Vikings' varsity pounds Choctaw in spring game (with PHOTOS, VIDEO)

By TRAVIS DOWNEY

Northwest Florida Daily News
315-4476 | travisd@nwfdailynews.com

FORT WALTON BEACH - In the grand scheme of things, Fort Walton Beach's 28-0 win over Choctawhatchee during the varsity portion of Friday night's spring game may mean very little.

But as he made his way to the coaches box at Steve Riggs Stadium to take in the second half, Vikings quarterback Luke Barnes couldn't help but beam over the performance of the Fort Walton Beach offense.

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Who could blame him?

Fort Walton Beach racked up 309 yards of total offense and just as he did last fall, Barnes looked as comfortable as ever manning the controls.

Barnes finished with 230 yards on 14-of-23 passing with two touchdowns and ran for 65 yards and another score as the Vikings closed their spring with an emphatic performance against the Indians.

"It just goes to show all the hard work we've put in this spring," Barnes said. "I give all the credit to my offensive line, I felt really comfortable out there."

From the very outset it was apparent that Fort Walton Beach looked in midseason form.

Barnes connected on 11-of-18 first-quarter passes, seven of which came on the Vikings' initial possession, and helped fuel a 13-play, 80-yard scoring drive that was capped with a 15-yard touchdown pass to tight end Robert Willis.

After the Fort Walton Beach defense forced a quick three-and-out, the Vikings went back to work offensively, piecing together a 59-yard drive that ended with a 7-yard scoring run by Barnes that led to a 14-0 Viking lead.

"Defensively were in no man's land a little bit," Choctaw coach Greg Thomas said. "We couldn't really stop them. But a lot of it is correctable."

Fort Walton Beach added to its lead at the 5:18 mark in the second quarter when J.T. White scored on a 4-yard touchdown run that was set up by a 48-yard throw and catch from Barnes to Branden Goldston.

Choctaw answered with its deepest drive of the half, as quarterback Jesse Adams directed the Indians' offense on a 78-yard drive, reaching the Vikings' 2-yard line before a pitch on a fourth-and-goal to running back Freddie Gray was bobbled and resulted in a loss of 12.

Adams finished the night 11-of-18 passing for 149 yards, with receiver Justin Savage hauling in five receptions for 85 yards.

In the second half, which was played primarily by back-ups and members of each school's junior varsity, Fort Walton Beach jumped out to an early 7-0 lead when Carter Liufau recovered a fumble on the Indians' first play of the third and returned it for a 20-yard touchdown.

Choctaw, however, answered with 21 straight points, the last of which came on a 57-yard reception by Cedric Bridgewater with just 2:09 remaining in the game.