By Frank Vajcner
The Dundee Vikings’ season in 2022 was a tale of two halves. They started out 5-0, and looked to challenge for the LCAA crown. They then proceeded to go 1-4 down the stretch to finish 6-4.
Head Coach: Steve Ayre (12-9, third season)
Staff: Cord Trott, Jeremy Fielder, Jeremy Bell, Bryan Hammond, Nate Mills, John Schuler, Brian Baker
Offense: The Vikings return nine players with starting experience. Leading the way is junior QB Ryan Zanger, who will look to build off of a solid campaign from last season. Zanger will have three seniors to throw the ball to in WRs Braiden Whitaker and Ethan Layton, as well as TE Cooper Buhl. At RB, senior Trey Parker looks to be the go-to option.
Up front, the Vikings will have two seniors anchoring the line in Trent Vajcner and Gabe Daniel. Underclassmen Jay Hickey and Quinton Lephew return to the trenches to bring experience.
Defense: The unit will look to return to their first half of the season form after petering out in the last five games. What helps is the Vikings have a three-year starter returning at each level in Parker (DE), Buhl (LB), and Layton (safety). Hickey and Vajcner will help anchor the line, Lephew will start at LB, and Whitaker will return to the secondary.
Whitaker will also make an impact on special teams at kick returner.
Conference Outlook: “The league will be very good top to bottom. Clinton, Ida, and Hudson return a lot of really good football players. We expect Onsted, Blissfield and Hillsdale to all be better than they were a year ago.”
Coach’s Outlook: We expect to compete each and every week. I am very excited about the type of football team we have the potential to be. We have had a great off-season and look to build on it moving forward.
Fun Fact: The Vikings are on a four-year playoff streak, the longest in school history.
FNV Outlook: Will the real Dundee Vikings please stand up? With the returning offensive talent, this could be a team that contends in the rugged LCAA, at least on paper. The defense will need to perform better against the big guns in the back half of the season.
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