BAND, POM, CHEER
THE ONLY PUBLICATION WITH SCHEDULES FOR ALL SEVEN TEAMS
Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.
Duncan’s Alexis York and Julia Wilson, Central High’s Lacey Hansen, Bray-Doyle’s Ashleynn Abney, Velma-Alma’s Savanna Wainscott, Empire’s Addison Bracken, Marlow’s Emma Samples and Alisha Lemons and Comanche’s Alyssa Wisdom will cheer on their teams from the sidelines during the 2023-2024 school year.
PUBLISHER / AD DIRECTOR
Crystal Childers
MANAGING EDITOR/ DESIGNER
Charlene Belew
PROJECT DIRECTOR
Kelly Wray
AUDIENCE
DEVELOPMENT
Sherrie McCormack
FOOTBALL ADVISER
Gary DaVoult
PICTURED ON THE COVER:
Duncan’s Christopher Kouts, Central High’s Van Roberts, Bray-Doyle’s Caleb Carson, Comanche’s Colby Shannon, Empire’s Luke Barton, Velma-Alma’s Cooper Paramore and Marlow’s Cade Gilbert are ready for the 2023 season to kickoff under the Friday Night Lights.
SALES / MARKETING
Crystal Childers
Jason Hodges
Susan Provost
STORIES / PHOTOS
Charlene Belew
Tamara Gregor
Jason Hodges
Andy Morphew
Kelly Wray
DISTRIBUTION
Sherrie McCormack
Mike McCormack
STEPHENS COUNTY GRIDIRON GUIDE purposes to promote Duncan and Stephens County area football players, band students, color guards, pom squads, cheerleaders and bootleggers.
All content featured in this magazine was made available to The Banner staff as of press time. Any teams missing will appear in later editions of The Duncan Banner when information becomes available. Recaps of game play will also appear in The Duncan Banner newspaper.
We welcome ideas and suggestions for future publications of this magazine. Contact either the editorial or advertising departments at 580-255-5354.
If you are wishing to start or renew a subscription, contact the circulation department at 580-255-5354.
You’ll notice this edition of the Gridiron Guide feels heavy in your hand.
That’s because this year, we almost doubled our page output. Why? The reason is simple. There are so many changes in Stephens County and an enormous amount of talent that we had no choice but to do our best to try and feature it all in one package in an effort to encapsulate our important this season is for our area.
Led at the helm by Kelly Wray, the 2023 installment of the Stephens County Gridiron Guide features at least 10 stories before readers even make it to the teams section. We cover everything from coaching changes, coaching profiles, facility upgrades, and we even added in bonus content in our Playmakers package, under which you can read about brothers who keep the love of football in the family and get yourself prepped for 23 games and 23 players to watch in the 2023 season.
To be quite honest, working on this publication was an absolute blast for me. I came up on the news side and while I do have some background in covering baseball and tennis, Cameron University, my alma mater, didn’t have a football team.
But our lead man, Kelly Wray … well, you can say he has quite an extensive history when it comes to covering the Stephens County teams.
He began coverage of our area schools in September 1992 when Velma-Alma opened its football season with road wins over Washington, Oklahoma and Dibble.
Current V-A head coach Randy Norton, who we spoke with in the creation of this publication, played in those games, and Wray covered Central High when current head coach Dusty Ketner, a new lead man in charge in Stephens county, was an offensive lineman for the Bronchos. Ketner is also featured in this magazine.
You can say its been an eye-opening ordeal to see these coaches in action as players in their youth and again in their adult
chapters now leading the programs they once played for years ago.
Wray has followed Stephens County sports and written about them, off and on, since 1992. When you read the stories written by him, you’ll understand why this project was a blast for The Banner staff. His passion and enthusiasm for high school sports and the sports world in general is evident in every single word he poured into this publication.
One thing is for certain: I don’t know much about football, but this book taught me a lot about the rich history of Stephens County. It taught me to appreciate the game for what it is and the potential it brings our talented athletes and the coaches who run each of the programs around the area. It taught me that statistics are important. It taught me that football is one of the blood supplies of our community.
It taught me that I, too, can be passionate about football.
I thoroughly enjoyed building this book along side Kelly and everyone who else who contributed content. I read with pleasure each and every single word on these pages.
My hope is that you too, dear readers, enjoy the stories we have to tell. They’re about your people -- your coaches, your student athletes, your pom and cheerleaders. In a way, it’s a story about who we are when the Friday Night Lights turn on.
I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited about Stephens County football and late night deadlines, but I’m eager to get this season underway.
Keep an eye out for The Duncan Banner’s press coverage of your area teams. They’ll appear in the paper and online.
And when you need to know something about this upcoming campaign, grab this book. It’s a publication that will serve you well throughout the entire season and I hope you find yourself coming back to it over and over again to check stats, to figure out which of the 23 games you want to attend and to learn which of the athletes you really need to keep your eyes on.
I promise, you won’t be disappointed.
Charlene, also known in the community as Charlie, is the Managing Editor for The Duncan Banner and Duncan Magazine. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Cameron University, where she also held multiple positions with The Cameron Collegian, which ended with her serving as the Managing Editor in 2014-2015. Charlie has served two tenures with The Banner. Her first began in 2014 with an internship through Oklahoma Press Association and culminated in 2017 as News Editor. Her second began in 2018 when she returned as a staff writer and she resumed her editorship in 2020. Although she has spent much of her life growing up in Lawton, Charlie has always felt a special call to the Duncan and Stephens County community. She adopted a dog from Stephens County Humane Society’s Take Out Tuesday program with The Banner in 2019 and also participates as a member of the Duncan Rotary Club. In 2021, Charlie led The Banner to the first Sequoyah Award from the Oklahoma Press Association since its last in 2012. She has taken home multiple awards for editorial writing and news writing, and most recently swept Oklahoma Press Association’s design competition for Semiand Tri-Weekly publications. She is due with her first child in January 2024.
Crystal joined The Banner staff in 2013 as an advertising executive. She was promoted to Advertising Manager in 2017 and General Manager in 2020 before being promoted to Publisher in 2023. Born and raised in Duncan to a family with strong ties to the area, Crystal graduated from Duncan High School in 2001 and is active in several community groups, including the Lions Club and volunteers with the Meridian Volunteer Fire Department.
Crystal, along with husband Mike, live in Meridian with their three children, Alyssa, Jacob and Jordan.
Crystal enjoys spending time with family and friends, her parents and her many dogs.
Born and raised in California, Tamara joined the staff at The Duncan Banner in March 2020.
As an award winning journalist, Tamara has placed for her feature stories and photography, as well as for her news and column writing over the past few years.
