LOCAL WATCH: THE BIG ADJUSTMENT; WESTLAKE GRAD CUPPARI CLIMBS THE CHARTS AT COLORADO ST.

Byline: Lee Barnathan Staff Writer

It's called the wide receiver-defensive back challengeat Colorado State. For 15 minutes in every practice, the two positions put their pride on the line and go one-on-one, with coaches yelling at the losers.

At first, Westlake High graduate Joey Cuppari received regular earfuls when a DB would beat him, when he couldn't get open or when he dropped a pass.

``In high school, I had no trouble getting open,'' Cuppari said. ``I couldn't get open for the first couple of weeks.''

That was because he couldn't adjust to the DBs' speed and physical style. This wasn't Westlake, where he could slow down to fool his defender, then accelerate and get open.

No, this is Division I-A football, where DBs bump you at the line and have the speed to stay two inches away from you at all times.

Then one day he got advice from a teammate: Use your size.

Now, Cuppari, a 6-foot-1 redshirt freshman, holds his own against the 5-10, 5-9 and 5-8 DBs. He has gone from seventh on the Rams' depth chart to fourth.

In six games, he has caught eight balls for 78 yards, including one last week against San Diego State, when he went across the middle, caught a pass for a first down and held on as he was drilled in the back.

``I was standing 5 yards away from him screaming, `Hold onto that sucker 

' . . . He's got great ball skills,'' Rams receivers coach Dan Hammerschmidt said. ``He's had to learn how to be more physical.''

Those ball skills also earned Cuppari additional playing time - as holder. Although he never held in high school, Cuppari was called into duty last week when Pete Rebstock went out with a concussion and punter Deone Horinek couldn't handle snaps. Colorado State scored a field goal and a PAT with Cuppari holding.

``The toughest part is spinning the laces away,'' he said. ``Kickers are really picky. It's got to be perfect.''

Hammerschmidt said the injuries mean Cuppari will see more playing time this week against Wyoming. In the future, Hammerschmidt sees big things for Cuppari, provided he works on his upper-body strength in the offseason.

``If he gains 10 pounds in the upper body, he's going to be one of the good ones,'' Hammerschmidt said.

CHARTING THE LOCALS

Area players facing area teams today:

Joe Borchard, QB, Stanford (Camarillo)

Keith Heyward-Johnson, DB, Oregon State (Taft)

Matt Leonard, DL, Stanford (Palmdale)

Eric Mobley, RB, Oregon State (Antelope Valley)

Eddie Patterson, DB, Stanford (Newbury Park)

CAPTION(S):

photo, chart

PHOTO JOEY CUPPARI

CHART: Charting the locals (see text)