Senior Cooper Aitkin does a bit of everything. He high jumps in track, used to play basketball, plans to play lacrosse this spring and has to lock in every Friday night as a wide receiver and defensive back for Notre Dame Academy. 

If you asked him to pick, football is his favorite sport. 

Even so, the senior says he doesn’t plan to pursue football after high school. 

“Notre Dame didn’t throw much because we’re a run-heavy team,” he explained. In other words, his position hasn’t attracted much attention from college scouts.

Consequently, he’s more interested in pursuing a career in finance or business while attending a school in the Midwest. U-W Madison and University of Minnesota are his primary interests.

Aitkin is coached in track by former Packers defensive back Jarrett Bush, and he’s taken that mentorship seriously. 

“I’m happy I got to do it now,” the senior said.  His best high jump is 6′ 4″.

He described the football team as filled with leaders and contends the culture at NDA is unbreakable.

When the Tritons won state last year is a moment he described as “surreal.”

Now, with a win streak of over 20 games, he says there’s definitely some sort of pressure, but he embraces it. 

“Rader doesn’t blink,” Aitkin said when describing the head football coach. 

In one of the season’s most defining moments, last week NDA came back from a 14-point second-half deficit against Slinger.

That itself was a reminder of what Aitken already knows: The Tritons don’t quit.