Column: Cooper Rush has a chance at Dallas, and thats all he needs
Andrew McDonald
As week one of the NFL season approaches, Cooper Rush has made it clear he is deserving of a spot on the Dallas Cowboys roster.
Rush is competing for the No. 2 slot behind starting quarterback Dak Prescott.
Kellen Moore (the Cowboys backup a year ago) was cut from the team this past Saturday but is now back in reconsideration for a spot on the team. Rush has beat Moore at every aspect of the game during the preseason.
A lot of it had to do with his performance in the preseason as a standout amongst all the rookie quarterbacks
Rush had to work his way through high school and college to get a chance. His professional career reflects that.
He hails from Charlotte, where he played at Lansing Catholic High School, which had only 535 students at the time.
While those numbers were small, the ones he put up on the football field weren't. Rush had a record of 25-5 as a starter for the Cougars, while tossing for more than 7,000 yards and 80 touchdowns.
Even with those numbers, it still wasn't enough to land a scholarship offer from a college. After attending all of the camps in the area, he finally received a call from Central Michigan University.
The pro-style offense would eventually be a match made in heaven for Rush and CMU.
After sitting out an entire season as a redshirt freshman, it didn't take long for Rush to prove his worth. In the second game of his second season, he made his first chance with the Chippewas worth it.
In a relief appearance, Rush threw for 326 yards and three touchdowns, opening the eyes of the CMU coaching staff. He was named the starter the next week and never looked back.
In his CMU career, Rush finished in the top three of just about any major statistical category. This all came with his 3.89 grade point average before earning a bachelor's degree in actuarial science.
In his senior season in 2016, while his team struggled around him to find success, Rush prevailed again. He broke a CMU single-season record with 3,848 passing yards, adding to his list of accomplishments.
With all of that being said, would it be enough to get him a selection in the 2017 NFL Draft?
Nope. Once again, he had to do things the gritty way.
Rush was signed by Dallas as a undrafted free agent and was given the chance to prove himself in multiple appearances. He didn't let them slip.
Over the span of four games, Rush threw for 51 passes and completed 38 of them (74.5 percent) for 398 yards while throwing six touchdowns and zero interceptions, according to Fox Sports.
In Cowboys owner Jerry Jones' eyes, the NFL’s eyes and my eyes, those are numbers that simply can't be passed up.
That's why as of Sept. 2, Rush was officially the only QB on the depth chart other than Prescott.
On Tuesday morning, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network Tweeted that the Cowboys are bringing back Moore as a reserve and will decide later this week who will officially be named the backup.
Once again, Rush will find himself having to prove even more to make it. Regardless of what he has done, it still hasn't been enough.
With everything being said about his past, it's still a serious question as to why people are not able to believe in this guy as a suitable quarterback.
Rush has performed above average at every level he's played at — high school, college and now in the NFL preseason.
If anyone deserves a shot at this, it's Rush. He has grit.
Hesitation and uncertainty seems to be coming from Jones and the organization right now, and that's understandable. Rush is only a rookie.
The 6-foot-3, 216-pound passer has the physical build and football mentality to make it in this league as a backup at the very least.
All he needs is an opportunity.
Rush has made a name for himself at every institution he's been a part of, from small schools in Mid-Michigan to a professional team in Dallas.
Rush has done and will continue to do what he's always done — play football at a high level with grit.
