Keelan Cox graduated from Manvel High School a few years ago with dreams of doing big things on the football field and in the classroom.
Four years later, with a degree in hand and after stops at powerhouse Alabama and Wyoming, Cox is back home at Texas Southern and he couldn’t be happier. If only someone had told him where he would finish his collegiate career just miles away from his home in Missouri City.
“I probably would have just went home instead of following the great coaches I’ve been with at Alabama and Wyoming,” Cox said in an interview with the Defender. “Home is important and the reason I went away was to get that experience and to be under coaches like (former Alabama head coach) Coach (Nick) Saban and stuff like that.
“But if I had known I was going to be here, I would have probably just come straight here and played for my hometown team and played for my city.”
It all came into focus for Cox a couple of weeks ago when he lined up with the Tigers and was apart of a historic win when they defeated Prairie View in the season-opening Labor Day Classic to snap a nine-game losing streak to the Panthers.
Cox, who was a walk-on at Alabama for two years and then on scholarship at Wyoming the last two seasons, hadn’t really touched the field in his first two stops.
That all changed on Aug. 31.
What I’ve learned most about myself is I’m a guy who can be a leader. I feel like there is not a role or position you can put me that I’m not going to excel. I feel like I’m an adjustable guy where I can hop on a job, learn it three days I will be probably the best to do it. Anywhere I’ve gone, I’ve had a light.
Keelan Cox
Not only was Cox on the field as the Tigers’ starting defensive end, but the rangy 6-foot-4, 240-pound athlete was all over the field making plays to affect the 27-9 outcome over rival Prairie View. He finished with three tackles, two sacks, two pass breakups and a forced fumble to help deliver first-year coach Cris Dishman’s first TSU victory.
“For me, it was ‘This is my chance to change the narrative here at my hometown school,'” said Cox, who is a graduate student by class but is a junior in playing years with two seasons left to play. “It was a very big win and I wanted to give off the message that, I’m here for you guys, for Coach Dishman, my teammates, my coaches and my whole family. I’m here for my community.
“Going into that game, we all knew the goal, we all knew the plan.”
His performance in the season opener was everything the coaching staff had envisioned for the versatile defensive position Cox plays. Cox has pass-rushing and traditional defensive end responsibilities, but his size and athleticism also allow him to drop into coverage against running backs and tight ends when necessary.
Cox, like all of his teammates, struggled in last week’s 69-7 Game 2 loss at Rice, finishing with just one tackle. But TSU defensive line coach Matthew Passwaters is excited about what he can do over the course of the season.
“The sky is the limit for him,” Passwaters said. “He works hard enough, he is smart enough on the field and he already has his degree from the University of Wyoming so he is smart enough in the classroom.
“He has a bright future ahead of him, whether it’s in the NFL, UFL, or whatever he wants to do outside of football. He’s got a good head on his shoulders. He is setting himself up for success on and off the field every day.”
Cox, who was a part of Crimson Tides’ national title in 2020 and was on the team with Texans’ defensive end Will Anderson, Jr., is just excited about the opportunity to affect games at TSU.
“It’s very fun, knowing the potential that I have,” he said. “Like, I say, ‘The work doesn’t stop.’ I’m still waking up 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. getting home.
“It’s still a lot of work to be done and knowing that I can change the game is very important to me and also to my teammates because I know I have the potential to do it. I believe in myself.”
Now he sees this as an opportunity to change his own narrative on the field.
“When you know who you are doing it for and the family and the environment that you’ve got around you, it’s better than getting paid and playing,” Cox said. “I would do this (for nothing). I do this for Coach Dishman, and my family (teammates and coaches).”
Cox landed at TSU this summer after a bit of a back-and-forth about his future at Wyoming. He initially decided to put his name into the transfer portal last December after head coach Craig Bohl made the decision to retire and defensive coordinator Jay Sawvel took over.
But Cox withdrew his name from the transfer portal in January only to put it back into the portal in April. Cox says it came down to Wyoming not being willing to pay for his master’s degree after he had earned a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology.
“So I got into the portal and I was just like I want to go home,” said Cox, who is pursuing a master’s degree in sports sciences at TSU. “I had been at Alabama for two years, and I was at Wyoming for two years and I graduated there.
“So I was just like, ‘You know what, I’ve still got some eligibility left,’ because in 2020 I have a COVID redshirt and I have a medical redshirt.”
Passwaters was familiar with Cox because he was on the coaching staff at North Texas that had an interest in Cox when he left Alabama. It didn’t work out at North Texas.
“But the second time around, I was like we’ve got to get on this guy and we did,” Passwaters said. “He just loves being in Houston, he loves getting better every day. I can’t say a bad thing about the kid since he has been here. He shows up on time, he has never missed anything. He is awesome.
“I’m glad I get to have him in the room for a few years.”
And Cox is certainly happy to be home.
“This is breathtaking honestly,” he said. “It’s more family-oriented than the other schools I’ve been at. We play for each other here. It’s not about the politics, the big money or the cameras, the lights. It’s just us and being a family and working hard for each other.
“It’s more of a real feeling.”
KEELAN COX
Position: Defensive end
Class: Graduate student (junior eligibility)
Height: 6-4
Weight: 240 pounds
Previous stops: Wyoming, Tyler JC and Alabama
Degree: Bachelor’s in Kinesiology
Major: Pursuing Master’s in Sports Science
