| ||||||||||||||
One of two assistant coaches from the 2004 Miami football staff to remain with the program under head coach Shane Montgomery, Oxford native Tim Cooper enters his sixth season with the program and fifth as a full-time assistant.
After serving as safeties coach during Miami's 2004 MAC East Championship run and Independence Bowl appearance, Cooper was retained by Montgomery and promoted to oversee all Miami's defensive backs in January of 2005. He had served as Miami's defensive graduate assistant during his first season with the program in 2003. In four of his first five years at Miami, the RedHawks have been MAC East Division champs.
Cooper's secondary, led by safeties Robbie Wilson and Jordan Gafford and cornerback Jeff Thompson, played a huge role in a defense that dominated the MAC in 2007. The RedHawks led the league in six different statistical categories, including rushing defense, total defense and scoring defense.
Under Cooper's direction, Miami has placed three defensive backs on the all-Mid-American Conference first and second teams over the past four seasons with his 2006 group leading the MAC in passing defense, restricting opponents to 157.3 yards passing per game. Safety Joey Card was a two-time all-MAC selection for the RedHawks, earning first-team honors in 2006 and second-team plaudits in 2005, with cornerback Darrell Hunter capturing first-team all-MAC honors in 2005. Also in 2005, Cooper's defensive backs were responsible for 13 interceptions, helping Miami rank seventh nationally in interceptions.
In 2004, Cooper directed Miami's safeties, as strong safety Matt Pusateri earned second-team all-MAC honors and capped off one of the most prolific careers in program history.
Cooper returned to his hometown of Oxford after spending two years as the defensive coordinator at Carroll College in Waukesha, Wis. Since graduating from DePauw University with a bachelor's degree in 1997, Cooper had worked his way up the coaching ladder serving as a recruiting coordinator and graduate assistant at DePauw (1997-99), a restricted earning coach at Rhode Island (1999-00) and a graduate assistant at Connecticut (2001-02) before joining the staff at Carroll College. He earned his master's degree from Indiana State in 1999.
As a starting outside linebacker and team captain for Miami Cradle of Coaches member Nick Mourouzis at DePauw, Cooper helped the Tigers to a 1996 Indiana Collegiate Conference Championship.
Cooper resides in Oxford.
|
|
||
| MuRedHawks.com WEB | ||
