He holds three major NCAA Football Championship Subdivision career records, so it only seems appropriate he accomplishes things in threes.
 
For the third time in his illustrious playing and academic career, senior wide receiver Cooper Kupp has earned NCAA Division I Academic All-America honors as selected by the College Sports Information Directors.
 
A first team selection for the second-straight year, the 24-player squad includes teams from both the Football Championship Subdivision and Football Bowl Subdivision levels. Kupp earned second team Academic All-America honors as a sophomore.
 
Kupp is an economics major with a 3.62 grade point average. He has completed his degree and has continued studies through this quarter. A 4.0 student in high school, he is a 2012 graduate of Davis High School in Yakima, Wash.
 
Eastern football players have now earned 13 CoSIDA Academic All-America honors since 1989, including seven first-team selections. Nine different players have garnered those honors, including the first three-time winner in Kupp (2014, 2015 and 2016), and repeat performers Steve Mattson (1996 and 1997) and Kyler Randall (2002 and 2003).
 
On the field, Kupp joins quarterback Gage Gubrud as one of the three remaining finalists for the Walter Payton Award. He was honored as the Big Sky Conference co-Offensive MVP along with Gubrud, the first time in league history two players from the same team were selected by the coaches to share the award. Kupp was a unanimous first team selection, and became just the fourth player in league history to earn first team all-league all four seasons.
 
Kupp repeated as league MVP after catching 91 passes for 1,297 yards and 12 touchdowns in the regular season heading into this Saturday's (Dec. 3) second round NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Playoff game at 1 p.m. at Roos Field versus Central Arkansas. He is a shoo-in to earn All-America honors for the fourth-straight year when teams begin to be announced later in December.
 
Despite missing 1 1/2 games earlier in the season and almost a half at Portland State on Nov. 18 with shoulder injuries, he still leads FCS in receiving yards per game (129.7), is second in receptions per game (9.1), and is seventh in receiving touchdowns (12).
 
Kupp enters this week's FCS Playoffs with FCS, Big Sky and school career records with 402 receptions, 6,061 yards and 68 touchdown receptions. He has broken a total of 13 FCS, 10 Big Sky and 22 school records. Kupp broke the TD record with three versus Washington State in EWU's opener. He had 12 catches for 206 yards, giving him 11 touchdowns receiving in four games versus four Pac-12 opponents in his career on a total of 40 catches for 716 yards.
 
He earned FCS National Player of the Week honors once this season and was honored four times by the Big Sky.
 
 

 
EWU FOOTBALL ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA HONORS

CoSIDA Academic All-America All-Time Team: 1997 - Kurt Schulz, Defensive Back (played 1988-91)
CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team: 2016 – Cooper Kupp, Wide Receiver. 2015 – Cooper Kupp, Wide Receiver. 2009 - Jacob Kragt, Defensive End; 2003 - Kyler Randall, Wide Receiver; 2002 - Kyler Randall, Wide Receiver; 1997 - Steve Mattson, Defensive End; 1997 - Jeff Ogden, Wide Receiver
CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team: 2014 – Cooper Kupp, Wide Receiver. 2012 - Jeff Minnerly, Safety; 2000 - Lance Ballew, Tight End; 1998 - Mike MacKenzie, Running Back; 1996 - Steve Mattson, Defensive End; 1991 - Kurt Schulz, Defensive Back