NFL star 'honored' by connection to Elgin High player

Just as the story of Winfred Cooper's magical touchdown didn't start in the end zone, it hasn't ended there, either.

A local father - with the help of the Green Bay Packers - is clamoring to organize a special play of his own to honor the Elgin High senior at the school's homecoming game tonight.

"This is really about what athletics can do, but it goes so far beyond that," said Dave Smiley, the school's principal.

At a junior varsity football game between Elgin and Roselle's Lake Park High School on Sept. 12, Cooper, a senior with severe autism, was called into the game.

He hadn't played much all year. Lake Park Coach Nana Agyeman knew that and had made an earlier offer to Dave Bierman, Elgin's coach.

The two coaches devised a play called "Driver Driver," named after Packers' wide receiver Donald Driver.

During the second half of the game, Driver Driver was called.

The ball was snapped. "Coop," as he's known, found an opening, caught a wobbly pass and began running like there was no tomorrow.

As the fans on both sidelines, along with both sets of coaches and Elgin's players cheered and shouted, Cooper bobbed and wove his way into the end zone, running a full 67 yards.

John Glowinski hadn't heard of Cooper's magic touchdown until his wife forwarded him a Daily Herald article on the game Wednesday.

But he had heard of Cooper.

Glowinski, of Carol Stream, has a son and daughter who attend the gifted academy at Elgin High.

Like many at the 2,200-student school, Sarah, a senior, and Jack, a sophomore, know Cooper well, Glowinski said.

At a varsity football game last fall - Cooper plays for both the JV and varsity teams - Glowinski said he noticed Cooper "suited up, on the sidelines, high-fiving players when they came off the field."

As the game progressed, Glowinski heard a chant coming from Memorial Field's student section.

It started with a few kids, growing louder and louder.

"We want Winfred! We want Winfred!" they shouted.

Cooper got in the game, and the crowd went wild.

"He has always been near and dear to the hearts of everyone at Elgin High," Glowinski said. "I can promise you that anyone in Elgin who read yesterday's story said, 'My gosh, look what happened for Winfred.'"

Glowinski, who grew up a Packer fan in Milwaukee, says he knows what the Packers organization has is a real hometown sensibility. So he thought he'd check with them to see if there is anything Donald Driver might be able to do.

As of Thursday afternoon, Glowinski had received several e-mails back from the Packers.

Adam Woullard, a spokesman for the Packers, said Driver read Cooper's story after practice Thursday.

In a written statement, Driver said he was inspired by Coop's story:

"It feels good to know I had an impact on a great kid. I am honored that the play was named after me, and it was great that Coop executed it so well. What a touchdown! I wish him the best of luck with whatever he does, football or otherwise."

Driver is planning to contact Cooper, Woullard said.

Cooper also has something up his own sleeve.

Tonight is Elgin's homecoming game. In a twist of fate, the school will play Lake Park.

Cooper went to his dad, Winfried, with an idea.

"He said to me, 'I think I'll go and thank the coaches.' I had been thinking of that, too, but he thought if it on his own," Coop's father said.

He said he and his son have talked about the touchdown, and of the kindly ploy on the behalf of the players and coaches for both teams to give him his moment in the sun.

"It didn't make any difference. For him it was the accomplishment, the thrill of making the touchdown. And that was a sight to see."

<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Video</h2> <!-- Start of Brightcove Player --> <div style="display:none"> </div> <!-- By use of this code snippet, I agree to the Brightcove Publisher T and C found at http://corp.brightcove.com/legal/terms_publisher.cfm. --> <script language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript" src="http://admin.brightcove.com/js/BrightcoveExperiences.js"></script> <object id="myExperience41503635001" class="BrightcoveExperience"> <param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /> <param name="width" value="300" /> <param name="height" value="255" /> <param name="playerID" value="18011347001" /> <param name="publisherID" value="1659832549"/> <param name="isVid" value="true" /> <param name="@videoPlayer" value="41503635001" /> </object> <!-- End of Brightcove Player --> </ul> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=323321">Autistic player's dream comes true as he scores his first touchdown <span class="date"> [9/23/09]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>