FORT SCOTT — O.J. Simpson fled from police in his white Bronco, the World Series was cancelled due to a players’ strike, Kurt Cobain died and the Parsons Vikings beat the Fort Scott Tigers in football in 1994.
Thirty-one years later, the latter was accomplished again as the Vikings beat Fort Scott, 25-22, in Week 2 action on Friday night.
“It’s pretty neat for all of the players and all of the fans, but I’m mostly excited for how hard our kids worked in fall camp and they deserved that taste of victory,” Parsons head coach Jeff Schibi said. “I’m happy for our coaches, because I see how much time and effort they pour in. Everybody was feeling good after that win.”
Parsons never trailed in Friday’s tilt, snapping a 27game losing streak to the Tigers.
“Our defense played exceptionally and our offense was able to move the football,” Schibi said. “We scored early and that gave the kids some confidence. We pretty much had a stranglehold on the game and got it to 25-7 midway through the fourth quarter. Fort Scott caught a little bit of momentum, but I was proud of how the kids persevered. Our backs were against the wall and we came through.”
Chandler Hentzen donned the cape for the Vikings, racking up 155 rushing yards, 66 receiving yards, a pair of touchdowns and 11 tackles.
“That was one of the best all-around performances from a kid I’ve coached,” Schibi said. “The kid is a winner. He’s a gamer. He loves to go out and play football and hit people. We love his mentality. I can’t say enough good things about him. He’s the type of guy you want leading your team.”
Vikings quarterback Andrew Houk tossed three touchdowns on 10-of-14 passing for 137 yards.
“I was really proud of his mindset and how he prepared,” Schibi said. “He’s always positive. Those are the traits you want in a quarterback. He responded from Week 1 to Week 2. That shows signs of a kid that wants to get better.”
Parsons’ defense tallied six tackles for loss, including two from Brelin Summers.
“It started with Brelin Summers and Da’Karyi Jones, they’ve been monsters all year,” Schibi said. “If they play the way they’re playing right now, they’ll keep us in every game we play. Our defense is playing their tails off and keeping us in football games.”
After an 0-3 start to the 2024 campaign, Friday’s win has the capability to shift the trajectory for a young program.
“You always want to find success early in a season that keeps the kids motivated,” Schibi said. “When they have that success, they want to continue to taste it. It’s huge for us, especially with our tough schedule. We’ve got another tough one coming up.”
Up next
Parsons, now 1-1 on the season, faces Christ Prep on Saturday at Blue Valley Northwest High School. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m.
“It’s a week where our kids can play a little loose,” Schibi said. “We’ll get some team bonding and go out and play some football. We’re playing a non-district game…we’ll prepare expecting to win. But we want our kids to play loose because we play much better. That’s what we did last Friday night.”
