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Two-a-days: Viewmont football preview

Prep Sports Overtime by Bill Oram and Kyle Goon

Published August 6, 2012 9:48 am

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Coach Brad Lloyd has a decision to make.

He has David Black at his disposal, a senior who was quarterback for the junior varsity last season. He is the frontrunner for a position manned so well by Josh Staples a year ago. Junior Issac Evans, however, is making this a close competition. And then, there are a pair of talented sophomores waiting in the wings, aching for their chance.

That makes Viewmont's practice facility a pretty interesting place in the next two weeks. Position battles will be frequent for a team with seven overall returning starters, a plethora of inexperience, but also a bushel full of talent as well.

"Right now, our defense is better than our offense," Lloyd said. "Our offense will start to come around. Having said that, we have good talent and we will play well and we will play together as a team."

There are proven commodities in the offense. Mitch Dalley is the kind of do-everything type of athlete that every coach loves to have. He lines up in different places, depending on the formation. He's a threat to catch the ball and he is formidable in the return game.

Blake Williams returns as a 6-foot-3 receiver who makes big catches over the middle and over the top of defenses. Overcoming the inexperience, however, will tell the story of whether the Vikings are as good as they were last year. Viewmont in 2011 was an eight-win team when not much was expected of them during the summer.

Some of the same challenges await Lloyd this year. But the foundation has been set, and Lloyd believes that his team is a consistent winner just waiting to happen.

"We have to be lucky in the sense of being injury free," Lloyd said. "We have to be able to take advantage of our opportunities and make plays when we have to. We have to make sure that we're a disciplined team and play within ourselves. We aren't going to be superstars. But overall we will play well as a unit."

LAST YEAR: 8-4, lost to Jordan in the second round of the Class 5A playoffs KEY RETURNER: Mitch Dalley. There may not be a more versatile player in Region I. As a junior he played cornerback, returned kicks, caught passes and even played a little bit of quarterback. PLAYER TO WATCH: Paul Teisina. He was the hub of the defense at last season at middle linebacker, and has made an impact at tight end as well. BIGGEST HOLE: Viewmont's inexperience is troubling for Lloyd. The hope is that the talent overtakes that lack of experience. NEED TO KNOW: Viewmont won Region 2 last season, and should be in contention again in what appears to be a wide-open race. Although the Vikings lost some key experience, four programs in the region will have new head coaches.SEASON OPENER: Hosts Woods Cross. Aug. 17 @ 7 p.m.