John Harold Cooper (born July 2, 1937) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

player and coach. Cooper was an assistant coach at

Iowa State Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the ...

, Oregon State,

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

Kansas Kansas () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its Capital city, capital is Topeka, Kansas, Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita, Kansas, Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebras ...

, and

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

. Then, he embarked on a head coaching career, as he served as the head coach at the

University of Tulsa The University of Tulsa (TU) is a private research university in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It has a historic affiliation with the Presbyterian Church and the campus architectural style is predominantly Collegiate Gothic. The school traces its origin to ...

(1977–1984),

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

(1985–1987), and

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best pub ...

(1988–2000), compiling a career record of 192–84–6. Cooper was inducted into the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vo ...

as a coach in 2008.

Early years and playing career

Cooper was born and raised in the

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state' ...

suburb of

Powell, Tennessee Powell, formerly known as Powell Station, is a census-designated place in Knox County, Tennessee, United States. The area is located in the Emory Road corridor ( State Route 131), just north of Knoxville, southeast of Clinton, and east of Oak ...

. He graduated from Powell High School in 1955, then served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

for two years. After serving for two years, he enrolled at

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of th ...

, where he played football for legendary coach Clay Stapleton in the single-wing formation with the Iowa State Cyclones, including the 1959 "Dirty 30" team. As a senior in 1961, Cooper was team captain and MVP. Cooper graduated from Iowa State in 1962 with a bachelor's degree in physical education.

Coaching career

Cooper began his coaching career in 1962 as the freshmen team coach at

. He then was an assistant coach at Oregon State from 1963 to 1964 under

Tommy Prothro James Thompson "Tommy" Prothro Jr. (July 20, 1920 – May 14, 1995) was an American football coach. He was the head coach at Oregon State University from 1955 to 1964 and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) from 1965 to 1970, compil ...

and helped Oregon State finish first place in the Athletic Association of Western Universities (AAWU) in 1964. Oregon State also made the Rose Bowl and finished #8 in the final

AP Poll The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and br ...

. Cooper then followed Prothro to

to be an assistant there from 1965 to 1966. In the 1965 season, UCLA finished first in the AAWU and #4 in the final AP Poll and won the Rose Bowl. The 1966 UCLA team finished #5 in the AP Poll. In 1967, Cooper became

defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator is a coach responsible for a gridiron football (American football) team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, the offensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's c ...

under Pepper Rodgers. Cooper again was part of a conference championship team in 1968 when Kansas finished first in the

Big 12 The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its f ...

. The 1968 Kansas team finished #9 in the final AP Poll and made the

Orange Bowl The Orange Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Miami metropolitan area. It has been played annually since January 1, 1935, making it, along with the Sugar Bowl and the Sun Bowl, the second-oldest bowl game in ...

. Cooper remained at Kansas until 1971. From 1972 to 1976, Cooper had his final assistant position at

, first under

John Ray John Ray FRS (29 November 1627 – 17 January 1705) was a Christian English naturalist widely regarded as one of the earliest of the English parson-naturalists. Until 1670, he wrote his name as John Wray. From then on, he used 'Ray', after ...

in 1972 then

Fran Curci Fran Curci (born June 11, 1938) is a former American football player and coach. He was an All-American quarterback at the University of Miami in 1959. He served as head coach at the University of Tampa from 1968 to 1970, the University of Miami ...

from 1973 to 1976. In Cooper's final season at Kentucky in 1976, Kentucky finished #18 in the AP Poll and won the

Peach Bowl The Peach Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played in Atlanta, Georgia since December 1968. Since 1997, it has been sponsored by Chick-fil-A and is officially known as the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. From 2006 to 2013, it was officially ...

