Greg Cooper Appointed New Behrend Lions Head
Coach
On
Tuesday, January 21, 2007 Penn State Behrend Director of Athletics
Brian Streeter announced the appointment of head track and field and
cross country coach Greg Cooper.
Cooper is no stranger to the program. He previously served under his father, Dave Cooper, as assistant coach of the track and field team at Behrend for five years and the cross country team for two years. He has also coached and taught at the high school level.
"We are excited to have a former athlete who had success in the classroom and in athletic competition as our head coach," said Director of Athletics, Brian Streeter. "We have the unique benefit of having a terrific assistant coach to work along Greg as he matures into the head coaching role."
As an assistant coach Cooper specialized in the 400 and 800 meter sprints as well as the hurdles. He played an integral role in coaching Isiah Meek to national qualifying times in both the indoor and outdoor hurdles. This season Cooper will also be taking on the additional assignments of coaching the 100 and 200 meter sprint events.
Cooper was a cross country and track standout at Union City High School where he was a PIAA champion in track & field (4 x 800 meter relay) and captain of Union City’s 1996 PIAA State Champion cross country team. Cooper continued his success at Behrend, where he set records in the 400 and 800 meters as well as three relay records.
Cooper graduated from the Behrend MBA program in May of 2006. In addition to coaching Cooper also instructs in the health and physical education department.
Greg's father, Dave Cooper, will transition to the assistant coaching role entering his sixth year as a part of Behrend track and field and cross country programs.
In his five seasons at the helm, the men’s and women’s track and field teams set scores of records, both indoors and outdoors. Behrend has qualified a total of 23 athletes at the ECAC and NCAA level over the past two seasons.
Among his many accomplishments are the capturing of the Boys State Cross Country Championship Title in 1996 and 1997, the state runners-up title in 1990, and 19 league titles. His boys dual meet record was 249 wins and 32 losses. The girls program, which was initiated by Cooper, secured ten conference crowns. In 2000, he was listed among the “Coaches of the Century” by the Erie Times Sports Department.
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