Our UNC Pro Day Quotables series continues with the best quotes from offensive lineman Jonathan Cooper.
Cooper was a 2012 Consensus All-American and a finalist for the Outland Trophy — annually awarded to the nation’s best interior lineman. He was also a 2012 First-Team All-ACC selection and the winner of the ACC Jacobs Blocking Trophy. Cooper is projected to be a first-round selection and, according to CBSSports.com, is the No. 2-ranked offensive guard in the draft.
On his performance at the Pro Day:
“Happy to be here and happy to be done. It was a pretty tough little process. It was tiring, but it was fun. I’m glad to be working with my college offensive lineman one more time. I think I was pretty well prepared for it. But I guess you’re never going to be in as good as shape as you can be. I do think that was pretty taxing. I knew it was going to be, but it was a little harder than I imagined.”
On the overall process of preparing for the draft:
“The training — that’s probably the best part. All you’ve got to do there is give effort and work hard, and that’s kind of what I do. That was the fun part. (The Pro Day) is a more difficult aspect than the combine and that was pretty taxing, mentally and physically. I’m just trying to stay on top of my mental game and get through all of this. It is a test. They are pushing and proding you, just to see who you are and what you’re made of. I’m just trying to focus on that and keep pushing forward.”
On posting a top performance of 35 repetitions on the bench press at the combine:
“You’d think that I would be ecstatic to get it but as soon as I got it, I was kind of upset that I didn’t get one more. I was happy to reach my goal. I’d been claiming I’d get it and I got it.”
On the feedback he’s heard from NFL scouts and his draft potential:
“Where I’ll go in the draft, I have no clue. You hear so much stuff, but nothing is official. Everything is peoples’ opinions. In terms of qualities, leadership is one of the things I heard today — that I possess pretty good leadership qualities and that sort of thing, so I was happy to hear that … I just decided that I’m going to enjoy the process. If I’m there all day then what the heck. But I’ll be there with my family and it’s a one in a lifetime opportunity, so I’ll be fine.”
On being back in Chapel Hill:
“I enjoyed being back with my teammates. That was the biggest thing. Being back in the locker room one more time and just joking around and having fun before we came out here and just being able to support these guys and seeing them work hard. It won’t be the last time I’ll be here. It’s kind of bittersweet but a good ending to my career here. I’ve enjoyed the whole process and I’m thankful that I’ve been able to do what I’ve been able to do.”
Be sure to check out Pro Day quotes from UNC football coach Larry Fedora and stay tuned for more interviews from Giovani Bernard, Sylvester Williams, and others.
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