D.J. Cannon, a 2007 Mars High School graduate, was a three-sport athlete for the Planets. He starred on the baseball team as a pitcher during his junior and senior seasons and will be inducted into the Mars Athletic Hall of Fame Sept. 8, 2017.

This is the first in a series of seven articles profiling the Mars Athletic Hall of Fame's Class of 2017.GREENSBURG — During his senior year at Mars High School, D.J. Cannon had a decision to make.As a quarterback for the school's football team, he passed for over 2,600 yards and added 27 touchdowns in his varsity career and attracted offers from several colleges, in particular Iona College in New York.On the baseball diamond, he struck out 102 batters and walked just 18 in 91 innings combined in his junior and senior seasons. His talent as a pitcher also garnered attention from the collegiate ranks.“For a while, I thought I'd be playing football in college,” said Cannon, a 2007 Mars graduate, “but I didn't make a decision until May of my senior season. I wasn't sure if I wanted to go to school near New York City. It would have been far different from Mars. I realized I just didn't want to give up baseball and I ended up going to Seton Hill.”Cannon will be one of seven individuals inducted into the Mars Athletic Hall of Fame Sept. 8.“It's a huge honor,” he said. “Terry Dillner was my quarterback coach at Mars and he's the one who called to tell me. He was one of my favorite coaches in high school and getting that call from him, it made it extra-special.”Cannon's relationship with Seton Hill continues to this day. Following his collegiate playing career — which yielded 12 pitching wins and 159 innings from 2008-12 — Cannon has remained with the program as a pitching coach/recruiting coordinator.“Ever since I stepped foot on the campus as a freshman, I've loved it,” said Cannon. “I couldn't be happier with the decision to go there. It's a family-like atmosphere. To be able to stay at Seton Hill, I'm truly lucky for the opportunity.“I can pass my passion for the game onto the players and help them reach their full potential.”Cannon was an occasional pitcher when he became a member of Mars' varsity baseball team, but he was a regular on the mound by his junior campaign. His mentality while pitching helped him succeed.“I think a lot of it came from the fact that I was a three-sport guy (including basketball),” he said. “You play that many sports and you're going to have a lot of setbacks. You just have to come back from them. I had a lot of experiences to draw upon.”An appearance in the WPIAL's Class 4A/3A all-star baseball game capped Cannon's high school career. He earned Most Valuable Pitcher honors with four strikeouts and no runs given up in three innings as his team won, 5-1.Cannon knew when he stepped under center for the first time for Mars football coach Scott Heinauer that the Planets were a run-first team. However, that didn't stop him from making a bit of history.When he threw for 1,120 yards as a junior in 2005, it was the first time in 17 years that a Planet quarterback reached 1,000 yards in a single season.He went over 1,000 yards again in 2006. That effort helped him win Mars' Eyth/Williams Award as the school's top senior male athlete.“I still have dreams about playing under the Friday night lights,” he said. “We were very successful at running the ball, but being able to create some balance on offense, it was something I was very excited to do.”