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Coogler was born on May 23, 1986 in Oakland, California. His mother, Joselyn (née Thomas),[1] is a community organizer, and his father, Ira Coogler, is a juvenile hall probation counselor. Both parents graduated from California State University, Hayward. He has two brothers, Noah and Keenan.[9] His uncle, Clarence Thomas, is a third-generation Oakland longshoreman, and the former secretary treasurer of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union.[10]
Coogler lived in Oakland, until age eight, when he moved to Richmond, California.[9] During his youth, he ran track and played football.[11] He went to a private Catholic high school in Albany, California,[12] and was good at math and science.[13][14] He started his college journey at Saint Mary's College of California in Moraga, CA, on a football scholarship as a redshirt wide receiver his freshman semester intending to study chemistry.[9] The football players were encouraged to take a creative writing course. Coogler's teacher on this course praised his work and said it was very visual, and encouraged him to pursue screenwriting.[14][15]
After Saint Mary's canceled its football program in March 2004,[16] he transferred and earned a scholarship to play at and attend Sacramento State, where in his four years he grabbed 112 receptions for 1,213 yards and 6 touchdowns.[17] At Sacramento, he majored in finance and took as many film classes as he could fit in with the rigors of college football. Following graduation he attended USC School of Cinematic Arts, where he made a series of short films.[18]