. In 1977, he was named the head football coach at the

. At Tulsa, he compiled a 56–32 record with five

Missouri Valley Conference The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the third-oldest collegiate athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the midwest. History The MVC was established ...

titles. Cooper considers his tenure at Tulsa his "most enjoyable years as a coach". He became the head coach at Arizona State in 1985 where his teams played in three consecutive

bowl game In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). For most of its history, the Division I Bowl Subdivis ...

s, including the 1987 Rose Bowl, during his three-year tenure. His record was 0–2–1 against arch-rival

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. He accepted the job as head coach at Ohio State on December 31, 1987. Cooper's first season in Columbus was somewhat undistinguished; the Buckeyes notched their first losing season since 1966. However, he quickly turned the Buckeyes around and led them to shared

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

titles in 1993, 1996, and 1998. In his 13 seasons at Ohio State, Cooper compiled a 111–43–4 record; his 111 victories are second in Ohio State history behind only

Woody Hayes Wayne Woodrow Hayes (February 14, 1913 – March 12, 1987) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Denison University (1946–1948), Miami University in Oxford, Ohio (1949–1950), and Ohio State University (1951 ...

's 205. Among his most memorable victories at Ohio State were back-to-back victories against Notre Dame (1995 and 1996), leading Ohio State to its first Rose Bowl in 13 years (the

1997 Rose Bowl The 1997 Rose Bowl was a postseason college football bowl game between the Arizona State Sun Devils of the Pacific-10 Conference and the Ohio State Buckeyes of the Big Ten Conference. The game was the 83rd edition of the annual Rose Bowl Game, held ...

—a win over Arizona State), and a

1999 Sugar Bowl The 1999 Sugar Bowl was an American college football bowl game played on January 1, 1999. It was the 65th edition of the Sugar Bowl and featured the Ohio State Buckeyes, and the Texas A&M Aggies. Ohio State entered the game ranked number 4 in the ...

victory over Texas A&M. Cooper's teams at Ohio State were loaded with a great deal of talent that would go on to play in the NFL, including: 1995

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and har ...

winner

Eddie George Edward Nathan George Jr. (born September 24, 1973) is an American football coach and former player who is the current head coach at Tennessee State. He played as a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons, primarily ...

, 1995

Fred Biletnikoff Award The Fred Biletnikoff Award is presented annually to the most outstanding receiver in American college football by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation, Inc. (TQCF), an independent not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. The award was crea ...

winner Terry Glenn, 1996

Outland Trophy The Outland Trophy is awarded to the best college football interior lineman in the United States as adjudged by the Football Writers Association of America. It is named after John H. Outland. One of only a few players ever to be named an All-Am ...

winner Orlando Pace, 1998

Jim Thorpe Award The Jim Thorpe Award, named in memory of multi-sport athlete Jim Thorpe, has been awarded to the top defensive back in college football since 1986. It is voted on by the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame. In 2017, the award became sponsored by Payco ...

winner Antoine Winfield, as well as

Alonzo Spellman Alonzo Robert Spellman (born September 27, 1971) is a former American football defensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) for the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys, and Detroit Lions. He also was a member of the Las Vegas Gladiators in ...

, Robert Smith, Dan Wilkinson,

Joey Galloway Joseph Scott Galloway (born November 20, 1971) is an American former professional football player who is an analyst with ESPN. He was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). Galloway was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks with th ...

Rickey Dudley Rickey Deshun Dudley (born July 15, 1972) is a former professional American football player. A 6'6", 252-lb. tight end from Ohio State University, Dudley was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the first round (ninth overall) of the 1996 NFL Draft ...

Mike Vrabel Michael George Vrabel (; born August 14, 1975) is an American football coach and former linebacker who is the head coach of the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio State, where he earned con ...

Korey Stringer Korey Damont Stringer (May 8, 1974 – August 1, 2001) was an American professional football player who was an offensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons. He played college football at the Ohio State University and w ...

David Boston David Byron Boston (born August 19, 1978) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Arizona Cardinals eighth overall in the 1999 NFL Draft. During Dav ...

