“You can’t always run the ball, sometimes you have to pass too”, says Igor Hoffmann, the Vukovi’s coach, at the same time explaining in a good way what he wants this team to be. One of rare teams in the league that prides itself with an offensive philosophy has been the team that has usually scored the easiest this season, and in prior seasons as well.
But, and that was especially true in the first part of the season, the defense had not been at the same level, a level needed for this team to win it all.
Without their best player, quarterback Andrej Tasić, who got injured in a 14-0 loss to end the regular season, against the same opponent they will meet in the final, it’s clear this team is not the same.
Fortunately for them, all throughout the second part of the season, and very much so in that last loss, in which the defense conceded only one touchdown, with one score coming after an interception, the defensive part of the team did what it was supposed to. In all, for the last three games, the defense allowed just two touchdowns.
The turnaround was in large part because of a new player of sorts. Tight end Aleksandar Anđelković, who had 178 receiving yards, most of which came in the first five games, switched position and became a linebacker for the team.
“I’m relatively pleased with how I played. I still have a lot to learn, but after two months of practices, and three games I can be satisfied”, says Anđelković.
In three matches, he recorded 16 tackles, 12 solo, 4 for a loss, one sack and a forced fumble. But more importantly, he gave the team a dose of aggressiveness and intensity that was lacking on the defensive side of the ball, and that also transferred to the rest of the defense.
“Any mistake can be decisive”, he says about the final. “The defense has to play like it’s played in the last few games, and I expect it to be even better.”
Whether it will be enough it remains to be seen, because the other team plays great defense too, maybe even the best in the league. They stopped the Vukovi’s offense that never recovered from Andrej Tasić’s injury in the last match. “We need to improve on our passing game, try to get the ball to Pavle Tasić. And we can’t allow mistakes on defense.”