Bears garner A-10 awards Cosgrove co-Coach of Year, Cooper co-Defensive Player

ORONO – While the University of Maine football team’s top priority this week has been preparation for its first NCAA tournament game since 1989, a steady influx of postseason awards have served as a constant reminder of the success the Bears have already enjoyed.

The Atlantic 10 announced Wednesday that coach Jack Cosgrove and linebacker Stephen Cooper were among the best at their jobs during the regular season.

Cosgrove was named the co-coach of the year, along with Rhode Island’s Tim Stowers, while Cooper was co-defensive player of the year, sharing the honor with Derrick Lloyd of James Madison.

Cosgrove said he appreciated the award, but deflected praise to the entire Black Bear football unit.

“I guess I’ve always felt that if you get a coach of the year, it means you must have the team of the year, because of what goes into something like that,” Cosgrove said. “It’s an individual award, but certainly it reflects everything that the team does. The coaching staff, the assistant coaches, is what it’s really reflective of.”Cooper agreed with his coach’s approach and gave credit to the entire defense, which gave up 20.3 points per game and ranked second in the league in total defense.

“I think this award goes to everybody on the defense,” Cooper said. “Guys up front hold guys up for me to make plays, I’ve got great linebackers beside me and the guys in the back can play great ball. So much thanks go to them. It’s something that’s an individual award, but I share it with them.”

Cooper and Lloyd are finalists for the Buck Buchanan Award, which goes to the nation’s top Division I-AA defender. Cosgrove is a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award, given to the top I-AA coach.

Brian Westbrook of Villanova was named the league’s top offensive player for the second year in a row while Delaware defensive back Sidney Haugabrook was tabbed as the top rookie.

UMaine plays McNeese State in the first round of the NCAA Division I-AA tournament Saturday at 8 p.m. in Lake Charles, La.

Several Black Bears were named to the A-10’s all-conference teams that were announced Wednesday.

First-teamers were senior tight end Chad Hayes (28 catches for 382 yards and seven TDs), senior return specialist Lennard Byrd (869 yards and two touchdowns on 48 kickoff and punt returns) and Cooper.

Senior running back Royston English (1,157 yards on 225 carries) was a second-team pick, while sophomore wide receiver Stephan Gomes (60 catches, 787 yards, 9 TDs), senior offensive tackle Zack Magliaro, junior defensive lineman Brendan Curry and junior defensive back Dave Cusano were third-team selections.

Cooper, a 6-foot-1, 220-pounder from Wareham, Mass., ranks seventh in the A-10 with 103 tackles. In addition, his 17 tackles for loss rank fifth in the league.

Cosgrove said Cooper, who came to Maine after having played quarterback and safety in high school and wide receiver in a year of prep school, has developed into a force at linebacker.

“He was a raw dog out there as a redshirt freshman, and he got better last year,” Cosgrove said. “And he’s still improving. This year he has stepped it up tremendously. The thing that impresses me the most is that he’s learned the game now.”

And Cosgrove said opposing coaches have also taken notice.

“The best compliment I’ve heard came from Jimmy Reid at Richmond. In A-10 press conference. He said, ‘He ran around us, he ran through us, and he ran over us when he had to. And when he got to where he was going, he was in a very bad mood,’ Cosgrove recounted. “I think that kind of describes him.”

Cooper posted five games of double-digit tackles, including a season-high 14 against Richmond on Oct. 21.

In his three years at Maine Cooper has accumulated 37 tackles for loss and 151/2 sacks. He was the Bears’ rookie of the year in 1999 and led the team with 84 tackles as a sophomore.

Cosgrove, the 34th head coach in UMaine history, helped guide the Bears to the playoffs in his ninth year at the helm. The Black Bears’ run was unexpected in league circles: The preseason poll ranked UMaine eighth in the A-10, while the Bears ended up going 8-2 and earning a share of the league title.

Cosgrove, a former All-Yankee Conference quarterback at UMaine, also served as the offensive coordinator at his alma mater from 1989-92.

Cosgrove has compiled a 41-57 record with the Bears, including an 18-15 mark from 1996-98.

His nine years as head coach make his tenure at the school one of the longest in history. Walt Abbott was the last coach to last nine years (1967-1975). Only Fred Brice (20 years) and Harold Westerman (16) have coached Black Bear football teams for longer periods of time.