Oak Harbor lost one of its athletic legends earlier this month.
Jim Cope, a 1964 graduate, died unexpectedly March 1 at his home in Houston. He was 64.
For long-time Wildcat fans, Cope is considered one of greatest, if not the best, high school athlete to have competed for OHHS.
Cope earned nine varsity letters, three each in football, basketball and baseball. He was all-conference and team captain in all three sports, the first Wildcat athlete to earn the Athlete of the Year award twice and the school’s first all-state football player. His senior year he led the football team in rushing and the football and basketball teams in scoring.
Although he excelled at all sports, football was his best. Cope, an all-league running back his junior year, was moved to quarterback his senior season by coach Will McGillivray so the team’s most talented athlete could touch the ball on every play. The move immediately paid off when Cope raced 56 yards for a touchdown on a quarterback sneak on his first carry of the season. After that TD, the defense held with a three-and-out, and Cope returned the ensuing punt 75 yards for another score.
Later in the season against Arlington, he rushed for 251 yards on only nine carries and scored on runs of 94, 54 and 50 yards.
Cope led Oak Harbor to an 8-0-1 record and the league title. He averaged over 10 yards per carry although he was slowed by a knee injury that forced him to miss one game. He also averaged 24.6 yards per punt return.
The Associated Press named Cope the state’s best quarterback.
After graduating from Oak Harbor High School, Cope went on to be a three-year starter for the University of Washington football team and twice led the Huskies in receiving.
Cope received the UW’s most prestigious honor, the Guy Flaherty Award, and was team captain in 1968. Cope had 11 receptions for 195 yards and two touchdowns against USC in 1966. The 11 receptions set a Washington record that wasn’t broken until 1998; the 195 yards is the seventh most all-time.
Sid Parker, Cope’s baseball coach at Oak Harbor High School, said, “From the time I was there (from the late ‘50s to early ‘80s), he was the best athlete or very close to the best.”
Cope’s high-school classmate Mike Rodgers echoed those comments: “He was the best. There were other great ones, but he was the best.”
His greatest asset was his quickness. Rodgers said, “He had speed and agility, and he was quick. There is a difference between speed and quickness.”
Parker said, “He could run 10 yards faster than anyone.”
Both Parker and Rodgers called Cope “a great leader.” Rodgers added that Cope was “tenacious” and “wanted to win badly, and we followed.”
One of Cope’s greatest individual performances off the football field came on the baseball diamond when Oak Harbor met Snohomish for the league championship in 1963. The Panthers were led by pitcher Jim Ollom who would go on to pitch for the Minnesota Twins.
Ollom threw a no-hitter, struck out 15 and allowed only two base runners, both walks, yet Oak Harbor won 1-0.
After Ollom walked Cope in the seventh inning, Cope stole second, moved to third on a passed ball and then, with two outs, took advantage of Ollom’s slow windup and dashed home on a straight steal to win the game.
In addition to Cope’s athletic success, he served as the senior class president.
Parker said, “He was a remarkable kid…For all his success, he never seemed to get a swelled head.”
Rodgers recalled a time when Cope and some friends drank soda from a machine with a straw to avoid paying. Cope felt so guilty, he returned to the store counter and put down a fistful of coins that covered the cost of the pop several times over.
A celebration of life will be held for Cope at the Washington Athletic Club in Seattle Sunday, April 17, at 2 p.m.
Here are several of Cope’s marks at the University of Washington:
First all-time in return yards in a game, 177.
Second all-time on most kick returns in a game, nine.
Seventh all-time for kick-off return yards in a game, 137.
Eighth all-time in kick-off return average, 22.9
