Photo Courtesy of Darci Walters
Week Four Debrief: Parker Runs Wild, Defense Pitches Shutout
By Baylen Hite | 107.3 WRSW
Improvement after one game isn’t always cause for celebration, but after 4 straight games of compounding performances Tippecanoe Valley is starting to turn some heads.
The Vikings are now receiving votes in both the Indiana Football Coaches Association poll and the Indiana AP poll. Their statewide attention is after coming off their best performance of the season beating Tipton 53-0. The win marked the first shutout of the season and was filled with storylines.
Lets take some time to break down what went right for Death Valley Football on Friday night.
Defense Wins Championships
There is no other way to look at the win than domination at all three levels for Tippecanoe Valley. The Vikings were as strong as ever on defense shutting out the Blue Devils
They held Tipton to (-18) rushing yards as a team! When you factor in 85 yards passing as a team Valley held Tipton to just 67 yards. That’s the lowest offense output of an opposing team all season long.
It wasn’t just statistically where the defense was felt. You could see it and hear it at Smith-Bibler Memorial Field. All three levels were flying to the ball, Cameron Mason led the charge up front grabbing 4 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss. Brock Derf the teams leading tackler had his 2nd 10+ tackle night at 2nd level and oh by the way recovered a fumble for a touchdown. Wade Jones held down the secondary with 7 tackles and 2 of them being for a loss.
This unit has been everything and more than advertised this season.
Nate Parker and the Offensive Line
Sometimes we just need to step back and enjoy greatness. That’s what we were treated to on Friday night with Nate Parker. Parker scored 4 touchdowns in the 1st half, then with coach Moriarty telling him he had one more series left in the 2nd half he promptly took the first carry of the half for a touchdown.
Nate was the first to credit his offensive line after the game and rightfully so. Parker was untouched on most of his runs through the first level. The final stat line for Nate was 4 touchdowns on 9 carries with 154 yards. He also added a pair of catches for 49 yards and another touchdown.
Staying on Schedule
One of the most important things for an offense is staying ahead of the chains. Valley was as good as they’ve been this season securing 1st downs. The tone was set on the first two plays of the game that both resulted in 1st downs.
As a team TVHS picked up a season best 23 first downs to Tipton’s 6. If the Vikings can keep producing lopsided numbers like that they will keep stacking wins.
ICYMI: Area Notes and Scores
Next Game Note vs. Culver: This will mark the 3rd straight game for Valley facing a coach who has won 100+ career games.
Andy Dorrel at CMA has 147 career wins, prior to this week Tipton’s Aaron Tolle (135) and Twin Lakes Kevin O’Shea (242) wins.
Future Opponents
Week 5: Culver 31 Fairfield 39 OT
Week 6: Jimtown 7 John Glenn 12
Week 7: West Lafayette 37 Lafayette CC 7
TRC
Rochester 50 Manchester 0
Cass 44 North Miami 8
Southwood 13 Northfield 0
Maconaquah 43 Whitko 6
NLC
Warsaw 10 Concord 3
Northridge 25 Northwood 21
Plymouth 25 Wawasee 19
