How Johansen football coach made a bye week special for his Vikings players

Bye weeks are meant for practicing fundamentals and resting from the aches and pains of football.

Last week, Johansen High had its bye and besides picture day on Monday, it was a typical bye week ... until Friday.

Scott Sacuskie has been at Johansen for seven years as athletic director, offensive coordinator, and in 2016, he became the school’s fifth head coach.

For all seven years, he has done the same thing every bye week... take his players to a college football game.

Last Friday, Sacuskie and the Vikings traveled to Palo Alto and watched Stanford beat San Diego State, 31-10.

“It’s amazing for my kids,” Sacuskie said. “My kids get more excited about that game than playing in a football game. For some of them, it’s their first time outside the city of Modesto.”

Sacuskie describes the trip as a “boys night out type of atmosphere”. He had a taqueria bring in food before they left campus and chartered a bus to the game.

“In the van, everyone is having a good time,” senior lineman Isaac Brionez said. “When we get there everyone is excited to see some college ball.”

Said Sacuskie: “For a lot of them, they have never been to a college game. For some reason, there is a disconnect and they think that they can go from high school to the NFL.”

Although San Diego State lost by 21, both Brionez and senior running back Bereyah DeLeon were impressed with the Aztecs, in particular, junior running back Juwan Washington, who rushed for 158 yards and a touchdown.

“He (Washington) would get hit multiple times but keep his legs turning and get those few extra yards,” Brionez said.

“I couldn’t believe how athletic these guys are,” DeLeon said. “ He (Washington) wasn’t the biggest guy, but he outrushed Stanford’s running back (Bryce Love).”

For Brionez and DeLeon, it was their third trip, having gone to two Fresno State games the past two years.

Sacuskie, a former assistant strength and conditioning coach at Stanford, said much of his team “hung out in the student section all night” in the corner endzone and they enjoyed being with the famous Stanford band as well as being close to the sidelines.

“My favorite part was seeing them warm up and seeing how serious they were and getting ready for the game,” Brionez said. “Nobody was messing around. Watching them get at it against each other (in warm ups) and their opponents were right across from them.”

Johansen has been to five Stanford and two Fresno State games throughout this tradition and when the team gets back to campus, Sacuskie always gets the same response from his players.

“It’s really eye-opening to them,” he said. “It’s amazing how many kids afterward say they want to go and play college ball after that.”

“It was hyped,” DeLeon said.

The hope is the Vikings can channel a little of that excitement this Friday when they face Downey, one of the best teams in the Stanislaus District. The Vikings have lost eight straight to Downey, with the Knights scoring at least 42 points in each contest.

Johansen has won four games since 2014 while Downey has won 36. Regardless of the outcome, Sacuskie, a Downey alum, wants to use this game to change the program, which has had its share of struggles.

“I had coaches asking why did we schedule this game,” Sacuskie said. “If we are going to change the face of Johansen, we have to go out and compete against these schools or I am going to lose these kids that I need to keep at Johansen.”

This is a non-conference game for each as Downey has moved into the Sac-Joaquin Section Division II Central California Athletic League and Johansen to the Division IV Western Athletic Conference.

Sacuskie knows the Vikings have “their hands full” and “Downey is going to be the best team we will face all year. “ But he is hoping his team will remain confident after coming off a 26-0 win over Delhi on Aug. 24, the Vikings’ first win since Oct. 28, 2016, when they beat Davis, 28-26.

“At the end of the game at the team break, you heard guys who were glad they got the victory but saying ‘Delhi was no Downey,’” Sacuskie said. “It’s a stepping stone. We are excited about the growth for the season.”

Julian A. Lopez: 209-578-2356, @juliansdayoff22

This story was originally published September 5, 2018 at 4:51 PM.