Blue Cooper will remember his Saturday afternoon shower for the rest of his life.
“No doubt about that,” the former University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wide receiver said, because that’s where he was when his agent called to tell him that the Philadelphia Eagles wanted to sign him.
Cooper said his agent, Robert Walker, called after the NFL draft ended Saturday with an offer of a rookie free-agent contract. Cooper had spoken with the Eagles a couple of times before the draft, so the call didn’t come out of nowhere. Still, more than an hour later he said his heart hadn’t stopped racing.
“In my mind I still can’t fathom it,” Cooper said.
The 6-foot-4, 200-pound Cooper endured three injury-plagued seasons before blossoming in 2009. He caught 84 passes for 824 yards and seven touchdowns in his final season, earning second-team All-Southern Conference honors.
Among the dozens of people calling him after word got out Saturday night was a once and possible future teammate, Eldra Buckley. The Eagles running back, a senior at UTC when Cooper was a redshirt sophomore, called to let him know that the hard part was just beginning.
Cooper has a contract, but that doesn’t guarantee him a spot on the team.
“He was being real about everything, saying that I’ve got to get my stuff together from the day (camp) starts,” Cooper said.
Cooper said he will fly Thursday to Philadelphia for a rookies minicamp.