“You got to know him.”
That is what Olajuwon Cooper simply says about Jasiah Pope.
But, the Edgewood football coach is not talking so much about his returning D-IV All-Ohio receiver/running back/defensive back/whatever the coach needs him to do, as a player.
He’s talking more about someone who is more, a lot more.
Cooper is talking about a member of the Edgewood High School National Honor Society, who is considering a career in astronomy.
He’s talking about a kid who volunteers to help the youth soccer leagues that play on the fields at Edgewood High School, and is a big part of the eSports club that launched at Edgewood last year.
Mostly, Cooper is talking about someone who will do anything to help another person.
Oh yeah, Pope is also a pretty good football player.
Pope will without question be a player to watch for the Warriors this fall.
A year ago, he accumulated 42 receptions for 730 yards and nine touchdowns.
Pope saw some time in the backfield and contributed 10 carries for 112 yards and a score on his way to earning all-state honors.
With the departure of a great senior class a year ago though, including six 2026 Edgewood graduates who are scheduled to play college football this fall, Pope will be counted on to pick up an even bigger workload and maintain the foundation the Warriors program has now established.
It’s a task he’s more than looking forward to.
“The people that graduated last year, we grew up with them, and they laid the foundation,” Pope said. “Carrying on that tradition should not be a burden, it should be something that we do as a team. We want to keep that foundation solid, because if you don’t have that foundation, it can come apart.”
But to maintain the foundation will mean an increased workload for players like himself.
A year ago, the Warriors had several players who could make things happen with the ball in their hands, including Jasiah’s brother, Jaiven, who is now a part of the football program at Lake Erie College.
For the 2026 campaign, there will be some shoes to fill and playmakers to replace.
Jasiah Pope may be a guy who does not come off the field. He will not only be starting on both sides of the ball, but he will also be on the kick return team.
It’s really nothing new for him, though.
“I’ve been doing those things pretty much my whole life,” he said. “So, it’s really just doing what is kind of normal and expected of me. I just want to go out there and help my team in any way that I can.”
With the speed that makes him a sprinter on the Warriors indoor and outdoor track teams, elusiveness and the kind of upper body strength to shed tacklers, Pope is a player senior quarterback JJ DuFour said you love having out there with you.
“It’s great having a dude like that,” DuFour said. “We can really split him off to one side and throw the ball whenever we want or he can be a distraction to let the other guys get involved.”
After a year in which the Warriors had so many seniors depart, Dufour said Pope has stepped up in the role of leadership.
“He’s kind of a silent leader,” Dufour said. “He doesn’t talk a lot but puts in the work and you can see it on the field. People respect him for that.”
Cooper said that on offense, Pope will be lined up all over the place and will get the ball in a variety of ways, be it, in the backfield, the passing game, or taking handoffs from other spots on the field.
With his 4.9-second 40 speed, elusiveness and the upper body strength to shed tacklers, Cooper said it is vital to have him involved.
“When you have an athlete like that, you just give him the ball,” the coach said. “I can’t take credit for what Jasiah can do when he gets his hands on the ball and uses his God-given ability is incredible, and it speaks to how hard he works and his dedication to the game.”
But, what Cooper likes even better, is not the player on the field, but the person in the hallways and in the community.
“He’s kind of introverted, but he’s just a kind-hearted kid, he’s someone that you just have to know,” Cooper said. “He exemplifies everything we want an Edgewood football player to be. He’s what we look for in a player.
“Somebody that shows up every single day and works hard. He has some God-given ability, but you’d never know it based on how you see him conduct himself [at school and in the community].”
Dufour said, “Kids at school really like him. He’s always trying to put a smile on people’s faces.
Joining Pope on offense are Dufour, the 2025 Ashtabula County Offensive Player of the Year; juniors Nathanael Schwartfigure and senior JR Crooks in the backfield; seniors Nathan Cameron, Nolan Standle and Willie Guyton at receiver and seniors Toby Register, at center, Raymond Sharpe, right guard and Paul Siler II, right tackle and juniors James Guyton, left tackle and Jeffrey Carrick, left guard.
Other players who are expected to see significant playing time on offense are senior Zaiden Fox and junior LJ Shelott, wide receiver; freshman Kevin Hughart, running back and junior Hunter Kister, tackle, sophomore Logan Johnson and sophomore Logan Levin, guard-center.