Part 3 of a three-part series about former McNeese track and field Southland Conference champions, written by John Lemke.

LAKE CHARLES – The final part of this three part series focusing on former McNeese track and field conference champions will take a look at David Kohrs, Brian Cooper, Verril Young and Keri Gilroy (Ange) – four of the most decorated athletes in McNeese track and field history.
 
Kohrs was a distance runner for the Cowboys in the late 1970's, a career that saw the Madison, Wisconsin native win the 1500-meter run and the 3000-meter steeplechase at the 1979 Southland Championship meet.  His performance at the meet earned him Outstanding Running Events Performer as well as the High Point scorer of the meet.  He held the 3000-meter steeplechase record set at the 1979 championship meet at McNeese for 38 years until Christoph Graf broke it just a couple years ago. 
 
In cross country, Kohrs twice finished first overall individually and three times qualified for the national championship meet (1975, 1976, 1978) while leading the Cowboys to the conference title all three of those seasons.  He was inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 2011. 
 
"I remember the Southland Conference Championships were held at a cold and rainy meet in Jonesboro, Arkansas," reflected Kohrs. "At the time, Arkansas State was a member of the Southland Conference and they hosted the championships.  Their premier pole vaulter was World Record holder Earl Bell.  It was a thrill to go to the conference championships and watch a world record vaulter.  I would like to say I was inspired by Bells' record vault to run a personal best, but it was more likely the fear of getting dropped from scholarship that I ran a PB in the 3-mile.   Or maybe, it was the cold and rainy weather that was more to my liking that got into my blood.  Whatever it was, I ran on Pat O'Callaghan's shoulder for as long as I could.  Pat won the event in 13:54, USL's Tom Nolin was second at 14:01 and I finished third at 14:03. That mark was good enough to get me to postseason track meet in an Olympic Year.  
 
"The tune up and last chance for NCAA qualifying was the USTFF Meet in Wichita, Kansas.  Pat (O'Callaghan) also ran the 3000 Steeple and won it in a time of 8:57 and we were both off to the USTFF meet. My best memory of the USTFF was sitting on the plane next to four-time Olympian in the shot and discus Al Outer, and talking to Howie Ryan, the U.S. steeple champion.
 
"At Conference Championships in Beaumont, Pat began his triple event schedule running the 3000-meter steeple.  We ran together for a bit, and then he just took off.   He was well ahead with two laps to go and they rang the bell for the final lap.  Pat kept his pace and came across the line knowing he had one lap to go.  He tried to go, but they grabbed him and stopped him one lap short.   Someone yelled from the crowd 'A new world record'.  It was not a world record, just poor lap management by the judges.  However, it counted as a win for O'Callaghan. 
 
"I scored points in the steeple and 5000 and was able to qualify with O'Callaghan for USTFF and NCAA championship meets. McNeese also won the Javelin as LSU transfer Dennis Morris won with a throw of 221-feet and qualified for postseason.  Also qualifying was Mark Peters in the 400m hurdles.
 
"One of my funniest memories came in the fall of 1976 when the cross country team decided to visit Coach (Bob) Hayes for Halloween and surprise him and his two kid.  We found a horse costume that comprised of the horse head with front legs, and then a second person as the body of the horse and back legs.  I was the head and front while distance runner Larry Cuzzort was the rear end.   We knocked on Coach Hayes' house, maybe a little too late for getting candy.   No one came to the door, so we banged a little harder.  Next thing you know, Coach Hayes is at the door with his shotgun and the team scattered like quail.  We finally did get some candy off him.  That team was O'Callaghan, Noel McCarron, Larry Cuzzort, Mark Truncali, Greg Whelan, Leslie Martin, Depores Cormier, and myself."  
 
Young is one of the top sprinters and jumpers to ever compete as a McNeese Cowboy.  During his career, he won the 60-yard dash at the indoor championship meet in 1983 as well as the long jump.  At the outdoor championships later that year, he captured the 100-meter and 200-meter dashes and was named the Outstanding Running Events Performer. 
 
