The De Anza Dons came to Pleasant Hill hoping to compete against the Viking’s football team. Instead, they were greeted by what would otherwise have qualified as the Vikings track team.

The Dons could not find an answer for the green Ferrari known as Dozie Iwaugau.

Iwaugau found his way to the open field more often than not as the Vikings set him up with superb blocking. Iwaugau’s odometer spun like a slot machine as he gobbled up the acreage of Viking Field.”The O-Line was great, those guys were outside for me all day,” said Iwaugau.

Spencer Van Brundt exhibited surgical precision in his reads while working out of the spread formation for the Vikings. Van Brundt’s speed is often overlooked because of his prowess when he stays in the pocket. He was elusive and able to scamper for significant gains when his team needed it most, and his speed undoubtedly had the defense convinced as he charged the goal line alongside Iwaugau for a pair of option TD’s.

Van Brundt also found wideout Cory Fischer for a beautiful 20-yard passing touchdown. He timed his throw perfectly for the fade route, and Fischer was able to leap above his defender and come down with his feet in the corner of the end zone.

The key for the Vikings in this game wasn’t the offensive beast they unleashed; it was a collective effort on both sides of the ball to play every single down. The Vikings played 4 quarters of football and kept their foot on the gas. This tends to be a theme of successful football teams. Typically, the team that can play for four quarters on both sides of the ball without lapsing in effort or intensity will come away victorious as the Vikings did Friday night in their win over De Anza College 35-20.

“This is really a fantastic team; we have a lot of talented and devoted people. We have guys in the weight room 5 days a week, every week,” said Iwaugau of his supporting cast.

It is that same brand of commitment and leadership that adorns every successful football team. And it explains the Vikings’ record of 6-1.

The Vikings are shackled to the highly competitive Nor-Cal Conference, which is widely recognized as one of the most difficult junior college conferences in the nation. The crux of the deal is that the Nor-Cal Conference doesn’t even begin its league matchups until week five of the season, which can become quite precarious for a team that falls victim to injury early in the season.

Fortunately for the Vikings, it is a combined effort.

That’s why it was no surprise that the Vikings’ fearsome defensive line contained a truly mobile quarterback in De Anza’s Nick Marra.

“We worked hard not to let them convert big third downs,” said Coach Mike Darr. “We had to get a little creative with some of our packages in sending people through the gap, but our defense executed well.”

Darr’s creativity paid off as the Vikings seemed to find their way into the backfield on every possession.

It wasn’t long before Morgan Breslin tied the current state lead for sacks with 12; he would have two on the day.

“We expect to hit quarterbacks on every play,” said Darr, as he aptly summed up the defensive emphasis.

They certainly do a good job of that.

They finish every play and make contact with every assignment. To put it simply, the Vikings want it more than the other team, and it shows in the way they hold every block, tackle crisply and execute the fundamentals.

When you have those elements working fluidly in unison on the gridiron, you can expect an exciting football team rumbling towards the playoffs.