Dedy Cooper

Dedy Cooper, track and field, 1976-79

1980 U.S. Olympic team member Dedy Cooper was an established track and field star when he enrolled at San Jose State in 1975. The Richmond, Calif., resident ran a 13.48 in the 110-meter high hurdles as a high school senior and was featured in Sports Illustrated’s Faces In The Crowd.

As a freshman, he was the 1976 NCAA champion in the high hurdles. Cooper set a world record for the 60-meter high hurdles during the 1977 indoor season with a blazing 7.54 clocking. With Cooper running sprints, leaping hurdles and handling the baton in relays, the Spartans were a top-10 team nationally in dual meet action. From 1976 through 1981, he was ranked between third and ninth in the world rankings in the high hurdles by Track & Field News. The Waco, Texas native won three conference championships in the high hurdles and dabbled briefly as a wide receiver on the 1978 San Jose State football team.