WHITEWATER — Replacing a program legend, as UW-Whitewater’s football team has found out this season, can be a two-man job.
Where do you turn to replace a guy who rushed for nearly 2,500 yards and 15 touchdowns in winning the Gagliardi Trophy—the Division III equivalent of the Heisman Trophy—his senior season?
Well, 2,512 combined rushing yards and 32 touchdowns from the two new guys is a nice answer.
No, replacing Justin Beaver, who graduated after last season as the Warhawks’ all-time leader in rushing yards and touchdowns, wasn’t going to be a cinch. But, quite frankly, Whitewater's rushing attack hasn't missed a beat with the combined talents of freshman Levell Coppage and sophomore Antwan Anderson.
Heading into Saturday's Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl at Salem, Va., for the NCAA Division III national title against top-ranked Mount Union (14-0), fourth-rated Whitewater (13-1) has gotten 1,420 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns from Coppage and 1,092 yards and 11 touchdowns from Anderson.
The success those two have had in replacing Beaver is a testament to the fact that any program competing in its fourth straight national title game, as Whitewater’s defending champions will be doing Saturday, must find ways to replace great players with, well, more great players.
It also says plenty about the blocking, led by D3football.com second-team All-West Region pick Mike Sherman at tackle, Nick Slupski at tight end and Max Wasikowski at fullback, as well as offensive line coach Steve Dinkel and running backs coach Nelson Edmonds.
“I think that says a lot about the program. It says a lot about (Coppage and Anderson) as individuals and their abilities,” Whitewater head coach Lance Leipold said. “And I think a lot of it has to go to our offensive line and the job our offensive coaches do.”
Coppage and Anderson are a classic 1-2 punch. The 5-foot-8, 180-pound Coppage, who attended Oak Park (Ill.) High School, is the quicker, shiftier back who possesses home-run potential every time he touches the ball. The 5-10, 190-pound Anderson, who attended Madison Memorial, is more of a straightforward power-running type.
“Thunder and lightning. That’s what we call it,” Anderson said.
Before the season started, however, the competition for the starting running back spot was, according to offensive coordinator Jim Zebrowski, “wide open.” It included junior Jake Andersen, who suffered an early knee injury that took him out of the picture.
Things still were unclear heading into the season opener against St. Xavier (Ill.), but Coppage seized the starting spot in that game by rushing for a modest 74 yards and wearing down the St. Xavier defense in the second half.
In the Warhawks’ next game, a tight 16-14 win over UW-Eau Claire, Coppage rewarded the coaches’ faith in him by exploding for 235 yards and a touchdown.
“Levell played really well at the end of the St. Xavier game, and we said, ‘Alright, let’s just stick with him and see,’ ” Zebrowski said. “And the next game, he goes 42 carries for 200 yards.”
Coppage wound up being named first-team All-West Region by D3football.com, but his success didn’t mean Anderson was doomed to ride the bench. Anderson received his share of carries during the regular season, which paid dividends in the playoffs.
In Whitewater's first-round win over St. John’s (Minn.), Coppage suffered a high-ankle sprain in the third quarter. Anderson entered the game, and on the next play ripped off a 43-yard touchdown run.
Coppage didn't play in the Warhawks’ next two postseason games but did get some action in Whitewater's semifinal win over Mary Hardin-Baylor last Saturday in Texas. Meanwhile, Anderson has cracked the 100-yard mark in each playoff game, piling up just shy of 800 yards and adding seven touchdowns.
“Our coaches make sure we’re prepared for anything, especially if a guy goes down,” Anderson said. “When Levell went down, I was just ready to step up, like nothing changed, to help the team move forward.”
And Coppage enjoyed watching his teammate fill in with gusto.
“I was definitely proud,” he said. “He definitely stepped up big time.”
If anything, Coppage's injury has given Whitewater’s coaches even more confidence in their ability to use both backs as they go for a second straight national title. How the carries are allocated Saturday will depend on the flow of the game, according to Zebrowski, and on how Coppage’s ankle feels.
Coppage said he feels about 75 percent but is still missing some of the burst that makes him so elusive.
“Hopefully, Levell comes back this week with a good week of practice and gets a little bit better,” Leipold said. “But it is nice to have the weapons.”