Niko Cooper: LB · Western Kentucky · #48.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Niko Cooper
Fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge. Played for two head coaches across four seasons and two programs. On tape: 7 tackles and 1 tackle for loss against South Florida, Week 1, 2023.
Play style
Downhill striker who fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
38 tackles. 2 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 3 TFL.
Counts only, never a rate — splash-event sample sizes this small (interceptions, pass breakups, TFL) are noise as a rate and signal only as a tally.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Western Kentucky | 38 | 25 | 3.0 | 1.0 | 2 |
| 2022 | Western Kentucky | 12 | 9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- |
| 2021 | Western Kentucky | 9 | 9 | 1.0 | 0.0 | -- |
| 2020 | Nebraska | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- |
| Career | 62 | 45 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 2 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2023 season · 12 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 41-24vs South Florida | 7 | 7 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 52-22vs Houston Christian | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 10-63@ No. 6 Ohio State | 6 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 24-27@ Troy | 6 | 3 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 31-10vs Middle Tennessee | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 35-28@ Louisiana Tech | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 17-20@ Jacksonville State | 4 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | L 29-42vs Liberty | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | W 21-13@ UTEP | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 12 | W 28-23vs Sam Houston | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 13 | W 41-28@ Florida International | 5 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
 Bowl | W 38-35vs Old Dominion | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 38 | 25 | 3.0 | 1.0 | — | 2 |
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
38tackles this seasonTFL rate
8%3 TFLSack rate
3%1 sackPD rate
5%2 pass breakups38 tackles · 3 for loss · 1 sack.
Splits · Per-game
2023 season · 12 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 2.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.2 |
| Road6g | 4.5 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 3.7 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+5g | 2.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.4 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Tyson Helton
Pass share
60.8%
539 pass / 347 run
Plays / game
68.2
13 games
Team sack rate
2.3%
559 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Pass-leaning.
Player standing · 2023
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS linebackers who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #391 at the position.
How it ended
Four seasons, at Nebraska and Western Kentucky, 62 tackles — the college career is complete.
Four or fewer games in the first season, then ten or more.
The role got bigger.
Coaching lineage · 2020–2023
2 coachesPlayed for 2 head coaches at 2 schools: Scott Frost and Tyson Helton.
