When the 2017 season was all said and done, the Inglemoor football team found themselves finishing with a combined record of 3 wins and 28 losses since 2014. Headed into this new season, expectations league wide were low for the Vikings, but instead the program surged to a 5-1 start, and secured a spot in the 2018 4A KingCo playoffs.
Head coach, Steve Hannan reflected on the off-season work it took to get there.
“There was an innumerable amount of hours spent, and dedication from the kids and from the coaches to physically prepare us for what we were gonna do this year,” Hannan said.
Senior Tight End Quentin Moore, the Vikings leader in receiving touchdowns, and receiving yards, noted the change in the team’s work ethic as well.
“The main difference between last year and this year is the workout program, and the preparation with the seven-on- seven we did, and the team chemistry that comes with all that. There is a physical difference too because we had way more people at workouts this year,” Moore said.
Despite the regular season success, the playoffs were a new challenge and Hannan did his best to prepare the team for battle. A week before the game, the seniors came together with their coach to talk things over and equip themselves for the biggest game of the year.
“I think we were trying hard not to treat it differently than any other game, but that’s difficult to do because it is a different game. A playoff game is certainly something that I think the kids are really proud of… It’s something that you earn, it’s not given to you,” Hannan said.
Moore said his goal headed into the playoff game against Skyline was the same as any other.
“To me it’s not satisfying just to make playoffs. I want to actually do something with that, I want to make a run in the playoffs,” Moore said, “My mindset is to be the best leader I can be out there, and just help bring my guys to a victory, make sure that whatever needs to be done is done.”
The Vikings came out and fought hard, locked in a 7-7 tie going into quarter two, but the Spartans would soon find their groove. In the second quarter, Skyline raced up and down the field connecting on seemingly every play.
Inglemoor found themselves down big at the half, and despite two late touchdowns, the Vikings were going to face elimination after a 41-21 loss.
With the end of this season, comes the loss of a dynamic senior class, full of players that made valuable contributions to the success of the team.
Despite the outpour of wins in this year, a continuation of the Vikings success may be in question for the 2019 season due to the major turnover in player personnel.
“We’ll wait and see, I mean what we want here is to build a football program not build individual teams,” Hannan said. “We want to give the kids a culture that breeds winning you know, and that’s what we’ve worked hard on this year.”
