Tristan Cooper, Arizona Football News: Draft Scout Player News

03/17/20 - SS Tristan Cooper, Sr/2020, Arizona

Tristan Cooper was among the UA football players hoping to catch scouts' eyes at the university's now-canceled pro day. More than a half dozen Arizona football players were supposed to work out for NFL scouts at the UA campus Tuesday. For most of those Wildcats, it was their one and only chance to showcase their skills in front of the NFL community at large. It was the most important job interview of their lives. Instead, that opportunity has been put on indefinite hold. It might not ever happen. Long shots might never get a shot. The coronavirus pandemic has shut down the world of sports - including pro days for NFL hopefuls. Late last week, the league prohibited all in-person contact between draft-eligible players and club personnel. The decision, made in the interest of curtailing the spread of the virus, could be especially damaging for players on the margins who haven't had previous opportunities to get in front of pro scouts.

"I'm sure there's going to be a lot of players this year that are going to fall between the cracks," said Corey Williams, the agent for UA safety Tristan Cooper. For players such as receiver Cedric Peterson, defensive tackle Finton Connolly and Cooper, pro day was their chance to get noticed, make an impression or change a perception scouts might have had about them. "I'm lost right now," Cooper said from his hometown of El Paso. "I'm not going to lie - I've battled with some demons. It was already a stressful journey going through these couple months of working out, and to be hit by this? I don't even know how to describe it. "Doubt kicks in. Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will. I'm trying to stay positive and keep going, and whatever happens, happens." - Arizona Star

Sr/2020