LeCaptain looks to be Door County’s next DI prospect
There was a steady stream of talent making its way from Door County to the University of Wisconsin football team in the 1990s and early 2000s.
Derik LeCaptain could be the player to get that pipeline flowing again.
The Southern Door junior is putting together another stellar season and has his team on the cusp of securing a third straight conference title.
The 6-foot-2, 200-pounder has totaled 1,111 yards and 16 touchdowns on offense in addition to making 43 tackles, two sacks, a forced fumble and two interceptions to lead the Eagles, who can clinch a share of the MONLPC-Large on Friday with a win against Sturgeon Bay.
LeCaptain has been covering a lot of ground off the field as well.
His recruiting trail has taken him to Camp Randall Stadium in Madison for a pair of Wisconsin games. He also made an unofficial visit to the University of Iowa for one of its games last month and is receiving interest from Minnesota, Purdue and Cincinnati.
“It’s cool going on these visits and stuff, but none of it would be possible without my coaches, my parents and my teammates,” LeCaptain said.
LeCaptain earned a starting spot as a freshman in Southern Door’s backfield alongside his older brother, Nick, who was the quarterback and is currently a freshman on the St. Nobert College football team.
After the younger of the LeCaptain brothers accounted for 1,847 yards from scrimmage and 22 TDs as a sophomore last year, his film caught the attention of Wisconsin graduate assistant Al Johnson.
Johnson, a Southern Door alum, was a three-year starter at center for the Badgers from 2000 to 2002 before becoming a second-round NFL Draft choice of the Dallas Cowboys. Johnson is one of six Door County natives selected in the NFL Draft in the last 25 years.
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Although Door County has a rich tradition for producing top talent, it has been a while since it has seen a NCAA Division I prospect.
Sturgeon Bay native Jake Bscherer is believed to be the last, having started on the offensive line at Wisconsin as a sophomore in 2009 before finishing out his college career at Minnesota-Duluth and going to training camp with the Seattle Seahawks.
Nick Cochart, whose senior season at Wisconsin was in 2003, is the last Southern Door alum to play at the DI level.
LeCaptain is hoping to end that drought.
“All the guys that have come through this county and went on to play at the Division I level and the National Football League, I’ve heard stories about those guys,” LeCaptain said.
“I’m trying to simulate what they did and learn from the experiences they had. It just really comes down to I want to make everybody proud and play as hard as I can while I’m still in high school and enjoy these last two years I have.”
LeCaptain has been nothing short of productive in high school career. In addition to being a standout in football, he earned second-team all-Packerland Conference honors in basketball and baseball as a sophomore.
LeCaptain is perhaps the most dominant running back Southern Door has had since Ryan Englebert (Class of 2000), who initially started his college career at Wisconsin before becoming one of UW-Stout’s all-time leading rushers.
Wisconsin is looking at LeCaptain as a tight end, while Iowa has him slated as an athlete.
“He’s just a complete ballplayer,” Southern Door coach Pat McCarty said. “He’s versatile. We play him at multiple positions on both offense and defense. Offensively, he’s a threat to score every time he’s got the ball in his hands.
“He’s a long strider, so he’s deceptively fast. You see him in the open field and you don’t realize how fast he is because his stride is so long. I haven’t seen anybody track him down from behind. The great thing about him is he hasn’t peaked.”
After helping the program win its first conference title since 2000 when he was a freshman, LeCaptain has powered the Eagles during a 17-game conference winning streak.
His signature performance this season was during a 28-27 victory at Kewaunee on Sept. 8 when he scored all four of Southern Door’s touchdowns, including running, receiving and an interception return for scores in the first half.
Still, LeCaptain has plenty of room for improvement if he wants to make the jump to the Big Ten in a couple of years.
“He just constantly tries to improve himself and get better,” McCarty said. “He’s not satisfied with where he’s at. He always wants to take that next step.”