When center Richard Helepiko sprained his ankle in the first quarter of Fresno State’s season-opening 36-21 loss to California, it was senior Leslie Cooper who moved over to center to take the snaps for the ‘Dogs.
The dilemma was Cooper, a 6-foot-4, 320-pound senior, had never snapped the ball for the ‘Dogs in an actual game until Helepiko went down on Saturday.
Although Cooper had no past experience at center, he is no stranger to the position.
“It’s a little different,” Cooper said of the transition from right guard to center. “At guard I’m used to playing with a stagger. You can’t really play with a stagger at center. It’s more squared up.”
Cooper entered the season as a first-time starter at guard,
now he has switched positions again due to the loss of junior
center Richard Helepiko.
Anna Reed / The Daily Nebraskan
Cooper started nine games along the Bulldogs’ offensive line last season when early-season injuries opened a spot for him. Since then, Cooper earned the role of starting right guard in the offseason, but now he is being asked to snap to a first-year starting quarterback.
Offensive line coach and run-game coordinator Derek Frazier was impressed with Cooper’s clutch performance in week one.
“I thought he did a tremendous job of filling in at center.” Frazier said of Cooper. “It’s a totally different feel when you have to play with your hand and your legs. He did a good job of ball security and has a great command of the offense as far as knowledge goes.”
Frazier feels Cooper will be consistent at center due to his leadership and his relationship with quarterback Derek Carr in the game at Candlestick Park.
“I think that was the best thing you saw from an unfortunate situation,” Frazier said of the center-quarterback duo. “[Carr and Cooper] never had a snap issue, and we kept doing what we were able to do.”
Cooper said he and Carr have a healthy relationship when he is at center. During the offseason, Cooper worked with Carr to gain more experience with the redshirt sophomore quarterback.
“I took a few reps with Derek throughout camp so it was preparing for the worst, and the worst happened,” Cooper said.
But the worst is no longer the worst for the Bulldogs.
Things have gotten better for the ‘Dogs’ offensive line after Helepiko’s injury. The other three linemen will all remain at their original positions. Sophomore Austin Wentworth will remain at right guard, while junior Matt Hunt and senior Bryce Harris will line up at left guard and left tackle, respectively.
The only new face for the ‘Dog’s offensive frontline is 6-foot-5, 310-pound redshirt freshman Cody Wichmann, who started at right tackle against the Nebraska Cornhuskers this past Saturday. No timetable has been set for Helepiko’s return, but the team said he is expected to miss a few weeks.
The Bulldogs faced their stiffest test this season, as Nebraska has one of the nation’s top defenses and senior All-American defensive tackle, Jared Crick. Crick, a 6-foot-6, 285-pounder, led the Cornhuskers in 2010 with 9.5 sacks and is a threat to backfields everywhere.
Although Crick was so highly touted going into the game, the reconstructed offensive line which was battling injury issues again with junior Hunt leaving the game with an undisclosed injury still held Crick and the vaunted Nebraska defense to no sacks.
Cooper made his first start at the center position and lead the Bulldog offensive line and coach Frazier is confident he and the rest of the offensive line will continue what they did against the Cornhusker defensive line this past Saturday.
“You have got to love a great challenge and stepping up to these kinds of challenges,” Frazier said. “I think [Cooper]’s ready for the challenge and ready to step up.”
