The search for a perfect college can bring a student to the ends of the earth. While California is far from the ends of the earth, defensive tackle Darian Cooper of DeMatha High School (MD) received a culture shock as he visited multiple schools in the Golden State of California.

“I went out to California a few weeks ago, and it was just an amazing trip. The weather was absolutely beautiful and the people out there were great.”

Getting the opportunity to fly out to California was just your ordinary tale of a defensive tackle dominating his division and becoming one of the most fearsome players in the northeast. “During the season, I think I had a pretty productive season. I’d like to think that I learned a lot through the year. I learned more about playing my position and things that come with being a defensive tackle. It was definitely a learning experience.”

The learning experience during the 2009 season has given him 10 offers to date from schools such as Clemson, East Carolina, Illinois, Marshall, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, North Carolina State, Penn State, and UCLA.

“Well Maryland was my first offer and then all the offers started coming in from there. I have built really good relationships with the coaches at Penn State, Illinois, and UCLA. I have also been able to get to know Coach Yellock and Coach Ruffin down at ECU was great too. A lot of them have a plan for me and already know what they want me to play. I think it’s good to see that they already have something implemented for me.”

There is no doubt that building a strong foundation with coaches at various programs is important to Cooper, but he looks beyond that so he has the ability to find the school that is right for him. “I want a place where I feel comfortable. Every place I have been to so far have been great. I have felt a strong connection to every school. I want to see myself playing at the school as well. I definitely want a winning mentality but I’m not going to base my decision off that. There is always that growth period for some schools year in and year out, so I won’t be turned off by a school just because of a losing record in the past few years.”

With someone that has enough potential in his game to garner offers and interest from some of the most revered schools around the country, Cooper is not afraid to point out the weaknesses he hopes to turn into a strength come fall 2010. “I would like to become a better all around player. I want to be faster and work harder on my left hand stance. Right now, I don’t have the same explosiveness in my left hand that I have in my right hand. I really do not want any weaknesses when I get back out on the field. I want to pick up on my reads faster and be able to read and react much sooner. There are a lot of things I want to fine tune and just become a more complete player.”

The anticipated landing of Cooper into LAX was felt in both major schools in Los Angeles. Cooper visited UCLA and USC during his trip and fell in love with both of them. “I had a brief talk with Coach Kiffin from USC and that was really exciting. I gave them my highlight tape and they told me it would be the first one they would review. I am keeping my fingers crossed for that one. Having an offer from USC is amazing because it’s very prestigious. I don’t want to say too much on it or jinx it in any sort of way, but it would be an awesome offer to get. After that, I went to UCLA for a visit and talked to coach Neuheisel. He was a great guy and he took me on a private campus tour. At UCLA, you could feel the nice ocean breeze come right through the campus. I actually got to meet some of the guys who gave me some Cali lingo to bring back to Maryland with me so it was just a spectacular trip.”

As Darian Cooper and DeMatha gear up for another chance at a championship run, the loss sustained this past season still lingers. “I think we did extremely well and we went into the championship game undefeated and while we beat a lot of great teams, we didn’t come back with that championship trophy, so I cannot call it the best season. There is definitely room for improvement. “As a team next year, we need to get that fire back in our bellies, go out there and show people what DeMatha football is all about. We have a lot of young guys coming in as well as a lot of big name guys too. We have to have those guys go out there and produce together. Just keep working hard and everybody needs to start focusing on winning.”

Cliff Smith article