Left: Joe Borud had a good grasp of his subject matter last Friday night. The subject matter, of course being the Hinckley-Finlayson running back. Jacob Schroeder (outstretched hands) and Owen Anderson were there to make sure the runner didn’t escape Borud’s grip. Lower left: Leo Johnson put his shoulder into the tackle to slow down the ball carrier until more help arrived. Below: When Thomas Anderson, senior running back and captain went down with a season ending injury, it was up to Jack Wieben to fill his shoes at running back. Below, Wieben shows his elusiveness as he breaks a tackle for a long gain.
Down 14-0 early in the third quarter, the Vikings put together a long drive that took them to Hinckley- Finlayson’s 1-yard line. But a hard hit on fullback Jacob Schroeder jarred the ball loose and Hinckley recovered the ball on their halfyard line. It was the deciding play in a game mostly well played by a young Viking team. Three times the Vikings took the ball deep into Hinckley territory only to lose it on fumbles or downs. The final score was 21-8.
The non-conference loss played at home on Friday, September 6, dropped the Vikings’ record to 0-2.
Once again the Vikings were without much of their starting offensive and defensive line players, several who will be eligible to play this week against East Central at home on Friday night. The game starts at 7 p.m.
In only his second start at quarterback, sophomore Leo Johnson is showing that he has a good arm, time after time hitting his receivers with catchable throws. And while not all of his passes were caught, the ones that were are just glimpses into what should prove to be a formidable passing attack in the next couple of years.
The Vikings’ lone touchdown came late in the fourth quarter following a long drive that saw Jack Wieben and Jacob Schroeder running the ball for consistent gains. Schroeder had one run of 25 yards in this series and quarterback Leo Johnson earned a Vikings first down with a 4-yard scamper on fourth down to keep the chains moving and the ball in the Vikings’ hands. That run set up a 15-yard pass play to Owen Anderson with 25 seconds left on the clock.
Anderson made a great catch and then lined up and caught the two-point conversion pass from Johnson. It was a good way to finish.
The young Vikings had no reason to hold their heads following the game. They played hard, made few penalties, played clean and if not for a few miscues, could have won this ball game.
After the game Viking Head Coach Mitch Dorr said, “I thought we lacked the effort necessary to win…. We still need to learn what hard work is and looks like.”
When asked about his team’s defense, Dorr responded, “Our primary concern right now on defense is tackling…. Tackling requires effort and courage. We will make tackling our number one priority until we do it well.”
On offense Dorr praised his young players, but added, “We moved the ball quite well but we just need to finish our drives.
“Overall, I thought Seth Warren played really hard and as a team we did improve in many areas: no penalties, less turnovers, etc.”
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