University of North Carolina Athletics
Cooper Named AFCA All-America
November 28, 2012 | Football
WACO, Texas --- North Carolina offensive guard Jonathan Cooper has been named to the 2012 American Football Coaches Association FBS All-America Team.
A finalist for the Outland Trophy, Cooper graded out at 90 percent on the season and had double digits in knockdown blocks in nine of 12 games. He was a big reason for the Tar Heels' success on offense. Carolina set single-season records in scoring average, total offense per game and passing yards per game. Cooper helped open holes for tailback Giovani Bernard to rush for 1,228 yards.
The AFCA has selected an All-America team since 1945 and currently selects teams in all five of its divisions. What makes these teams so special is that they are the only ones chosen exclusively by the men who know the players the best - the coaches themselves.
2012 AFCA FBS Coaches' All-America Team
Offense
| Pos. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | School | Coach | Hometown (High School) |
| WR | Marqise Lee | 6-0 | 195 | So. | USC | Lane Kiffin | Inglewood, Calif. (Serra) |
| WR | Terrance Williams | 6-2 | 205 | Sr. | Baylor | Art Briles | Dallas, Texas (W.T. White) |
| TE | Zach Ertz | 6-6 | 252 | Sr. | Stanford | David Shaw | Alamo, Calif. (Monte Visa) |
| OL | Chance Warmack | 6-3 | 320 | Sr. | Alabama | Nick Saban | Atlanta, Ga. (Westlake) |
| OL | Luke Joeckel | 6-6 | 310 | Jr. | Texas A&M | Kevin Sumlin | Arlington, Texas (Arlington) |
| C | Dalton Freeman | 6-5 | 285 | Sr. | Clemson | Dabo Swinney | Pelion, S.C. (Pelion) |
| OL | Jonathan Cooper | 6-3 | 295 | Sr. | North Carolina | Larry Fedora | Wilmington, N.C. (Hoggard) |
| OL | David Yankey | 6-5 | 301 | Jr. | Stanford | David Shaw | Roswell, Ga. (Centennial) |
| QB | Tajh Boyd | 6-1 | 225 | Jr. | Clemson | Dabo Swinney | Hampton, Va. (Phoebus) |
| RB | Kenjon Barner | 5-11 | 192 | Sr. | Oregon | Chip Kelly | Riverside, Calif. (Notre Dame) |
| RB | Montee Ball* | 5-11 | 215 | Sr. | Wisconsin | Bret Bielema | Wentzville, Mo. (Timberland) |
Defense
| Pos. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | School | Coach | Hometown (High School) |
| DL | Jadeveon Clowney | 6-6 | 256 | So. | South Carolina | Steve Spurrier | Rock Hill, S.C. (South Pointe) |
| DL | Bjoern Werner | 6-4 | 255 | Jr. | Florida St. | Jimbo Fisher | Berlin, Germany (Salisbury [Conn.]) |
| DL | Damontre Moore | 6-4 | 250 | Jr. | Texas A&M | Kevin Sumlin | Rowlett, Texas (Rowlett) |
| DL | Will Sutton | 6-1 | 267 | Jr. | Arizona St. | Todd Graham | Corona, Calif. (Centennial) |
| LB | Manti Te'o | 6-2 | 255 | Sr. | Notre Dame | Brian Kelly | Laie, Hawaii (Punahou) |
| LB | Jarvis Jones* | 6-3 | 241 | Jr. | Georgia | Mark Richt | Columbus, Ga. (Carver) |
| LB | C.J. Mosley | 6-2 | 232 | Jr. | Alabama | Nick Saban | Theodore, Ala. (Theodore) |
| DB | Eric Reid | 6-2 | 212 | Jr. | LSU | Les Miles | Geismar, La. (Dutchtown) |
| DB | Dee Milliner | 6-1 | 199 | Jr. | Alabama | Nick Saban | Millbrook, Ala. (Stanhope Elmore) |
| DB | Jordan Poyer | 6-0 | 190 | Sr. | Oregon St. | Mike Riley | Astoria, Ore. (Astoria) |
| DB | Phillip Thomas | 6-1 | 215 | Sr. | Fresno St. | Tim DeRuyter | Bakersfield, Calif. (Bakersfield) |
Specialists
| Pos. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | School | Coach | Hometown (High School) |
| P | Ryan Allen | 6-2 | 215 | Sr. | Louisiana Tech | Sonny Dykes | Salem, Ore. (West Salem) |
| PK | Quinn Sharp | 6-1 | 205 | Sr. | Oklahoma St. | Mike Gundy | Mansfield, Texas (Summit) |
| AP | Tavon Austin | 5-9 | 171 | Sr. | West Virginia | Dana Holgorsen | Baltimore, Md. (Dunbar) |
Team Background: The teams now chosen for each of the AFCA's five divisions evolved from a single 11-player squad in 1945. From 1945 until 1967, only one team was chosen. From 1967 through 1971, two teams, University Division and College Division, were selected. In 1972, the College Division was split into College I and College II. In 1979, the University Division was split into two teams - Division I-A and Division I-AA. In 1996, the College I and College II teams were renamed Division II and Division III, respectively. In 2006, the Division I-A and Division I-AA teams were renamed Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), respectively. The AFCA started selecting an NAIA All-America Team in 2006.
