Vikings nearly unstoppable at homecoming, beat Bulldogs 38-17

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith

9-30-2008

Friday, September 26, 2008,  70 degrees, dry, DAC at VALPARAISO, IN.

1st Qtr:  VALPARAISO (7-0) Kevin Piet, 21-yard pass from Zack Livovich.  80-yard drive (after the opening kickoff), 14 plays.  Tony Hite kick.  5:37 left.
VALPARAISO (14-0) Zack Livovich, 2-yard run.  37-yard drive, 7 plays.  Tony Hite kick.  1:41 left.
2nd Qtr: VALPARAISO (17-0)  Tony Hite, 35-yard field goal, 33-yard drive, 15 plays.  4:15 left.
CROWN POINT (3-17) Michael Lipton, 28-yard field goal.  73-yard drive, 15 plays. 0:24 left.

3rd Qtr:  VALPARAISO (24-3) Nick Thompson, 4-yard run.  25-yard drive, 6 plays (after JJ Peller recovered Nick Bruno's fumble). Tony Hite kick.  9:56 left.
CROWN POINT (10-24) Danny Osojnicki, 5-yard pass from Marcus Shrewsbury.  80-yard drive, 13 plays.  Michael Lipton kick.
VALPARAISO (31-10) Nick Thompson, 3-yard run.  70-yard drive, 8 plays.  Tony Hite kick.  0:54 left.
4th Qtr:  CROWN POINT (31-17) Mike Kozlowski, 10-yard pass from Marcus Shrewsbury.  65-yard drive, 10 plays.  Michael Lipton kick.  10:20 left.
VALPARAISO (38-17) Eric Jackson, 8-yard run.  80-yard drive, 8 plays.  Tony Hite kick.  6:47 left.

RUSHING:
VALPARAISO (40 carries, 245 yards, 4 TDs)  Michael Perkins (HB) 9 carries, 38 yards; Nick Thompson (HB) 9 carries, 68 yards; Eric Jackson (HB) 13 carries, 106 yards;
Zack Livovich (QB) 6 carries, 27 yards, TD; Ryan Bays (FB) 1 (-1 yard); Greg Simms (HB) 1-3 yards; Isaac Bullock (HB) 1-4 yards.
CROWN POINT  (20 carries, 61 yards, 0 TDs)  Mason Popovich (HB) 8 carries, 36 yards; Marcus Shrewsbury (QB) 9 carries, 13 yards (2 sacks,  minus-10 yards)
Evan Nikrin (FB) 1 carry, 3 yards; John Hannon (FB)1 carry, 2 yards; Joel Johnson (QB) 1 carry, 7 yards.

PASSING:
VALPARAISO - Zack Livovich (QB) 6-of-9, 81 yards, one TD, one interception;
CROWN POINT - Marcus Shrewsbury (QB) 13-of-26, 148 yards, 2 TDs, one interception;  Joel Johnson (QB) 1-of-2, 32 yards;  Joe Hopman (QB) 1-of-3, 6 yards.

RECEIVING:
VALPARAISO - Tony Piet (WR) 4-48 yards, TD; Eric Jackson (HB) 1-27 yards;  Matt Hittinger (HB) 1-6 yards.
CROWN POINT - Danny Osojnicki (WR) 10-128 yards, TD; Mike Kozlowski (FB) 1-10 yards, TD; Mason Popovich (HB) 2-1 yard;
Nate Haverstock (WR) 1-15 yards; Chris Klein (WR) 1-32 yards.

TOTAL YARDS:
VALPARAISO (326 yards, 17 first downs, one turnover (interception)
CROWN POINT (247 yards, 15 first downs, 2 turnovers  (one fumble).

VALPARAISO (9-26-2008) -  There was a virtual certainty about Crown Point's week six game against Valparaiso that was lacking in the Bulldogs' first five contests of the 2008 high school football season.  In each of the first five weeks, CP might have won, they might have lost.  They could have looked better and still lost and they might have done worse and won.

There was no ambiguity about Friday night's visit to Porter County.

"We got rolled," said Crown Point coach Chip Pettit.  "We need to make plays early to get off the field.  To their credit, we didn't and they didn't.  Then in the second half, they wore us down.  Their size just started to pound on us."

It was a clear cut knock out.  Valparaiso, on the school's homecoming night, led 7-0 before Crown Point (2-4) ever touched the ball.  The Vikings led 14-0 after one quarter and 31-10 after three periods.  For the sixth consecutive game, the Bulldogs could not run the football consistently and that fact, despite a decent performance by senior QB Marcus Shrewsbury, made the outcome almost inevitable.

