Acclaimed filmmaker Ryan Coogler may have won an Oscar on Sunday night but he was once better known for his skills on the football field rather than the silver screen.
Coogler, 39, earned his first Oscar in the Best Original Screenplay category for his supernatural horror epic Sinners at the Academy Awards in Los Angeles.
Yet, before hitting the dizzying heights of Hollywood, the director was blazing a path through the world of college football.
Coogler, who grew up in Oakland, California, played ball at Sacramento State, where he was a wide receiver from 2004 to 2007.
Long before his latest movie Sinners was up for 16 awards at the Oscars, he registered 112 receptions for 1,213 yards and six touchdowns during four years as a wideout for the Hornets.
He initially attended St. Mary’s College of California on a football scholarship during his college freshman year. But after St. Mary’s dropped its football program in March 2004, he transferred to Sacramento State.
Ryan Coogler won his first Oscar in the Best Original Screenplay category for Sinners
The director is pictured with his wife Zinzi Evans on the red carpet at Dolby Theatre
With the Hornets, he finished second on the team with 28 catches for 254 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore, according to CBS.
Meanwhile, as a junior, he led the team with 45 catches for 441 yards. His standout moment as a Hornet came that season when he reeled in a breakaway 60-yard touchdown pass.
Coogler even faced off against NFL icon Marshawn Lynch during his time as a student athlete in the Bay Area.
‘I would meet players like Maurice Jones-Drew, or Marshawn Lynch, players I would play against and I’ll be like, “Man they a lot better than me,”‘he recalled earlier this year on Good Hang With Amy Poehler.
‘You come across players that’s like, “Oh, that’s something different happening there.” And that was kind of how I could see early, maybe football wasn’t going to be what I did forever.’
Coogler’s football career hit a hurdle when he reportedly missed the 2006 season with a hand injury. He ultimately received a medical redshirt to return for his fifth year of eligibility. Yet, just as he was set to return, he suffered another injury in 2007, this time a broken cheekbone.
It was at Sacramento State that he reportedly began to take film classes before he received a scholarship offer from USC to study at its School of Cinematic Arts.
Coogler has since become the mastermind behind Hollywood blockbusters, including Marvel’s Black Panther, the highest-grossing movie of 2018, and the Creed films.
His filmmaking journey culminated in a win for Sinners, which starred Michael B Jordan (left)
His filmmaking journey culminated in a long-awaited Oscar triumph on Sunday evening as he took home the award for Best Original Screenplay.
Coogler beat out Robert Kaplow – Blue Moon, Jafar Panahi – It Was Just an Accident, Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie – Marty Supreme, and Eskil Vogt and Joachim Trier – Sentimental Value.
He politely asked the crowd to quiet down because he feared being cut off by the music for a long speech.
Coogler sent a sweet message to his three children with wife and producer Zinzi Evans as he concluded his acceptance speech by saying: ‘And to my babies at home watching, I apologize for all the time away.
‘Dad loves you. I hope I’ve given up great memories and you are blessed to live a long life and I want you to remember this one thing, I love you more than anything. Thank you.’
