Call it Christmas in July for Brett Cooper.
His plan was to hit the ground running when he woke up Wednesday, July 9, his first official day as Bloomington North’s new head football coach. He had announced his resignation from the same position at Perry Meridian on June 23, expecting to get to work with the Cougars after the regularly scheduled MCCSC board meeting the next day.
But it was postponed to July 8, and like a kid staring at presents under the tree, he had to wait — and wait, to get to work.
“I told my wife, it’s been almost three weeks, and I’ve been unemployed for two,” Cooper said. “It lets me know I love football. I’m chomping to get back.”
The Cougars have been in the hands of the mostly intact coaching staff left over from last year’s run under Anthony Lindsey, who resigned at the end of the school year. The official first day of practice is Aug. 4, so it’s two-minute drill time.
“The timing is a little wild,” said Cooper, also hired as an assistant athletic director and business teacher. “Tomorrow is ground zero. But football is football. I joked with a lot of people about this when the opportunity presented itself. When I grew up, we put in the whole offense and defense in two weeks, so I’m not worried about the schematical side.
“It’s getting to know the kids and the coaches, building that level of trust and accountability that will be the basis for our program, things you normally start establishing in December and January. Now, we’re five weeks from opening night.”
North getting well-traveled coach
Cooper is a football lifer. Born in Springfield, Illinois, he didn’t stay there long, bouncing around like an onside kick as his dad’s college coaching career took him all over Illinois and Indiana. Robin Cooper was the last coach Evansville’s football program had before it shut down in 1997. Brett ended up graduating from high school in the Chicago suburbs and played college ball for his dad at Division III North Park in the early 2000s.
He followed his dad into coaching and worked as an assistant at several spots, including Warren Central and Ohio power Massillon, before he landed his first head coaching job at Indian Creek from 2017-19, winning seven games each year.
He moved on to Class 6A Perry Meridian, a program still looking for its first winning season since 2003. He inherited a program with two wins in three seasons and went 14-39. The Falcons became more competitive, especially in the Mid-State, however, going 4-7 overall in 2022 before a 2-8 season that saw five losses by six points or fewer. He went 5-6 last year.
Warren Central has ended Perry’s season at sectional three years in a row. He faces a similar challenge at North, which has posted six seasons in a row at .500 or better but also has a four-year losing streak to South in sectional play and an 11-year title drought.
“Honestly, Perry Meridian was something we really took a risk on to have an impact,” Cooper said. “We did everything we could do to get things going in a different direction. And I think we left it better than we found it, and it should continue that way.
“This opportunity this year, to win the last Conference Indiana title and compete in the playoffs, (North’s recent winning) helps the whole process. But a lot of work needs to be done. Getting to the sectional final is one thing; we’ve got to help push them over the top.”
Familiar territory for Cooper
Out of the frying pan and … right back in it a year later.
But that was one of the things that drew Cooper to apply. North is moving to the Mid-State as a replacement for Greenwood in 2026, so he knows the league inside and out and the challenge each week will bring.
“The Mid-State is a phenomenal conference top to bottom,” Cooper said. “Historically, it continues to be extremely well-coached and have well-run programs with some top-level coaches.
“Whoever wins the Mid-State is a team who can win 4 or 5A. The transition was one of the selling points for us.”
As was Bloomington itself.
“It’s one of those places we’ve always had on our radar,” Cooper said. “It’s a sports town and a big university town. My wife graduated from Perry Meridian and IU. We’ve always loved coming down here. It was interesting timing, but you never know when it will open up again.
“I knew enough about Coach (Scott) Bless and the program he established. Things were done the right way for a long time, and that’s something I want to continue while at the same time, building my own thing.”
Cooper ready to get started
That will start by getting to know the coaches, players and parents in his new program.
“We’ve got to do a good job connecting with the parents and players,” Cooper said. “And we’re going to focus on the seniors. They need to understand this is not a season that’s going to go by the wayside. This is their senior year, and they are owed that.”
Relationships are going to be an even more critical component moving forward with the IHSAA unveiling its new transfer rules. The Cougars lost several players, in addition to Division I recruit seniors Jalen Williams and Ross Ogden, to South. But it also picked up a new quarterback in senior John Bargen from Dunlap, Illinois.
“If you set a foundation and a program kids want to be a part of, you don’t worry about it,” Cooper said. “More importantly, we build and keep our own. That’s what we did at Perry. We’re not going to lose kids.
“Kids aren’t transferring away from places they enjoy being.”
As for what North will look like on the field, that’s all to be sorted out in the next few weeks as he meets with the staff to find out what he has and how deep each position is. That will inform the offensive and defensive schemes he employs in 2025.
“You go back and watch all five years at Perry Meridian, we morphed to what fits our clientele,” Cooper said. “We’ve got to match our scheme to what works best with our personnel. We’ll be a multiple team. Some years, it will look more spread, or if in pans out, more pro-style. Our verbiage won’t change, but our looks will.
“Defensively, same thing. We want kids fly on defense and just play. We’ll find those things out and make our decisions quickly. I’m going to rely heavily on the staff to see how it all fits.”
North volleyball coach approved
North also officially elevated Samantha Ferachi, North’s head JV volleyball coach for the past five years, to head varsity coach.
The Cougars graduated all but one varsity player from a team that won a sectional title, so she’ll be rebuilding with familiar faces. She also coached track at Batchelor Middle School last year.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Delay of game: New Bloomington North football coach Brett Cooper in hurry-up mode
Reporting by Jim Gordillo, The Herald-Times / The Herald-Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
