Teammates, coaches and analysts react to Cooper Kupp’s dominant performance, leading Rams to Super Bowl
To those who know him best, it’s no surprise that Cooper Kupp will soon be playing in the Super Bowl.
Moments after Kupp and the Los Angeles Rams defeated the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday, former Eastern Washington teammates and coaches offered their congratulations.
“Big-time player in big time games,” EWU football posted on Twitter.
Kupp finished with 11 receptions for 142 yards and two touchdowns against the Niners
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“Cooop!” offered former EWU quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., who eight years ago was throwing touchdown passes to Kupp.
Adams, now the quarterback for the Montreal Alouettes, elaborated on Monday.
“I know that a lot of people are surprised by the season he’s having, but I’m not,” said Adams, who was Kupp’s quarterback in 2013 and 2014.
“I just knew how great he was going to be,” Adams said.
There were few surprised faces in Kupp’s hometown of Yakima. Jay Dumas, his position coach at Davis High School and now the head coach, credited Kupp’s work ethic was well as his talent.
“Everyone here is pretty excited, but not surprised,” said Dumas, who coached receivers at Eastern for two years after Kupp departed and returned to Davis in 2019.
“At every level, the new coaches were told how hard he works, and that he’s a football savant,” Dumas said.
“The whole town is very proud,” Dumas added.
For others, Kupp’s remarkable performance this year offers a reason to question the relative importance of non-football measures, such as timed runs. Kupp is a major reason why many NFL teams are now leaning more on GPS data and transitioning away from 40-yard dash times when evaluating prospects, said Jordan Reid, NFL draft analyst at ESPN. “Play speed matters most.”
Perhaps the most poignant reactions came from Kupp himself.
Moments after the game ended, Kupp took a knee and spent a few moments in quiet reflection.
To his 102,000-plus Twitter followers, Kupp said: “Took all of us … plus the fans who showed up and showed out. See you in two weeks back at SoFi!”
SoFi is the Rams’ home stadium and also the site of Super Bowl LVI. That too was significant.
The Rams made the Super Bowl three years ago, but without Kupp, who tore an ACL during the regular season.
Kupp got through that ordeal partly with support from fellow wide receiver Robert Woods.
This year it was Woods who lost his postseason to an ACL tear.
After the game, Kupp and Woods met on the field and embraced.
“We’re not here without Bobby Trees,” Kupp tweeted. “No words to explain his value to me. Only the people in our building truly know his impact.”