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Orthodontists in Cooper City, FL - Braces in Florida, Cooper City orthopages.com | Cooper Institute : Education : Cooper ELITE Certification Renewal : How... cooperinstitute.org | Meet Dr. Ronald Cooper Washington DC Dentist from Phillips Cooper and phillipscooper.com |
Marquis Victor Cooper (born March 11, 1982,[1]; missing March 1, 2009, presumed dead March 6, 2009) was an American football linebacker of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the third round of the 2004 NFL Draft. He played college football at Washington. Cooper had also played for the Minnesota Vikings, Pittsburgh Steelers, Seattle Seahawks, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Oakland Raiders. On March 1, 2009, Cooper and three other men went missing after their boat capsized in rough seas near Clearwater, Florida. Cooper and two of the men are now presumed to be dead.[2]
[edit] Early and personal lifeCooper was the oldest child of KPNX sportscaster Bruce Cooper and wife Donna. He has a younger sister named Donielle.[1] He was raised in Gilbert, Arizona and attended Gilbert Junior High School and Highland High School, where he became an All-State player in football.[3] Though his grandfather worked in the athletic department of Arizona State University, Cooper attended the University of Washington. He graduated with a degree in sociology and was a member of the PAC-10 All-Conference team in 2003.[4] Cooper and wife Rebekah, who met while attending the University of Washington,[5] have a daughter named Delaney Christine.[3] In the offseason, the family lived in Tampa, Florida.[5] [edit] Professional career[edit] Tampa Bay BuccaneersCooper was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the third round (79th overall) of the 2004 NFL Draft. He was released just before the start of the 2006 season, on September 2. [edit] Minnesota VikingsCooper signed with the Minnesota Vikings on September 5, 2006. He was released on October 30. [edit] First stint with SteelersOn October 31, 2006, Cooper was claimed off waivers by the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers waived him on December 5. [edit] Seattle SeahawksCooper was signed by the Seattle Seahawks on December 12. He finished the 2006 season with the team and was released the following year on July 27, 2007. [edit] Second stint with SteelersCooper was claimed off waivers by the Steelers on July 30, 2007. On September 19, he was released by the Steelers. [edit] Jacksonville JaguarsOn November 27, 2007, Cooper signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars released him on December 7. [edit] Third stint with SteelersThe Steelers signed Cooper for a third time on December 9, 2007. He became a free agent in the 2008 offseason. [edit] Oakland RaidersCooper was signed by the Oakland Raiders on November 5, 2008 after linebacker Robert Thomas was placed on injured reserve. [edit] Stats
[edit] Boating accident and disappearanceOn March 1, 2009, the U.S. Coast Guard reported that a 21-foot fishing boat was missing off the Gulf Coast near Clearwater, Florida. The boat was carrying four passengers: Cooper, free agent defensive lineman Corey Smith, and two former University of South Florida football players, Nick Schuyler and Will Bleakley.[6] The four men left Clearwater Pass on February 28 at 6:30 a.m. and were expected to return later that night. The Coast Guard began searching for the missing boat shortly after midnight on March 1, 2009. By 1:35 p.m. local time on March 2, 2009, the boat had been located, overturned, with Schuyler clinging to it.[7] The search for the three missing men was called off by the Coast Guard, but friends and relatives organized their own search.[8] The private search was called off on March 6.[9] Cooper, Smith, and Bleakley are presumed dead.[2] On March 11, Cooper's wife filed for a death certificate in civil court.[10] Later in March, a report was released based on a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission investigation into the capsizing; the investigation included interviews with Schuyler (the survivor) and an inspection of the boat. The report concluded the following:[11]
The conclusions were accompanied by additional details from the Schuyler interviews. According to Schuyler, after the capsizing, he and the other three men, all wearing flotation devices, struggled overnight in chest-deep water to remain on top of the capsized hull of the boat. Cooper and Smith became non-responsive and separated from the vessel between 5:30 and 6:30 the morning of March 1, and Bleakley became non-responsive and separated about 24 hours later, which was less than six hours before Schuyler was rescued. The investigator described the symptoms Schuyler witnessed as characteristic of hypothermia.[11] [edit] References
[edit] External links
Categories: 1982 births | African American players of American football | American football linebackers | Disappeared people | Jacksonville Jaguars players | Minnesota Vikings players | Oakland Raiders players | People from Mesa, Arizona | People from Gilbert, Arizona | People lost at sea | Pittsburgh Steelers players | Players of American football from Arizona | Seattle Seahawks players | Tampa Bay Buccaneers players | Washington Huskies football players | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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