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10/13/2023 04:47 PMTwo things that have been centered around Cooper Pitts’ upbringing and childhood are athletics and leadership–and now in his senior year of high school, he has assumed the best of both worlds by reaching the summit of both those fields.
The Haddam-Killingworth football two-way lineman grew up playing wrestling and lacrosse, and then joined the gridiron in 5th grade, starting first as a receiver before bulking up to move to the trenches. Now, in his senior season, Cooper has earned the distinction of being a three-squad captain for the Cougars with football, wrestling, and lacrosse, but even more impressive, he recently earned the rank of Eagle Scout.
“I played wide receiver at first and did not like it, but then I played line and liked it because I liked the physicality of it and liked to hit people,” says Cooper, who also finished fourth at states for H-K wrestling in Class S last winter at the 182-pound weight class. “Eagle Scout was something I aspired for my whole life, because my older brother was too, and I am applying for an ROTC Scholarship. I worked and knew it would be hard with three sports and taking AP classes. All of my Sundays the last few years were spent doing homework and work towards Eagle Scout. I logged about 250 hours into my Eagle Scout project, plus a ton of preparation people do not see.”
Pumping iron allowed Cooper to elevate himself to the line, though he knows it takes a blend and balanced skill set to show proficiency for pass protection and penetration–which is where the intertwines of all his athletic avenues come into play.
“Weightlifting year-round and eating right have helped me, but playing other sports has helped me, too,” Cooper says. “Wrestling translates well to football with the hand movements. And then with lax, I was moved to being a face-off specialist [being a two-time All-Shoreline Conference Team selection], and running from lacrosse has translated to my quickness for football.”
As Cooper has garnered a grander perspective on preparation within sports, he has also worked through the aches and pains that come with the territory at the line of scrimmage to pull through with his teammates and achieve collective targets.
“As time has gone on with high school, I have taken in the bigger picture now while learning new techniques and getting quicker and stronger,” says Cooper. “ But the stress on my knees and body is tough. One of my favorite things as a lineman is having to work in unison, and when it works beautifully, an overall goal will be done as a team.”
Cooper and the Cougars are trying to reassemble a top-notch football team after several senior departures from the 2022 edition of the program that narrowly missed out on a playoff berth. Yet he sees the prodigiousness and potential is very much prevalent, and is ready to help rouse it out of his younger peers.
“Being a captain feels really good,” says Cooper. “Last year, we lost 19 seniors, and so we have had a lot of underclassmen move into new roles and step up. We are just going to let [H-K football Head Coach Tyler Wilcox] work his magic, because we certainly have the talent here.”
Wilcox keeps the feeling of admiration mutual with Cooper, stating that missing time with an injury and how he has chosen to handle it just speaks more boisterous volumes to his high-caliber character.
“Unfortunately, Cooper re-injured an existing injury and has not been able to play much since the preseason. He is putting in all of the necessary work on and off the field to try and return to finish off his senior campaign,” says Wilcox. “Cooper is still leading the team along with the other captains while being injured. He could be sitting on the sidelines at practice not participating, but he is leading the team’s warm ups and post practice stretching when he is not at physical therapy. He is always working with his position groups during practice, and helping coach up the younger guys on the team.”
As Wilcox and the Cougars hold their collective wishes for Cooper’s return to the turf, they love having him around the club in a pseudo-coaching capacity.
“Coop has also been helping out the newcomers this season learn the team’s offense and defensive schemes, acting as another coach for the players who are not in team drills,” says Wilcox. “Cooper’s positive attitude, work ethic, and dedication to our program have always been on display, despite his injury and our slow start as a team. He is an integral part of our team, and we have our fingers crossed he heals up in time to rejoin the field and finish off his senior season with his peers.”
Moving forward as the Cougars ventured into October looking for their first triumph of the campaign, they channel a saying from Pittsburgh Steelers’ Head Coach Mike Tomlin. Cooper further notes one big item the club is looking to cultivate is cohesion amongst the ranks.
“Overall, our mindset is good, and our mentality is that the standard is the standard here,” says Cooper. “We are working on developing good chemistry among the team, but we have a lot of new guys stepping up for us.”
Looking ahead to the future personally, Cooper is well aware of interpersonal skills acquired through sports that can aid him well down the line no matter which path he takes after leaving H-K, in addition to hanging tough when adversity hits you head on.
“The biggest thing I have learned through being an athlete is how to work with other people. I have been everything from a guy that fills the water jugs for JV lacrosse, to starting varsity, to now being a captain, so through being in all those positions, I feel I know how to lead a large group of people towards a common goal,” Cooper says. “I have also learned the value of how to work hard and persevere when things are tough.”