Vikes to face powerful McEwen

Community receiver Zach Haynes has drawn double coverage much of this season. (T-G Photo by Jimmy Jones) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

The road doesn't get any easier Friday night for the Community Vikings as they face a very physical McEwen team in their quest for their second Region 5-A win of the season.

The Warriors (3-1, 1-1 Region 5-A) not only muscle teams around at the line of scrimmage, but boast one of the most versatile running backs in the area in Ethan Tummins, one of only eight seniors on the roster.

McEwen enters the contest coming off of a hard fought 28-23 win over visiting Clarksville Academy where they posted 301 yards of total offense, with Tummins accounting for 93 rushing yards on 14 carries.

The Vikings (1-3, 1-2) are looking to right the ship after losing 42-12 to cross-county rival Cascade on Friday night. It was their second consecutive region loss.

Quarterback Justin Stallings was harassed and hurried for most of the contest by the Champions' defense, but still managed to show off his ability to air it out when given even the slightest open space for his receivers.

His two touchdown tosses to Zach Haynes and Corey Coppes were the highlight of the night for the Vikings and left their fans clamoring for more.

The senior also threw two balls that were intercepted, but they came at a time in the game when everyone in the stadium knew that a pass was imminent on every play as the Vikings attempted to play catch up.

Tailback Jacob Cowell continues to impress with his hard running style. He took some big hits from the opposition last week, but also dished out some of his own.

The senior still managed to rush for an impressive 106 yards despite being keyed on by the defense on every play from scrimmage.

The Purple and Gold's aerial assault can be very impressive if the line will give Stallings the extra split second to deliver the ball. They face a Warrior defense that has proven to be vulnerable to the pass having allowed 121 yards passing to winless Clarksville Academy, and 125 yards in their loss to Cascade.

Community looks for their offensive line to step up and play McEwen hard in the trenches to open some holes for Cowell, Sean Grigoruk and Tavarice Moore to run to allow some versatility for the offense and keep the Warrior defense guessing.

The Vikings have some normal nicks and bruises that most teams experience four games into the season but will start the game in better than average shape physically.

Kick-off is at 7:30.