Vikings thinking big
SAMOHI — Following the Vikings’ stunning upset last Friday of the previously undefeated Culver City High Centaurs, on the strength of a whopping 341 yards and six touchdowns from Louis Adeyemi, the Samohi squad appears to have new life.
Still, on Monday, the Vikings (4-4) players and coaches weren’t resting on their laurels, hitting the practice field in full force to prepare for this week’s battle with Inglewood.
The Sentinels (7-1) are powered by a strong rushing attack that features the Ocean League’s leading tailback, David Freeman, who has amassed 1,219 yards and 17 touchdowns so far this season.
With that in mind, the focus of the Vikings defense will be stopping the running game.To do so, defensive coordinator Conrad Cuda is reverting back to a 4-4 defense, placing eight men in the box to stuff the run.
Against Culver City, the Vikings ran a Cover 2 formation with two cornerbacks and two safeties to protect against the pass, holding the high-powered Centaurs to just 293 total yards and four touchdowns, compared to the Vikings’ 634 total yards and nine touchdowns.
“We ran a defense last week designed to shut Culver City down, and that’s what we did,”said Cuda, who runs the team with his twin brother, Zach. “If we follow our game plan, we can expect to do the same thing Friday.”
Inglewood’s lone loss this season came at the hands of the Centaurs, to whom they lost 68-27. The key to last week’s victory was the defense’s incessant blitzing of Centaur quarterback Darius Banks, as well as a ferocious running game that was bolstered by the return of the team’s leading rusher, Adeyemi, who suffered a broken right hand early in the season in a game against Venice.
Energized and inspired by a visit to the locker room from former Samohi standout and former NFL running back Glyn Milburn, Adeyemi ran for more than 300 yards and six scores on 34 carries.
Adeyemi’s performance was described by Samohi Athletic Director Norm Lacey as “one of the greatest performances in school history.”
Like any seasoned running back, Adeyemi, 17, took his offensive linemen to In-N-Out for “4x4” burgers following the win.
“It’s my senior year, so I just wanted to come out and finish strong,”Adeyemi said of Friday’s game. “I was hyped all week, and even though my hand still hurt, I knew it would be all right. My line was creating some big holes for me and the fullback was blocking great. Plus, we had that extra push knowing that we had to win if were to have any shot at making the playoffs.”
After starting the season with two impressive victories over Hueneme and Palisades high schools, the Vikings lost to Venice, bounced back against St. Monica’s, then dropped three in a row, including two league games. The Vikings are now sitting with a league record of 1-2 and will have to win their remaining two games — plus get a little help from the football gods — if they are to make the playoffs.
“We know we still have a long way to go,but the fact that we went out and beat a team like Culver City shows us that if we continue to believe in ourselves, anything is possible,” said Coach Zach Cuda, who also serves as offensive coordinator. “It’s nice to get some tangible proof that the stuff we have been believing in all year was true and paid off on Friday.”
Anything is possible if the Vikings continue to perform as they did against the Centaurs, said defensive captain and free safety/wide receiver Cameron Collins.
“We had a slow start to our season,” Collins said. “But there’s nothing like getting a big win over a top-ranked team to get you back into the swing of things. Our morale is high and we are seeing the type of explosiveness on offense and defense that we expect.We just have to sustain it.”
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Inglewood High School.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 31, 2006. Read the original PDF.