Vikings' offensive adaptability key to late-season run

FORT WALTON BEACH – Asked to recall sophomore quarterback Ryan Thompson’s play during Fort Walton Beach’s shocking 42-39 overtime upset of seventh-ranked Pine Forest a week ago, Carter Liufau didn’t mince his words.

Instead, the Vikings’ senior wide receiver offered perhaps the highest form of flattery.

“He reminded me a lot of Luke (Barnes) out there playing,” Liufau said with a smile.

Making just his third varsity start Thompson appeared completely at ease in manning the Fort Walton Beach offense last week. Thompson, who had spent much of this season quarterbacking the Vikings’ JV squad, deftly completed 25-of-35 pass attempts for 334 yards and six touchdowns in guiding Fort Walton Beach to an improbable road win that sets up Friday night’s Class 4A regional semifinal matchup with District 2-4A champion and cross-county rival Niceville (10-0).

Barnes, of course, is the Vikings’ record-breaking senior quarterback that was lost for the season with an ACL tear during the second quarter of Fort Walton Beach’s eventual 36-13 loss to Niceville in late October.

Without its offensive centerpiece, Fort Walton Beach sputtered offensively the rest of the night before entering a make-or-break game at Mosley two weeks later still in search of its identity.

What it found was a chameleon-like adaptability that has served it well ever since.

Against Mosley, Fort Walton Beach ditched the pass-happy attack it had become known for in favor of a ground game most may have thought to have long been banished from the playbook.

Instead, the Vikings showcased a powerful one-two punch in running backs T.C. Carter and J.T. White. Each ran for well over 100 yards in powering Fort Walton Beach to a 23-6 win to secure the Vikings’ status as district runner-up. Then, one week after suffering what Owens labeled as a “devastating” loss at Choctawhatchee and with Pine Forest fully expecting to once again see the Vikings’ try to establish its new-found ground attack, it was Thompson’s turn to take center stage.

“They were expecting us to run the ball, so they had a lot of man coverage,” Owens said.

Thompson proceeded to calmly pick apart the Eagles’ secondary as five different Viking receivers hauled in four or more passes with each eclipsing 40 yards or more. Liufau led all receivers with 100 yards and two touchdowns on nine catches.

“He has a lot of poise for a tenth-grader,” Owens said. “He’s played in two or three of the biggest games we’ve had in a long time.”

 Having now won two games in which the Vikings’ season hung precariously in the balance, sophomore or not, run or pass, the Viking offense has full faith in a unit that not so long ago appeared to be rudderless ship lost at sea.

“We know that whether we call a run play or a pass play we’re going to be successful at it,” Liufau said. “We have wide receivers that can make big plays and we have running backs that can make big plays.”