San Diego State’s Cooper may be football’s most confident player
When low-to-the-ground San Diego State running back Marquez Cooper probes for slivers of daylight between crashing linemen, he carries much more than the football.
He carries images of his 15-month-old son, Madden.
He carries memories of those he lost, from his uncle to a high school teammate and the trainer who believed in him.
He carries the whispers and doubters whose faces seem to say the 5-foot-7 back cannot keep banking monster games and 1,000-yard seasons as the stakes increase along his college path.
When Cooper sounds brash or overconfident or cocky, it’s not false bravado for college football’s active career rushing leader. It comes with a wink and a smile, indicating he revels in the chase.
Peel the onion a bit, though, and it reveals something more meaningful and rooted.
Cooper knows no one will accept less. Not his son. Not those close to him. Not himself.
“It’s motivational fuel,” he said.
Cooper has dove headfirst into the prove-it end of the pool, worrying little about the depth of the water or how far away the nearest ladder hangs.
One game into his senior season, Cooper had piled up 4,079 yards with earlier stops at Kent State and Ball State. The next closest back, Tahj Brooks of Texas Tech, was a distant 874 yards behind.
The Aztecs faced Oregon State on Saturday at Snapdragon Stadium.
Pressure? Fantastic. Bring it.
“I had more than 100 all-purpose yards against (No. 1) Georgia (in 2022 with Kent State),” Cooper said of his 187 combined yards in a 39-22 road loss against the top defense at the time in major-college football. “I have no doubts, no fear.”
Huddle up around those motivators again.
Madden is a small tip of the cap to Cooper’s obsession with the popular video game. The name also reflects girlfriend Madison, the boy’s mother he met at Kent State.
“It’s more weight on my shoulders to attack every single day because he’s counting on me,” Cooper said after practice Tuesday. “I take a lot of time away from him, so I sacrifice a lot for him and I want to be the best for him. It changed a lot for me.”
Madden Cooper will be at Snapdragon during his father’s relentless hunt for more barriers to stiff-arm.
“He’s getting real big real fast,” said Cooper, with a smile that threatened to permanently crease his boyish face. “He’s got the thick (running back) legs, for sure. I’m just thankful for him every single day.
“I’ve never had under 100 since he came to a game, so let’s hope that happens again.”
There are the other voices in his head.
Cooper’s teammate Tyler Terry at Quince Orchard High School in Gaithersburg, Md., passed away from a heart condition. His uncle Dominique Chase, who wore the same No. 15, was hit by a car. He recently lost trusted trainer Ray Butler.
“I know those guys would want me to be happy and play hard every day,” Cooper said. “That’s what I try to do.”
So, he grinds. So, he believes.
“I’m the most consistent back in the country, year after year,” said Cooper, who was the nation’s active leader in all-purpose yards and was tied with Devin Neal of Kansas for active rushing touchdowns (35). “I’ve attended every practice, every game day. I produce every practice and every game day. I’m not sure a lot of those guys can say that.
“Maybe not one guy can say that.”
Trust the process? This guy marinates in it.
A week ago, Cooper wore down Texas A&MCommerce in a 45-14 SDSU win. You could almost see the defensive gas tank draining with each second-half carry.
The Aztecs’ line showed improvement and, sure, A&M-Commerce is a galaxy away from A&M. But … three 1,000-yard seasons at two programs. But … that statement game at Georgia.
“It’s just mental toughness,” Cooper said. “A lot of people aren’t mentally tough when they get hit. Some of those hits hurt (against Commerce). A lot of people don’t want those nicks and bruises, then do it all over again.
“But the thrill to me of getting the ball and trying to make a play, that never goes away.”
On or off the field.
That Madden game addiction?
“I played that game for a long time in my life,” Cooper said. “That game has helped me in tremendous ways, keeping me out of the streets and out of trouble.”
Another smile previews the belly laugh to come.
“I beat the top guys everywhere I go,” Cooper said. “In Maryland, I was known around my area as being the best. When I went to Kent State I had the title of the best player on the team, even the coaches. At Ball State, I took the title there.
“And here, I beat everybody again.”
The lens is repositioned. Time to test things a bit. What is Cooper bad at in a world jam-packed with good?
“Oh, plenty of things,” he said. “Ping pong or tennis. And I’m a terrible cook.”
Might as well stick to football.