The Augustana football team cruised to a 71-0 victory against the Vikings of North Park University on Oct. 19. The team improved to 4-2 on the season and remain unbeaten at home this year. 71 points from the Vikings fell just one point sport of the Augustana record for points scored in a game which was set in 1920.
The Vikings had all cylinders firing on Saturday. Senior defensive back J.J. Cervino summed it up, “There was a lot of complimentary football going on today,” Cervino said.
The Augie defensive unit started the game off by forcing the visitors to punt the ball after only three possessions. After that offense took over and scored their first touchdown on a carry by senior Bobby Jarosz.
The game would continue in a similar fashion. The Augie defense forced six turnovers setting up several short fields for the Augustana offense. The offense took advantage of the defense’s work and by the half, the score was 47-0.
A sudden downpour at the half did nothing to deter the Vikings. They opened up the second half with a 5 play, 69 yard drive ending with a 38 yard passing touchdown to senior wide receiver Tom Dolis.
Dolis credits both the offensive line and the Vikings defensive unit with making his job easy.
“Our offensive line did a great job controlling the line of scrimmage…defense just did their job. It was a good team win for us,” Dolis said.
For the rest of the game, the Vikings kept the ball on the ground and ran the clock. The only pass made in the fourth was on a third and nine situation early on in the quarter. Eventually, Augie would take a knee to let the game clock expire.
The defense not only kept the visiting Vikings scoreless, but also limited them to a meager 90 yards. In comparison, Augie’s offensive unit had a total of 537 yards for the game.
According to junior John Kappel, the Viking’s focus going into this game was on limiting mental mistakes. After last weekend’s crushing loss, the Vikings rallied and proved that they are still a force to contend with; no matter the opponent.
“You still go in to every practice getting better everyday. You don’t take a week off just because it’s a lesser opponent” Kappel said. “[But] It was good to bounce back and get a win”.
The Vikings hope to use this momentum next weekend against perennial powerhouse Wheaton College. Wheaton is currently ranked fifth in the nation and has yet to suffer a loss on the season. Dolis spoke about how the Vikings are at their best when they play hard and play loose. He is looking for the Vikings to stick to their game against Wheaton.
Cervino was optimistic about their upcoming game up as well.
“If we can shock the world next week, who knows what can happen,” Cervino said.
Catch the Vikings on the road this Saturday against Wheaton College at 1pm.