AKRON – The way Tippecanoe Valley High School football coach Jeff Shriver sees it, attitudes – whether they be of winning or losing - are contagious. Shriver's Vikings started last season with a 5-1 record, but finished the campaign with a 5-5 mark. Entering his sixth season at the helm of the program, Shriver is looking for consistency from a team that he says has the potential to be very good. "Our goal every year is to win the state championship," said Shriver. "We want to win the conference, we want to win the sectional, we want to play deep into the playoffs. To do that, we have to be consistent. "Attitudes are contagious, whether it's a winning attitude or a losing attitude," continued Shriver. "If these kids work hard to get better every day, and they have a winning attitude, good things could happen for this team." The Vikings have finished the past two seasons with a 5-5 record. They are looking for their first winning season since posting an 8-2 mark in 2007. Led by a strong senior class and some talented underclassmen, Shriver believes Valley has the tools to make some noise this fall. "We have a great senior class," said Shriver. "When they were freshmen, they didn't lose a game. When they were in junior high, they didn't lose a game. Not all of those kids are still playing, but we've got the core of that group, and we've got some very talented underclassmen." Valley opens the season Friday with a 7:30 p.m. game at Culver Military Academy. Following the home opener against Bremen on Aug. 26, the Vikings will open Three Rivers Conference play Sept. 2 at Manchester. Brody Andrews was a second-team all-conference selection last year and led Valley with 906 rushing yards in the regular season. Andrews is listed on the roster, but will not play his senior season because of a shoulder injury. The Vikings leading returner in the backfield is senior James Gregery, who carried the ball 69 times for 749 yards in the regular season a year ago, averaging nearly 11 yards per attempt. Justin Gunter, a junior, and Wade Cave, a senior, both rushed for nearly 200 yards last season. Gunter is one of the talented underclassmen Shriver speaks of, as are sophomores Tanner Andrews and Nolan Sponseller. "Justin Gunter, a junior, is very, very fast," said Shriver. "He's going to play linebacker for us and get some time in the backfield. Nolan Sponseller is another kid who can do great things for us. And Tanner Andrews showed everyone last year what he's capable of doing. Those three kids, mixed in with our group of seniors, are going to be key for us." Tanner Andrews, a three-sport standout for the Vikings, got his prep career started in a big way as he led Valley's receiving corps with 13 catches for 356 yards and three touchdowns. Though the Vikings don't typically run a pass-happy offense, Tanner Andrews has proven he's a big-play threat, as he averaged 27 yards per catch last year. "If we can be consistent, be mentally tough, and take care of the football, we've got a chance to be very good," said Shriver. "The big thing for us is we have to be consistent and we have to stay healthy. We have 60 players in the top four grades, but depth is one of our concerns right now."
