IU football's Omar Cooper Jr. makes stunning headfirst catch vs Michigan after being upended
Indiana football may have let its game against Michigan get away in the third quarter, but the highlight of the day came from a Hoosier.
With time waning in the third, IU quarterback Brendan Sorsby airmailed a pass to receiver Omar Cooper Jr. Cooper elevated and grabbed it before getting upended by defensive back Quinten Johnson.
The play happened on the sideline at Michigan Stadium on Saturday, and it looked like Cooper may have landed out of bounds. However, in an incredible display of both body control and giving up his body for the play, Cooper's head actually landed before any other part of his body. As a result, the play was ruled complete.
Omar Cooper Jr. catch vs. Michigan
When talking about crazy catches, they don't get a whole lot crazier than this.
How did Cooper Jr. hang onto this?! 😱@IndianaFootball pic.twitter.com/F3DLvNwbhu
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 14, 2023
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The play was subsequently reviewed and not only did it stand, but it was confirmed, giving Cooper a 17-yard gain on third-and-13 to give Indiana a first down.
While seeing a player land on his head is always scary, Cooper was fine after the play. The broadcast called it one of the catches of the year, and that's hard to argue with. After all, it's not often you a player lead with his head vertically rather than horizontally.
Cooper, a three-star prospect out of Lawrence North in Indianapolis, is breaking through into IU's receiving corps. He entered this game with 11 catches on the year, and had two catches for 24 yards through three quarters in Ann Arbor. Displays of athleticism such as this aren't going to hurt him in the slightest moving forward, despite an overall rough day for the Hoosiers.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: See Indiana's Omar Cooper Jr. make stunning headfirst catch vs Michigan