The saying goes that behind every successful man is a strong woman. In Cooper Kupp’s case, who takes on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the Los Angeles Rams in the Divisional Round on Sunday, it’s his wife Anna.

Munich – It’s a bit cheesy when you hear the story of Anna and Cooper Kupp.

No, actually it’s incredibly cheesy.

You know from high school teen romances when girl and boy meet, fall in love at first sight and then get married. Yes, Anna and Cooper did just that.

“I knew she was the one I wanted to marry when we first met in high school,” Kupp, a wide receiver for the Los Angeles Rams, told ESPN. “I told my mum the day I met her, ‘I’m going to marry this girl.'”

Early Marriage

Which he then did. By then he was 22, she was 21.

What impresses – if you leave out the kitsch – is the conviction and passion with which they both approached the relationship and then the marriage. As a team, because where one was, the other was also. An inseparable couple, sought and found.

Even in college, at Eastern Washington, when Anna was part of the team in her own way, in the weight room with Cooper, on the court at 7-on-7 or doing analysis. Or as a nurse when Kupp was injured.

“We were just so unified in terms of our goals, what we wanted to do in the future and what we wanted to be as a couple,” Kupp said. “And the belief that football is the community, the place I was supposed to be, the place we were supposed to be, and the place God was leading us. “

It’s not by chance that they say: behind every successful man is a strong woman.

To stay with the kitsch: You could safely put a photo of the Kupps next to the saying – because Anna took care of the finances while Cooper was at university, so he could keep his head clear. “I worked full time so he didn’t have to worry and could concentrate,” she said.

Rock in the Wall

Kupp knows this, Anna is his rock, partner, driver, inspiration. Again: Cheesy, but true.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that I wouldn’t be where I am today without her, nor would I be accomplishing the things I’m accomplishing,” Kupp said. “I wouldn’t be in the NFL if it wasn’t for her with what she inspired in me.”

So naturally, both are enjoying the 2021 season together, now with two sons. It’s the best year of Kupp’s career so far, with 145 receptions, 1,947 yards and 16 touchdowns, and several records. The reward: selection to the First Team All-Pro and the Pro Bowl.

The quarterback superstar’s next opponent in the Divisional Round of the playoffs is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.

The dream lives on, two wins away from the big game, the Rams would even have a home game in Los Angeles. With Anna and the kids in the stands.

And an extremely high potential for kitsch.