October 12, 2011 5:55 PM
By DAN ALBANO
OCVARSITY.COM
LOS ALAMITOS ? Cody Paul's nickname with his Los Alamitos football teammates traces back to his time as a dazzling, Pop Warner running back.
The senior affectionately is known as "Mr. YouTube" or "YouTube Sensation" because a video of his seventh-grade highlights has generated more than 8 million views.
That's right, 8 million views and growing.
But considering how well Paul has performed so far this fall, his nicknames could apply to just the past few games.
The diminutive running back is a giant reason why Los Alamitos (4-1) is ranked seventh in Orange County heading into its Sunset League showdown against No. 8 Edison (3-2) on Thursday at Huntington Beach High.
Los Alamitos coach John Barnes said Paul is making the same type of highlight runs that he did on the popular YouTube video.
"He's really good," Barnes said. "Everything he did on that YouTube film has caught up to him in high school."
Paul produced his latest highlight clip against then-No. 3 Santa Margarita on Sept. 29. He broke a 72-yard touchdown run after shaking two tacklers in the backfield and racing down the sideline.
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