This Friday night, the La Jolla Vikings will look to right the ship. After a 2-0 start to the season that included a thumping of crosstown rival Bishop’s, La Jolla has slipped up with back-to-back close losses.
Dropping two in a row to El Captian and Rancho Bernardo, both close games until the end, La Jolla is 2-2 with a pivotal showdown vs. the 4-0 Buccaneers of Mission Bay in Pacific Beach.
“We played well and moved the ball offensively; we just didn’t finish in the red zone the past two weeks. If we do that, we probably win those games,” said Vikings head coach Tyler Roach.
“Had we come away with touchdowns and punched a couple of those red zone trips in, it’s a different game versus RB. It was just a tale of two halves; we came out a little flat, and they got up on us early. We found our groove in the second half and scored on our first possession but couldn’t capitalize on other opportunities.”
Roach and his team know that to get back on track, they’ll need to execute on both ends better, especially with an opponent that is as athletic and explosive as Mission Bay.
Fortunately for the Vikings, with playmakers like Hank Hansen, Kia Fukuda, Carson Diehl, and QB Jackson Diehl, they have the firepower to go shot for shot offensively with any team.
“Mission Bay has a great team; they’re athletic. We saw that in the spring in 7-on-7, and that’s translated to the regular season. And you can see on tape that they’re playing with a ton of confidence,” said Roach. “On defense, their length and athleticism is noticeable, and specifically in the secondary, it’s something we will have to account for.”
Roach noted that he feels like one of the keys to the game for the Vikings on offense, and really the game plan is being more efficient and staying ahead of the chains.
“When you play versus an athletic secondary and LB core, the likelihood is maybe you’ll catch them in one blown coverage, but you’re really not gonna get over the top and get big explosive plays. So we gotta have more long and sustained drives and control the line of scrimmage.”
On the flip side of things, Roach knows the defense will be tasked with trying to slow down Bucs’ QB Charlie Hutchinson and this balanced Mission Bay offense that is posting 33 points per game.
The Vikings defense will want to try to dial up the pass rush, but Roach and his staff know they have to pick their spots. At 6 feet 6 inches tall, Hutchinson has excellent mobility, and the Bucs’ running game is equally vaunted.
“Hutchinson has a longer delivery, but he’s an extreme athlete who can move and spin. And they have great coaches over there, so they’ll see if we’re just pinning our ears back and blitzing that they can pivot to their strong screen game,” said Roach. “It will be kind of a mix and match pick your poison of when to come after them. Hopefully, we can do some things coverage-wise that they haven’t seen before. We’re looking forward to the challenge.”
The Vikings visit the Buccaneers at 7 p.m. on Sept. 15.
PHOTO BY DAVID FRERKER