Tamara previously gathered her experience by interning at the South Gibson Star Times in Fort Branch, Indiana, as well as working as the editor for her college newspaper, The Collegian in Oakland City, Indiana. Her experiences continued while writing and publishing a magazine, Evoke, with a group of friends in Turlock, California.
With family local to Stephens County as well in the surrounding areas of Oklahoma, Tamara moved to Duncan from Stanislaus County, jumping right into community events as a reporter. She loves to connect and engage with the community members to tell their heartfelt stories each day.
A Comanche resident since the age of 10, Jason graduated from Comanche High School in 1991. His wife, Jennifer, followed a year behind, and the family has strong roots in the area. They have raised three daughters here, each of whom graduated from Comanche. They also have grandchildren attending school there.
Jason began his career with The Banner in 2016 as a freelance photographer. Later, he accepted a full-time position in the advertising department, but he still enjoys taking photos occasionally. Jason loves his connection to the community he has now working at The Banner. He currently serves as the Comanche Chamber of Commmerce’s Vice President.
Andy Morphew has been writing sports for The Duncan Banner since 2011 when he began his first tenure with the paper. He has over 12 years of experience in covering high school athletes in Stephens County. Morphew has lived in Stephens County since September of 2010 and is a graduate of The University of Science & Arts of Oklahoma. He has covered over 1,000 high school games and close to 1,500 games between the pro and college ranks. During his full-time tenure at The Duncan Banner, Morphew won many awards, including the 2021 Oklahoma Press Association top prize for Sports Coverage in the division. Just recently, Morphew was the runner-up in the Best of CNHI Contest for Sports Columnist of the Year. He is currently employed by The City of Duncan as a Communications Coordinator.
Kelly S. Wray wrote his first articles for The Banner in September 1992 when Velma-Alma opened its football season with road wins over Washington, Oklahoma, and Dibble. Current V-A head coach Randy Norton played in those games, and Wray covered Central High when current head coach Dusty Ketner was an offensive lineman for the Bronchos. Wray has followed Stephens County sports and written about them, off and on, since 1992. A graduate of Empire High School and winner of the 2004 Society of Professional Journalists First Amendment Award, Wray has worked fulltime for newspapers in Duncan, Chickasha, Newcastle, and Lawton. He holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and a master’s degree in behavioral health from Cameron University, and a master’s in school counseling from Southwestern Oklahoma State University. He has taught communications at six different colleges and universities, including the University of Oklahoma, and he currently is an adjunct psychology instructor for Cameron University. He is a licensed alcohol drug counselor and works as a mental health provider for Lawton Public Schools. Most recently, Wray swept Oklahoma Press Association’s column writing division for Semi- and TriWeekly newspapers.
Duncan Magazine’s goal is to create a publication local to Stephens County that’s fun to read and view and created entirely by the hands of people you know. Here are the creators who use their time and talent to tell your stories.
Athletic directors in Stephens County will prove to be a bunch of smarties if Albert Einstein was correct.
“The measure of intelligence,” Einstein, the quintessential thinker and scientist of the 20th Century, once said “is the ability to change.”
Adapt or die, in other words.
Particularly when change is forced on you.
Manage change – that is this year’s theme for nearly all seven high school football programs in Stephens County. In fact, change started at the top for four of the programs, with new heading coaches stepping
to the helm in Duncan, Comanche, Central, and Bray-Doyle.
A year after all seven county coaches returned to work, local schools saw quite an exodus in head coaches.
Duncan said goodbye to head coach JT Cobble and hello to new skipper Matt Terry. Central welcomed Dusty Ketner, a 1993 CHS graduate, back into the fold after Gerald White left for a coaching job in Hollis. Gary Robinson was hired to bring a flavor of Texas football to Comanche; and Wade Whatley is the new mentor in Bray.
Though their situations differ, they all want to ac-
complish similar tasks. They want to build relationships with their student-athletes, set a strong foundation for the future, and establish a winning culture.
For some, that means upgrading facilities. For others, it means hiring a strength coach, emphasizing strength and conditioning, organizing a video playbook, or impressing a sense of urgency and intensity at practices.
Terry is no stranger to Duncan. The Altus High graduate was an assistant coach on Jim Hollaway’s Duncan staff from 2006 to 2014, and then he went back to his alma mater and coached in Altus from 2014 to 2019.
He was special teams coordinator in 2015 when the Bulldogs won the Class 5A State Championship.
Terry compiled a 13-8 record as head coach in Altus in 2018 and 2019. He coached at Pauls Valley from 2019 to March of 2023, when he was hired as Duncan’s new head man.
Terry’s No. 1 priority was enhancing the Demons’ strength and conditioning program. His first hire was Stephen Mapp as a strength coach. Duncan started 6:30 a.m. weightlifting workouts the Monday after spring break.
Players said the offseason workouts were more organized and featured stronger accountability measures than in the past. An average of about 40 players lifted each morning during the spring and summer, Terry said.
Some days saw as many as 60 Demons in the weightroom.
“There was a day in June when we went as hard as we could on them, and a bunch of the coaches said that day they thought the kids were starting to buy in,” Terry said.
A Little Texas Flavor Robinson brings a wealth of coaching experience to Comanche, most of it coming from the highly competitive world of Texas high school football.
Robinson was an assistant coach in Coppell, Texas, for 12 seasons. The Cowboys were main rivals of Southlake Carroll, winner of eight state championships since 1988 and producer of nine NFL players.
He left Coppell to become head coach in Poteet, Texas, in 2006 where his clubs made the playoffs in both seasons he was there. Then, he left to start a football program for Krum ISD, which had won state basketball championships but had never played football.
Krum made the playoffs in all of Robinson’s 10 seasons. In fact, the teams Robinson coached made the playoffs in all 25 of his first seasons.
He left Krum to coach at Joshua ISD, near Ft. Worth. His three seasons at Joshua were the only ones he didn’t make the playoffs in Texas.
Robinson retired from coaching in Texas and sat out a year. He said he saw some retired Texas coaches move to Oklahoma and take coaching positions, so he decided to do the same.
The University of North Texas graduate landed in Grandfield last season and went 3-7 as the Bearcats head coach.
Robinson said there is no formula for building or rebuilding a football program, but there are some common ingredients.
“Every team and every community is different, so it’s different with every new start,” Robinson said. “One of the priorities in Comanche is for the players to learn my system, to learn the Xs and Os.”
Robinson spent spring practice teaching his practice routine. He also started to
emphasize strength and conditioning.
After that, Robinson wants the Indians to learn how to prepare and play with urgency and intensity. He said he saw the kind of intensity he wants from the Indians when they opened fall camp with a Midnight Madness practice.
“That’s the way we have to practice every day,” he said.
