Both men nourished Cooper’s dreams. Jake read
him The Little Engine That Could. Craig told Cooper
he could do anything he wanted.
Indeed, Cooper had bigger dreams. When he
developed an ulcer in sixth grade, his family and
coaches wondered, with little else to explain the
diagnosis, whether Cooper simply cared too much
about making it to the NFL. Did he really need to
wear ankle weights all day long? Did he absolutely
have to befriend the school’s custodian so he could
access the weight room at all hours?
With no major college offers, Kupp went to Eastern
Washington. Playing in the FCS, Kupp elevated
his NFL prospects against NFL-caliber defenders,
dominating Oregon State in 2013 (five receptions,
119 yards, and two touchdowns in his college debut),
Washington in ’14 (8-145-3), Oregon in ’15 (15-246-3),
and Washington State in ’16 (12-206-3).Still, Kupp was a smallish kid who
carried a tennis ball everywhere,
throwing and catching it to improve
his coordination. The Rams took him
in the third round in 2017. After one-
and-a-half solid seasons, Kupp tore
his ACL during the ’18 campaign.
While rebuilding his body, Kupp
shifted the extra time he would
have spent at practice toward an
immersive study aimed to make him
a better blocker, an act many receivers
disdain. Kupp embraced the hand-
to-hand combat, because it meant
more snaps and more confusion
for defenses that could guess “pass
attempt upcoming” when he trotted
onto the field. He added muscle
without losing speed, measuring
his movement after every ounce he
gained, until he weighed 208 pounds.
He peppered left tackle Andrew Whitworth for advice
on angles, leverage, and the geometry necessary to
apply brute force.
The result was back-to-back 90-catch seasons. But
Kupp wasn’t satisfied, which led him to his football
lab. Using the data he accumulated, Kupp was able to
increase his burst off the line. When he sent his father
videos of his acceleration, his quicker first step leaped
off the screen. Everyone else started to see what Kupp
long ago envisioned. “This is gonna be a historic year,”
his mom, Karin, predicted.
She was right. After Kupp won the receiving triple
crown, he turned in a Super Bowl performance for
the ages. After catching a TD pass in the first half,
he had four receptions on the Rams’ game-winning
drive, including the clinching one-yard score. He also
contributed a seven-yard run on a crucial fourth-down
play. “Whatever it is, I just want to execute my job to
the best of my ability,” Kupp said. “I trust that as the
game goes on, I will have opportunities, and I just
want to stay ready for those things, stay locked in.”
Kupp finished with eight catches for 92 yards. “It’s
been just the perfect team, the perfect setup,” he said.
“I’m just so thankful for everyone that’s been around
me. It still really hasn’t hit me." QBIG GAME, BIG
PERFORMANCE
Kupp hauled in
eight passes in
the Super Bowl,
including the
game-winner
with 1: 25 left.JOHN W. MCDONOUGH ( 3 ) SIKIDS.COM / 51