With all due respect to undefeated Lowell (6-0) and talent-rich Merrillville (3-3), Valparaiso is easily the best team CP has faced.  The Vikings' big offensive line, based on tackle Conner Sapp (6-8, 290), bankrolled two 80-yard Valparaiso TD drives and a third of 70 yards.  QB Zack Livovich (6-6, 215) only threw the ball nine times but he connected early on a 21-yard TD pass to tall senior Kevin Piet (6-2, 175).

The Bulldogs seemed smaller and incapable of stopping Valparaiso.  This from a CP team that had allowed only 43 points in the first five games.

Crown Point's offense was equally bad.  They lost the ball on their second play of the first half and their first play of the second half, giving up touchdowns moments later both times.  CP did not give themselves a chance to win and Valparaiso and running back Eric Jackson, were very grateful on a 70-degree late September night.

"Our offensive line was great," said Jackson, who gained 106 yards on 13 carries.  "They played till the whistle on every play.  It was a rough loss last week (12-10 to Chesterton).  We could have won that game.  We should have won that game.  But we had a great week of practice and by Wednesday, we knew we'd come into this game primed."

The Vikings (5-1), who defeated Penn 10-9 to start the season, drove 80 yards with the opening kickoff as Livovich fired a 21-yard TD pass to Piet (6-2, 175).  On the second offensive play, an errant pass by CP quarterback Marcus Shrewsbury was intercepted by junior corner back Matt Hittinger at the CP 37-yard-line.  Five plays later, Livovich scored from two yards away and CP was trailing 14-0 late in the first period and the rest of the warm fall evening was a holiday for the home team.

Crown Point did not gain a first down until Shrewsbury fired a 13-yard pass to Danny Osojnicki with 3:13 left before halftime.  That pass was part of a 15-play, 73-yard drive that ended with Michael Lipton's third field goal of the season, cutting the Viking lead to 17-3 at the half.  Any CP comeback scenario dreamed up on the visitors sidelines during the 30-minute Viking homecoming halftime were squashed when Nick Bruno fumbled on the first play of the second half.  Valpo's JJ Peller fell on the ball at the CP 25-yard-line.  The Vikings scored five plays later when junior halfback Nick Thompson (5-10, 156) scored with 9:56 left in the third period.

Down by 21 points, CP was chasing the game at that point and a complete comeback was highly unlikely.

'We've had a great year," said Valpo's longtime coach Mark Hoffman.  "Our line did a much better job than last week and all our backs ran hard.  Our quarterback is a big kid with a nice touch and he's still learning how to play the position at this level."

The good news for Crown Point is that Shrewsbury (6-2, 210), the star wrestler in his one and only season as CP's varsity QB, fired second half TD passes of five yards to Osojnicki and 10 yards to Mike Kozlowski.  It wouldn't be accurate to call this (13 of 26, 148 yards) a good game for the Bulldog quarterback, but Shrewsbury does now have six TD passes for the season, five in the last two weeks.  The bad news is that the Bulldogs are getting dangerously close to going the entire regular season without a rushing touchdown.  CP totaled 61 yards on 20 carries at Valpo Friday.  They have an unofficial 581 yards (96 per game) rushing all season and while there are leagues where you can win without rushing the ball, the DAC is not one of them.

In the final minutes of the first blowout of the season for the Bulldogs, Crown Point alternated sophomore Joel Johnson (6-0, 155) and freshman Joe Hopman (5-10, 180) at quarterback. Neither is likely to take Shrewsbury's place as the starter (it's unlikely the coaches want to subject either to the physical punishment he's been taking), but both may see some time in the final three regular season games as CP, the three-time defending DAC champion, is two games out of first place with three games to play.

"We got a complete effort tonight," said Hoffman.  "That team (CP) has a good defense and our offensive line was able to block them.  They're still getting better.  Crown Point's going to be tough come playoff time."

DOG NOTES:  Crown Point's Danny Osojnicki grabbed 10 passes for 121 yards, the most for the Bulldogs in several seasons.  Osojnicki had 14 catches for 161 yards in the first five games.

There is confusion about Valparaiso's future schedules.  Many have said that Valpo will replace Gary Roosevelt on the Vikings' schedule with Carmel.  That's true, but it won't happen until the year 2011.  In 2009 and 2010, Valparaiso will face Griffith in week two.

"I saw Russ (Griffith coach Russ Radtke) at a track meet," explained Valpo coach Mark Hoffman, "and I asked if he'd play us.  He said, 'Sure.  We'll play anybody.'"

Why has Valparaiso played weak Gary Roosevelt in week two of the regular season for the last decade, long after Roosevelt could compete with them?

Hoffman said it was a promise he made to John Campbell, Gary Roosevelt's athletic director.

"He told me that he still wanted to play us," Hoffman explained.  "He said that his team got a lot out of playing us and that we (Valpo) weren't afraid to come to Gary.  So, I said that we would play them as long as he was the AD."

"John is no longer there.  I had asked (Mo) Moriarity (Carmel's coach) to play them as soon as he got that job."