COPPOLA A BIG HIT : CALABASAS RUNNER PUNISHES HIS FOES.Byline: Bill Schlotter Daily News Staff Writer He doesn't have dragstrip speed or a repertoire Repertoire may mean Repertory but may also refer to:
He doesn't run around or away from anybody. Ever. The explanation for Calabasas High School Calabasas High School is a four-year high school, freshman-senior, in Calabasas, California, United States. Calabasas High School, which serves portions of Calabasas and the West Hills, Los Angeles, California section of Los Angeles, is one of three high schools in the Las running back Robby Coppola's success is recorded in the black and blue marks that decorate the bodies of opposing defenders who have been run over trying to take him down. ``He's a punishing pun·ish v. pun·ished, pun·ish·ing, pun·ish·es v.tr. 1. To subject to a penalty for an offense, sin, or fault. 2. To inflict a penalty for (an offense). 3. runner,'' Coyotes coach Larry Edwards said of the 6-foot, 190-pound junior, who leads the area in scoring with 10 touchdowns. ``You'd better be ready to hit him when he comes at you because he is definitely going to hit you.'' To say Coppola enjoys contact is an understatement. Merely bringing up the subject puts a smile on his face and a gleam in his eyes. ``I love the physical part of it,'' he said. ``When you go up against a guy on the football field, he may be bigger and stronger than you, but if you hit him hard enough, he'll be the one to go down.'' Coppola has knocked down and stepped over would-be tacklers for 698 yards so far this season, third best among area Southern Section rushers. He gained 806 yards and scored another 10 touchdowns last year. As a sophomore starting on last year's varsity, Coppola was an unknown talent to his older teammates. ``Everybody was kind of like, `Who is this guy?' '' said quarterback Scott Quigley. ``But by his third game he had like 200 yards and everybody said, `OK, thank you.' Nobody had any questions from that point on.'' Coppola comes from a football family. His father, Robert Jr., played on the offensive line at Rutgers University Rutgers University, main campus at New Brunswick, N.J.; land-grant and state supported; coeducational except for Douglass College; chartered 1766 as Queen's College, opened 1771. Campuses and Facilities Rutgers maintains three campuses. . And younger brother Wiki is aware of the following uses of "'Younger Brother":
n. Abbr. JV A high-school or college team that competes in interschool sports on the level below varsity. Noun 1. . Robby also plays outside linebacker on the varsity. And if things work out the way he hopes, he and Drew could fill the Calabasas backfield and outside-linebacker spots next year. ``I'm looking forward to that,'' Coppola said. ``That would be fun.'' Quigley said it also might be confusing con·fuse v. con·fused, con·fus·ing, con·fus·es v.tr. 1. a. To cause to be unable to think with clarity or act with intelligence or understanding; throw off. b. . The Coppola brothers are apparently hard to tell apart. ``They look the same. They walk the same. They hit people the same, too,'' Quigley said. Coppola said his confrontational running style is something he learned at Calabasas. ``When we were freshmen, the coaches taught us to run guys over, not to try to go around them,'' he said. Still he feels he is as fast as most high school backs. ``I've never been caught from behind,'' he said. Like most running backs, Coppola is the world's biggest fan of his offensive line. ``I've offered to take them out to dinner, but all they want is to get the win,'' Coppola said. The Coyotes have done a lot of winning during Coppola's two years on the team. They finished 7-4 last year, runners-up in the Frontier League The Frontier League, based in Troy, Illinois, is a professional, independent baseball organization located in the Midwestern United States and Western Pennsylvania. It operates mostly in cities not served by Major or Minor League Baseball teams and is not affiliated with either. , and made the playoffs. They're 4-0 so far this season, top-ranked in Division X and have a good chance to win league and division titles. Coppola figures prominently in those plans. ``He's a heck heck interj. Used as a mild oath. n. Slang Used as an intensive: had a heck of a lot of money; was crowded as heck. [Alteration of hell. of a running back,'' Edwards said. ``And he's a really good linebacker. He's just a good athlete and I think some college somewhere will find a place for him to play.'' Coppola's reputation as a hitter on both sides of the ball makes one wonder what would happen if Coppola the linebacker tried to tackle Coppola the running back. ``It would be a big collision, I'll tell you that,'' Quigley said. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos Photo: (1-2) Robby Coppola, above and right, would rathe rathe adj. Archaic Appearing or ripening early in the year, as flowers or fruit. [Middle English, quick, from Old English hræd, hræth.] r run over defenders than run around them. The 6-foot, 190-pound junior at Calabasas leads the area in scoring with 10 touchdowns. Myung J. Chun / Daily News |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion