said.

Trotter has already been on an official visit to one Ivy League school, but he has his sights set on staying a little closer to home.

“Stanford is the perfect place for me to do as good as I possibly can in the classroom situation, and good as I possibly can in the wrestling situation as well,” Trotter said.

Judging by his success on the wrestling mat, and in the recording studio, Stanford would be lucky to have a guy like Jake Trotter.