Could Derrek Cooper be Texas' most impactful running back signing since Bijan Robinson?

The headline is aggressive in its claim and may even be hasty, given the nature of the college football world.

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Cooper was a recruitment where NIL was a leading factor, after all.

But Texas isn’t going to be afraid of losing a back like Cooper. Texas is RBU, after all—one that has sent five RBs to the NFL in the last three drafts. It is the best option for a running back to go to if he wants a good mix of NIL money, development, and championship-winning potential.

So back to the claim at hand. Cooper is now Texas’ ninth running back commitment since Bijan Robinson in the 2020 class, when the Arizona product was the No. 2 player at his position and a top-20 recruit.

2021: Jonathon Brooks – 90.44 Rivals Industry Rating
2022: Jaydon Blue – 92.25 Rating
2023: CJ Baxter – 97.26 Rating, Quintrevion Wisner – 89 Rating
2024: Jerrick Gibson – 93.89 Rating, Christian Clark – 90.06 Rating
2025: James Simon – 93.07 Rating, Rickey Stewart Jr. – 89.06 Rating
2026: Derrek Cooper – 95.26 Rating

This group is, frankly, loaded. Even though former RB coach Stan Drayton‘s final class and his replacement Tashard Choice‘s first in 2021 and 2022 featured just two running backs total, both have now found their way to the NFL. The 2023 group featured the No. 1 RB in the class and a player fresh off a 1,000-yard season in Baxter. Choice’s final two years of recruiting still saw him bring in four backs, two of which were top-10 recruits in their respective years.

So how can Cooper even be seen as in the ballpark of these guys?

Well, first of all, Cooper is really good at the sport of football. He’s almost like the NFL version of a slashing small forward. Think about how a younger Kawhi Leonard would burst into the lane and use his elite body control and strength to bully bigger defenders. That’s what Cooper does in the power run game: get downhill, use quick feet to make strong cuts in the hole, and use his 210-pound frame to outmuscle second-level defenders. Playing linebacker helps him in this area, too.

This is a skill set that none of the players above possesses. While Brooks was the first RB off the board in 2024, he was more known for elite acceleration and smart running outside. Blue is a burner through and through. Neither of the 2023 guys possesses what Cooper has in between the tackles.

What helps Cooper’s case is that the player who should have been the most impactful recruit since Robinson — Baxter — may never get the chance to show his full potential in burnt orange. While current reports suggest he’s trending positively, he was robbed of a sophomore year that could’ve seen him break out into a legitimate star in CFB. Now, his future is much less certain.

That idea of lacking stardom also hurts Wisner, who was great as the lead back last year but doesn’t possess the natural running ability to be the best in college football. Cooper does.

Brooks has had the best individual season of this post-Bijan group, but it came after two extremely quiet ones behind Robinson and Roschon Johnson. That won’t happen with Cooper. He should receive touches as a freshman and can cut in line up to the top spot in his second year. While Choice was a great recruiter and developer at Texas, none of Gibson, Simon, Clark, or Stewart are the caliber of recruit that Cooper is. Heavy respect should be given to Chad Scott.

Everyone’s criteria is different for most impactful. Purely as a recruit, Baxter’s signing was more impactful, but his career may always have an asterisk. As an early impact player, Wisner may play more than Cooper as a sophomore, but his ceiling as a player is capped. As a full-time starter, Brooks has been the best, but that was a single year of his career that was also ended early with injuries. Cooper may be the perfect mix of all the criteria, something only Robinson has done in the Texas uniform under head coach Steve Sarkisian.

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Cooper’s mix of natural talent, health, and ability to impact the team early on may culminate in Texas’ most successful back since Robinson. This obviously comes with a lot of projecting—he’s not even going to see the field until 2026 and isn’t draft-eligible until the 2029 NFL Draft—but now is the time to invest stock into this young man. If any RB can join the likes of Robinson, Cedric Benson, and Ricky Williams in the first round, your best bet is one on Cooper.