SAMOHI — With just days remaining before the kickoff of the first game of the season, the Vikings have found their man at quarterback.
Senior Brock Miller was named the starter by Santa Monica High School Head Coach Travis Clark this week as the Vikings prepare to take on Leuzinger on the road Friday.
“If he can deal with it,” Clark said, “he’ll have the keys until he wrecks the car.”
Clark said he selected Miller over Christian Salem and newcomer Rhys Gervais primarily because of his superior arm strength. But, Clark did say that he was close to going with a committee behind center. He let the three fight it out for most of the summer, but in the end the decision was easy.
“Nobody took the job from Brock,” Clark said of the position battle.
Gervais did impress this summer, though. Clark said had the sophomore from Washington been with the team as long as Salem and Miller, he might be the starter.
Miller’s ability to air out the ball should be a boon for the team as it tries to replace last season’s starter, Garrett Safron, who has moved on to Sacramento State. Helping ease Miller into the role of signal caller will be a trio of wideouts that has Clark excited about his offensive unit. Kris Comas, Brandon Taylor and Ken Fleming, a junior transfer, will be MIller’s primary targets to start the season.
The player among them that intrigues Clark most is Fleming. His relationship with the receiver goes back to a skills camp that Clark held a few years back.
The Vikings’ tight end, Matt Schultz, is another player that Clark feels will have a breakout season.
“He’ll be discovered this season,” Clark said of Schultz.
daniela@www.smdp.com
