20 • SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2020 • VALLEY NEWS DISPATCH
MUZZY COLOSIMO
JUSTIN HOOPER
Coach: Muzzy Colosimo
2019 record: 1-9, 0-6 in
Class 2A Allegheny
All-time record: 262-248-9
SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Time
9.11 Burrell* 7
9.18 at North Catholic*# 7
9.25 Deer Lakes* 7
10.2 at Freeport* 7
10.9 Derry* 7
10.16 at Yough 7
10.23 at East Allegheny* 7
*CONFERENCE GAME; #AT MARS
ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing Cayden Quinn
Receiving Vaun Ross*
Rushing Justin Hooper
*GRADUATED
FAST FACTS
• The Vikings haven’t had a
winning season since 2016
when they went 6-3 and haven’t
made the playoffs since
2013.
• Valley lost two games last
year by a touchdown or less
and led Freedom, 10-7, in the
third quarter of their Sept. 27
matchup.
• Valley scored 13 offensive
touchdowns last season.
• Since taking over in 2014,
Muzzy Colosimo has gone 21-
35 with the Vikings but hasn’t
made the playoffs.
VALLEY WILL RELY ON
NEWFOUND EXPERIENCE
by GREG MACAFEE
The Valley Vikings lacked
experience last season, and it
showed early.
They had a first-year starting
quarterback, one returning
starter on offense and four
on defense, and they lacked
strong line play. Despite their
1-9 record, the young team
started to develop and learn
from their mistakes as the
season progressed.
They earned their win
Sept. 13 over Imani Christian,
22-6, then they scored a
season-high 28 points against
Apollo-Ridge three weeks later,
which was the third-highest
total Apollo-Ridge allowed
all season. The Vikings also
scored two touchdowns in
each of their final two games.
Senior running back Justin
Hooper believes what they accomplished
toward the end of
last season will be a major factor
in how they play this season.
“That will be very big for us
this year,” Hooper said. “We
pretty much have the same
line this year, and they are
just getting bigger and faster
this season, so I think we’ll
be able to score more touchdowns
than last season.”
Unlike last year, the Vikings
will have plenty of seniors.
Venerable coach Muzzy Colosimo
said he has 10 seniors,
and they played a big role in
offseason workouts.
Like always, teams can expect
the Vikings to run the ball.
With Hooper returning to
the backfield and senior Richard
Miller and juniors Dario
Wolfe and Tyreese Swindler
returning up front, the Vikings
could find success on
the ground. But Colosimo believes
they might be able to
VALLEY · 21
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