Willie Herrera knows just how close his East Union football team came to winning its season opener two weeks ago.

The Lancers established their power running game behind fullback Grant Yang and back Angel Roblero, a converted fullback, and didn’t commit a single turnover on the road against Grace Davis.

East Union might have walked off the field with a victory that night, too, had it not lost its legs.

Herrera said his team’s fitness failed them in a 16-6 loss, leading to several mental mistakes down the stretch. The Spartans clinched the come-from-behind victory with about five minutes left in the game with a sack of sophomore quarterback Jack Weaver in the end zone for a safety. 

“We liked our ball security; there were no turnovers. We liked how we ran the ball. We didn’t get as many possessions as we would have liked, but again, we didn’t have any turnovers,” Herrera said. “That’s something we want to do every week.

“We played hard. We just need to do that for four quarters.”

With two weeks in between games, Herrera and his staff revisited a summer concern: Fitness.

Ironically, East Union recommitted itself to a strength and conditioning program written by former assistant Scott Sacuskie, now the athletic director and offensive coordinator at Johansen High.

Sacuskie and Herrera were teammates at Modesto Junior College and members of the Lancers’ previous regime under Mike James.

The Lancers host Johansen on Friday. The Vikings are coached by Grant Genasci, another one of Herrera’s former teammates at MJC.

“We just got to finish. Going into (the season), I thought we were in great shape,” Herrera said. “We weren’t in the shape I wanted us to be, and you never really know until you get out there for game day. We never want that to be an issue, so we adjusted our practice to make sure that doesn’t happen again.

“When you’re tired, that’s when the mental mistakes happen. A major point of emphasis for us is finishing – finishing with great enthusiasm and energy.”

Sacuskie left a large footprint on the East Union campus.

The Lancers last reached the Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs in 2009 during  James’ final season, and the former coach credited Sacuskie – then the strength and conditioning coach – with much of that team’s success.

Sacuskie left the program after that season to take a similar position at Stanford University, fulfilling a lifelong dream to coach at the collegiate level.

Now he’s back in the high school ranks, teaming up with Genasci at Johansen.

The Vikings are a program in the throes of rebuilding, as evidenced by the scores through two games. Johansen is 0-2 and has been outscored 110-19.

“One thing they don’t have to worry about – they’re in incredible shape,” Herrera said in a nod to Sacuskie. “They have some young athletes. We just have to do our jobs. We have a good chance of coming out of this game like we want to come out. We just can’t make mistakes.”

Roblero could have another big stake in the offense for the Lancers.

The 6-foot-2, 225-pound running back had 15 carries for 96 yards in the Week Zero loss. He was used primarily as a blocking back last fall, but has matured into the focal point in the Lancers’ ever-evolving Wing offense.

“He’s a big kid and tough to bring down, especially when he gets a full head of steam,” Herrera said. “He’s done a great job of getting into the offense and making sure he’s making the right reads.”

Yang’s emergence at fullback has fast-tracked Roblero’s transition to featured back.

“He’s been nails,” Herrera said, “and that’s allowed us to try that out.”

Weaver has also drawn rave reviews for his ability to shuck the Davis loss.

The young quarterback has shown no ill-effects from the late-game letdown. Instead, Herrera says Weaver has used it to fuel his workouts and game-planning with quarterbacks coach Daniel Taylor and passing game coordinator Eddie Koeller.

“We put so much emphasis on our Week Zero game. We played tough and we didn’t come out of it the way we wanted to. This week is now the most important of the year for us,” Herrera said. “We have to focus. It’s super important for their morale and the school. This win is much needed. The kids need it. The coaching staff needs it.

“If we do what we’re supposed to do, we should be happy with our result. We need momentum going into league.”