Multi-talented sophomore Jeremy “Coop” Cooper is that rare athlete who plays three high school sports: football, swimming and basketball. And he’s a star in all of them.
The young athlete, who was just inducted into the National Honor Society for good grades, says, “The only way this is possible is time management.” He says, “I am a student-athlete.” He means his grades come first.
Cooper says, “It’s about hard work during the season and off season and the will power to focus on not only the sport, but the grade.”
Football
When the football season started this school year, Cooper was the starting quarterback for the junior varsity squad and the leader of the offense. By the end of the season, he was moved up to the varsity team to join in the playoffs.
Fellow sophomore and close teammate Justin Kane, who is a wide receiver, says the key thing about Cooper is that he’s a hard worker. Not only does Coop work hard, but he’s reliable, says Kane. “When you need him most, you can count on him in any play, any position and on either side of the ball.”
Head Football Coach Tim Conley says, “Seeing that Cooper plays quarterback, kicker, punter and even on the defensive side, it’s obvious he is a key player.”
Swimming
During the winter months, the muscular athlete catches the big cheese after school to nearby Southfield-Lathrup High School for swim practice from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Southfield High and Southfield-Lathrup have a united swim team, and Cooper is a part of that joint team.
He competes in the 100-meter breast stroke, the 200-meter relay, the 400 freestyle relay, and the 200 I.M.
This is Cooper’s first year on the swim team and he has already competed in five meets with the team.
He isn’t the only Blue Jay who swims for the Lathrup Chargers; his cousin Marcel Toney, who is a sophomore at SHS, swims alongside him at Lathrup.
Cooper learned to swim at the age of 6 on a community team called “Tiger Sharks.”
Basketball
After Cooper finishes swimming, his mother picks him from Southfield-Lathrup High School and brings him back to Southfield High School for basketball practice, which runs from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., which is the end of his long day.
The 6 foot 1 inch player is a member of the junior varsity basketball team this year and proudly wears jersey number 1 for his team. He plays both offense and defense.
Despite having to carry a variety of sports gear to and from school each day, he manages to keep his locker looking neat and clean instead of like a sports closet.
Cooper says his favorite out of the multiple sports is basketball. “Since I was little, I was playing basketball. There’s no stress to the game. The court is a place where I can just clear my head and play,” Copper said.
This will be Cooper’s second year on the team playing small forward. “I bring whatever is needed,” Copper said. “If it’s scoring, playing physical defense or getting the ball to the hot man, I bring it.”
Bowling, Too
Southfield High does not offer a bowling team, but if it did, Cooper says he would surely try out for a spot on the team.
This athlete finds time throughout the summer to bowl regularly at Country Lanes, in Farmington, where he participates in a summer league. He bowls an average of 140, using his own fruit-scented, 15-pound Storm bowling ball that is purple and black.
Football Coach Conley says Cooper is a special student-athlete. “To have a 3.8 (grade point average) shows a lot of maturity that he can organize his time with practice, competing and still focusing on school.”