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Legendary Hermantown football coach Mike Zagelmeyer on his team's impressive 56-12 home victory over Duluth East on Friday night, and looking ahead to the Hawks' nonconference game at Esko Thursday afternoon – "I thought we played our best offensive half of football to date on Friday against Duluth East. Our offense started fast out of the gate. I thought our line did a nice job of blocking it up. Martin Sleen (9 carries, 152 yards, 4 TDs) was tremendous in the run game and Aidan Adamski (6 carries, 31 yards, 1 TD) added a nice change of pace. But to see Evan Senst, Andre Morton, Mason Humphreys, Kyle LaValley and Adan Sandoval-Luna block was the story of the game. Their work allowed Coach (Greg) Aker to run a balanced attack and give Alex Schott (11-13, 181 yards, 2 TDs) the time needed in the pass game. Grant Johnson (4 receptions, 104 yards, 1 TD) continues to be a real weapon in the pass game. For whatever reason, we were firing on all cylinders on Friday. It was fun to be a part of as a coach. I thought our defense was very opportunistic and physical on Friday. Landon Burg's pick-6 (80 yards) was just a tremendous effort on his part. I thought Andre Morton had his best performance as a Hawk. We have always seen glimpses of it, but due to injury he has never really been able to be a consistent force for us. Friday night was really what we had hoped and believed he could give us defensively. Overall, we seem to be figuring out what having a 'team' defense means. The large halftime lead we had allowed us to give some much-needed experience to our younger guys while allowing our starters some valuable rest and time off. This is/was important for both depth and health. The season has now entered 'the grind' portion of the year, and it is important to keep everyone healthy and fresh. This week we are traveling to Esko for a game on Thursday at 5 p.m., which is odd. So we will have to adjust our schedule accordingly. Our focus has to be entirely on Esko as they have a tough offense to defend and playmakers to go along with it. The season within a season rolls on."
Duluth Denfeld football coach Erik Lofald on Friday's 38-22 home victory over Cloquet – "Nice win against a well-coached Cloquet team. We were able to bounce back after the North Branch loss (47-12 at North Branch) and reestablish the explosive and physical brand of football we’ve been known for. We are getting great play from the usual suspects but enjoyed great games on defense from junior Jak King and sophomores Keelijah Thomas and Christian Barnette. We’ll need those guys to continue to play well coming down the home stretch. With Grand Rapids upsetting North Branch (29-28, in Grand Rapids) last week, the district and section seeding for playoffs are wide open."
Hermantown volleyball coach Jessica Williams on her almost-unbeatable, 16-3 Hawks – "We just got back yesterday from our two-day tournament (STMA), and we overall played great. We broke our curse of losing both games Friday night and went 1-1. Then Saturday we were 2-1 so overall we went 3-2. We were able to beat North St. Paul Friday night, beat Kimball and Elk River and almost beat Rocori on Saturday. Claire Kaups is leading the team in dig and kills, and her overall leadership on the court is impressive. Gab Arntson and MiKayla Sweeney also stepped it up this weekend so we are very excited for our match against Cloquet (11-9)."
Coach Nathan Hanson on his Hermantown girls soccer team – "I'm really happy with how the team has been playing this final part of the season. Winning four of our last six was important for us and has given us a lot of momentum going into the playoffs. Two of those losses, versus Cloquet and Duluth East, were against really strong opponents and really pushed us to have that desire to play at an even higher level. I've been extremely impressed with how Kaija Markovich and Bryden Giesen continue to find the back of the net tallying 15 goals between them. As we open up the Section Tournament playing at home against Hibbing on Tuesday at 7 p.m., I know the girls will be looking to create even more momentum. To win our section and make it to the state tournament is always the goal and these girls are ready and looking to make a deep run."
On the Vikings' 5-0 start:
Don Ness – "Well, this is fun! It doesn't even feel like they're playing their best football, but are finding a way to beat some excellent teams. I can't wait for the Lions game at US Bank after the bye - the winner of that game will have inside lane for the #1 seed in the NFC. Getting (TJ) Hockenson back should help Jefferson get more space. Aaron Jones is the key for the offense - hopefully the hip injury isn't serious. These veteran corners have been stout, but I worry about their ability to make it through the season. This team should be a buyer at the trade deadline - getting a #1 corner could be the missing piece. I doubt Pat Surtain is going to be available, but if you could bring in a guy like that, this team could make a long run. The thing that I like most about the Vikings right now is that Kevin O'Connell is a genuinely good guy, a true leader, and sets the tone for a team that has bought in."
Roger Reinert – "What a great year to be a Vikings fan. Like many Minnesotans, I bleed purple so it’s really fun to see this team not just overcome an early setback due to injury but then really rally around Sam Darnold’s leadership. The game in London wasn’t pretty, but the road to a championship is always littered with some ugly wins. It was especially fun to see CJ Ham score on a two-yard rush, knowing that his wife Stephanie, daughters Skylar and Stella, and son Trip were amongst the 61,000 fans in London."
Fred Friedman – "For a guy that confidently picked the Vikes to win five games all season, I am very surprised but remain cautious. The last two weeks they have disappeared in the second half on offense and defense and the punting team has brain locked. In both weeks, the rookie placekicker and clutch late interceptions have saved the day. Let’s talk in January."
John Gilbert – "Momentum is a wonderful asset in sports, and the Vikings are a great example. Sam Darnold continues to be the best Vikings quarterback since Case Keenum, and he shows the same ability to unite his teammates in providing confidence to everyone — from the coaches, to the running backs and wide receivers, and play-callers. The cohesiveness is contagious, and has spread through the defense, which has been a team strength all season. The bye week shouldn’t slow them down, although they did interrupt themselves when Aaron Rodgers and some weird officiating calls got in their way in the second half in London. When the Bikings return, it will be against the Detroit Lions in a showdown for first place in the division."
Brian Prudhomme – "This is a team with a perfect 5-0 record, yet they have shown some imperfections. I hope out of the bye, they can minimize turnovers and penalties while improving in short-yardage situations offensively. The fanbase should be excited about how impressive the team has been in clutch moments. Enjoy each win and try not to wait for the proverbial other shoe to drop — even if we know that is so much easier said than done. SKOL!”
Daniel Fanning – "What an impressive start to the season for the Vikings! Minnesotan is 5-0 heading into their bye week, and ranked as the top team in the league in some power rankings. It’s been an incredible team effort throughout the first five games. It hasn’t always been pretty, but the Vikings keep finding a way to win. They’re getting the fundamentals right from stellar defense, outstanding blocking and tackling, consistent and aggressive coaching, protecting and moving the ball, special teams is contributing, it’s all there. Yet, there’s still room for improvement too. Hockenson should be returning to the lineup soon, and hopefully Aaron Jones recovers quickly to continue to lead the ground game. They have to stay humble and hungry. Already looking forward to the matchup against the Lions after the bye week."
Scott Lyons – "Vikes have been very good beating some pretty highly rated teams. Their defense is solid and not making many mistakes. Vikings offense has been pretty good and not making critical mistakes. Great start in a talented Central Division. Go Vikes."
Arik Forsman – “After five weeks of balanced, total team football, I’ve seen enough: I’m ready to get hurt again. Chalk me up as a believer that this team can make a deep playoff run in ‘24. SKOL!”
Thursday Prep Football Games
Hermantown (5-1) at Esko (3-3), 5 p.m.
Friday Prep Football Games
North Branch (4-2) at Duluth East (2-4), 6 p.m.
Duluth Denfeld (5-1) at Rock Ridge (2-4), 7 p.m.
Grand Rapids (4-2) at Cloquet (2-4), 7 p.m.
