Deontae Cooper

Biography

Deontae Cooper joined the South Dakota State coaching staff in January 2025 and will work with the Jackrabbit running backs after serving in a similar role at Idaho during the 2024 season. "Deontae is going to bring a high-energy coaching approach and I was extremely impressed with how he developed our running backs at Idaho last year," SDSU head coach Dan Jackson said. "He's also played at the highest levels, and I couldn't be more excited to have him bring those experiences to our staff." From 2019-23, Cooper was head coach at Highline High School in Burien, Washington, where his squads went undefeated in league play three consecutive seasons and advanced to the Class 2A state semifinals in 2022 and quarterfinals in 2023. Cooper overcame a series of injuries to rush for 555 yards and three touchdowns over two seasons at the University of Washington. He was selected as a team captain for one season and later earned a tryout with the Oakland Raiders before embarking on his coaching career as a recruiting assistant at Washington in 2017.