Hall of Fame
A massive and multi-talented football player, Damion Cook had experience playing both offense and defense for the Wildcats from 1997-2000. He started at defensive tackle in the 1998 Heritage Bowl and spent enormous amounts of time on offense in short yardage situations. While it was clear that he had all of the tools to become a legendary offensive lineman, Damion played where the team needed him most – defense. Recognizing his stellar talent, NFL veteran and then head coach Alvin Wyatt groomed this giant for a career in the National Football League. Cook played in the famed eight-overtime win against Virginia State in 1997, which at the time was the longest game in NCAA history with one of the zaniest plays of the year. In the sixth overtime, Damion broke through and blocked a VSU field goal and took off towards the end zone for an apparent 82-yard touchdown, but dove too soon into the end zone only to come up two yards short. Two overtimes later, the Cats celebrated the win after a huge sack by Cook allowed the Cats to take possession and score the game winning TD. Damion starred in the first season of "Hard Knocks" with the Baltimore Ravens, the NFL training camp television show, as he successfully earned a spot with the Ravens and went on the play 26 games in his career with the Ravens and the Cleveland Browns. He also played in the Canadian Football League and the United Football League. In the 2015, the Wildcat nation was heartbroken at the sudden death of this great young father, husband and Maryland high school football coach, and the Bethune-Cookman Athletic Department honored his memory by naming the football student-athlete of the year award as the Damion Cook Award. The son of two Bethune-Cookman alums, Donald and Dr. Dorothy Cook, Damion Cook was one of the most respected and well-liked students to ever grace the campus.