“I’m a big weightroom guy. I always said you can’t compete in high school football in Texas unless you lift weights with a purpose 365 days a year, and I believe that’s true in Oklahoma. I’m a firm believer that you win football games between the months of December and August.”
Whatley spent four seasons as offensive coordinator and offensive line coach in Chickasha. He then was head coach in Alex for a season and spent last year on Tim Beard’s staff at Rush Springs.
Whatley’s top priority was to organize the Donkeys video playbook on Hudl, an Internet video service that allows coaches to share game film with other Hudl users.
“We wanted to create a playbook so there’s never any question about what we’re doing,” Whatley said. “That’s the first thing we needed to do. If our kids want to see what or best running play is or what our best pass play is, they need to be able to pull it up and watch it.”
After that, Whatley wanted to upgrade the football facilities.
“I’m not talking about coming in and repainting everything, but the field wasn’t as crisp as I wanted,” he said. “Some of the lines around the field needed work. I wanted to come in this summer and work on the facility so we could be proud of where we play. We created a new logo and put it on the softball field and the football practice field. It will be on the 50-yard line for the first game.”
Ketner knows the rich tradition of Central football. He’s lived it. As a senior at Central in 1991, Ketner played in the state championship game loss to Grandfield. It was the last game Central lost for three seasons, as the Bronchos claimed the 1993, 1994, and 1995 Class C State Championships.
Ketner was a volunteer assistant on the Central coaching staff during those state title years.
This will be Ketner’s first head job
on the sidelines. He has been a teacher and coach primarily for Lawton Public Schools for the past 20 years, excluding a one-year stint as Central’s baseball coach in 2008.
Ketner served as assistant baseball coach at Lawton High and then as head softball coach at Lawton MacArthur from 2012 to 2017. He left coaching to start his own business, KC Lawns of Oklahoma.
But “if you’re a coach, you’re always a coach,” Ketner said. “You always had that itch.”
Ketner said the Central dynasty of the ‘90s was build on classes who wanted to be better than the classes that preceded them.
“My class wanted to be better than the previous class – and that class wanted to be better than the one before it,” Ketner said. “We’ve talked about mindset and accountability. We’ve talked about believing that of course we’re going to win because we’ve outworked everyone.”
Above all else, the new coaches want to establish solid relationships and winning cultures. That process includes creating environments of openness and trust among all stakeholders. It means clarifying roles and communicating expectations.
Whatley said a good environment is vital to increasing participation in football. Bray-Doyle had 17 players working out at the end of the summer. That may not sound like a lot, but the average daily enrollment at Bray-Doyle is 57 students.
“That means there are about 40 males in grades six through 12,” Whately said. “If we can get 20 out for football, that would be significant. We have to establish great relationships with these kids. Are we going to have enough players to play this year? That’s kind of where we are with the Bray-Doyle football program right now.”
Culture
Terry said success is based on culture.
“When a kid can open up to you and trust you, the door is wide open,” he said. “They know you believe in them and they believe in you. It’s not all highs on Friday nights. There are a bunch of lows on Fridays. If that kid knows that you know exactly what’s going on his life, you have a better change of riding those highs a lot longer.
“If you don’t have a great culture, you’re going to struggle on Friday night.”
Four new quarterbacks will step under center for the seven county teams this season.
Central starter Cooper Walters and Comanche starter Kooper Doucet both graduated. Empire starter Easton Beck transferred to Velma-Alma but is not playing football.
And Sawyer Rice will take over as starter for Duncan. Rice didn’t begin the season as Duncan’s top signal-caller, but he started later in the year when injury forced Chris Kouts to the sideline.
The other three schools welcome back starting quarterbacks. Velma-Alama’s Mikey Griffith is poised for strong junior season; Marlow’s Cade Gilbert will be
Sawyer Rice will start the year at quarterback for Duncan.in his second season of starting, as will Bray-Doyle sophomore Brody Whitney.
Kouts ran for 1,020 yards and threw for 690 more. He completed 66 of 112 passes for six touchdowns and seven interceptions. Terry said Kouts will help the Demons at other skill positions, likely running back.
Rice completed 35 of 63 passes for 295 yards and one touchdown.
At Empire, Beck was the only Bulldog who had played in an 11-man game before last season. He helped guide the Bulldogs from Class B into Class A, throwing for 1,334 yards and 12 touchdowns.
He will be replaced by sophomore Cale Porter who has never taken a snap at quarterback. Porter started as a defensive back last season and played some at wide receiver. He was also the Bulldogs’ punter and showed a penchant for converting fake punts into first downs.
Empire head coach Brant Hayes said the Bulldogs will shift from a spread offense that attacks the field horizontally to a power run game that will feature some run-pass options for Porter.
New Comanche head coach Gary Robinson has tapped Colby Shannon as the Indians starting quarterback. Shannon spent time at backup quarterback and running back last season.
As of mid-August, new Central head coach Dusty Ketner had not selected a starting quarterback. He said two sophomores Dirk Couch and Landon Johnson are vying for the starting role under center.
Noone sits down in Stephen Mapp’s weightroom. He won’t let them.
After all, the new Duncan strength and conditioning coach says, you can’t get where you need to go by sitting still. You need to move – intensely and energetically. Sweat needs to drip. Iron needs to clang. Humans need to grunt. And strength coaches need to project positive intensity.
“I learned this at the University of Oklahoma: You yell the positives and whisper the negatives,” Mapp said. So, when you enter his weightroom, Mapp may be yelling, “but I’ll be yelling positives. It’s easy to get athletes to do what you want. Just talk to them like human beings.”
Mapp has ushered in a new era of Duncan athletics – one that features a fulltime conditioning coach at both the high school and middle school. He is the strength and conditioning coach for all teams at Duncan High School and Duncan Middle School.
The goal he said is “to win championships in all sports and make Duncan Athletics the No. 1-ranked high school athletic program in
the country, while also molding these young men and women into hard-working, respectful, successfully human beings who can go out into the world and make a positive impact.”
Matt Terry was hired as the new Duncan head football coach in early March. His first hire was Mapp, who says conditioning is as important to mental stamina as it is to physical development.
The Demons started 6:30 a.m. workouts on the Monday after spring break. And Mapp has kept the intensity and energy ratcheted since then.
Mapp saw results in the offseason and fall camp.
“We’ve gotten a lot stronger,” he said. “We’ve developed a team minimum increase of 25 pounds on the backsquat. Some kids have increased by as much as 50 or 100 pounds. We have some guys who have put on 15 to 20 pounds of muscle.
“Our athletes have bought in. We’ll continue to lift though the season, and we’ll be stronger in Game Six than we were in Game One.”
Mapps view of his role, and of strength and conditioning’s role in general, is broad. He wants all
Colby Shannon is the new signal-caller for the Comanche Indians.“You yell the positives and whisper the negatives.”
