Last Friday, Jesuit played their seventh game of the season against the Irving Nimitz Vikings (not to be confused with the Irving Tigers, who Jesuit defeated last week
), and pulled away with yet another big victory. Jesuit defeated the Vikings 51-27, putting the Rangers at 5-2 on the season.
The Rangers played an outstanding game, offensively and defensively. Head Coach Brandon Hickman said, “I loved our teams emotion and we had some guys step up and make some really good plays on offense, defense, and special teams.”
In the first quarter, Jesuit played phenomenal defensively, holding the Vikings to just one touch down, and sacked the Nimitz quarterback in the end zone for a safety.
On the offensive side of the ball, Jesuit played out a long drive and cashed it in with a touch down off the ground from Matthew Slovak ’15. Then following the big defensive safety, Jesuit’s Matt Miller ’15 returned the kick off for 6. John Weingierski ’16 explained “The offense completed their goal of scoring on their first possession and were supported by solid defensive play. The combination gave us an early lead in the game and gave the players a nice confidence boost.
Jesuit’s tough defensive line continued to bully the Vikings in the second half and forced yet another safety. The offense capitalized on the safety with Matthew Slovak showing off his usual gritty, run-through opponents style of play. Right before the second 
half ended, UCF commit Bo Schneider ’15 completed a 45 yard touch down pass to Charlie Eikenberg ’15. The touchdown put Jesuit well ahead the Nimitz, and Coach Hickman thought it gave the team some momentum going into the second half.
The second half didn’t look very bright for the Vikings, and it didn’t turn out too bright either. Jesuit’s improving defense continued to stomp all over the Vikings, allowing merely one touch down for the rest of the game. Joseph Stautner ’16 thought “The secondary played great this game; almost every reception made was covered very well…The d-line applied some great pressure and also held the run game to a minimal.”
T
he offensive wave of touchdowns continued in the fourth quarter for the Rangers. Bo Schneider connected with Charlie Eikenberg for 2 touchdowns early in the 4th, which put Eikenberg at three touchdowns and 142 total yards. These touchdowns also put Schneider at 30 touchdowns on the season, an area high.
Overall, Jesuit played terrific on both sides of the ball, and continue to in moving further into district. The Rangers have improved immensely as a team since the first game of the season. The defense, with only two returning starters from last year, has developed into a top notch, hard to score on team. Jesuit’s ability to stop the run forces other teams to throw, opening opportunities for interceptions and batted down passes. Coach Brandon Hickman thinks “If we can keep improving these last few weeks we will be tough to beat in the post season.”
