Former Central Michigan football quarterback Cooper Rush took the field for the Dallas Cowboys in the Hall of Fame Game in his NFL debut.
Football is, somewhat, officially back now. The NFL kicked off the preseason last night with the Primetime matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Arizona Cardinals. Many new faces got to try their shot at the big time and see how they would fair at the pro level.
One of those players was former Central Michigan quarterback Cooper Rush. As one of the greatest quarterbacks in Chippewa history, Rush has a solid foundation to succeed as a possible NFL backup. That is the role he is fighting for with the Cowboys behind star second-year quarterback and Mississippi State legend Dak Prescott.
The initial results for Rush were an encouraging sign that he could stick around for a while in Dallas. He threw the second touchdown for the Cowboys on a 14-yard pass to wide receiver and former Texas A&M Aggie EZ Nwachukwu. Rush’s first rush of the game was also a positive sign as he scampered for 12 yards when he came under pressure.
There were multiple questions surrounding Rush’s draft stock because of the lack of competition he faced at Central Michigan. Playing in a Group of Five conference, a QB will always get that sort of doubt coming out of college. Rush also had questions about his arm strength and ability to step up in the pocket. Since Rush did not show consistent arm strength or pocket presence, he turned the ball over very frequently.
During his senior season with Central Michigan, Rush threw for 23 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. That touchdown-to-interception ratio was not a good sign for any NFL team looking into him. However, the Cowboys have had success in the past taking quarterbacks that were originally doubted at the pro level (i.e. Tony Romo and Dak Prescott).
Rush is a more mobile QB than a lot of people give him credit for. Yet, his decision making causes him to take a lot of sacks that do not seem necessary. His decision making and arm strength looked much improved on the drive where he led the Cowboys to a touchdown. Leading a drive like that is exactly what head coach Jason Garrett looks for in a backup quarterback. Showing that you can step in at any time and be successful will land you a backup job with almost any NFL team.
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You always want to root for players like Rush that come into the NFL as an underdog from an underrated school like Central Michigan. Chippewa fans are sure to be proud of the performance that Rush left on the field against the Cardinals. No matter what his future holds he started things off well.