WHITEHALL — The 2025 Vikings are planning to maintain their culture of winning, including conference championships, play a tough schedule, and work on being physically and mentally ready for the playoffs and make deep runs into November.

Vikings head coach Tony Sigmon said, “The expectations for this group are the same as any of our teams before them.”

“In short, the expectations do not change,” Sigmon said.

“The expectation for our team is to pick up where we left off from 2024,” Sigmon said. “It’s their turn to leave their mark on our football program.”

To accomplish those goals, Sigmon welcomes back several returning players to the team.

“On offense, Jacob Alger and Jamison Jeffery lead our offensive line,” Sigmon said.

And Sigmon also said, “Last year, they did a wonderful job helping us win the conference for the fourth straight year and a district title.”

“We will be leaning on them this year as well,” Sigmon said. “We have a lot of offensive weapons back who played a key role for us last year.”

But they have some large shoes to fill to replace former quarterback Cam Thompson, but one of the quarterbacks, Cole Essebaggers, has emerged as the starter for this year’s team.

Sigmon said that Essebaggers had an excellent summer getting ready for his new role.

“Hunter Osborne, Cody Manzo and Corde Anderson also return as wide receivers and will see an increased role on the team,” Sigmon said.

Sigmon will also welcome a lot of newcomers to the team as well.

“Kolten Weiler has had an excellent summer at WR, along with Ayden Mendoza, Jacob Lewis and Judd Musk create a great group to pull from,” Sigmon said.

In addition, Sigmon said, “Liam Leeke, Wyatt McFarren, Kolten Kyser, Max Kukowski and Andrew Zuniga will be working into the linebacker spots with Hunter Peterson, who played a lot for us last season.”

“We will lean on those kids as well at running back,” Sigmon said.

Caden Bowyer is also poised to have a great senior season spending time on the defensive line,” Sigmon said. “His role will grow as well.”

However, they will be trying to maintain their standard of excellence without those who graduated after last season.

Those players were, besides Thompson, linemen Jack Ambrose, Connor Nash, Parker Mott and Peyton Ossenfort.

Other players who also graduated were Abram Stoudt, Blake English, Gavin Craner and Brock Morningstar.

“Last year we had the same questions about the 2023 team,” Sigmon said.

Sigmon also said, “What the 2024 team did so well was battling through adversity with injuries and a tough schedule.”

“They did a wonderful job leading last year and watching the 2025 team so far during the summer, the lesson was learned well,” Sigmon said.

But according to Sigmon, the newcomers will be expected to have an impact on the team this season.

In order to be successful again this season and for the future, Sigmon said, they will use small tweaks and minor changes in order to put the players in the right positions this season.

“The most important message for this team is the standard is the standard,” Sigmon said. “They have done a wonderful job to this point.”

Sigmon closed by saying, “Now they have to continue to progress during fall practice.”