Cooper played collegiately for the Oklahoma Sooners, lettering in 1988, 1989 and 1990 as the Sooners adjusted to life after sanctions that ended the legendary Barry Switzer Era in Norman.
As the Sooners were primarily a run-based Wishbone offense, Cooper brought value to their attack as a blocker. "I had to block well," he said.
Cooper's redshirt senior season of 1990 proved to be his best, as he caught 13 passes for 301 yards, complete with 23.2 yards per catch and 2 touchdowns. He either led or tied for the team lead in all four categories. Despite being on probation, the Sooners finished with an 8-3 record, finished 17th in the AP poll.[1]
Pro careeredit
Pittsburgh Steelersedit
Cooper was selected in the fourth round of the 1991 NFL Draft by the Steelers, and could only guarantee the third spot on the depth chart at tight end in the preseason.[2][3]
However, he was pressed into service as a rookie due to injuries to Eric Green and Mike Mularkey, and acquitted himself well as a rookie. Originally a third-string tight end, Cooper caught 11 passes for 147 yards and two touchdowns. He was eventually named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team for 1991, and was selected by Steelers as the Joe Greene Great Performance Award Winner.[4]
Cooper followed up his rookie performance by getting more snaps in 1992 as a starting tight end for the AFC Central Champions. Cooper recorded a career-best in touchdown receptions with 3.
Green returned to form in 1993, however, and Cooper caught just 9 passes. This total didn't include his final reception as a Steeler: a 10-yard touchdown pass from Neil O'Donnell in the 1993 AFC Wild-Card Playoff Game loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
He later said that his blocking acumen at Oklahoma had served him well in becoming a valued member of the Steelers offense. "When I came in it was no surprise to the defense when they ran the ball to my side," he said. "They knew what I was there for. It did help me in the passing game though. Sometimes we’d run play action and that gave me the advantage I needed to get open. Otherwise I’d never have gotten open!"[2]
Minnesota Vikingsedit
Moving on to Minnesota in 1994, Cooper had his best season as a professional, catching 32 balls for 363 yards and starting 11 out of the 12 games he played. He then started 13 games in 1995, but caught just 18 passes.
For his six year career, Cooper tallied 87 receptions for 1,037 yards and five touchdowns.
Referencesedit
^"Adrian Cooper College Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
^ abHedrick, Randall. "Exclusive with Former Steelers Tight End Adrian Cooper, 1991-1993 | Steelers Takeaways". Retrieved September 24, 2022.
^"1991 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 7, 2023.
^"Adrian Cooper Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
November 11, 2023
adrian, cooper, born, april, 1968, former, professional, american, football, tight, national, football, league, played, seasons, pittsburgh, steelers, 1991, 1993, minnesota, vikings, 1994, 1995, francisco, 49ers, 1996, 49position, tight, endpersonal, informati. Adrian Cooper Jr born April 27 1968 is a former professional American football tight end in the National Football League NFL He played six seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers 1991 1993 the Minnesota Vikings 1994 1995 and the San Francisco 49ers 1996 Adrian CooperNo 87 49Position Tight endPersonal informationBorn 1968 04 27 April 27 1968 age 55 Denver Colorado U S Height 6 ft 5 in 1 96 m Weight 255 lb 116 kg Career informationHigh school Denver CO SouthCollege OklahomaNFL Draft 1991 Round 4 Pick 103Career historyPittsburgh Steelers 1991 1993 Minnesota Vikings 1994 1995 San Francisco 49ers 1996 Career highlights and awardsPFWA All Rookie Team 1991 Joe Greene Great Performance Award 1991 Career NFL statisticsGames played 77Games started 50Receptions 87Receiving yards 1 037Touchdowns 5Player stats at NFL com PFR Contents 1 College career 2 Pro career 2 1 Pittsburgh Steelers 2 2 Minnesota Vikings 2 3 San Francisco 49ers 3 ReferencesCollege career editCooper played collegiately for the Oklahoma Sooners lettering in 1988 1989 and 1990 as the Sooners adjusted to life after sanctions that ended the legendary Barry Switzer Era in Norman As the Sooners were primarily a run based Wishbone offense Cooper brought value to their attack as a blocker I had to block well he said Cooper s redshirt senior season of 1990 proved to be his best as he caught 13 passes for 301 yards complete with 23 2 yards per catch and 2 touchdowns He either led or tied for the team lead in all four categories Despite being on probation the Sooners finished with an 8 3 record finished 17th in the AP poll 1 Pro career editPittsburgh Steelers edit Cooper was selected in the fourth round of the 1991 NFL Draft by the Steelers and could only guarantee the third spot on the depth chart at tight end in the preseason 2 3 However he was pressed into service as a rookie due to injuries to Eric Green and Mike Mularkey and acquitted himself well as a rookie Originally a third string tight end Cooper caught 11 passes for 147 yards and two touchdowns He was eventually named to the PFWA All Rookie Team for 1991 and was selected by Steelers as the Joe Greene Great Performance Award Winner 4 Cooper followed up his rookie performance by getting more snaps in 1992 as a starting tight end for the AFC Central Champions Cooper recorded a career best in touchdown receptions with 3 Green returned to form in 1993 however and Cooper caught just 9 passes This total didn t include his final reception as a Steeler a 10 yard touchdown pass from Neil O Donnell in the 1993 AFC Wild Card Playoff Game loss to the Kansas City Chiefs He later said that his blocking acumen at Oklahoma had served him well in becoming a valued member of the Steelers offense When I came in it was no surprise to the defense when they ran the ball to my side he said They knew what I was there for It did help me in the passing game though Sometimes we d run play action and that gave me the advantage I needed to get open Otherwise I d never have gotten open 2 Minnesota Vikings edit Moving on to Minnesota in 1994 Cooper had his best season as a professional catching 32 balls for 363 yards and starting 11 out of the 12 games he played He then started 13 games in 1995 but caught just 18 passes San Francisco 49ers edit Cooper wound up his NFL career with the 49ers in 1996 catching a single pass for 11 yards His final reception was a 17 year yard first down catch in the 49ers 14 0 NFC Wild Card Playoff win over the Philadelphia Eagles For his six year career Cooper tallied 87 receptions for 1 037 yards and five touchdowns References edit Adrian Cooper College Stats College Football at Sports Reference com Retrieved September 24 2022 a b Hedrick Randall Exclusive with Former Steelers Tight End Adrian Cooper 1991 1993 Steelers Takeaways Retrieved September 24 2022 1991 NFL Draft Listing Pro Football Reference com Retrieved May 7 2023 Adrian Cooper Stats Height Weight Position Draft College Pro Football Reference com Retrieved September 24 2022 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Adrian Cooper amp oldid 1173821448, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
