Troy Kopp (born August 21, 1971) is a former

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

and

Canadian football Canadian football () is a team sport, sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's sco ...

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

in the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

(AFL) and

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

(CFL). He played for the

Memphis Pharaohs Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memphis ...

Anaheim Piranhas The Anaheim Piranhas were a professional arena football team that played in the Arena Football League from 1994 to 1997. They played their home games at Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, California. The team was originally known as the Las Vegas Sting, ...

and

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West division. They play their home games at IG Fiel ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the University of the Pacific.

Early years

Kopp attended

Mission Viejo High School Mission Viejo High School is a four-year comprehensive education, comprehensive State school, public secondary education in the United States, high school located in Mission Viejo, California, United States, as part of the Saddleback Valley Unif ...

. As a freshman in 1985, his life was impacted after his father lost his job, forcing the family to spend their summer sleeping either in a tent or a van. Kopp lived with three different families, over the next 3 years, while attending school. As a senior, he was the top-rated

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

and was named All-Southern in

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

. He also selected by the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

in the 58th-round as a

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

College career

Kopp accepted a football scholarship from the University of the Pacific. As a true freshman, he started 9 out of 11 games, registering 138-of-241 completions (57.3%) for 1,510 yards, 11 touchdowns and 8 interceptions. As a sophomore, he sprained his left shoulder in the season opening loss against the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

, forcing him to miss two games. After learning he wouldn't start the fourth game against

Long Beach State California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) is a public research university in Long Beach, California. The 322-acre campus is the second largest of the 23-school California State University system (CSU) and one of the largest universities i ...

over

Kris King, he quit the team and had to be persuaded to come back by head coach Walt Harris. He regained his starting job in the fifth game against the

University of Nevada, Las Vegas The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes the S ...

. He made 31-of-52 completions for 515 yards and 7 passing touchdowns (school record) against Cal State-Fullerton. He passed for a

Big West Conference The Big West Conference (BWC) is an American collegiate athletic conference whose member institutions participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. The conference was originally formed on July 1, 1969, as the Pacific ...

single-game record of 564 yards against

New Mexico State University New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a public land-grant research university based primarily in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest public institution of higher education in New Mexico and one of the state's tw ...

, at the time it was the 10th best mark in college football history. He became the first quarterback to have back-to-back 500-yard games in the air in

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

history. He ran a version of the

run and shoot The run and shoot offense (also known as Run N' Shoot) is an offensive system for American football which emphasizes receiver motion and on-the-fly adjustments of receivers' routes in response to different defenses. It was conceived by former ...

offense known as "Air Pacific", ranking third in the nation in total offense, passing yards and passing touchdowns per game. He finished with 244-of-428 completions (57.0%) for 3,311 yards, 31 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. In

, the

selected him again in the 12th round of the amateur draft. As a junior in 1991, he posted 275-of-449 completions (61.2%) for 3,767 yards, 37 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He led the NCAA in touchdown passes with 37, at the time the 18th most in NCAA history. As a senior, he sprained his ankle before the team's fifth game while playing

Wallyball Wallyball (known in some places as rebound volleyball) is a fast-paced sport that is similar to volleyball played in a racquetball court, where it is legal to hit the ball off of the walls. The word "wallyball" is a portmanteau of the words "wal ...

, a hybrid of handball and volleyball, forcing him to miss three games. He set an NCAA career mark for most scores by a tandem with wide receiver

Aaron Turner Aaron Turner (born November 5, 1977) is an American musician, singer, graphic artist, and founder of label Hydra Head Records. He is most widely known for his role as guitarist and vocalist for the post-metal bands SUMAC and Isis, while also pa ...

during the season. Kopp made 141-of-256 completions (55.1%) for 1,670 yards, 8 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. He finished his college career owning most of the school's passing records, including passing yards in a game (564), passing yards in a single-season (3,767), passing yards in a career (10,258), touchdown passes in a single-season (37), touchdown passes in a career (87), completion percentage in a single-season (61.2%) and completion percentage in a career (58.1%). His career touchdown total of 87 ranked 12th most in NCAA history. He also competed in

. In 2007, he was inducted into the University of the Pacific Athletic Hall of Fame.

Professional career

Kopp played two seasons with the

San Jose Sabercats The San Jose SaberCats were a professional arena football team based in San Jose, California. The SaberCats had been members of the Arena Football League (AFL) since 1995 (the year in which the team was founded); and until 2015, they belonged to ...

and

in the

. He set a league record with 34 completions in a single-game. In August 1998, he signed with the

of the

. Against the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 1 ...

, he replaced T. J. Rubley late in the third quarter and orchestrated four touchdown drives in the fourth, for a 36–35 come from behind victory. He was released in December 1999. On April 24, 2000, he was signed by the

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium and are the third-old ...

. He threw 5 interceptions against the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Commo ...

. In two starts and other relief appearances, he collected 53-of-99 passes completions for 722 yards, one touchdown and 10 interceptions. He was released by the Stampeders on September 18. He later suffered life threatening injuries in a car accident on September 27, but was able to recover.

Personal life

After retiring from professional football, he became an assistant football coach at San Clemente High School.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kopp, Troy 1971 births Living people American football quarterbacks Canadian football quarterbacks Pacific Tigers football players Pacific Tigers baseball players Memphis Pharaohs players Anaheim Piranhas players Winnipeg Blue Bombers players Calgary Stampeders players High school football coaches in California Mission Viejo High School alumni Players of American football from Mission Viejo, California Players of Canadian football from California

Early years

College career

Professional career

See also

Personal life

References