2022 DE Ernest Cooper IV Blown Away By Notre Dame Offer

2022 Martin (Texas) defensive end Ernest Cooper IV‍ got one of those pleasant surprises in life on Thursday afternoon. 

Notre Dame defensive line coach Mike Elston stopping by caught the 6-foot-4, 220-pounder off guard as he hadn't heard from the Irish.

"I wasn't really expecting Notre Dame to stop in, especially since I hadn't seen any coaches at the high school before," stated Cooper. "It was definitely surprising and I was blown away." 

Then following a workout, Cooper learned Elston had offered him.

"After I heard the good news from one of my coaches, I called Coach (Mike) Elston and we talked about how he thought I was a great student," explained Cooper." He liked the way I played, so he thought I was the right person for the offer." 

The first impression of Elston was a positive one for Cooper as he admitted he's still learning the recruiting process. 

"He was a very cool and relatable person," said Cooper. "I felt like I will be able to connect with him easily, especially with me being young and not knowing what I'm really getting into with the recruiting process." 

Despite just finishing his sophomore year, Cooper already holds offers from Notre Dame, Ole Miss, Texas and Texas A&M, which is something he wasn't expecting. 

"All of this is very surprising to me," laughed Cooper. "All I ever wanted to do was to play football at the highest level and to play for my teammates." 

Notre Dame will have a good shot with Cooper as the Irish program aligns with what he's looking for in a future home, but the in-state schools have already made an impression.

"Texas was the first school to offer me," Cooper stated. "It's one of those nostalgic moments where you're in your bed always throwing the football and you turn on the TV on Saturday and see all the ginormous folks playing football and you're like 'I want to do that one day.'" 

Cooper will look to schedule some visits in and out of state in the coming months with academics being at the forefront. 

"Academics are always number one," said Cooper. "I'm planning to go to California to look at Stanford. 

"I'm also looking forward to going to Texas and more than likely Texas A&M in the spring or the summer."