Georgia coach wears RB James Cook's jersey during Peach Bowl after death of Cook's father
James Cook didn’t play in the Peach Bowl but there was someone on the Georgia sideline wearing his jersey.
Georgia running backs coach Dell McGee wore Cook’s No. 4 while he was coaching against Cincinnati on Friday. Cook, the brother of Minnesota Vikings RB Dalvin Cook, was absent from Friday’s game because of the sudden death of their father.
Georgia RB coach Dell McGee honoring James Cook by wearing his uniform 🙏
Cook's father passed away earlier this week. pic.twitter.com/xDQnyLPGyn— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) January 1, 2021
The elder James Cook died earlier this week. He was 46. The Georgia freshman went home to be with his family on Wednesday.
“He’s not with us. It's really unfortunate. He got the news, I forget what day of the week it was, but he got the news two days ago,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said during a Thursday news conference. “He woke up to the news that his father had passed. He talked to Dell, reached out, and he already had a flight home. He wanted to go home and be with his family, and we certainly understand that and support him.”
James Cook was Georgia’s second-leading rusher in 2020 with 45 carries for 303 yards.
Like James, Dalvin Cook won’t be playing this weekend either. The Vikings running back went home this week too and will reportedly miss the team’s Week 17 game against the Lions. Minnesota is not in playoff contention.
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