South Bend Times

The Vikings dominated the league to win the Granger Rocket youth football title this season, finishing with a perfect 10-0 mark.

The youth gridiron squad, made up players in 2nd through 6th grades, went 7-0 in the regular season and swept through the playoffs with three more wins.

A win in the Rocket Bowl gave the Vikings their second straight championship, third in four years and seventh overall. The team posted eight shutouts and outscored its opponents 299-14 during the season. 

Another trophy for the 10-0 Vikings

Head coach Eric Beckham said the coaches are dedicated to guiding their players to become better football players — and people.

“It’s fun to work with them and see them grow and mature,” Beckham said.

Assistant coach Cory Hurst said it was an “amazing team” that overcame the special challenges of this season.

“Every year at the Rocket level is a unique experience,” Hurst said. “Most of the kids are new to the sport, and those that played the year before may have developed in size and talent, so you always start from scratch and begin by putting the pieces together until you have a cohesive offense and defense that matches your personnel. Aside from having to coach through a mask, nothing was different for us this year. We followed the guidelines outlined by the county and the athletic director for Penn High School, whose facilities we used.”

Hurst said it was a roster filled with talent and dedicated players, who allowed only six points during the regular season. The playoffs were more of the same, as the Vikes beat the Colts 40-0 before topping the Raiders 24-8 in the semifinals.

The Rocket Bowl was another Vikings’ march to victory, as they shut out the Cardinals 32-0.

“We have a number of key players this season,” Hurst said. “We had three running backs at or near the 1,000-yard mark on the season — Carson Bryce, Ashton 'A.J.' Lasane and Noah Wallis. Our quarterback, Lukas Ruebbelke, has an amazing arm and was truly the team leader. The offense that [offensive coordinator] Jim Morris created was extremely effective, scoring on nearly every drive this season.

“But what stood out the most was our defense,” Hurst continued. “In 10 games, we were only scored on twice. Coach Mal Mihajlovich, our defensive coordinator, reminded the kids every game, ‘If they can’t score, they can’t win,’ and that was their goal. It helped having two linemen, Makale Price and Andrien Brown, who were immovable and unmatched in size and strength playing defensive tackle.”

Kicker Sam Scicchitano, who also led the Vikings in receptions, made all but one conversion and holds the team — and likely the league — record for longest field goal.

With the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a question if the 2020 schedule would even be played. But the league, founded in 1995, decided to move forward with some precautions in place, Hurst said.

“We were grateful to have a season, and in the beginning we worried if it would even happen,” he said. “Coaches were required to wear masks, and players had what we called ‘pods’ to put their water bottles in and where they could take off their helmets between sessions. Obviously, football is a contact sport, and helmets don’t prevent transmission, but we asked them to be socially distant when it wasn’t part of a drill or a game. Parents and spectators were asked to follow the same guidelines.”

The Vikings have seven coaches in its program, and each brings his own personality and perspective, said Hurst, 51. He has coached at Concord High School as well as Discovery Middle School in addition to being a part of the Rocket program. He works with the offensive and defensive linemen.

Hurst played football for FCS-level Weber State in the late 1980s.

“I have been coaching for 23 years, and have coached at the high school and middle school level. Jim Morris, the offensive coordinator, has coached for 30 years and has also worked at the high school level,” he said. “Our head coach, Eric Beckham, is a police officer, and has coached for 15 or so years. The other coaches, Alan Nichols, Mal Mihajlovich, John Kabzinski and Brandon Thomas, have anywhere from three to 20 years as well.”

Morris, 61, has coached baseball at Bremen High School and Mishawaka High School. He said the Vikings’ success is based on talented young players who grow together.

“When you get a group of players who buy into what you’re doing, you get to know their capabilities and you can push them a little harder,” Morris said.

The coaches don’t do it for money or fame. It’s a way to stay involved with the game they love and to help young players develop.

“We all have careers, and volunteering for Rocket football is a gift,” Hurst said. “We enjoy working with kids and each other. But it’s more than that. We spend time in each practice trying to build character. Football is just our vehicle, but the goal is making these boys into good men, lifelong learners.

“Every practice we have a 10- to 15-minute lesson about how to be a better person. Because of our position, they will sometimes listen more to us than they would other adults in their lives. And it allows us to have a positive impact.”

Morris said that last year the boys were instructed on the “five parts of a man,” while this year the lessons focused on behavior cycles and making the right choices to grow and mature.

“When you start building better people, they are better football players,” he said.

Beckham said it takes time and commitment, but the coaches work well together and enjoy their assignments. Every year they meet and talk about the upcoming season — and they decide to stick together and guide the next crop of Vikings.

“We try to help turn boys into men,” he said.

Hurst said he intends to keep teaching and coaching.

“My 8-year-old got to experience an amazing season, and I hope he takes what he learned and helps to pass it on to the new players next year, building on the foundations we have laid,” Hurst said.

Morris said he hopes the Vikings can maintain this level of success, but admits it won’t be easy, adding, “I’ve not seen a team like this that dominated like that.”