The Manning family is one of the most respected and successful families in football history. Father Archie, as well as his sons Eli and Peyton, were star quarterbacks in high school, college and eventually the NFL. The rarely discussed story is that in addition to mother Olivia Manning, there is another member of the family who cannot include the achievement of the famous NFL quarterback on their resume and that person is the third son Cooper, brother of both Eli. and Peyton.
Cooper Manning will likely spend the rest of his life being referred to behind his back or to his face as the third Manning brother. Unlike his accomplished siblings and his father, he doesn’t have multi-million dollar contracts that pay him as much as hundreds of thousands of dollars a week. Neither does he have the fame and admiration that comes from excelling in a coveted position (quarterback) at the highest level.
Archie Manning, the head of the family, first became a household name while playing quarterback for the University of Mississippi (commonly known as Ole Miss) in 1969 and 1970. Heisman Trophy candidate (awarded annually to the Most Outstanding College Football Player) He went on to find wealth and fame in the NFL, where as a pro quarterback he was selected to two pro bowls and was once named NFC Offensive Player of the Year in 1978.
Archie met his wife Olivia when they were both students at Ole Miss. Archie was in a fraternity (Sigma Nu) and Olivia was in a sorority (Delta Gamma). Archie was the star quarterback for the varsity football team and Olivia was homecoming queen her senior year. The couple married and had three children: Cooper (born 1974), Peyton (born 1976), and Eli (born 1981). Peyton and Eli are well known for their success in the NFL, as both sons have each won a Super Bowl and both have been named Super Bowl MVPs (in consecutive years: Peyton in 2007 and Eli in 2008).
Cooper Manning is the oft-forgotten son, but he feels very comfortable with this fact and enjoys the anonymity that comes with being the non-celebrity brother. Cooper at 6’4″ is a similar height to the other men in his immediate family, as his father Archie is 6’3″, his brother Peyton is 6’5″ and his brother he Eli is 6’4″. In his youth, Cooper was a standout soccer player in his own right who aspired to play at the highest level. The All-State wide receiver was a highly touted college prospect who intended to play for Ole Miss in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) before a diagnosis of a spinal condition known as spinal stenosis ended his football career. .
Cooper enjoys his brothers’ success without jealousy, as any good brother should. Cooper, who lives in his hometown of New Orleans, works as a partner in an energy investment firm known as Howard Weil. After his younger brother, Eli, won the Super Bowl in February 2008, right after Peyton won the Super Bowl in 2007, Cooper was asked by New York Magazine if he felt weird about being the only brother who didn’t he had won a Super Bowl. His cheerful response was, “Well, there’s a lot of pressure on me next year. I’m not quite sure what I’m going to do.”