LJ FB 14, Santa Fe Christian 16 - Blast Off

Viking QB Carsten Fehlan gets some feedback from
Offensive Coordinator Collin Eardley just before
taking the field for the second half.
(Photos by Ed Piper)
 

By Ed Piper

La Jolla's football team got the ball back from visiting Santa Fe Christian, which had just taken a 16-7 lead on a field goal that hit the left upright before going through, with 1:58 remaining in the game.

In the next minute and 16.5 seconds, Viking quarterback Carsten Fehlan became a football player.

A key part of the 6'1" senior's makeup is his self-confidence, and in leading his team to a touchdown in crunch time to bring the Vikes within breathing distance of a comeback win, he proved to himself what he can do.

Fehlan, who sat last year as a backup after a successful junior varsity season as a sophomore quarterback, carried out Head Coach Tyler Roach's play calls to a "T" in the literal two-minute drill against the Eagles. From his own 20, he completed a four-yard sideline pass to Cooper McNally to stop the clock. He then ran, when he spied no receivers open, for seven yards and the first down, stepping out of bounds past the marker to again stop time.

 

The solid 210-pounder found Evan Brown, whom he had hooked up with for the Vikings' previous touchdown of 23 yards in the third quarter, for another four yards on first down, though the receiver wasn't able to wriggle out of bounds.

Hundreds of Viking students in "Whiteout" white
storm the field at halftime in a planned Blast Off
event. One student commented, "That's the best
Blast Off I've seen in a while."

Despite his pass to Diego Solis going long, La Jolla--before a wild "Whiteout" student crowd at Blast Off--got a first down on the 50 on defensive pass interference. This time Carsten dumped a short pass to Diego's brother, Gabe, who had been bottled up by defenders somewhat, for 27 yards. (The elder Solis made it out of bounds to stop the clock with 1:03 less.)

You could just see Fehlan's self-assurance growing as he stepped into throws and maintained tight spirals on his tosses, which means he's feeling it.

After a shot to Gabe in the end zone was too far, and Diego's throw to Brown after a handoff dropped in a crowd to the ground, Carsten fired a long pass to Diego in the left end of the end zone. The younger Solis made the catch of his career, with his defender tight against him, and the education of Fehlan was complete: He could and did do it, putting the Vikings within two points after Nick Goehler's PAT kick.

Santa Fe Christian was able to run out the remaining 41.5 seconds and take home the victory. But it was an exciting finish, worth the price of admission, and none of the "Whiteout" participants left early after their crazy halftime flash mob onto the field as part of the night's Blast Off celebration.

It was a drive that their quarterback could take to the bank. And credit Roach, his head coach, for helping him get there--a remarkable rise from a flat, non-scoring debut as starter two weeks previous at Central Union of El Centro.