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Longhorns snag big-time out-of-state commitment from Mookie Cooper

Four-star athlete Mookie Cooper committed to the Longhorns on Saturday.
Four-star athlete Mookie Cooper committed to the Longhorns on Saturday. (Rivals.com)

St. Louis Trinity Catholic athlete Mookie Cooper has been a regular visitor to the Texas campus over the last year. This weekend, Cooper, a Rivals100 member, is back on the Forty Acres – his third visit to UT in the past eight months – and this time he had big news to deliver.

The standout playmaker, who holds about 20 scholarship offers from some of college football’s top programs, has given the Texas Longhorns a commitment.

“I’ve been liking Texas since my sophomore year. I just didn’t know if I was ready yet. I flew out here three times. I haven’t been to many other schools as much and I just fell in love with the school itself,” Cooper told Orangebloods in an exclusive interview on the morning of his commitment announcement.

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The 5-10, 182-pound Cooper has developed a very close relationship with the Texas staff over the course of his recruitment and he said the UT staff’s interest and consistent recruiting efforts are the biggest reason he chose the Longhorns.

“The coaches here are a great group of people,” Cooper said. “The offense and the way Texas football program is, is already great. No other school has been building as strong of a relationship with me as Texas. Since day one with the offer, they’ve been pushing hard for me.”

Texas Director of Recruiting, Bryan Carrington, has struck up a close relationship with Cooper and was instrumental in the Longhorns landing Cooper’s commitment. Carrington was also a big factor in Texas securing the commitment of Cooper’s teammate in the 2019 class, Marcus Washington.

“He’s a really cool dude. He’s younger so we can kind of relate a little bit, I can be a little more open with him than anyone else,” Cooper said. “We just have a connection. He’s a coach, but more like a friend. You can talk to him about anything.

“That’s my guy. He’s a coach to me but also like a big brother who helps guide me the right way.”

Cooper becomes the Longhorns’ fourth commitment of the 2020 class, joining quarterback Hudson Card and offensive linemen Logan Parr and Jake Majors. With his decision out of the way, Cooper said he can now relax a little bit and turn his focus towards finishing out his time at Trinity Catholic.

“To be committed feels great,” he said. “It takes some weight off of my shoulders. Not all, but some, and that’s what matters. The process can become very stressful.”

Cooper is ranked as a four-star prospect and is the nation’s No. 6-ranked athlete overall. He checks in at No. 92 on the Rivals100. Cooper chose Texas over offers from programs like Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Penn State and Wisconsin.

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