Cousins Brandon and Desmon Peoples proved too much for the St. Joe’s defense to handle, as the senior running backs combined for 223 yards and three touchdowns in a 42-7 Wood rout on a rain-soaked Friday night at William Tennent Field.

Wet conditions forced the Vikings to almost completely abandon their passing game, but the Peoples cousins and fellow senior Ryan McMullin ran wild behind Wood’s strong offensive line that dominated the line of scrimmage and gave the Vikings’ trio of talented backs plenty of room to run.

Wood (3-1) also dominated on the other side of the trenches, as the front seven were constantly able to put pressure on the Hawks’ (3-1) quarterback Skyler Mornhinweg. The strong pass rushed forced Mornhinweg to rush throws or take off running in order to avoid being dropped in the backfield.

The steady, heavy downpour also hampered the Hawks’ big-play passing offense, as receivers struggled to gain footing and had a couple balls slip through their hands. It was an all-around rough night for the Penn Sate-bound Mornhinweg, son of Philadelphia Eagles Offensive Coordinator Marty Mornhinweg.

Archbishop Wood Head Coach Steve Devlin praised his defense after the game, saying that stopping Mornhinweg was the key to the Vikings’ success.

“We knew we had to win this game,” Devlin said. “He was the guy we targeted. We wanted to make sure he wasn’t going to beat us.”

Devlin also credited the Vikings’ week-long preparation, saying that the Wood scout team ran a no-huddle offense in practice in order to prepare the Vikings defense for the Hawks’ up-tempo attack.

 The Vikings dominated time-of-possession in the first half, as the Peoples Cousins chewed up big chunks of yards and kept the clock moving. It was actually a passing play, though, that opened the scoring for Wood, as receiver Kyle Adkins caught an 8-yard strike from quarterback Joe Monaghan to give Wood a 7-0 lead.

 Despite Wood attempting just four passes in the game, standout receiver Nate Smith still found a way to make an impact as he returned a punt 51 yards to paydirt, giving Wood a 14-0 lead in a play that seemed to deflate the Hawks.

The Vikings kept pouring it on from there, as Brandon Peoples romped 28 yards for a score early in the second quarter to give Wood a 21-0 lead. Not to be outdone, Desmon Peoples—who was returning from an ankle injury—gave Wood a commanding 28-0 lead with 9 minutes left in the first half on a spectacular 57-yard touchdown run.

 The second half was more of the same, as Wood dominated the trenches, adding two more touchdown runs, a 1-yarder by Brandon Peoples and a nice 35-yarder by McMullin, who slipped away from a tackle en route to the end zone.

The Hawks finally got on the board on the last play of the third quarter as Mornhinweg scored on a 1-yard keeper. The Hawks got in position to score thanks to a long catch-and-run by running back Vincent Moffett, who took a short pass from Mornhinweg and evaded Wood tacklers for a 60-yard gain that finally got the Hawks in the red zone.

Devlin said that his team was able to execute a successful game-plan because of its ability to control the line on both sides of the ball.

“In football, you’ve got to win up front, and we did that,” he said. “We had a great game-plan coming into it.”

Devlin was so pleased with his team’s complete effort that he called this game perhaps his best win in his career at Archbishop Wood. “I’m so proud of our kids,” he said. “This is as satisfying a win to me as I’ve had here.”

One of the strengths of Devlin’s team this year is its versatility, as the Vikings were able to adapt to the slippery conditions and dominate on the ground. Desmon Peoples said the team’s passing attack is underrated, making Wood a dangerous team because of its flexibility and balance.

“We have a lot that you need to stop when you play us,” he said. “[Monaghan] can throw the ball, and not a lot of people know that. If you try to clog up the holes, he’ll just drop back, [the backs] will get to blocking, and we’ll just pick you apart.”

The Vikings will continue to ride their three-headed running game, as they stay at home this week to take on Glenn Mills high at William Tennent Field Friday night. The Battlin Bulls (1-3) earned their first victory of the season tonight with a convincing 35-6 win over Woodson (Washington, D.C.).

The Hawks, meanwhile, will look to get their vaunted passing attack back on track, as they hope for better weather for their conference opener at home against Father Judge (2-1) Saturday afternoon.