'A Great Coach!': Texas A&M LB Edgerrin Cooper Raves About Mike Elko, Aggies Future
INDIANAPOLIS -- Edgerrin Cooper won't play for head coach Mike Elko with the Texas A&M Aggies, but at least he can say he played under him while he served as Jimbo Fisher's defensive coordinator.
And it's why he knows the Aggies are in great hands headed into the 2024 season.
"That's a great coach right there," Cooper said Wednesday during his media session at the NFL Scouting Combine. "I'm ready to see what they're going to put down there [on the field] under Elko. I'm excited to for it."
A native of Covington, La., Cooper likely would have never made his way to College Station without Elko, who recruited him starting in 2018. A member of the 2019 recruiting class, he'd go on to be a staple of A&M's No. 3 scoring defense in 2021.
USA Today
Even after Elko left to take over as Duke's head coach, Cooper flourished. It started because of the man who gave him a chance to play immediately in a four-man front.
Last season, Cooper earned Consensus All-American status after leading the SEC in tackles for loss with 17 stops He finished with 83 tackles, eight sacks, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries as A&M trudged its way through another underwhelming season.
While Elko is starting a new chapter, so is Cooper, who hopes his numbers will be enough to garner first-round interest. He's already considered by several as the top linebacker in the class, fighting alongside names like NC State's Payton Wilson and Clemson's Jeremiah Trotter Jr.
Cooper officially met with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles during his early time in Indianapolis. The Steelers also met with Cooper during the East-West Shrine Bowl as one of their formal interviews, per Cooper.
The Cowboys could be an interesting fit under new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer, who transitioned Anthony Barr from an edge rusher at UCLA into one of the league's better blitzing inside backers.
Philadelphia struggled with linebacker play, even after adding Darius Leonard midseason. The Eagles collapsed down the stretch, losing five of their final six games before falling in the NFC Wild Card Round to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Cooper is one of four A&M players in Indy this week testing at Lucas Oil Stadium. He and defensive lineman McKinnley Jackson will test Thursday while defensive back Demani Richardson will workout Friday. Receiver Ainias Smith will run drills with the quarterbacks on Saturday.
The NFL Draft takes place in Detriot, Mich., beginning on April 25.