-Stephen Mapp
Duncan Strength and Conditioning Coach
Duncan athletes – male or female – to become the best versions of themselves.
All athletes are different, but his desire is to develop hard, gritty athletes who demonstrate a certain level of physical and mental toughness.
Muscle growth is only one of Mapp’s benchmarks. He believes his job is to help develop the whole human.
“I’m not just trying to teach them about strength and conditioning,” he said. “I’m trying to teach them about life. Life may be heavier some days than the bar that’s on their back (while lifting). We’re trying to develop them into tough human beings who can light it up on Friday nights and who can also be good citizens in their communities.”
Mapps’ love of conditioning comes honestly. LeRoy Mapp, Stephen’s grandfather and offensive/defensive line coach at Ada in the 1960s, was one of the first coaches in Oklahoma to emphasize team weightlifting.
Some two decades later Stephen Mapp played high school football for Ada and then moved to the next level
as a defensive lineman at East Central University. He majored in Kinesiology and minored in general counseling. Later, he earned a masters in sports administration.
After graduating, he spent one summer as an intern on the Texas Christian University staff. He was on the OU strength and conditioning staff in 2015 and 2016, working for the legendary Jerry “Schmidty” Schmidt. From there, he went to Norman North as a coach and athletic administrator.
Most recently, he was at Sallisaw High School.
Mapp is happy to be in Duncan, a place he believes has the best players, coaches, and administrators.
“I grew up playing against Duncan and always saw Duncan as a place I wanted to be,” Mapp said. “I saw Duncan as a destination school. The community is fantastic – and we have the best kids. We have so many kids who are respectful and hard working.
“I am surrounded by great coaches, administrators, and teachers every day here at Duncan. It all starts with our superintendent Dr. Byery, our athletic director Mr. Cook, and the incredibly talented coaches we have at Duncan. We have some of the best coaches in the country and it’s a joy to get to work with them every day and help make these kids the best they can possibly be.
“We are headed in the right direction, and I could not be successful as head strength coach without the support of all the coaches on staff here at Duncan. This is a team effort – and we are on our way.”
The goal he said is “to win championships in all sports and make Duncan Athletics the No. 1-ranked high school athletic program in the country.”
-Stephen Mapp
Duncan Strength and Conditioning CoachNew Duncan Athletic Strength and Conditioning Coach Stephen Mapp works with all athletes at DHS and DMS to improve their physical and mental endurance.
4 B
ryan Ely (6-2, 285), Stetson page (6-6, 320), and Kaeden Abshire (5-9, 190) formed one of the most imposing offensive lines in any class last season.
They paved the way for Velma-Alma’s trip to the Class B State Semifinals and helped head coach Randy Norton secure The Banner’s Coach of the Year honors. And now they’re all gone –all three graduated.
“That’s the main question for us this season – Who’s going to step up on the offensive line,” said Norton, a starting offensive lineman on Velma-Alma’s state championship teams of the 1990s.
Returner Cooper Par-
amore has more playing time than other V-A offensive line candidates. Paramore (6-1, 215) played the last half of the season when Page was injured. Other candidates include Brodric Spigner, Landon Richardson (6-0, 190), Landon Swisher (6-0, 190) , and Jake Bench (5-11, 245).
Spigner is a transfer from Empire. He started on the Bulldogs defensive line and led the team in tackles with 149 total. The other three candidates – Richardson, Swisher, and Bench – were on the Comets’ varsity roster last season.
“All of them are battling for a spot,” Norton said. “We’re not sure who’s going to start yet. We have a lot
of playmakers if we can get them the ball.”
This new offensive line will be tasked with protecting Mikey Griffith, one of the county’s most productive quarterbacks in 2022. Griffith passed 1,628 yards and ran for another 1,684. He accounted for 3,312 total
yards and 46 touchdowns. He’ll have returning wide receivers Langston Walker and Conner Akers to target. Akers caught seven passes last season and six of them went for touchdowns. Walker made 19 catches for 233 yards and six touchdowns.
815
Let there be new lights. That’s what voters said in February, so Empire will play football under new illumination this season for the first time in some 30 years.
But Empire isn’t the only county school to upgrade facilities. Stadiums in Duncan, Velma-Alma, and Bray-Doyle are also being treated to upgrades or added amenities.
Empire is installing new, no-glare lights and debuting a new scoreboard at Ric Johnson Memorial field this season, thanks to money collected through bond vote passed in February.
Empire Supt. Justin Smith estimates that it’s been 25 to 30 years since the Bulldogs played under new lights –and these won’t be just any new lights.
They are LED Musco Lights – the kind that can be coordinated to flash on and off to the beat of music to produce a celebratory minilight show. They are the
same kind of lights used by the University of Oklahoma at Owen Field, Smith said.
Empire is installing LED Musco lights at its softball field as well, but only the lights at the football stadium are upgraded to coordinate with music, Smith said.
Smith said four light standards are being installed at both the football field and softball field. Cost of the project is $220,000, not counting labor and electricity installation.
The same kind of lights will be placed at the Empire baseball field later this school year, Smith said.
In Duncan
Duncan athletics is building a new, 12500-square-foot fieldhouse at the south end of Halliburton Stadium. It will house concession stands, a large conference room, and locker rooms for football, soccer, cross country, and track.
The project, which is scheduled for completion
in January, is funded by the 2020 bond issue.
In Velma
Velma-Alma purchased a new video board for its football stadium.
The board stands 15-feet
in height and 24-feet in width. It will be used to enhance the gameday experience through animation and video, maybe even live video.
In Bray
Bray-Doyle focused on field touchups and placing a large logo on the practice field, 50-yard line of the game field, and the softball field.
Cade and Jase Gilbert have passed the football to each other hundreds of times.
As kids, the Marlow brothers even used to walk to Outlaw Stadium, wait for high school practice to end, and then chunk around the pigskin under the watchful eyes of Chad Gilbert, their dad who’s a Marlow assistant coach.
But it wasn’t a pass that kept the community’s gaze affixed on the Gilbert family last season.
It was a handoff.
Older brother Jase, an all-state quarterback and kicker who guided the Outlaws to a 2A State Championship in 2021, handed over the reigns of the high-octane Marlow offense to younger brother Cade.
Marlow fans were still yelling, “Let’s go, Gilbert,” at the player under center, only now their verbiage is directed at Cade Gilbert, not Jase.
It’s younger brother’s time to guide and direct the Outlaws.
And it was a time he’s been waiting for since childhood.
“He may very well end up being better than I was, especially throwing the ball,” said Jase, now a field goal kicker for Iowa State. “He has great work ethic, is a good leader, and has a great mentality. That’s 90
percent of the game right there.”
