VIKINGS DO IT AGAIN! QUALIFY FOR THE 22ND CONSECUTIVE YEAR!

Almost a year to the day after the serious injury to our teammate and fellow Viking Brett Green, the Vikes returned to LD Bell HS and qualified for a state record 22nd consecutive time.

The Vikings went 4-0 and seemed to get stronger as the day went on. The wind was blowing 15-20 mph out of the SE and was gusting higher at times. In spite of that, QB Jack Dawson through the ball very accurately all day including some pin point deep shots for TD's.

Defensively the Vikings were dominant particularly in the first half of games. In 4 games the Vikings allowed 0, 0, 13, 13 points for a total of just 6.5 points per half. This puts a lot of pressure on the opponents to play "catch up" and throw deeper or more risky throws in the 2nd half in order to try to score more quickly or at all. Overall the Viking allowed 20 points per game while the Viking offense was good for 38 points per game. That is an 18 point (3 score) differential which shows the Vikes really were finishing games over the course of the day. Braxton Thomas and Harrison Griffith each had 2 interceptions and James Douglas had one.

Offensively we were equally effective. While the deep throws mentioned above were impressive to watch, it is our play mixture that is keeping other defenses off balance. We have a great TE who knows how to get open and catches everything; speed and great hands at the slot and running back positions and two of the very best wide receivers in the area. When you combine that with a 3 year starter at QB you have a versatile offense that can be explosive or play "slow ball" to eat up the clock as needed. We converted 19/22 extra points which is good but we strive for 100% in that area because we know that deep in the state tournament that is sometimes the difference.

We do not have a tournament this weekend which is great; we need a couple of intensive practices to smooth out some areas and get better in others. While I love tournament play, our chances of real success in College Station goes up if we have several weeks of solid practices including the remaining 3 tournaments as "high speed practices" to be as ready as we can be to compete for a state 7 on 7 title.

I will talk more about the upcoming state tournament and the historical perspective of qualifying 22 years in a row later this week. Congratulations to the 2019 Vikings; their families; coaches and everyone associated with this program. You are indeed part of something special. VFND!