AKRON - After completely revamping its offense over the summer, Tippecanoe Valley's football team got all the offense it needed in Friday's 13-0 season-opening win over North Judson from its defense.

The Vikings scored their first touchdown of the 2000 season with 3:06 remaining on the third-quarter clock on a 35-yard interception return by six-foot, 160-pound senior B.J. Cunningham. Junior Chris Hurd converted on the extra-point kick to make the score 7-0.

With 9:42 remaining in the game, six-foot, 205-pound junior inside linebacker Caleb Shewman put Valley up 13-0 with a 23-yard interception return of his own. Hurd's extra-point attempt was blocked.

"I'm proud and tickled to death that our defense got two scores tonight," eleventh-year Valley coach Scott Bibler said. "It was a great defensive effort, which is what we needed. We put in a new offense, we needed our defense to come through."

And come through the defense did.

Valley's 4-4 defense held the Blue Jays to 107 yards of total offense - 86 on the ground and 21 through the air - while allowing just five first downs.

Junior fullback Dan McGowen led the North Judson running attack with 40 yards on six carries. Senior signal caller Blake Radtke carried the ball nine times for 13 yards, while senior running back Keith Craig added nine yards on five carries.

Through the air, Radtke was 3 of 7 for 21 yards with two interceptions. All three Blue Jay receptions were made by senior Steve Sanchez.

"To get back to winning championships we have to have a defense," Bibler, a member of Valley's 1979 state championship team, said. "Even though our offense didn't score, our defense set us up."

North Judson started the game on its 14-yard line but couldn't manage a first down and was forced to punt.

The Vikings started their first possession of the game on the 48-yard line, where a nine-play drive saw power runs from senior fullback Josh Carter and Cunningham.

Cunningham led the Viking ground attack with 63 yards on 15 rushing attempts, while Carter added 26 yards on eight carries.

Valley proved it could play smash-mouth football and move the ball, Bibler's reasoning for chucking the run-and-shoot, on its first drive. On the fifth play, Cunningham rattled off 12 yards to give the Vikings a first down on the 25, but they were called for a five-yard offside penalty on the next play, breaking their momentum. Valley went for it on fourth and eight, but Cunningham managed just one yard.

In the first half alone, the Vikings rattled off two eight-play drives and two nine-play drives but still went to the break knotted at zero.

The Vikings threatened to score inside the two-minute mark of the second stanza when Cunningham caught a 27-yard Casey Wise pass that moved them to North Judson's 23-yard line. Two more rushes by Cunningham and one by junior Aaron Zolman put Valley at the 9-yard line. After an incomplete pass, Wise lofted a pass towards the right corner off the end zone, but was picked off with 10 seconds remaining in the half.

"Casey, for a sophomore, plays above his years of experience," said Bibler, who upped his record overall coaching record at Valley to 51-46. "He had a nice game, he's a good leader. Right before the half he got a little greedy. He left it (pass to right corner of the end zone) a little short. I was planning on kicking a field goal the next play. It was his first varsity game, he did a nice job."

Through the air, Wise was 5 of 9 for 69 yards with one interception.

The Vikings started the second half with a 12-play drive that resulted in a punt near the 6:30 mark. On the second play of North Judson's next drive, Valley senior Daren Alber recovered a fumble that put the Vikings 18-yards from paydirt.

Again the Vikings were threatening. And again the Vikings came up empty.

After two Wes Backus runs moved the ball to the 14-yard line, Wise lost a yard and Valley settled for a 32-yard field goal attempt but the snap was bobbled and the Vikings came away with nothing.

On the second play of the Blue Jays' drive Cunningham put the Vikings on the board with his 35-yard interception return.

Alber finished the game with three fumble recoveries, setting a new Valley single game record.

Valley's stingy defense allowed North Judson just 31 total offensive plays. The Vikings tallied 55 offensive plays, 46 coming on the ground.

North Judson finished the game with five penalties for 25 yards, while Valley tallied 20 yards on four mishaps.

"We are very rusty," Bibler said. "We made too many mistakes but the potential is there to be a good team."

Valley will be at Mississinewa Friday at 7 p.m.

TIPPECANOE VALLEY 13

NORTH JUDSON 0

N. Judson 0 0 0 0 - 0

T. Valley 0 0 7 6 - 13

TV NJ

First Downs 12 5

Rushes-yards 46-147 24-86

Yards Passing 69 21

Comp.-Att.-Int. 5-9-1 3-7-2

Total offense 216 107

Fumbles-lost 1-1 3-3

Punts-Ave. 2-35 4-31

Pentalties-yards 4-20 5-25

Third Quarter

TV - 3:06 B.J. Cunningham 35-yard interception return (Chris Hurd kick)

Fourth Quarter

TV - 9:42 Caleb Shewman 23-yard interception return (kick failed)

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

Rushing - N. Judson: Dan McGowen 6-40, Blake Radtke 9-13, Keith Craig 5-9. T. Valley,: Cunningham 15-63, Josh Carter 8-26, Casey Wise 10-18, Wes Backus 7-18.

Receiving - N. Judson, Steve Sanchez 3-21; T. Valley, Chris Mitterling 1-16, Cunningham 1-7.

Passing - N. Judson, Radtke 3-7-31-2; T. Valley, Wise 5-9-69-1. [[In-content Ad]]