Cade guided Marlow to a 7-4 season in 2022, as the Outlaws negotiated a move from Class 2A to the more treacherous Class 3A and faced juggernauts like Perkins-Tryon, Heritage Hall, Sulphur, Lone Grove, and Plainview.
The Outlaws also had to replace 20-plus seniors who graduated from the 2021 squad.
The younger Gilbert maneuvered Marlow into the playoffs last November, but the Outlaws season ended with a disappointing loss to Perkins-Tryon in the first round.
‘It was always my dream to play high school football,” Cade said. “I’ve been around it all of my life, with my dad being a coach – and I’ve always watched the quarterbacks. I would not be where I am if it was not for the countless hours of watching Jace and learning from his mistakes and his successes. I learned a lot from my brother.”
Jase provided a good role model. In his senior season, with Cade as his backup, Jase accounted for 205 total yards and three touchdowns per game while guiding the Outlaws to 14-0 record and their first football state championship since 1964.
Jase averaged 8-of-10 passing for 148 yards and two
Cade Gilbert throws a pass against Plainview in a key district game in 2022.
touchdowns per contest. He gained another 57 yards on the ground and added one rushing touchdown per game.
That gave him a total of 2,227 yards and 28 touchdowns passing, with another 853 yards and 17 TDs rushing. He finished with 3,080 total yards and 35 touchdowns.
Cade’s passed for 1,548 yards and 19 touchdowns in his first season as a starter and rushed for 656 yards and four TDs. And he faced much stiffer competition in the regular season than did his brother. He finished with 2,204 all-purpose yards and accounted for 23 touchdowns.
“Now that I have the experience, I feel like I have the guys’ respect that I need to be the leader of the team,” Cade said. “As a team, we are more experienced this year as well. With experience comes confidence and it’s good to see that from my teammates so far.”
It was his right leg and academics that made Iowa State take interest in Jase.
He was notorious for kicking extra-points past the endzone, out of Outlaw Stadium, and into neighboring yards. That caused then-superintendent and self-designated ball boy George Coffman to travel the neighborhood to retrieve the balls.
“I believe they lost some of those balls,” Jase said.
Near the end of the 2021 season, administrators put an elementary student under the goal post on kickoffs and told Jase to kick it to the kid. That saved Coffman steps and allowed the kid to challenge himself to see how many kickoffs he could catch in the air.
As a senior, Jase sent 94 of 109 kickoffs into the end zone for touchbacks and made good on 81 of 82 extra-points. He nailed 9 of 12 field goals, including five from beyond 40 yards. His longest field goal was 52 yards.
His punting became a weapon if he couldn’t guide the Outlaws to a first down.
All of that production left Stephens County for Iowa. And in its place stepped Cade, who coaches say approach the game in a similar manner as his brother. He even took over the kicking duties for the Outlaws.
“When we were little, every day we would walk to the football stadium, and after the high school finished practicing, we’d play football,” Cade said. “We’d play catch, and then I’d throw passes and Jase would kick. He taught me a lot. He’s always been a leader for me.
“He’s my best friend.”
Said Jase: ““Growing up with him was fun. We made a lot of things into competitions – probably a lot things that shouldn’t have been competitions. I remember
from the time I was 12 and he was 10, dad would bring home the pads and we’d be hitting each other in the front yard.
“It was always a competition, anything from who would win at video games to who would catch the most fish.
“He’s one of my best friends.”
Coaches say the brothers are similar in their work ethic and passion for the game. No one has to goad the Gilberts into working at athletics. Desire burns within them.
Yet, they are different people despite the same bloodline. Their playing styles and personalities diverge. Jase boasts of the bigger frame, outweighing his brother by about 30 pounds during last football season. He featured a power-running style.
Featuring the smaller frame, Cade is a little quicker and more elusive on his feet.
“He throws the ball better than me and he’s quicker than me,” Jase said.
Coach Gilbert said the brothers were a lot of fun to parent.
“They like to compete,” he said. “They grew up around school, living the dream at the concession stand and eating that diet. It was a lot of time together – a lot of practices and games.”
The coach said 2021 “was the first year they really played together on the same team. It was kind of a big deal. Cade was always joking with Jase that he was going to take his spot.”
And now he has. After a straight handoff from one Gilbert to the next.
“They grew up around school, living the dream at the concession stand and eating that diet. It was a lot of time together.”
-Chad Gilbert Marlow Offensive Line Coach
The All-Area Defensive Player of the Year in 2022, Griffith returns for his junior season and expectations are high for this two-way player.
He made 100 total tackles and five interceptions last season, but it was his play at quarterback that drew him the most attention.
Griffith passed for 1,628 yards and rushed for 1,684 more. He accounted for 46 touchdowns and led the Comets to the Class B State Semifinals.
Gilbert earned first-team all-area honors last season, his first as a starter. Gilbert threw for 1,554 years and 19 touchdowns, completing 63 percent of his passes.
He rushed for 631 yards and four TDs in guiding Marlow to the Class 3A Playoffs.
This small but tough running back earned second-team All-Area last season after rushing for 783 yards and 8 touchdowns on 191 carries.
His workload could increase this season Empire moves away from its spread offense and adopts a more run-oriented attack. Goldsberry made
40 tackles and one interception from his defensive back position.
Carson earned first-time All-Area
honors as a punter last season. He averaged 42 yards per punt on 28 attempts, but it’s his rushing ability that draws him the most attention. Carson, the Donkeys main running back and backup quarterback, ran for between 700 and 800 yards last season.
Barron Gage, Marlow, WR
Gage, a first-team All-Area selection last season, was somewhat overshadowed by Offensive Player of the Year Avrey Payne. Still, the crafty receiver who runs solid routs and had good hands, caught 34 passes for 741 yards and seven touchdowns. That ranked him second on the team in all three of those categories. With Payne playing for Northeastern Oklahoma State this season, Gage could see more targets and more double-teams.
Landon Holthaus, Duncan, WR/DB
Holthaus, a second-team All-Area pick at wide receiver last season, is a reliable possession receiver. He led Duncan with 27 catches for 319 yards. The 5-ffot-9 senior could be one of four or five Demons who start on both sides of the ball this season. Holthaus is already penciled in as a starting wide receiver – and don’t be surprised if he starts at cornerback or safety.
Langston Walker, Velma-Alma, WR
Walker was a second-team All-Area selection last season, and he could become the Comets’ main target this season because their leading receiver Crue Garrett graduated. Walker made
19 catches for 233 yards and 6 touchdowns.
Conner Akers, Velma-Alma, WR
Akers was a second-team All-Area pick last season after catching 7 passes and scoring on six of the receptions. He finished with 300 yards receiving.
