When the Western Washington University football team opens the 2007 season today at UC Davis in California the Vikings’ defense is expected to carry the team.

But it’s the offense, and whether WWU can score more than 18 points per game under new coordinator Kefense Hynson, that carries the most intrigue.

“The offense seems a lot faster,” sophomore running back Craig Garner said. “It’s more uptempo. Right now we’re thinking let’s go, let’s score points. Let’s be aggressive.”

Of the changes Western made in the offseason, perhaps none will have a bigger impact than moving Hynson to offensive coordinator.

“If he can do with our offense what he did with our special teams last season, we’ll be in good shape,” WWU coach Robin Ross said.

No one around the program is saying the offense is dramatically different than in past years, but there are definitely some subtle and not-so-subtle changes. Shifting in and out of formations at the line of scrimmage has already become more prominent. Having receivers lineup bunched together also has been a preseason favorite.

There’s no question that for Western to finish with a record better than last season’s 5-6 overall mark, it’s going to have to average more than 276 yards per game and score more points.

“We have to be efficient in everything we do,” Hynson said. “I think we have a system put in place that is sound. We have answers, but we have to be able to execute. It’s not something that you can come in and kind of half learn and be effective. You have to commit to it.”

Hynson, 25, is the youngest offensive coordinator in the North Central Conference by at least four years and possibly one of the youngest in NCAA Division II. He joined the Vikings last season as a running backs coach and later was named the special teams coordinator.

“I’m a 1980s baby, so there are some things that me and our players have in common,” the Oakland, Calif., native said. “I play Play Station, I listen to rap, but at the same time I have a job to do. I expect it’s going to be done a certain way.”

In May he was named the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach when longtime assistant Eric Tripp left to become the athletic director at Meridian High School.

“Ultimately I don’t think age really matters,” Hynson said. “It’s not an adjective it’s just a number. Guys respect you if you know what you’re doing. I think the kids understand when you’re knowledgeable. If what you tell them works and you have answers for them I think that’s all kids care about.”

Hynson was a defensive back in college, earning honorable mention All-American honors at Willamette University in Oregon. During his brief coaching career he’s already had stops at four different schools including Boise State where he served at the Broncos’ director of football operations in 2004, and Minnesota State University-Mankato where he was a running backs coach.

He said he learned the most about coaching offense at Boise State under Dan Hawkins, now the head coach at the University of Colorado.

“There’s something in our offense that I took from each of the places I’ve been,” Hynson said. “People might look at it and think it’s the Boise State offense, but it’s not. It’s really Western Washington’s offense. I can’t teach Boise State’s offense. It’s not our’s if we’re calling it someone else’s. We’ve put our stamp on it.”

The task of leading the offense on the field falls to junior quarterback Adam Perry. He’ll be making the second start of his career today against UC Davis.

“The offensive staff is almost completely new from spring even and that’s only three months ago,” Perry said. “But Coach K has brought in a really good staff. They’re his guys. It’s a staff that’s going to help us win football games.

“I’m new to being a starter so this is all new to me anyways. If it was going to happen any year it might as well happen this year.”

The Vikings have a tough draw in the Aggies. UC Davis, which competes in NCAA Division I—FCS (formerly Division I-AA), was one of the best Division II schools in the nation for many years and also is opening a new stadium.

“I love the chance for us to open away against a team like that,” Garner said. “I love the hostility of an away game. It gets the blood boiling.”

It’s also an opportunity for the Vikings offense to make an early impression, something Hynson has already done on the players.

“I can be intense, but it’s because I don’t want these guys to be mediocre,” Hynson said. “We put in too much time and too much effort to be mediocre. I know what these guys are capable of.”