“We wouldn’t be in the Super Bowl without Cooper Kupp,” Rams head coach Sean McVay said after beating the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC final. The wide receiver has become one of the key pieces of the Rams and was the one who blew out Tom Brady‘s Buccaneers in the divisional round, when everyone was ready for extra time.
The 2021 NFL season transformed Kupp into a Rams bulwark, when in past seasons he had barely managed to stand out within his team, but his name was heard several times and he conquered the triple crown by finishing as the leader in receptions (145), yards (1,947) and touchdowns (16).
However, reaching the stratosphere of the NFL was not easy and here we tell you a little about the star of the Rams.
Football and basketball
Cooper Douglas Kupp He was born on June 15, 1993, in Washington, where he was associated with sports at an early age. He showed aptitude to play basketball and American football, he also practiced athletics.
He ultimately chose football, in part because football was in his blood, as his grandfather and father both played in the NFL. “My grandfather played in the sixties, seventies, for the Saints. He played with Archie Manning for a while and told us about the people he lived with and his experiences. My dad was able to play for a couple of years in the early ’90s. My first coach as a catcher was my dad.As soon as we could get out there and throw a ball, he was my coach and my quarterback.”
He finished his high school career with 110 receptions for 2,100 yards. and yet no university offers came.
Anna, the woman who changed her life
By then he was already in a relationship with Anna, whom he met at an athletics event. Cooper watched her walk and pretended to tie her shoe and when Anna passed hers he asked for her phone number. “I was sure I was going to marry her then”dijo a The New York Times.
Cooper finally received an offer of an athletic scholarship from Eastern Washington University, but he had to part with Anna, who went to study in Arkansas. The relationship remained at a distance and from afar she sacrificed herself to work full time and while she studied to support Cooper.
With that income, Cooper devoted himself entirely to playing and studying. “I was working full time so he didn’t have to worry about it, so he could focus.”said okay with Dailysnark On many occasions, Cooper’s white Nissan Pathfinder would break down and the only salvation for him was Anna.
In 2014, when Anna was able to transfer from college to Washington, the couple got engaged and married in 2015, even though they were still in college.
Unfinished accounts with the Super Bowl
Finally Cooper fulfilled his dream by reaching the NFL in the 2017 Draft, upon being drafted by the Rams, in the third round and with the pick 69so all the couple’s sacrifices paid off and Kup finished the season with five touchdowns.
For the second season, when the Rams reached the Super Bowl against the Patriots, Cooper Kupp had suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligamentso he could not play against Tom Brady and company.
Three years later, Cooper has a rematch at the door and not only that, but he is also a candidate to win the Super Bowl MVP… and for now he has already won the Fantasy Player Award in the NFL Honors.
.@CooperKupp is the 2021 @DraftKings Daily Fantasy Player of the Year! #NFLHonors pic.twitter.com/ZswsiPOD6H
— NFL (@NFL) February 11, 2022
Away from social networks?
In 2020, he renewed his contract with the Rams, in exchange for $48 million for three years and its performance improved. Questioned about this change in his performance, the receiver assured that nothing changed, but now he looks better thanks to the teammates around him.
However, he indicated that he avoids distractions, especially those of the press, either to praise him or criticize him, so he moved away from social networks. “I don’t have social networks on my phone”, he assured, although he is relatively active in his networks.