Marlow returns five offensive linemen who started at some point last season, but Lucas graded out better than any of them. A second-team All-Area honoree at right tackle, Lucas graded at 93 percent blocking and delivered 14 pancake blocks.
Nathan Channel, Duncan, OL
Channel is a returning starter from last season. Coaches say he provides good leadership and gives tremendous effort on every snap. He’ll be counted on to mentor young linemen.
Paramore was a second-team All-Area pick last season and is the Comets only returning offensive lineman to see extended action. Paramore will be
asked to anchor the offensive line and be a mentor to newcomers. He played both ways at times last season and made 26 tackles on defense.
Caden Cogburn, Duncan, OL
Cogburn will be the Demons’ starting center and leader of the O-line. Coaches say he’s improved 100 percent from last season.
Johnathan Alvarez, Comanche, OL
Alvarez may be asked to anger the Indians’ offensive line after the graduations of second-team All-Area selections Brady Dobbins and Noah Presgrove. Alvarez’s side will be a focus of the offense.
Brock Smith, Marlow, OL/DL
Smith was a first-team All-Area selection on the defensive line last season. The Outlaws hope he’ll be a force on both sides of the ball this season. He made 72 tackles, including six for losses in 2022. He also made five sacks.
Avaughnte Jackson, Duncan, DL
Jackson was a second-team All-Area pick last season. He made 38 total
Sawyer Rice QB Duncan Received extensive playing time in 2022.
Chris Kouts RB Duncan Second-Team All-Area at QB last season.
Owen Long OL Marlow Returns for his senior season at center.
Colby Shannon QB Comanche Takes over for graduated Kooper Doucet.
Nathan Menga OL/DL Empire A returning starter and big contributor.
Brodric Spigner OL/DL Velma-Alma Transfer from Empire; 149 tackles in 2022.
Joseus Flores OL Marlow A returning starter who’s seen a lot of action.
Kamdyn Whetstone FB/LB Empire Expected to take pressure off of Goldsberry.
Brody Whitney QB Bray-Doyle Back under center for a second season.
Jason Manning OL Marlow Started part of the season last year.
Chase Kaspereit OL/DL Empire Will remain on the line but move positions.
RJ Roberts OL Comanche Will be the Indians’ starting center.
Bailey Johnson WR Central One of three returning starters for CHS.
tackles in nine games, including 15 solo steps and 23 assists.
Bruhl is a versatile athlete who will start at defensive end but could also see time at tight end and fullback. Duncan coach Matt Terry describes Bruhl as a workhorse in the weight room and on the field.
Bruehl was in on 44 tackles last season and made one sack. He had two tackles for lost yardage and forced one fumble.
Morgan was a first-team All-Area selection as a freshman last season. Comes in the mold of former All-Area linebacker for Marlow, Kyle Wilson, who plays at Northeastern Oklahoma.
Burton was an All-Area second-team pick at linebacker in 2022.
He made 108 tackles and three fumble recoveries. Burton was one of only two Bulldogs who made 100 or more tackles.
Quick was first-team All-Area last season after making 49 tackles, including 6 for losses. He forced one fumble.
Hunt, a physical linebacker with a nose for the ball, earned first-team All-Area honors last season.
He made 112 tackles (8 for losses) and two sacks.
Roberts was All-Area honorable mention last season. This season, he will start at center and be the leader of an offensive line left nearly bare by graduation.
Strickland earned Newcomer of the Year honors on the All-Area Team last season. As a freshman, he made 52 tackles (2 for losses), one sack and three interceptions. He forced one fumble.
New coach Gary Robinson believes Dodd will be a force this season. He said Dodd had a good offseason in the weightroom.
Trevor Holland RB Duncan Could be a special player, coaches say.
Clift RB Comanche Will be good in short-yard situations.
Rhoades OL Duncan A 6-3, 320-pound sophomore with bright future.
Cooper Dobbins WR/DB Comanche Likely a main target for new QB Colby Shannon.
Korbin Wade OL Duncan Has the physical frame to be good in long run.
Jacob Konn OL Duncan Great leader who’s had a good camp.
Dirk Couch QB/TE Central Vying for the starting QB job
Boomer Brooks WR Marlow QB Gilbert likes Brooks as a target.
Cale Porter QB Empire Not new to varsity but new to QB.
Aiden Torres OL/DL Velma-Alma A transfer from Waurika who could play on the line.
Jensen Nunez LB Central A freshman who flies to the ball.
Aaron Torres WR/LB Velma-Alma Waurika transfer who could be a target for Griffith.
Ty Lane QB/DB Comanche Provides depth at QB and could see time at RB.
Aiden MacGregor DL Empire A big lineman who could help the ‘Dawgs D.
Emilo Hernedez DL Empire Could find his way into the defensive rotation.
Raymond Sarmiento DL Empire Has learned by watching 2 older brothers.
C.J. Wright OL Central Gives Bronchos good size at 6-2, 250.
You won’t hear Marlow coach Matt Weber use the term “rebuilding year.” He doesn’t believe in the concept. Every team wants to be successful, and every team deserves a coaching staff’s best effort and highest expectations, he says. Perhaps that’s a reason why Marlow is the only football program in Stephens County to qualify for the playoffs in each of the past five seasons.
Marlow leads the county in winning percentage. The Outlaws have played in 60 games over the past five seasons and won 45 of them. That gives Marlow a county high .750 winning percentage. The Outlaws are the only county school to appear in or win a state championship game in the past five seasons. Marlow went 14-0 and claimed the Class 2A Championship in 2021.
Marlow is one of four schools that have won more football games than they’ve lost since 2018. Velma-Alma, Empire, and Duncan also finished the five-year span with plus-.500 winning percentages.
Velma-Alma has experienced a resurgence since dropping to 8-man and welcoming head coach Randy Norton. The Comets have played 59 games
and won 42 of them in the past five seasons. That gives V-A a .711 winning percentage. The Comets overcame a slow start last season and rolled all the way to the Class B State Semifinals. It was their third trip to the playoffs in five seasons – but they would have made the playoffs in their first year of 8-man play if they had been eligible. The Comets played independent of a district in their first 8-man campaign.
Empire is enjoying one its best five-
year stretches in school history. From 2018 to 2021, the Bulldogs enjoyed four consecutive playoff appearances. That streak ended last season when the Empire moved back to 11-man ball for the first time in seven seasons. Empire has played in 60 games in five seasons and won 32 of them. That gives them a winning percentage of .600.
There have been no head coaching changes at Marlow, Velma-Alma, or Empire in the last four years.
Duncan was on a good run until the past two seasons. The Demons slipped to 7-13 over the last two years combined. They’ve played 52 games in five years and stand with a 27-22 record. That gives Duncan, which won backto-back championships in the 1970s and 1980s, a .519 winning percentage in the last five seasons.
