Rivals250 LB Edgerrin Cooper picks the Aggies
SAN ANTONIO -- Edgerrin Cooper was one of a handful of nationally ranked prospects to privately fax in their paperwork during the Early Signing Window, and during Saturday's All-American Bowl, he revealed where.
The Rivals250 linebacker is officially an Aggie. Cooper committed and signed with Texas A&M over LSU and Utah, the other finalists that emerged after he backed off his commitment to Oklahoma around Thanksgiving.
Cooper was a late offer by Texas A&M but made an official visit in December, where he got a close look at the defense and met with the coaching staff. He left College Station with a good feeling he could make an early impact and play on a big SEC stage.
IN HIS OWN WORDS
"I feel like I can make an impact there. The defensive scheme fits me. I love the coaches. I watched the practices and I loved how they ran it. I have a great relationship with coach (Bradley Dale) Peveto. He's funny, he's awesome, he's an honest man, and that's what I want (in a coach)."
"The main factor was building that trust, building up our relationship. We built it up extremely fast with them."
"As far as looking at their linebackers over there and how everything was set up, I know I can come in and do what I have to do ... hard work, you know, grinding it out and getting the job done there."
"It was a stressful moment and it would be stressful for anyone, but I got with my parents and we talked it over. I just wanna get everything out of the way, make it a done deal, and that was it."
RIVALS REACTION
Cooper had a monster senior campaign that landed him a fourth star and spot inside the Rivals250. Always a physical linebacker, Cooper (6-foot-2, 205 pounds) took his game to a new level in 2019.
He has a see-ball, get-ball mentality at middle linebacker that goes head-to-head with linemen and crashed through the line of scrimmage to disrupt plays as they are unfolding in the backfield. Cooper has excellent sideline-to-sideline speed and delivers plenty of pop when he makes contact. He takes excellent angles to the ball and naturally gravitates toward the ball.
Cooper is not especially instinctual but has shown how much he can improve in a short amount of time. One area where he excelled at this year was a pass-rusher and in coverage. He's laterally quick and has an attacking mentality. Cooper is learning to quickly diagnose plays and fly to the football. He's also a sure tackler in space and will bring a good amount of physicality to the Texas A&M defense.