Vikings score early and often in rout of Indians

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VALPARAISO -- Portage arrived in Valparaiso in sleepwalk mode.

That's not a good state of mind to be in on the Valparaiso football field, particularly not this time of year.

The Vikings made the Indians pay, pounding them 45-7 Friday.

This was a game that had a shelf life of 10 minutes -- if that.

The Vikings set the tone on the first drive, pushing Portage back to the 16 on a Tony Hite kickoff that sailed out of the end zone. Three running plays netted negative-4 yards for Portage (5-3).

A 33-yard punt by Portage gave Valparaiso (7-1, 5-1), the ball at the 49. From there, it took them six plays to punch it in the end zone. Eric Jackson finished the drive with a 12-yard run.

It was virtually all over from that point on for the error-prone Indians, who turned the ball over five times.

"We did an awesome job up front," Valparaiso linebacker J.J. Peller said. "We were really pumped up. I don't think they were ready for our intensity."

How awesome up front?

Well, Valparaiso held the Indians to 34 yards rushing in the first half. The bulk of Portage's 183 yards rushing came in the second half after Valparaiso emptied its bench.

The season for Valparaiso has been one linear progression upward.

Valparaiso coach Mark Hoffman wouldn't say this win was the best performance of the year for his team.

But it had to be close.

They rolled up 295 yards rushing. With their starters in the game, they were able to score at will.

How good was the rushing attack? Michael Perkins, the third option in the backfield, carried the ball four times for 115 yards. The big rumble for Perkins was a 74-yard score in the second quarter that gave Valparaiso a 35-0 half-time lead. Eric Jackson was the leading rusher for Valparaiso with, piling up 132 yards on 14 carries.

"Our running backs did a nice job," Hoffman said. "And our defense didn't give them any room to run in the first half."

That sums it up except for the unforced errors for Portage.

The Indians had at least six bad snaps from the center to Eric Melcic on the shot gun exchange.

The turnovers and sloppy football are hard for Portage coach Mark Peterson to explain.

"Obviously, the turnovers are backbreakers for us," he said.

The Indians don't have time to wallow. They play Valparaiso in two weeks in the opening round of sectionals.