LAKEVILLE - Dedicated and patient. Two words that describe LaVille football player Cody Allen. Allen, who played running back in seven combined games his freshman and sophomore year, is having a breakout season. With the graduation of 1,000-yard rusher Paul DeWitt following the 2022 season, the 5'10", 170-pound junior, has stepped into the lead running back role for LaVille. Entering Friday's Indiana High School Athletic Association 2A Sectional #33 opener against Andrean, Allen needed 92 yards to reach the coveted 1,000 rushing yard milestone. Averaging a bit over 113 yards per game, there was a chance that Allen could surpass the 1,000-yard mark against the 59ers. With the LaVille offense facing a 2nd and 7 from the Andrean 17, Allen got the call and, with the help of the Lancer offensive line, picked up three yards to send him past the 1,000 yard mark for the season. He finished the game with 144 yards on 36 carries to send his season total to 1,052 and counting. It was Cody's seventh 100+ rushing yard game of the season. One could say Allen has done just fine for first-year head coach Jeff Kaiser. "Cody Allen is having success in his game this year and has put up nice numbers every week," said Kaiser.  "The reason for his success to this point has been his dedication to the weightroom and him trusting his line in front of him.  Cody works hard everyday and his consistency shows on Friday nights."  Allen would also be the first one to say that his success this season is due to the offensive line. "A lot of it is our o-line (offensive line) helping me tremendously and the fullbacks," said Allen.  "We put in a lot of work in the summer and we started working out right after we lost to Andrean (last season).  It was probably December or January, me and some underclassmen started lifting together. "They really mean a lot to me," admitted Allen about the offensive line.  "I couldn't have had any of the success without the o-line. As he finished his thought, "Without them . . .," paused Allen.  "I'm just really grateful for them." As a young and upcoming underclassman on the LaVille football team, Allen had a couple guys show him the ropes. DeWitt, who rushed for nearly 3,000 yards in his career and is second only to the all-time leading rusher Ethan Kertai at 4,528 yards, were there to help him along the way. Paul had nine 100+ yard rushing games in 2022, to go with 24 touchdowns and a 143.1 average per game.  Prior to 2023, Kertai spent a couple seasons on coach Will Hostrawser's staff giving pointers to the younger players. "I learned a lot from Paul (DeWitt)," said Allen.  "And a lot of the drills (coach Ethan) Kertai had us do helped. I learned a lot from him too. "I like to go back and watch a lot of the old film and see how Paul ran it and what I can add on to it.  I think my style is a little bit more of my own. I think I'm a little bit faster than Paul, but he was stronger so because of that we have to play a little bit differently." As the season began, the first game of the 2023 season was on the road at Bremen in August. That's when it all started for Cody. "I was just really excited," recalled Allen of that Bremen game.  "I just love to play. And I haven't really played running back since my 8th grade year because Paul was there. I was nervous that first game, but definitely excited." He finished the night in what would now be his career-high of 157 yards and two touchdowns. "We had a pretty good scheme that week," said Allen.  "Our offensive line has really improved and they played really well.  In practice we go through what we are going to do on Friday night.  It really helps me see the field better. More experience has helped me get better throughout the season too." Then, just as Cody was getting going, he was injured in the Triton game. Late in the game, Allen was running the ball on the right side and was brought down.  As went to the ground, his head bounced on the turf.  He got up slowly, thought he was okay, but then went down again. "My head hit the ground and I got a concussion," recalled Allen.  "I got back up, thought I was fine, then went back down and I blacked out. My head slapped on the ground." The medical staff from LaVille tended to Cody and ultimately helped him slowly off the field while both teams and fans watched silently before giving him a round of applause. "The first few days were pretty rough," said Cody.  "I wanted to try to get back for the game.  I knew I was one day too short (before coming back).  I was out of it for several days after the Triton game. Not out of shape, just going through the concussion protocol.  I went through my rehab and felt good. I was disappointed I couldn't play but I was glad that I was getting healthy." Allen missed the Pioneer game to finish out concussion protocol and did his best to support the team and his teammates. "I was trying to get the sideline going, trying to support the team," said the junior.  "I was talking to the guys that were filling my spot, giving them pointers. I hate missing games for injuries. Just really excited to be back out there again." As the season progressed, Allen continued to work hard and prepare each week. Along the way, LaVille has run into some solid run-defense teams that slowed the running game.  That's when the passing game picked up. "We knew that Knox and North Judson played good run-defense," said Allen. "We kind of knew that as we prepared. We kind of talked about passing the ball more in those games." Knowing the IHSAA state tournament draw was coming, Allen, his teammates and the coaching staff wanted Andrean right away. "We were excited (to draw Andrean)," recalled Allen.  "That is the draw that we wanted.  We wanted it to be home and early in the playoffs. We knew what we had and we wanted to play that game." They got exactly what they wanted and came out and executed their game plan and will now prepare for the next level of the tournament. According to Cody, he knew he was close to 1,000 yards but didn't know exactly how close. "I wasn't really concentrating on it (the 1,000 yards)," said Cody.  "I was hoping I would get there at some point this year." He became the seventh player to achieve 1,000 yards in a season.  He joins Ethan Kertai (twice), Shawn Tribbey, Paul DeWitt, Dennis Graf, and Joe Ciesielski. "I think it is really special because I was really good friends with Paul and I learned a lot from him," Allen said very humbly.   "Ethan helped me, too. He has the all-time rushing record."I'd really like to thank the o-line," concluded Cody.  "Wouldn't be able to do what I do without them." LaVille Football Single Season 1,000 Yard Rushers 1. Ethan Kertai (2016) 1841 2. Shawn Tribbey (2002) 1599 3. Paul DeWitt (2022) 1574 4. Ethan Kertai (2015) 1361 5. Dennis Graf (1982) 1333 6.Joe Ciesielski (2003) 1057 7. Cody Allen (2023) 1052 . . . and counting