It's been a remarkable first three games of the season for the son of a Jackson High School graduate in southeast Minnesota.
And it comes after some trying times for the family in the past 18 months.
Dan Copley is a 1996 JHS grad. His son, Dustin is a senior at Grand Meadow High School.
Dustin missed the Superlarks first game of the season vs. Lanesboro due to COVID. Since returning though, he has scored 10 touchdowns in three games.
Last year, he was among a group of Grand Meadow players that missed the Section 1 9-Man championship game (also vs. Lanesboro) because they had to quarantine after being exposed to COVID.
Grand Meadow lost both games to the Burros, including 28-0 to open this season.
Dustin has been a big factor in the Superlarks winning their next three games.
"I’m feeling a lot better right now," Dustin told the Rochester Post Bulletin. "Yeah, that was a terrible feeling to miss that first game."
When he was in the lineup the second week, his impact was immediate.
He took the opening kickoff back 76 yards for a touchdown and the Superlarks beat Heron Lake-Okabena/Fulda 53-16.
It took him a while to regain his conditioning.
"The first game when I came back, I couldn’t breath after some of the runs. I was so tired," Dustin said.
That didn’t stop him from rushing for 127 yards and three touchdowns on only 10 carries vs. the Coyotes.
Last week, he rushed for 118 yards and three more TDs in a 38-0 win over Houston.
"The next game I felt absolutely amazing, actually," he said. "I don’t know how it came back so fast, but I felt pretty good the second game."
Then on Friday, Dustin scored all of Grand Meadow's points in a 20-17 win over Spring Grove.
He returned a kickoff 83 yards for a TD, returned a punt 71 yards for a score, had an 8-yard rushing touchdown and ran in a two-point conversion.
Grand Meadow coach Gary Sloan says Dustin has the ability to score whenever he gets the ball in his hands.
"He’s very fast," Sloan said. "He’s one of the fastest players we’ve ever had. With that, he’s kind of a threat to take it the distance anytime he touches the ball."
Dustin is primarily a running back, but lines up as a wide receiver in some formations. He plays safety on defense and also returns kickoffs and punts.
He would like the opportunity to play either college football or baseball and has received some inquiries from Division II and III football coaches.
His dad played football at Rochester Community and Technical College.
Health challenges
Dan has had health challenges of his own for more than a year.
Earlier this month he was admitted to the cardiac ICU at Mayo Clinic with pneumonia. Dan has a compromised system after dealing with an illness throughout much of last year.
His compromised system makes it difficult to fight off diseases on his own, but he was discharged after three days this month and was placed in quarantine for 14 days.
In May of 2020, he started experiencing several confusing symptoms.
He was diagnosed with a rare central nervous system disease known as neurosarcoidosis. There is no known cure for the inflammatory disease that manifests itself in annoying ways.
"Hearing loss, to dizziness, to the fuzzy head – his balance is off. It’s everything in your body - his hands, his feet. If someone’s poking him with something he doesn’t feel that," his wife, Sadie, told KIMT-TV.
The Copleys operate The Diner & Catering in Grand Meadow. They had to close several days while Dan was in the hospital this month, but are open again.
And that's after 2020 when the Copleys were dealing with the business shutdown caused by the pandemic prior to Dan's diagnosis.
That's when residents of Grand Meadow started to give support to a family that has done much to support the community.
A gofund me page was established that went well past its goal.
You can still find that page here:
www.gofundme.com/f/help-dan-copley-beat-neurosarcoidosis
Also, an event called 'Christmas for the Copleys Bake/Craft Sale' was held in December.
The family was appreciative of the support although they would prefer/and are usually on the other end. They're known for giving away Thanksgiving meals to the needy and helping serve the local Meals On Wheels program.
We'll have another update on the family in the next few weeks.