It’s been feast or famine for Comanche. The Indians have had some stellar seasons and some bad seasons and not much in-between. They’ve made the playoffs twice in five years and own a winning percentage of .403.
Central, who owned the 1990s by winning three consecutive championships, are 14-34 in since 2018. BrayDoyle is looking for its first non-losing season since 2007 when the Donkeys went 5-5.
Not all high school football schedules are created equal.
Some are created with consistency. See Marlow, where the Outlaws play traditional rivals Chickasha and Comanche and reacquaint themselves with 2022 nemesis Perkins-Tryon before launching into district play.
Some schedules are created with a tip of the cap to bull riders. They offer certain danger right out of the shoot. For that type of schedule, see Duncan, which opens with Class 6A Lawton High, Guthrie, and 5A quarterfinalist Piedmont.
Still other schedules are created with a flair for the bizarre. See Empire, where one stretch of the Bulldog’s slate sees them play three consecutive road games and then three consecutive Thursday games.
Nonetheless, if you’re looking for a good local game to see, try one of these 23 contests in 2023.
Friday, Sept. 1
Lawton High at Duncan, 7 p.m.
Welcome to Duncan, Matt Terry. The new Duncan head coach will lead the Demons into battle for the first time and face Class 6A Lawton High, which owns the series record with Duncan, 26-7. The Wolverines have won the last 12 games vs. Duncan, with the Demons’ last victory coming in 1966, 42-12. The Wolverines won the season opener last year, 63-20.
Chickasha at Marlow, 7 p.m.
This will be the 65th version of the
Hwy. 81 series. Chickasha leads the all-time series 35-29, but Marlow will carry a three-game series winning streak into the 2023 opener for both schools. Chickasha won the first-ever meeting, 13-6, in 1917. Marlow won last season, 45-14. The Outlaws have outscored Chickasha 85-28 in the past two games.
Bray-Doyle at Central, 7 p.m.
It’s a battle for Stephens County bragging rights when these two rivals meet. The Bronchos own a 10-6 series advantage since 1999 and have won the last nine matchups. Both schools welcome new coaches this year. The Bronchos won three games last season, while the Donkeys went winless. Central beat Bray-Doyle, 50-6, last year.
Friday, Sept. 8
Marlow will have to deal with PerkinsTryon running back Tre Stevenson again this year. Stevenson and the Demons handed Marlow two of its four losses last season. The Outlaws will travel to Perkins in Week 3.
Comanche at Marlow, 7 p.m.
Hate is a strong word – but it might not be a strong enough word to describe the feelings these two Stephens County rivals share for each other. They’ve met 63 times on the football field, with Marlow owning a 47-16 advantage in the all-time series. A win this year would give Marlow 10-straight victories over the Indians. Comanche’s last win over the Outlaws came in 2011. Marlow hasn’t always owned the series. Comanche opened the 21st Century with six consecutive victories over the Outlaws. Yet, the Outlaws have won 15 of the 16 games since then. Marlow set a series record
for point differential last season by beating Comanche, 62-0.
Hollis at Velma-Alma, 7 p.m.
Redemption will be on the minds of the Comets. Last season, Hollis stole an 8-6 upset victory over Velma-Alma in the second week of the season, and Hollis holds a 3-2 series advantage over the Comets since 2009.
Friday, Sept. 15
Friday, Sept. 29
Midwest City at Duncan, 7 p.m.
MacArthur leads series 31-20
2022: Mac 49, Duncan 29
2021: Mac 42, Duncan 7
2020: Not played
2019: Duncan 21, Mac 19
2018: Duncan 24, Mac 13
2017: Mac 36, Duncan 23
2016: Mac 48, Duncan 28
2015: Mac 31, Duncan 13
2014: Mac 56, Duncan 14
2013: Mac 71, Duncan 56
2012: Mac 15, Duncan 0
2011: Mac 28, Duncan 7
2010: Mac 24, Duncan 14
2009: Duncan 35, Mac 34
2008: Duncan 31, Mac 28
2007: Mac 54, Duncan 7
2006: Mac 13, Duncan 7
2005: Duncan 24, Mac 10
2004: Mac 43, Duncan 7
2003: Mac 55, Duncan 7
2002: Mac 49, Duncan 7
2001: Duncan 18, Mac 10
2000: Mac 24, Duncan 0
1999: Duncan 34, Mac 23
1998: Mac 27, Duncan 20
1997: Duncan 27, Mac 24
1996: Mac 33, Duncan 27
1995: Mac 54, Duncan 7
1994: Mac 33, Duncan 15
1993: Duncan 40, Mac 0
1992: Mac 27, Duncan 14
1991: Duncan 14, Mac 10
1990: Mac 21, Duncan 14
1989: Mac 17, Duncan 3
1988: Mac 33, Duncan 22
1987: Mac 21, Duncan 0
1986: Mac 48, Duncan 14
1985: Mac 7, Duncan 3
1984: Duncan 27, Mac 6
1983: Duncan 35, Mac 7
1983: Duncan 21, Mac 0 (Playoffs)
1982: Duncan 14, Mac 8
1981: Mac 21, Duncan 0
1980: Mac 20, Duncan 6
1979: Duncan 3, Mac 0
1978: Duncan 29, Mac 0
1978: Duncan 14, Mac 13 (semifinals)
1977: Duncan 7, Mac 0
1976: Mac 20, Duncan 6
1975: Duncan 19, Mac 12
1974: Mac 14, Duncan 0
Marlow at Perkins-Tryon, 7 p.m. Perkins-Tryon handed Marlow its two toughest defeats in 2022, ending the Outlaws’ 17-game winning streak with a 34-21 victory in Week Three and closing the Outlaws’ season with a 49-0 thumping of Marlow in the first round of the Class 3A Playoffs. Tre Stevenson, a tank of a running back who ran for 163 yards on 28 carries in their first meeting last year, will be back for his senior season.
Friday, Sept. 22
Duncan at Lawton Mac, 7 p.m.
Duncan will have to deal with Jeremy Hutcheson, one of the most electric skill players in Class 5A. The Lawton MacArthur running back gained 1,632 yards and scored 12 touchdowns on 312 carries last season. MacArthur owns the all-time series lead vs. Duncan, 31-20. The Highlanders won last season, 49-29. Duncan’s last win over Mac came in 2019.
Pauls Valley at Marlow, 7 p.m.
Pauls Valley was an upstart last season and nearly turned District 3A-2 upside down. The Outlaws caught Pauls Valley early last season, knocking off the Panthers, 29-14. That gave Marlow its third consecutive win over Pauls Valley. The overall series is tied at 15. The two met for the first time in 1926 when Pauls Valley beat Marlow, 30-0.
