Another Manning brother?

I had an argument with a friend of mine recently about how tough it must be for Cooper Manning. This guy was saying how if he was Cooper Manning, he would be eaten up with jealousy and thoughts of suicide. But by all accounts, Cooper Manning is close to his family. It sounds like he's got a pretty good job, that he got on his own. And they showed his wife during an LSU-Ole Miss game a couple of years ago and she was damn good looking. I imagine the guy made peace quickly with the fact he wouldn't play in the NFL and he's done very well for himself.

 

Plus, he probably never has to worry about guys like Robert Geathers...

 

The guy is a gas trader. How could he not be funny?

Man, put Dane Cook someone funny in a job as a gas trader and VH1 has a new TV show.

 

Michaels gave him the Chuck Cunningham treatment last night.

 

I believe this same article mentioned his sense of humor and one of his pranks: When Peyton was at Tennessee, Cooper, who looked a lot like Peyton of course, might be hanging out in one of the bars on the strip, smoking a cigar at 1am before a big game. Fans who mistook him for Peyton would ask how he was going to be ready to play the next day. He would just shrug it off, saying it was just Alabama, Florida, etc.

If the medical condition had not stricken his football career, Peyton was definitely Ole Miss bound.

 

Cooper, whose name is pronounced something like "Cupper" by Archie, also had a radio show on WWL Radio for a bit.

 

You never know.

 

There was a piece in the NY times today about it. It's a narrowing of the spinal canal. He has some surgery, has a major scar on his neck and elsewhere. His right hand still shakes, apparently, and he doesn't have much strength. He can play golf, though.

Story talked about how he and Peyton, because they were so close in age, fought like cats and dogs to the point that old Arch finally bought them boxing gloves and had them go at it. After five minutes of holding their arms up, they were exhausted and came away with a new respect for boxers. Cooper also said that if you shaved their heads, you would see all the scars of those battles.

It said that he was just in his first year, trying to earn a spot on the team, when it happened. You can't regret not having an NFL career when you never even had a college career.

he's about 6-foot-4, too.

Peyton was his QB one year when both were in high school at the same time. Think Cooper was a senior, Peyton a sophomore.

 

good ESPN column this past week on the guy who played QB at the Mannings' high school after Peyton and before Eli.

 

Spinal stenosis is a narrowing of the spinal canal in the neck region. It's the same thing that ended the playing career of Terrence Murphy, the Green Bay rookie who got taken off a stretcher on MNF in Week 4 last season.

Tests showed the condition and the Packers waived him last March. The Texans looked at him but wouldn't take the risk.

 

That's gotta suck!

 

Very true.