Miami Central’s James Cook made most of opportunities at Georgia. Now, he’s in the NFL
James Cook wrapped up his college career by winning a national championship with the Georgia Bulldogs.
Now, his NFL career is set to begin.
The Buffalo Bills drafted Cook with the 63rd overall pick in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft on Friday.
Cook, the younger brother of 2017 second-round pick Dalvin Cook, made an name for himself at Miami Central before playing his college career at UGA.
Cook was a Miami Herald first-team All-Dade football player as a senior after he ran for 782 rushing and 10 touchdowns while also recording three interceptions (and returning two of those for touchdowns) on defense.
He was a four-star prospect at that time and the No. 41 overall player in the Class of 2018 recruiting cycle, according to the 247Sports composite rankings.
The 22-year-old was never the star in the backfield in college — he shared the position with the likes of D’Andre Swift, Elijah Holyfield, Brian Herrien and Zamir White throughout his tenure with the Bulldogs — but still managed to record 1,503 rushing yards on 230 carries (6.5 yards per rush) and 14 touchdowns and add 730 receiving yards and six touchdowns on 67 catches.
That included a four-catch, 112-yard, one-touchdown performance in the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Orange Bowl, barely 6 miles from where he played most of his high school games.
“It’s about opportunities,” Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken said in the week leading up to the Orange Bowl. “Plays are one thing, but opportunities with the ball in their hands, and he does a tremendous job. We’ve relied on him heavily and he’s done a great job with it.”
And now he has his chance to make his mark in the NFL.
This story was originally published April 29, 2022 at 9:32 PM.
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