Zerrick Cooper cast his lost with Clemson, not because of the Tigers’ rise in the rankings, but because of coach Dabo Swinney.
Three things to know about Cooper:
1. Winning him over: Swinney persuaded Cooper in their first meeting, a man-to-man, face-to-face talk about priorities. "He told me and my parents that it's not about me playing for him," Cooper recalled, "but about me becoming a man."
Swinney later solidified Cooper’s commitment with dance moves that Cooper described as “hysterical.”
2. A sense for the game: Listed as a 6-foot-4, 206-pound dual-threat quarterback, Cooper completed 161 of 286 passes for 2,039 yards with 21 touchdowns and four interceptions during his senior season. At Clemson, he'll have the chance to learn behind one the nation's elite quarterbacks in Deshaun Watson, another Peach State product.
“Exceptionally talented,” Jonesboro coach DeTimothy Floyd said of Cooper. “He has a natural sense for the game, with a good pocket presence.”
3. Eager to run down that hill: Cooper said the funniest moment of the recruiting process was seeing Swinney dance in a postgame locker room celebration after the Tigers beat Notre Dame. Cooper also admired how the Tigers fought down to the wire in a loss to Alabama in the championship game. "This past season put Clemson on the map for next year," Cooper said. "It's possible that we'll be back next year."
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