Elijah Cooks Explained

Elijah Cooks
Number:14
Current Team:Jacksonville Jaguars
Position:Wide receiver
Birth Date:13 October 1998
Birth Place:Santa Maria, California, U.S.
Height Ft:6
Height In:4
Weight Lb:215
High School:Atascadero
(Atascadero, California)
College:Nevada (2017–2021)
San Jose State (2022)
Undraftedyear:2023
Pastteams:
Status:Active
Highlights:
  • First-team All-MW (2022)
Statseason:2023
Statlabel1:Receptions
Statlabel2:Receiving yards
Statlabel3:Receiving touchdowns
Statlabel4:Return yards
Statlabel5:Return touchdowns
Pfr:CookEl00

Elijah Stephen Cooks (born October 13, 1998) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Nevada Wolf Pack before transferring to the San Jose State Spartans and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Jaguars after the 2023 NFL draft.

Early life

Born in Santa Maria, California, Cooks grew up there and initially attended St. Joseph High School, where he played football and basketball.[1] [2] Midway through his tenth grade year, Cooks moved to Atascadero and transferred to Atascadero High School.[3]

As a senior at Atascadero in 2016, Cooks tallied 56 catches for 966 yards and 15 touchdowns, winning the Pac 5 Offensive Player of the Year award.[4]

College career

Nevada

Cooks committed to play football for the University of Nevada at Reno on February 1, 2017.[5] He chose Nevada over Hawaii, Wyoming, Fresno State, and San Jose State, the team he later played for.[6]

In five seasons at Nevada from 2017 to 2021, Cooks had 115 receptions for 1,478 yards and 18 touchdowns. Having played 35 games from 2017 to 2019, Cooks sat out all of 2020 due to a shoulder injury.[7] In 2021, Cooks played in three games before a season-ending injury.

Cooks also briefly joined the Nevada Wolf Pack men's basketball team in the 2017–18 season as a temporary replacement for an injured player.[3] Cooks played four games, averaging one minute per game.[8]

San Jose State

After five years with Nevada, Cooks moved on to San Jose State University as a graduate transfer.[9] It's at San Jose State where he had his most productive year, garnering selection to the first-team All-MW.[10]

College statistics

SeasonGamesReceivingRushing
GP Rec Yds Avg TD Att Yds Avg TD
Nevada Wolf Pack
20172 2 23 11.5 0 0 0 0 0
201811 22 348 15.8 6 1 40 40 1
201913 76 926 12.2 8 0 0 0 0
20201 2 24 12.0 0 0 0 0 0
20213 13 157 12.1 4 0 0 0 0
San Jose State Spartans
202212 69 1076 15.6 10 0 0 0 0
Career 42 184 2554 13.9 28 1 40 40.0 1

Professional career

After not being drafted in the 2023 NFL draft, Cooks signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent on May 1, 2023.[11] [12] [13] On August 29, 2023, the Jaguars announced that he had made the initial 53-man roster.[14] [15] [16]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Elijah Cooks. San Jose State Spartans. January 6, 2024.
  2. Web site: Elijah Cooks (St. Joseph, Santa Maria, CA). Maxpreps. January 6, 2024.
  3. Web site: Bailey. Joe. March Madness: Nevada's Elijah Cooks goes from Santa Maria to Sweet 16. Santa Ynez Valley News. March 21, 2018. January 6, 2024.
  4. News: Gibson . Travis . February 1, 2017 . Signing day: Atascadero’s Cooks signs with Nevada, Poly women’s soccer nabs local pair . The Tribune . San Luis Obispo. January 6, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20170216042308/https://www.sanluisobispo.com/sports/article130229699.html. February 16, 2017. live.
  5. Web site: Elijah Cooks . 247 Sports . CBS Sports Digital . August 29, 2023.
  6. Web site: Elijah Cooks – Football (WR) . NevadaWolfpack.com . University of Nevada at Reno . August 30, 2023.
  7. Web site: Saturday is senior night for the Nevada football team. Or is it?. Murray. Chris. Nevada Sports Net. December 4, 2020. January 6, 2024.
  8. Web site: 2017-18 Men's Basketball Cumulative Statistics. University of Nevada, Reno. January 6, 2024.
  9. Web site: Reyna . Lorenzo . December 15, 2021 . SJSU adds Nevada star WR Elijah Cooks via transfer on NSD . August 29, 2023 . 247 Sports . CBS Sports Digital.
  10. Web site: August 5, 2023 . Football All-Mountain West Teams and Superlative Awards . December 1, 2023 . Mountain West Conference . en-US.
  11. News: Oehser. John. The 2023 Offseason: Undrafted Free Agents Bring Rookie Class to 23. Jaguars.com. May 1, 2023. May 3, 2023.
  12. Web site: April 30, 2023 . SJSU's Elijah Cooks Signs with the Jacksonville Jaguars . December 1, 2023 . San Jose State Spartans Athletics.
  13. Web site: Reyna . Lorenzo . April 29, 2023 . San Jose State WR Elijah Cooks signs with Jacksonville Jaguars . August 29, 2023 . 247sports.com . CBS Sports Digital.
  14. Web site: Oehser . John . August 30, 2023 . Elijah Cooks Makes Jaguars 53-Man Roster As Lone Collegiate Rookie Free Agent . December 1, 2023 . Jaguars.com.
  15. Web site: Oehser . John . August 29, 2023 . The 53: Breaking Down the Roster . December 1, 2023 . Jaguars.com.
  16. Web site: Shipley . John . August 29, 2023 . Jaguars Announce First Major Wave of Cuts: Elijah Cooks, 9 Other Rookies Make Team . August 29, 2023 . SI.com . Sports Illustrated.