‘The best is yet to come’: Kapaun’s Omari Elias follows in his father’s football path
For Kapaun Mt. Carmel fans, the 54-yard touchdown run by Omari Elias late in the fourth quarter last Friday will be remembered for the exclamation point of an improbable 18-point comeback to beat Wichita Northwest 38-35 in the Class 5A playoffs.
For coach Weston Schartz, he felt like he had been warped in a time machine.
A tenacious, bulldozing running back wearing the number 45 with the last name Elias, begging the coach on the sidelines to continue feeding him the ball, and then delivering in the clutch with a breakaway run. This felt like 1996 all over again when Schartz was coaching Wichita West and Idris Elias was his star running back.
A quarter-century later, Idris’ son, Omari, is the star running back for Schartz and the sophomore is already a spitting image of his father, who once led the City League in rushing with the same physical style. Before Friday’s 5A semifinal loss to Maize, Omari Elias rushed for 2,150 yards this season. He scored all three touchdowns for Kapaun in Friday night’s 22-21 loss.
“It definitely took me back when I look out there and see Omari breaking tackles, fighting for that extra yard,” Schartz said. “Idris had a defensive mentality and played offense with it. He was very aggressive and very physical, very much like his son. They are very similar running backs.”
For Idris Elias, it’s been a surreal experience watching his son blossom into a full-fledged star in the same system for the same coach that he excelled under. And now, the Crusaders are one win away from playing for their first state championship since 1987, the final title from the Ed Kriwiel dynasty.
“It’s been a dream. It’s crazy watching it unfold, it’s almost unreal,” the father said. “As a parent, you want to think your kid is the next Barry Sanders, but you never really know. But watching him work day in and day out, I don’t see anything but up for him. We’ve got some things we’re going to continue to work on, but he’s young and it’s exciting. Hopefully like we anticipate, the best is yet to come.”
‘I ran like there was no tomorrow’
Schartz doesn’t believe football players come like Idris Elias anymore.
Idris’ true passion was for defense, where he was a dominant middle linebacker, but he used the same things that made him great on defense to become a standout running back. He rushed for more than 1,000 yards his final two seasons at West, leading the City League his senior year and averaging nearly 10 yards per carry. He was named a top-22 player by The Eagle in 1996 and played his college career at Wyoming.
“I’ve been around the City League a long time and (Idris) was definitely a top-10 tailback in City League history,” said Schartz, who has been a head coach in the league since 1987. “He put up those numbers while playing every snap on defense and that’s when people were putting eight in the box and it was true ground-and-pound football, not the wide-open basketball on turf you see today. He did it when you ran 45 plays in a game, rather the 65 or 70 like you do now.
“He is one of the best football players I’ve ever coached in my 39 years.”
How Idris became a running back is something of a happy accident, as he had never carried a ball in his life — he was relegated to the offensive line in junior football — before high school. But when his freshman team’s coach asked him what position he played, Idris was quick on his feet.
“I kind of fibbed a little bit,” Idris said. “He asked me if I know my (running) holes. Well, of course I did because I played on the line. So he gave me the ball and I ran like there was no tomorrow.”
Schartz can still vividly recall his favorite game from Idris, even 25 years later. It was Idris’ senior year and the team was chasing the first playoff berth in school history, needing a win against bitter rival Derby to clinch it. Derby had owned the series — it was 14-1 all-time against West — and has delivered three straight particularly cruel heartbreaks to West in the last three years: 19-18, 31-24 in four overtimes and 11-7.
“Idris comes to me before the game and says, ‘Coach, just give me the ball and I promise you we’ll win,’” Schartz recalled. “He wanted the ball in the clutch, just like Omari does now.”
Sure enough, Idris rushed for 133 yards, including a 62-yard touchdown run, and West knocked off Derby, 35-20, to secure its first playoff bid.
“I wasn’t the fastest guy or the shiftiest guy, I just knew the quickest way from point A to point B was a straight line,” Idris said. “It was hard-nosed, three yards and a cloud of dust, four-quarter football.”
‘Don’t be the nail, be the hammer’
In the Elias household, there is no debate for who is the better running back between the father and son.
“We were joking the other night that we don’t really play the same position,” Idris said. “If we’re being real, I would be his blocking back. I would be the one blocking for him.”
Like his father, Omari didn’t start out as a running back and actually enjoyed the physical nature of playing linebacker on defense more in junior football.
It delighted Idris to see his son take the same pride in defense that he once did. When Omari changed over to a running back, he jokes that it took him a little time to get used to it.
“I never had any ambitions for him to play running back,” Idris said. “I’m a defensive-minded guy. I like defense more. He’s one heck of a linebacker, but I think he’s a kid who is willing to do whatever it takes to help the team out. He’s done well and I’m not opposed to it, but as a defensive guy I’m kind of like, ‘Ahh, those running backs, those divas.’ We kid a lot about that.”
But Omari’s running style suggests he’s anything but a diva. He’s not afraid to lower his shoulder and keep his legs churning in pursuit of one more yard. He doesn’t shy away from contact; in fact, he invites it. He loves nothing more than running over a defender early in the game to send the message that it’s about to be a long night for them.
“It’s not so much about delivering the hit, as it is winning the mental battle within the game,” Omari said. “I work hard to win that mental battle early and then build on it as the game goes.”
It’s uncanny how similar the father and son approach running the ball.
“I actually think playing linebacker and my knowledge on defense has really played into my success on offense,” Omari said. “I don’t know, it must be genetics.”
“He runs the ball like a linebacker,” Idris said. “He’s got that aggressive, downhill mentality. He doesn’t shy away from contact. I think his experience playing linebacker has given him the durability throughout this season to not be the nail, be the hammer.”
Kapaun’s running game was somewhat of an uncertainty entering the season with four new starters on the offensive line with Elias, another newcomer to the varsity level, at running back. But the line of Jeep Duncan, Jacob Werne, Logan Spachek, Michael Cyphert and Jonny Jabara combined with the blocking of tight ends Will Anciaux and Henry Orth have paved the way for one of Schartz’s most successful rushing attacks.
“I forget that Omari is a sophomore every week because he plays like a senior,” Schartz said. “Being able to control the clock has helped us win a couple of tough games this year. Everybody wants to be a run-and-gun offense these days, but if you can slow things down and keep the ball out of the opponents’ hands, then that’s been to our advantage.”
‘He’s made it his now’
Before the start of this season, Omari came to Schartz and requested a change in his jersey number.
He wanted to wear the number 45, the same number his father wore for Schartz 25 years ago.
“I said, ‘Omari, those are some pretty big shoes to fill, man. You think you’re ready for that?’” Schartz said. “He was sure. We figured he would be pretty special, but he’s been real special.”
Before his first season of varsity football, the change in number was important to Omari to give tribute to the father who had helped him every step of the way to this point.
It’s never been his goal to be as good as his father. Omari is motivated to be the best player he can be, a path his father has fully supported.
“I’m not chasing what he laid down in front of me, but it’s nice to have him behind me,” Omari said. “It’s been nice to have some experienced input in my ear whenever I need it. I always have someone there available with knowledge I can always trust. And there’s a dad there too when I need some different kind of advice, maybe some tough advice that I might not always want to hear.”
Idris was honored the day his son came home from practice and told him his new uniform number.
And just like the running back debate, the father is more than happy to concede this one to his son too.
“I told him those are some big shoes to fill, but I knew he was up for the challenge,” Idris said. “He’s represented it well. He’s made it his now. The number 45 is no longer my number. That’s all him.”
This story was originally published November 19, 2021 at 6:30 AM.
.jpg)