Honors & Awards
» Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll (Fall 2020)
2020 (Sophomore)
Niko Cooper played in each of the final seven games in his first season at Nebraska in 2020. A key special teams performer, Cooper finished with three tackles as a sophomore. He did not play but was a member of Nebraska's travel roster for the trip to No. 5 Ohio State. Cooper made his Husker debut by appearing on special teams at Northwestern. He recorded his first two career tackles on kickoff coverage in Nebraska's win against Penn State. Cooper added his final tackle of the season on kickoff coverage at Rutgers.
Before Nebraska (Douglass HS/Hutchinson [Kan.] CC)
Cooper joined the Huskers after spending two seasons at Hutchinson Community College in Kansas. He redshirted in his first season at Hutchinson, giving him three years of eligibility at Nebraska.
In 2019, Cooper totaled 24 tackles from his defensive end position for the Blue Dragons. He added nine tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks while forcing a pair of fumbles. Cooper played his prep ball for Douglass High School in Memphis.
Cooper was ranked as a three-star recruit, and 247Sports listed him as the No. 3 weakside defensive end prospect from the junior college ranks. He chose Nebraska after also taking visits to Kansas State, Texas Tech and Maryland, according to Hutchinson coach Rion Rhoades.