It was the 40th Annual Pig Pickin’ Weekend and game two of Delta State University’s Head Football Coach Todd Cooley’s 13th season at DSU last Saturday. But the win was more than just the second one of the 2025 season. It gave him 77 wins overall at DSU – the most ever for the Statesmen.
Cooley, an Arkansas native and former quarterback, came to Cleveland to restore the program’s glory, which had fallen into decline.
His first season did just that, a 7-3 year, which earned him the Gulf South Conference Coach of the Year award. He picked up that award again in 2014 with a 9-2 team he led to the second round of the NCAA Division II playoffs. And then again in 2022 with an 11-2 team that also made the second round.
His teams picked up Gulf South Conference championships in 2014 and then again in 2022 and 2023.
“I knew it was getting close and I got the word we could do it Saturday but you try to just focus on the game,” Coach Cooley said.
His tenure has been through four DSU presidents – John Hilpert, William LaForge, Interim Butch Caston and now Dr. Daniel J. Ennis. Upon taking the post, Coach Cooley had one thing in mind.
“I was just thinking I’m really happy to get a head coaching job at a great place. I dove into it and told myself I was going to make it the best job I possibly could. I’ve always been taught that whenever you take a job, whenever you leave that job, you leave it better than when you got it. If something happened and they got rid of me tomorrow, it’s in a better spot than when I first took over.”
He did that with mantras that weren’t just for show but became life lessons and were ingrained into players and staff. “We do hard things better and control what you can control” are among things his players still hold dear today.
Coming in, Coach Cooley brought in a mix of coaches both old and young to help him cover all of his bases.
“I had some guys on my staff that were more experienced for a reason because I was young and I knew I was going to make mistakes – and I did. And they covered them up pretty good for me. Our kids were tough and they played hard and we had a chance to play for a conference title but weren’t ready for that yet, but in 2014 we were and we did win.”
Looking at his new team, he knew what to do.
“I felt like we were not a confident football team. I played on the tradition of Delta State to get that confidence back. We recruited 70 players that first year. I was hired a week before recruiting day and we just kept recruiting,” Coach Cooley said.
Making it to the top of the DSU winning mountaintop, Coach Cooley has relied on a lot of coaches and players but one in particular has stood out—a former winning Delta State coach as well who helped build the program up from 1993-1998.
“Todd Knight at Ouachita Baptist is a friend, and I coached for him. He’s one of the most organized people I’ve ever met. We don’t play them so we get to share a lot and talk a lot. It’s been a really good relationship. It’s really good to have him,” Coach Cooley said. “When I go home to Arkansas, I go see him and he comes to Cleveland every now and then.”
Navigating today’s coaching world with the portal has changed the game somewhat but Coach Cooley works to use the tool to his advantage – by talking to the coaches.
“I’m always going to call and find out everything I can about the kid. What kind of kid is he? What are his grades like? Just find out as much as I can,” he said.
He also has built his success with plenty of junior college players because, “Many of them are Mississippi kids and if they aren’t, they’ve probably had teammates that have played for us and there is some familiarity there.”
A Delta State Statesmen Facebook post was filled with congratulatory comments from DSU alumni and fans.
“Congrats to a coach who influences the lives of many men who play for him. You teach more than X’s and O’s. You teach how to be a man!! You are a father figure to so many. May God continue to favor you and your Statesmen,” Brenda Grubb wrote.
Blake Ferretti said, “Congratulations on your wins on the field Coach Cooley, but also off the field. You have molded boys into young men. It has been a blessing for me to be able to witness it. Go Statesman!”
Mary Parker Redditt wrote, “I remember being a senior in High School when we met you and Lisa Gatlin Cooley. Coach, you’ve been there for us for so much and have shaped the lives of so many. I know Lucy was one of the first ones cheering on that win. Thank you for always making everyone feel like family. We love you and Lisa!”
With a slate of tough games, Coach Cooley will work to keep pushing that record out of reach for the next generation of DSU coaches.
“I’m blessed to be the head football coach and I love coming to work every day,” he said.
