Mississippi Valley State and NFL giant Jerry Rice spoke about the passing of his collegiate head coach Archie Cooley. Known by his nickname “Gunslinger,” Cooley passed away on Thursday, April 18 at the age of 85. The Times-Picayune sports columnist Rod Walker first broke the news.
Rice, widely recognized as the best wide receiver in football history, posted his reaction to the news on his Instagram page.
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“We lost a #Legend yesterday, Archie the Gunslinger Cooley,” Rice wrote. “He was a great friend, coach, mentor, and father figure, just like Bill Walsh. He took the time to meet me face to face when he recruited me to Mississippi Valley State, and that says a lot about him as a person. That meeting was one of the main reasons I chose #MVSU. His impact on #HBCU football was huge, and he was an offensive genius. His legacy will live on forever. Love you, Coach Cooley, RIP!”
Hall of Fame and Green Bay Packers’ quarterback Brett Favre commented under Rice’s post. “Some great memories of those years,” he said. “The gunslinger and Willie air totten. Rip Archie.”
In college, Cooley played football for Jackson State University under John Merrit. He served as an assistant coach at Alcorn State and Tennessee State after graduation before landing the head coaching job at Mississippi Valley State in 1980. Despite only spending six years as the program’s head coach, Cooley left an imprint that reverberated even into the NFL. He created the ‘Satellite Express’ offense with five wide receivers and a no-huddle tempo. With Rice and quarterback Willie “Satellite” Totton, Cooley’s offense rained fire upon HBCU defenses by focusing almost entirely on the passing game. Cooley’s style doesn’t stray too far from today’s standard NFL offenses, which focus on three receivers, a tight end, and a running back who can catch passes from the backfield.
“We’re going to pass and pass and then pass some more,” Cooley said in a quote from The Athletic. “In fact, we might stop the bus on the way in and throw a little.”
In 1984, Mississippi Valley State finished with a 9-2 record. They became SWAC Champions with only one regular season loss to Alcorn State and their storied head coach, Marino ‘The Godfather’ Casern. That game, which resulted in a 42-28 score in Alcorn State’s favor, has an NFL Network documentary about it called The Godfather vs. The Gunslinger.
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