Wheeler coach Jay Vettickal broke out a “Ted Lasso” reference while describing Cooper Burton.
Vettickal compared the junior central defender to Dani Rojas, an exuberant character known for his “Futbol is life” mantra in the series.
Vettickal, in his first season at the helm after four as an assistant, said Burton is the type of player who works up a sweat well before practice has started and sticks around well after it has ended.
“Cooper is the heart and soul of our team,” Vettickal said.
Burton wouldn’t have it any other way. He’s in his third season as a starter. When he was a freshman, Wheeler had two established seniors anchoring the defense. But the Bearcats wanted to get Burton’s talents on the field in some capacity, so he debuted as a central midfielder.
“I definitely wasn’t the best center midfielder, but it was a good opportunity,” he said. “My teammates were there to help with where I was supposed to be, what I was supposed to be doing. They throw you out there, and you learn as you play.”
Burton returned to what he calls his “most comfortable” position on defense last season, and he has continued to ascend.
“A lot of it’s mental,” he said. “You’re just used to it. When you’re a sophomore, there’s a lot of bigger guys. But as you mature, get used to playing, you just grow into it. You’re getting better as the years go on.”
Burton is one of the team’s three captains, along with goalkeeper Spencer Schaberg and outside defender Jovanco Mizimak. He’s the only junior among the trio.
“A lot of it is how I conduct myself,” Burton said. “There are a lot of young guys on the team. I’m not the young guy anymore. I have to lead by example and do the things the team should be doing. I have to be encouraging.
“I like being captain. I’m grateful for the opportunity to lead.”
It’s one Burton takes seriously.
“He’s very high-energy,” Schaberg said. “He’s a high-energy person. It’s nice having that. Sometimes we have to balance that out, and that’s just part of the team.
“He holds us to a certain standard. His big thing is, no matter if you make a mistake, he’ll pick you up. There’s been times where I’ve made mistakes, where he’s made mistakes, and we just move forward. He’s very headstrong. He can recover quickly. He can shrug it off.”
Not that Burton makes too many missteps in the back. He has added two goals and two assists this season.
“He’s basically everything I’d want in a center back,” Schaberg said. “He talks a lot, so I don’t have to talk as much. He’s not indecisive at all.
“He’s just an all-around good ballhandler. I can trust him with the ball, as much or even more than a midfielder. He’s really strong on the ball, and he’s physical too. He’s my ideal center back. He has it all.”
The Bearcats (5-0), ranked No. 7 in the Class 1A state coaches poll, are pursuing it all. They returned virtually intact after winning their first sectional title since 2014 and reaching a regional final. Defender Logan Murray was the only player who graduated.
“The energy is good, the spirits are high,” Burton said. “People are working really well together. Everyone gets it. Everyone’s on the same page of what we want to do, how we want to play. There’s a lot of collaboration between coaches, between players.
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“Everyone has a good mentality about things. Going into games, our mindset’s right. We want to play the right way. Practices have been good. It’s an exciting year. We have so many good players everywhere on the field, and everyone’s in that mood that this is the year to go do something.”
Burton emphasized taking a game-by-game approach. But he can’t say he hasn’t dared to dream.
“State championship’s always the goal,” Burton said. “We’ve beaten good teams. That’s all it take to make it to state — beat good teams. We know we can. We know we can find results. We know we can compete. That’s really the goal everyone has in mind: ‘Let’s go win a state championship. Let’s do it.'”