A new year means new beginnings. But this year’s Varsity Football season opener against the Long Reach Lightning was far from successful as the Vikings lost 33-0 in a hard fought game.

Led by Coach Phil Zacharias, the Vikings look to improve upon their 1-9 record from last year. They return with eight starters who will have to step up and fill the roles of the players who have graduated or have left the team.

The players are looking forward to getting their first win as their season progresses. The defense, which has shown that they can create turnovers, is something that the fans can definitely look forward to seeing.

“The defense will set the tone,” said junior Glen Turner.

“The fans can look forward to us winning this season,” added junior Stephen Taylor optimistically.

Potential newcomers and standouts are juniors Mark Lettieri, Nick Nordhausen, Walter Nelson and Glen Turner and seniors Rickie Williams, Josh Lee and Markus Stevenson. They will be the players that rival schools will need to look out for.

Along with the Vikings highly anticipated defensive play this season, expect some aggression to be displayed on the field. A collection of players feel prepared for the season, and they thanked their previous hard work during the summer for that.

Although the season opener against Long Reach did not go as they had hoped, the Vikings can look to use this loss as motivation for the rest of the season. They saw key contributions from Nelson, Williams and junior Joey Schwartz.

Tough beginnings can lead to a breakthrough for the Vikings as they acknowledge the talent of other teams and regroup. This should put even more determination and heart into the players as they look to defeat rival Centennial this Friday.