FeedsInkster victorious in opener
The Inkster Vikings’ balanced attack moved them past Detroit Crockett, 26-6, at home on Saturday afternoon for the season opener.
The Vikings racked up 109 yards on the ground and 124 through the air.
The team likes to stick to the run—if possible—but all three of the scores were tosses from quarterback Aaron Shavers. He was 7-16 in the mix with one interception and 21 yards rushing.
“We have to take what a defense gives us,” said Inkster Coach Greg Carter. “We prefer to run the ball but they were really physical up front.”
The Vikings took and took and took again. By the end of the half they gained a 20-0 advantage over Crockett.
Inkster’s first drive was only four plays long and was capped off by Shaver’s 12-yard touchdown pass to J.J. Snelling. The first quarter ended with Inkster in the lead, 7-0.
Shavers then hit Derek Coker in the second to make it a 14-0 game. Then Shavers connected with Coker again at the end of the quarter for a 53-yard play and score. Inkster led 20-0 at the halfway mark.
Coker was the top receiver, snagging five balls for 124 yards and the two scores.
Crockett got in to the game with the only score of the third quarter, cutting into Inkster’s lead, 20-6. It was a 16-yard pass play to the end zone.
Inkster finished off the scoring with an 18-yard run from senior Tim Hogue, putting the game in the record books, 26-6.
Hogue finished with a majority of the rushing yards—73 on 12 carries.
The biggest question mark—the offensive line—was also the biggest surprise of the game, according to both Carter and offensive line coach Mac Jones.
“We were concerned because we have a lot of young guys on the offensive line,” Carter said. “Crockett was good but our line held up against their pressure.”
“We were very surprised how the offensive line played,” Jones added. “Most of the kids are new but they came out and executed. We were pleased but there’s still a lot to work on.”
Carter was impressed with the defense as well. He said the defense only allowed Crockett one drive but it was the scoring drive in the third quarter that ended with a pass play.
Overall Carter said the team played well and thought they were playing ahead of last year’s team that won the school’s first district title in decades and made it to the regional finale.
“The kids played with a lot of confidence,” he said. “They expect to win now. That makes it easier to coach because they believe what we’re trying to teach them.”
Inkster heads to Ypsilanti—one of the few teams that beat them last year—at 7 p.m. tonight.
“Ypsilanti has a better offense than Crockett,” Carter said. “Hopefully we can run the ball more effectively.
“This time of year it’s usually the team that plays the best defense that wins.”
