Kerwin Cook of Ferriday, La., saved his best for last in the 1998 football season. Now he hopes to pick it up from there.

Cook caught four passes for 123 yards and a touchdown in Tulane’s 41-27 win over Brigham Young to help the Green Wave finish an impressive 12-0 in 1998.

&uot;It didn’t really sink in until I came home from school and everybody was talking about it,&uot; Cook said. &uot;That game was so overwhelming because we finished undefeated. I wasn’t thinking about my personal achievement as much as winning the conference and finishing ranked in the Top 10.&uot;

The 6-foot-1, 175-pound junior finished last season with 37 receptions for 405 yards and two touchdowns. He spent half of his summer in New Orleans working out.

&uot;I want to gain a couple of more pounds,&uot; said Cook, who runs a 4.4 in the 40-yard dash.

Cook is going back to a new coach as Chris Scelfo takes over for Tommy Bowden.

&uot;He seems like a good coach,&uot; Cook said. &uot;He’s a player’s coach. He wants to go out and play and have fun as long as we’re getting the job done.&uot;

Cook did not play a game until the fourth game of the season.

&uot;I was surprised,&uot; he said. &uot;I was really a role player, I knew I wasn’t the go-to person. But things just kind of broke open for me the last four or five games.&uot;

Cook said he thinks about back-to-back perfect seasons.

&uot;That’s always on my mind,&uot; he said. &uot;It’s a possibility just like it was last year. It’s going to always be in the back of my mind, but it’s just a matter of concentrating on one game at a time.&uot;

Cook knows the first time the 10th-ranked Green Wave lose, pollsters are sure to drop them out of the Top 25.

&uot;Everybody talked about our schedule last year,&uot; he said. &uot;Everybody is expecting us to get beat big when we go out this year and they’ll be ready to drop us out. But that kind of pressure has always been there for me. I’m just going to go out each week and play the best I can and stay focused. I’m expecting to make more of an impact.&uot;

Cook will be picking up some of the slack from the graduation of P.J. Franklin.

&uot;We’ve got three junior and two sophomores and this year we’re more balanced at wide receiver,&uot; Cook said. &uot;Teams won’t be able to key on one person.&uot;

Cook said two players are battling to replace all-everything quarterback Shaun King.

&uot;We’re the type of team who will get behind the quarterback and lift him up to where he needs to be,&uot; Cook said. &uot;Whoever starts will do a good job.&uot;