Archie Cooley
Encyclopedia
Archie "Gunslinger" Cooley (born in 1940) was the former college football
coach at Mississippi Valley State University
(MVSU) from 1980 to 1986, University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff from 1987 to 1991, Norfolk State University
1993, and Paul Quinn College
from 2000 to 2006. At MVSU, Cooley is mostly remembered for being the head coach of NFL Pro Football Hall of Fame
wide receiver Jerry Rice
, and it was Cooley who brought MVSU to national attention in the early 1980s.
. He played college football at Jackson State University
under the late John Merritt
. Cooley graduated in 1962.
' offense featuring five wide receivers. Cooley led the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils to their only Division 1-AA playoff appearance in 1984. The 1984 Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils football team
set different passing, receiving, and scoring records that featured Jerry Rice
and quarterback Willie Totten
. To this day, Cooley is the winningest coach in the history of the Delta Devil football program. He also served as an associate professor of physical education
at Mississippi Valley State.
In 1987 Cooley moved on to University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
, which was then an NAIA
member before the school moved up to the Southwestern Athletic Conference
(SWAC) in the 1990s. He coached there for 4 years from 1987 to 1990, as served at athletic director and associate professor.
In 1993, Cooley was hired as head coach at Norfolk State University
, where he stayed for only one year.
After a long hiatus from the coaching scene, Cooley returned when he became head coach at Paul Quinn College
located in Dallas, Texas
. Paul Quinn was an NAIA member school which was then establishing a new football program, and Cooley was responsible for starting the program from the ground up. He served as head coach from 2000 to 2006. The school was experiencing financial and accreditation issues and its administration decided to drop the football program after the 2006 season.
In 2007, Cooley was inducted into the SWAC
Hall of Fame
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
coach at Mississippi Valley State University
Mississippi Valley State University
Mississippi Valley State University is a historically black university located in Itta Bena, Mississippi, in the United States. MVSU is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund....
(MVSU) from 1980 to 1986, University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff from 1987 to 1991, Norfolk State University
Norfolk State University
Norfolk State University is a four-year, state-supported, coed, liberal arts, historically black university located in Norfolk, Virginia. It is member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund and the Virginia High-Tech Partnership.-Academics:...
1993, and Paul Quinn College
Paul Quinn College
Paul Quinn College is a private, historically black college located in the Oak Cliff area of Dallas, Texas . Paul Quinn College holds the distinction as the oldest historically black college in the country west of the Mississippi River...
from 2000 to 2006. At MVSU, Cooley is mostly remembered for being the head coach of NFL Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
wide receiver Jerry Rice
Jerry Rice
Jerry Lee Rice is a retired American football wide receiver. He is generally regarded as the greatest wide receiver of all time and one of the greatest players in National Football League history...
, and it was Cooley who brought MVSU to national attention in the early 1980s.
Early life
Cooley was born and raised in Sumrall, MississippiSumrall, Mississippi
Sumrall is a town in Lamar County, Mississippi, United States. It is part of the Hattiesburg, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,005 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Sumrall is located at ....
. He played college football at Jackson State University
Jackson State University
Jackson State University is a historically black university founded in 1877 in Natchez, MS by the American Baptist Home Mission Society of New York. The Society moved the school to Jackson in 1882, renaming it Jackson College, and developed its present campus in 1902. It became a state supported...
under the late John Merritt
John Merritt
John Ayers Merritt was a head football coach at Jackson State University and Tennessee State University...
. Cooley graduated in 1962.
Coaching career
The success Cooley achieved at MVSU is attributed to his design of his innovative "Satellite Express" passing offense, which was a 'No HuddleHurry-up offense
The hurry-up offense is an American football offensive style which has two different but related forms in which the offensive team avoids delays between plays. The no-huddle offense refers to avoiding or shortening the huddle to limit or disrupt defensive strategies and flexibility...
' offense featuring five wide receivers. Cooley led the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils to their only Division 1-AA playoff appearance in 1984. The 1984 Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils football team
1984 Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils football team
The 1984 Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils team represented the Mississippi Valley State University in the 1984 NCAA Division I-AA college football season. Its head coach was Archie Cooley.-Regular season:...
set different passing, receiving, and scoring records that featured Jerry Rice
Jerry Rice
Jerry Lee Rice is a retired American football wide receiver. He is generally regarded as the greatest wide receiver of all time and one of the greatest players in National Football League history...
and quarterback Willie Totten
Willie Totten
Willie "Satellite" Totten is the former head coach of the Mississippi Valley State University Delta Devils football team, a job he held from 2002 to 2009...
. To this day, Cooley is the winningest coach in the history of the Delta Devil football program. He also served as an associate professor of physical education
at Mississippi Valley State.
In 1987 Cooley moved on to University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff is a historically black university located in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, United States. Founded in 1873, it is the oldest HBCU and the second oldest public institution in the state of Arkansas . UAPB is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund...
, which was then an NAIA
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics is an athletic association that organizes college and university-level athletic programs. Membership in the NAIA consists of smaller colleges and universities across the United States. The NAIA allows colleges and universities outside the USA...
member before the school moved up to the Southwestern Athletic Conference
Southwestern Athletic Conference
The Southwestern Athletic Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, which is made up of historically black universities in the Southern United States...
(SWAC) in the 1990s. He coached there for 4 years from 1987 to 1990, as served at athletic director and associate professor.
In 1993, Cooley was hired as head coach at Norfolk State University
Norfolk State University
Norfolk State University is a four-year, state-supported, coed, liberal arts, historically black university located in Norfolk, Virginia. It is member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund and the Virginia High-Tech Partnership.-Academics:...
, where he stayed for only one year.
After a long hiatus from the coaching scene, Cooley returned when he became head coach at Paul Quinn College
Paul Quinn College
Paul Quinn College is a private, historically black college located in the Oak Cliff area of Dallas, Texas . Paul Quinn College holds the distinction as the oldest historically black college in the country west of the Mississippi River...
located in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. Paul Quinn was an NAIA member school which was then establishing a new football program, and Cooley was responsible for starting the program from the ground up. He served as head coach from 2000 to 2006. The school was experiencing financial and accreditation issues and its administration decided to drop the football program after the 2006 season.
In 2007, Cooley was inducted into the SWAC
Southwestern Athletic Conference
The Southwestern Athletic Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, which is made up of historically black universities in the Southern United States...
Hall of Fame