Shawn Springs Shawn Springs (born March 11, 1975) is a former American college and professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons. He played college football for Ohio State University, and earned All- ...

Ahmed Plummer Ahmed Kamil Plummer (born March 26, 1976) is a former American football player who played six seasons for the San Francisco 49ers from 2000-2005. A 5'11", 191 lb. cornerback from Ohio State University, Plummer was selected by the 49ers in t ...

Na'il Diggs Na'il Diggs (born July 8, 1978) is a former American football linebacker. He was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the fourth round of the 2000 NFL Draft. He played college football at Ohio State. Diggs has also played for the Carolina Panthers ...

Nate Clements Nathan D. Clements (born December 12, 1979) is a former American football cornerback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Ohio State. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills 21st overall in the 2001 NFL Draft, and a ...

, and

Ryan Pickett Ryan Lamonte Pickett Sr. (born October 8, 1979) is a former American football nose tackle who played 14 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio State. Pickett was selected with the 29th pick of the firs ...

. However, Cooper has also been remembered for his 3–8 bowl record and his 2–10–1 record against archrival Michigan. His most disappointing losses to the Wolverines came in 1993, 1995, and 1996. In each season of those seasons, Ohio State entered the Michigan game undefeated and ranked in the top five, but were upset by the Wolverines on each occasion; two of those losses cost the Buckeyes a Rose Bowl bid. In 1993 Ohio State was ranked #5 and undefeated, needing only to beat Michigan to get their first trip to Pasadena in nine years. However, they were shut out by the unranked Wolverines 28–0 in Ann Arbor. In 1995 Ohio State lost a #2 ranking, the Big Ten title, and another shot at the Rose Bowl by losing to the #18 ranked Wolverines, 31–23, in Ann Arbor. In 1996, the Buckeyes were again ranked #2 and had already secured a Rose Bowl berth when they faced #21 ranked Michigan, this time in Columbus. The Buckeyes smelled victory after shutting out the Wolverines in the first half, but Michigan rallied in the second half to upset the Buckeyes yet again, 13–9, costing them a chance at the national championship. Ohio State would go on to win the 1996 Rose Bowl against Arizona State and finish the season ranked #2. With this victory, Cooper became the first coach to win the Rose Bowl with a Pac-10 and a Big Ten team. In 1997, top ranked Michigan entered the game undefeated and #4 Ohio State had the opportunity to spoil Michigan's perfect season; however, the Wolverines again defeated the Buckeyes, 20–14. To add insult to injury, Michigan's win was highlighted by the performance of Ohio native and 1997 Heisman Trophy winner

Charles Woodson Charles Cameron Woodson (born October 7, 1976) is a former American football defensive back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Oakland Raiders and Green Bay Packers. He played college football at Michiga ...

, who made game changing plays on offense, defense, and special teams. In 1998, Ohio State was 8–0 and ranked #1 in the country but was upset by Michigan State, 28–24. They did go on to beat Michigan that season and won the Sugar Bowl over Texas A&M, 24–14, eventually finishing #2 in the polls. Cooper's Buckeyes were expected to have a strong season in 1999, but slumped to 6–6, their first non-winning record since Cooper's first year and only their third since 1947. They rebounded to 8–4 a year later, but a 38–26 loss to Michigan cost Cooper his job at the end of the season. He was the first non-interim Buckeye head coach since Wes Fesler, Hayes' predecessor, to have left Ohio State without winning an outright Big Ten title.

Later life and honors

Cooper currently works for the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The club's home ...

of the NFL as a scouting consultant and also works as a college football analyst for

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

. On May 1, 2008, Cooper was elected to the

. He was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame on December 30, 2012, representing both Arizona State and

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

football teams. On September 8, 2014, Cooper was inducted into the Iowa State University Athletics Hall of Fame in an on-field ceremony during the Iowa State-Kansas State football game.

Head coaching record

References

External links