Young set the McNeese 100-meter dash record at the 1983 championship meet.  The Texas City native is currently ranked No. 2 in McNeese history in the long jump as well as the number four triple jump mark.  In the 100-meter dash, Young has the second-fastest time in school history and is still currently ranked No. 3 all-time in the 200-meters.
 
He's a 2015 inductee into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame.
 
 "The conference championship meet was being held in Natchitoches that year I believe," said Young. "I can't recall exactly what year it was, but at the meet, I was asked to run the mile relay.  Now I am not a quarter miler nor ever have been.  I had teammates who were legit quarter milers such as Robert Gaines, but I was not that.  So during the race, I ran anchor leg and tried my hardest not to get sucked up because we were in a position for top two finish.  At the end of the race, I was literally falling over, struggling to make it through.  I ended up falling through the line and that was when I decided I needed another event to do so I wouldn't have to run the mile relay ever again. 
 
"The rest of my career, I stuck with my original four events, the long jump, the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash, and the 4x100 meter relay, and added the triple jump as an event so I would never have to run the quarter ever again.  I ended up being not too bad at the triple jump.  That was what I remember most about my time at McNeese, doing five events so I would never have to run the quarter mile or the mile relay."
 
Cooper followed shortly after Young's outstanding career with a stellar career of his own. 
 
One of the most decorated Cowboy athletes ever, Cooper won three indoor long jump titles (1985-1987), as well as two, 100-meter dash titles in 1986 and 1987.  He is also a two-time All-American in the long jump (1985-1986) as well as once in the 100-meter dash (1985) and the 60-meter dash (1985). 
 
At the 1987 NCAA Indoor Championships, Cooper placed McNeese third overall in the team standings by himself with a second place finish in both the 55-meter dash and the long jump.  He continues to hold school records in the 55-meter dash, 60-meter dash, and the long jump indoors, and the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash, and the long jump outdoors. 
 
Cooper also holds the outdoor championship meet record in the long jump at 26-11.75, which also ranks him as the third-longest jumper in Southland Conference history outdoors.  With the same mark, Cooper holds the number one all time mark in the long jump indoors.  In the 100-meter dash, Cooper holds the third-fastest time all-time in the Southland Conference and is second all-time in the 200-meter dash outdoors. 
 
Cooper was twice named McNeese athlete of the year during his career and was inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.
 
"At the 1987 NCAA Championships while competing for McNeese, I placed second in the 55m and second in the Long Jump which gave me a total of 16 points," said Cooper. "Those points were enough for McNeese to tie with another school for third overall. No school in Louisiana had placed that high since 1933. The whole building was chanting the 'University of Brian Cooper.'  That was a fantastic day for me and one I will never forget for different reasons.

"That same season, at the 1987 indoor TAC championships at Madison Square Garden, I won the overall Long Jump championships with a jump of 26-11 3/4.

"During 1987 outdoor conference championship, my teammate Steven Gueron placed third behind me in the 100m and ran his best time. It was his best performance of his career and I was very proud of him. His hard work finally paid off.
 
After his McNeese career, Cooper competed professionally, winning the US National Championship in the 55-meter dash in 1990.
 
Gilroy (Ange) had a great career McNeese, leading the Cowgirls' cross-country squad to a second-place finish at the conference championship meet in 1992.  She was a two-time conference champion in the 5000-meter run (1991,1993) and a three-time champion in the 10,000-meter run (1991-1993). And in 1993, she won the Outstanding Running Events Performer of the championship meet. 
 
She is currently ranked fourth all-time in McNeese history in the 10,000-meter run. 
 
Se was selected as the McNeese Athlete of the Year in the 1991-1992 school year and was inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.
 
"When I was a senior in 1993, the outdoor championships were held in Monroe at NLU (ULM).  I was the 5000-meter and 10,000-meter run champion at the meet and won outstanding running events performer.  It was my final conference meet and final collegiate competition ever, so it was a nice way to finish my career."
 
She is married to current McNeese track and field head coach Brendon Gilroy and both of their daughters, Haile and Ciara, are members of the squad.