BLUEFIELD, Va. — The WVU baseball cap didn’t fit all that well on Taymon Cooke’s plentiful head of hair. The helmet, though, should fit just fine.
“It is great,” Cooke said. “This is what I have been waiting for for a long, long time. I can’t really explain it.”
The talented and speedy Graham senior achieved his lifelong dream on Wednesday, signing scholarship papers to continue his education and play college football at West Virginia University.
“This is the day I have been waiting for my whole life,” Cooke said. “I have just got to thank God and thank my family, my coaches, my teammates, everybody, this is the day I have been waiting for.
Cooke had a tremendous senior season for Graham, earning All-Group 2A first team honors as a wide receiver and second team recognition as a defensive back and return specialist. That wasn’t a surprise to Tony Palmer, Cooke’s head coach with the G-Men, who has watched him thrive for four years with the G-Men.
“With Taymon, it’s his speed, athleticism. He has been doing it since he was a freshman for us,” Palmer said. “He came over there right out of middle school and went to the high school and started varsity football and was pretty much a starter on the team as a ninth grader. This is something that he has done his whole life because I have been fortunate enough to be around him since the time he was a small child. His dad and I grew up together and I have watched him have success on the football field his entire life.”
Expect Cooke to work to get on the field with the Mountaineers, either at receiver, cornerback or on special teams. He just wants to play more football.
“They told me I could play on either side of the ball and I might redshirt, but I might not,” Cooke said.
Cooke had sparkling numbers as a senior the G-Men. He recorded nearly 1,500 receiving yards and another 900 yards on the ground for a combined 28 touchdowns. He also had four more scores via returns and added a defensive score. He also recorded 40 tackles and had four interceptions during Graham’s 11-2 campaign, and also played in the Virginia High School Coaches Association All-Star game in Wise.
Palmer figures he can contribute anywhere on the field.
“Wherever they put him that they think would be the best spot for him,” Palmer said. “That is their decision and it is his job to give his everything, give his maximum effort to be the best that he can be.”
Not a problem. He has been doing that for a while, helping to attract plenty of attention from college recruiters along the way. Palmer said that coaches from 17 different Division I schools visited Graham in the past year, a trend that he expects to continue into the future.
“It is a dream of mine. This is a goal that I set to try to help these guys get where they want to be,” Palmer said. “Ultimately, what they do on the field is going to carry over. You have got to do things right in the classroom, you have got to do things right on the field and he has accomplished these things since he has been here. We have several more kids that have this day as a goal for them as well. Taymon set the bar and there are many more to come, hopefully.”
Palmer thinks Cooke’s success will lead to progress for G-Men and other area athletes in the future.
“When you can run, you can play. Taymon has got God-given talent, speed. I knew he could play at the Division I level,” Palmer said. “Some things are starting to change, we have had people come in and watch us practice. They are just shocked that we have kids that can play like this in this area. I think this area is an unknown source for college recruiters and hopefully this will help get it on the map.”
While Cooke had numerous suitors, including Virginia, Michigan State and Marshall, all it took for Cooke to be attracted to the Mountaineers was a visit to Morgantown.
“I went there the first time and loved it. I went to a couple of other places and never liked them like that, but I went up there and loved it,” Cooke said. “I wouldn’t say it was any one thing. I just loved it when I went up there. It was everybody, the coaches, the players, the environment, everything.”
Cooke acknowledges the help he had along the way, especially from his father, Cornell “Ceecee” Cooke.
“My dad for sure. He did all this, all this is for him,” Cooke said. “He did all this.”
Ceecee, like most proud fathers, deflected the credit back to his son. He was, after all, just fulfilling his role as a dad.
“It was all him, I just promised him when he was a kid that I would just do my job,” Ceecee said. “It is great. It was hard, but as a daddy that is what I had to do.”
Palmer agrees that he did it well too.
“Ceecee has put in a lot of work, he has driven him to camps. He has stayed on top of him, he has been with him every step of the way and that is very important,” Palmer said. “It is a very exciting day for both of them and I am very proud of both of them.”
Cooke, who signed his scholarship papers at midcourt of the Graham Middle School gymnasium with “Country Roads” playing in the background, was also able to receive advice former Graham, Marshall and NFL standout Ahmad Bradshaw, who helped him in dealing with the pressures that comes with the recruiting process.
“It was what I always wanted. It was what I had seen growing up, and it happened,” Cooke said. “I loved it. Going everywhere, meeting a whole bunch of new coaches, meeting players, it was fun. Going to the games too.”
Both Taymon and his father were once fans of Virginia Tech. Those days, it’s safe to say, are over. Ceecee is confident his son will make the area proud.
“I was a Virginia Tech fan, but that is over with,” said Ceecee, with a smile. “He has the whole community behind him.
While Cooke isn’t sure what type of degree he will pursue, he is just excited to take the next step in his young life.
“Just being up there and getting out here honestly. Just getting out of Bluefield and getting an education and playing football,” added Cooke, when asked what he learned from his tenure at Graham. “That you can make it out. You can see that even though we are small as small down here, you can make it out. You have just got to work for it.”
