Many football players dream of playing in front of 92,000 fans at LSU’s Tiger Stadium, but for freshman defensive end Dominique Cooper that dream was a reality last season. During his football career at O. Perry Walker High School in New Orleans, Cooper was a top 15 recruit in Louisiana and drew interest from several Division I-A schools but chose LSU.
After spending last season as a red-shirt linebacker for the Tigers, Cooper transferred to Nicholls to be closer to home.
“I always came to watch Nicholls play in high school,” Cooper said. “I always heard good things about the school. My high school coach came here. It’s like a family, and that’s what I like about it.”
Colonels Head Coach Jay Thomas said Cooper has done a great job of making a home for himself here at Nicholls.
“He’s brought a certain intensity to the table,” Thomas said. “He’s made the transition from LSU to the smaller atmosphere here.”
Once he transferred, Cooper wanted to start at the bottom so he would not receive any special treatment by coaches or teammates, being he came from LSU.
“I didn’t want anything given to me,” Cooper said. “I wanted to earn (my teammates and coaches) respect by working my way up.”
Besides the obvious size difference between the two schools, Cooper had to make another transition to the defensive end position, where the Colonels are looking to fill the void left by eight graduating seniors last season.
Cooper said he feels more than comfortable playing on the defensive line.
“I played the position a little in high school, but of course the guys are much bigger in college,” Cooper said. “Being in the trenches is an adjustment, but it’s an adjustment that is going pretty well for me.”
Cooper also said the main difference is the physical beating his body will take playing defensive line.
“It’s important to be able to handle the pounding that the body takes playing in the trenches,” Cooper said. “The body does get beaten up a little more.”
After coming into the season as simply the new guy, Cooper has worked his way into the Colonels starting line-up at defensive end and in the Colonels home opener, he notched two and a half tackles and five assisted tackles.
Thomas said it is obvious Cooper has handled the switch from linebacker to the defensive line well and will continue to get better.
“Everyday he goes out and gets a little bit better,” Thomas said. “He has a great work ethic, and he’s going to be a guy to watch down the road for us.”
Despite being a new member of the Colonel football family, Cooper feels there is always room for improvement, and he expects great things from both himself as well as his new teammates.
“I just want to contribute as much as I can to this team,” Cooper said. “I want to be a great teammate, mentor the younger guys and come in and make plays to help us win games.
