Vikings have no trouble whipping Riverbend in season opener

By Joe Conroy

Published: August 29, 2008

The Woodbridge Vikings opened the defense of their 2007 Northwest Region title with a convincing win over Riverbend Friday night. Of course, All-Area Player of the Year De’Antwan Williams was right in the middle of the 40-9 season-opening victory.
Williams, who racked up more than 2,200 yards rushing last year, began the 2008 campaign with a 237-yard game, scoring four touchdowns, taking the early Prince William County lead from Battlefield’s Adrian Ingram who scored three against Potomac Thursday night.
But there is still plenty for the Vikings to work on. Offensive miscues and various penalties plagued Woodbridge most of the night.
“Pretty ugly game,” coach Keith King said simply after addressing his team. “Some of the penalties I kind of question, but there are things that we are doing wrong.
“We have a lot we have to work on and get better at.”
On two occasions, long touchdown plays were called back because of holding or illegal blocks, including what would have been a 60-yard scoring run from Williams as the first half expired.
“I had coaches up top (on the press box) looking at film that saw no holding whatsoever on the guy they called,” King said.
“When you have this many kids coming back,” King added, “you can’t say it’s first game jitters. I think it’s the first game in a live situation and guys are trying to do more than they should be. I think that may have caused some of the stuff. And some of it might be not being in shape.”
The addition of an effective passing game through new quarterback Frank Buckley helped to offset some of the problems Woodbridge faced in the contest. The aerial attack allows the Vikings (1-0) to keep opposing defenses honest instead of just stacking the box against Williams as teams did last year.
Buckley’s prowess in the pocket was epitomized in a 73-yard scoring pass to Kyle Cody in the fourth quarter. The junior, who replaced Jake Myer for several games last year when Myer re-injured his knee, finished the game with 110 yards passing on 10 completions in 11 attempts.
“It looked good at times,” King cautioned. “It’s got to get better, there’s no doubt about that.
“I feel better about us being a more balanced team,” he added. “That’s what we’re looking for.”