Upshaw Finalist Announcement (PDF)

MANHEIM, Pa. – Slippery Rock University senior offensive tackle Joe Cooper was named Friday as one of eight national finalists for the 2025 Gene Ushaw Division II Senior Lineman of the Year award.
 
Cooper, a fifth-year senior from East Berlin, Pennsylvania, joined Kutztown offensive tackle Ryan Schernecke as the two representatives from Super Region One to be named as national finalists for the top lineman in the country.
 
The Upshaw Award is presented by the Manheim Touchdown Club and is named in honor of Gene Upshaw, who was a former all-pro offensive lineman for the Oakland Raiders and later served as the executive director of the NFL Players Association for 25 years. The award is annually presented to one outstanding Division II senior offensive or defensive lineman following nominations and voting by the nation's athletic communication professionals.
 
Cooper is one of seven offensive linemen on this year's finalist list in a rare year where offensive linemen dominate the final ballot. Other finalists include Super Region Two honorees Will Hart (offensive guard from Wingate) and Avery Swinton (offensive tackle from Catawba), Super Region Three finalists Tim Anderson (offensive tackle from Feris State) and Michael Shimek (defensive end from Ashland) and Super Region Four honorees Slade Edwards (offensive guard from Central Washington) and Jake Mitchell (offensive tackle from Harding).
 
The national finalist honor continues a growing list of postseason awards for Cooper, who was just yesterday named to first team All-Region honors by the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association. Cooper also took home first team All-PSAC honors earlier this fall and is now a three-time All-PSAC honoree and a two-time first team All-Region selection.
 
Cooper started 38 straight games over the last three seasons including every game of the 2023 season at the right tackle position and every game of the last two years at the left tackle spot. He anchored an offensive line this fall that allowed just 10 total sacks while blocking for a freshman quarterback. The 10 sacks were the fewest allowed by any team in the PSAC West this year and ranked 16th for the fewest allowed by any team in the country.

Despite returning just two offensive starters from last year's NCAA semifinal run, Slippery Rock's offense racked up 217.8 rushing yards and 418.1 total yards per game while scoring just over 32 points per game this fall.
 
Cooper and The Rock's offensive line helped pave the way for first team All-Region and PSAC West Athlete of the Year running back JayJay Jordan, who ran for 1,375 yards and ranked in the top five in Division II in every rushing and all-purpose yardage category this fall.
 
Over his four year career, Cooper appeared in 43 games with 38 starts and helped lead Slippery Rock to winning seasons in all four years with three trips to the national playoffs, two appearances in at least the NCAA quarterfinals and one trip to the national semifinals.
 
A legitimate NFL prospect with on-campus visits from more than 25 NFL teams this year, Cooper was one of only 10 Division II players to be named to the East-West Shrine Bowl Watch List this fall. He was also named to the D2football.com Preseason Elite 100 list after earning All-America honors in 2024 from both the Associated Press and D2CCA.
 
Cooper becomes the 12th Slippery Rock player to be named a finalist for the Upshaw since the award's inception in 2004 and gives The Rock a national finalist for the sixth straight season and the 10th time in the last 11 seasons. SRU has two former winners of the award with offensive lineman Brandon Fusco winning in 2010 and defensive end Marcus Martin winning in 2017. 
 
The Upshaw Lineman of the Year winner will be announced Dec. 12.
 
2025 GENE UPSHAW DII LINEMAN OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
Tim Anderson - OT - Ferris State
Joe Cooper - OT - Slippery Rock
Slade Edwards - OC - Central Washington
Will Hart - OG - Wingate
Jake Mitchell - OT - Harding
Ryan Schernecke - OT – Kutztown
Michael Shimek - DE – Ashland
Avery Swinton - OT – Catawba
 
SLIPPERY ROCK'S UPSHAW AWARD FINALISTS
Mike Butterworth, OL (2007)
Brandon Fusco, OL (2010) *
Cory Tucker, OL (2014)
Cory Tucker, OL (2015)
Marcus Martin, DE (2016)
Marcus Martin, DE (2017) *
Chris Larsen, OL (2019)
Chad Kuhn, DE (2021)
D.J. Adediwura, DE (2022)
Yuriy Hryckowian, OL (2023)
Todd Hill, DE (2024)
Joe Cooper, OL (2025)
 
* Upshaw Award winners



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