Comanche at Lindsay, 7 p.m.
This will be a game the Indians need to win if Comanche entertains any notion of making the playoffs. Lindsay owns a 14-4 advantage in the series since 1999 and has won 13 straight against the Indians. Comanche hasn’t won since 2005 when it beat Lindsay, 39-0. The Leopards won last season, 68-0.
This series dates to 1952 when Midwest City beat Duncan, 39-12, in the state semifinals. They don’t play often, but the Bombers drop into Class 5A has precipitated a series rebirth between the two traditional football powerhouses. They played nine times in the 1960s and four times in the 1970s – and then the series went on pause. The Demons and Bombers met last season for the first time in 49 years, with the Bombers taking a 46-26 victory. This will be the first time Duncan has played host to the Bombers since the 1970s.
Velma-Alma at Dewar, 7 p.m.
Dewar embarrassed Velma-Alma, 460, at home last season, and the Comets will want to avenge their worst loss of 2022. It will also mark the Comets final tune-up before beginning the district season.
Marlow at Lone Grove, 7 p.m.
The Longhorns handed Marlow a tough home loss last season. The 41-21 defeat likely pushed Marlow out of a top-two finish in District 3A-2 and sent the Outlaws on the road for the first round of the playoffs. Marlow owns a 14-7 advantage in the all-time series, but the series is tied at 5 games apiece in the last 10 meetings.
Friday, Oct. 6
Duncan at Noble, 7 p.m.
The Demons enjoyed their biggest win of 2022 against Noble. The Bears jumped out to a big lead and the Demons rallied in the fourth quarter to tie the game. Duncan won in overtime, 39-38. The Demons own the all-time series record over Noble, 14-2. They’ve played in each of the past five seasons, with Duncan holding a 3-2 edge in that span.
Empire at Walters, 7 p.m.
Empire will have to contend with junior running back Kaden Griffen, who rushed for 208 yards and three touchdowns in Walters’ 52-27 victory over the Bulldogs last season. The two schools are just 30 minutes apart – and Empire coach Brant Hayes says Mangum and Walters are the two best teams in District A-2. Walters holds a 12-5
advantage in the overall series and has won four consecutive games against the Bulldogs.
Thursday, Oct. 12
Mangum at Empire, 7 p.m.
One week after facing run-oriented Walters, the Bulldogs will have to switch gears and prep for pass-happy Mangum.
Hayes says Mangum has enough athletes to win District A-2 and will quite literally “throw the ball all over the field.” Mangum has a 3-0 edge in the all-time series. The Tigers beat Empire, 45-14, last season.
Waurika at Velma-Alma, 7 p.m.
Winner of this game should have the inside track to the District B-4 championship. Both teams came into the game riding high last season, and the Comets laid a 42-28 whipping on Waurika and then rolled all the way to the Class B Semifinals. Velma-Alma is 15-0 against Waurika since 1957.
Friday, Oct. 20
Marlow at Sulphur, 7 p.m.
DaMontre Patterson, a transfer from Ada to Sulphur, could add electricity to this matchup of perennial powers. Patterson, a senior running back and defensive back, is considered one of the top 10 players in Oklahoma.
He’s received offers from Marshall, California, Colorado, Michigan State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Arkansas Baptist, and New Hampshire.
He ran the 100-yard dash in 10.56 at the Class 4A Track Meet this spring. Marlow owns a 21-16 advantage in the all-time series and carries a two-game winning streak into 2023.
Friday, Oct. 27
Plainview at Marlow, 7 p.m. Playoff implications will likely to be on the line when the Outlaws and Indians battle. Marlow won big last season, 40-7, snapping a four-game losing streak against Plainview.
The Indians hold an 8-5 advantage in the all-time series.
Central leads the series 10-6
2022: Central 50, Bray-Doyle 6
2021: Central 34, Bray-Doyle 0
2020: Central 44, Bray-Doyle 18
2019: Central 50, Bray-Doyle 0
2018: Central 36, Bray-Doyle 20
2017: Central 50, Bray-Doyle 0
2016: Central 52, Bray-Doyle 67
2007: Central 32, Bray-Doyle 26
2006: Central 50, Bray-Doyle 48
2005: Bray-Doyle 40, Central 26
2004: Bray-Doyle 20, Central 6
2003: Bray-Doyle 54, Central 10
2002: Central 34, Bray-Doyle 22
2001: Bray-Doyle 41, Central 6
2000: Bray-Doyle 41, Central 6
1999: Bray-Doyle 35, Central 21
Comanche at Washington, 7 p.m.
If you want to test yourself, there’s no better team to do it against than defending Class 2A Washington. The Warriors are led by tight end and defensive end Cooper Alexander, the son of former Oklahoma and NFL tight end Stephen Alexander. The 6-foot4, 225-pound Alexander committed to Iowa State in June. The Warriors also have Nate Roberts, a Notre Dame commit who is the nation’s second-ranked tight end and No. 54 overall recruit in the 2025 class.
Empire at Apache, 7 p.m. Hayes says Mangum, Walters, and Apache are the top three teams in District A-2. If Empire wants to be
among the top three in the district, the Bulldogs will likely have to upset one of those three.
Velma-Alma at Central High, 7 p.m.
Central High fans will get a rare look at the Comets, who finished in the Class B Semifinals last season. Often competitors in other sports, the two county schools have rarely faced on the football field.
The three times they have met, Velma-Alma won each contest by the 45-point rule. Central has never scored against the Comets.
Friday, Nov. 3
Duncan at Ardmore, 7 p.m.
These two rivals have played every year since 1958. Ardmore owns a 50-33 advantage in the all-time series, but the Demons have won two of the last three games. Duncan will have a chance this season to win back-to-back games against the rival Tigers for the first time since 2011 and 2012. Duncan won last season’s contest, 35-21.
Marlow at Heritage Hall, 7 p.m.
The Chargers, defending Class 3A State Champions, will have a bevy of Division 1 talent awaiting Marlow when the Outlaws ride into Oklahoma City. Jordyn Harris, a wide receiver and defensive back, has offers from New Mexico State, Navy, Army, and Air Force. Quarterback Andy Bass has narrowed his choices to Oklahoma, Kansas State, and Syracuse.
Heritage Hall beat Marlow, 31-7, in the season finale last year. The only other time the two have played was in 2018 when the Chargers beat Marlow, 42-0, in the playoffs.
STORYBY KELLYWRAY
Acoach’s to-do list is always long at the start the season, even if you’re a longestablished veteran in your position.
Matt Terry is new – sort of. He’s been in Duncan before but not as a head coach. Terry, a 2002 Altus graduate, was hired in March to lead the Duncan program after the Demons slipped in the last two seasons and finished a combined 7-13. So now, the one-time Duncan assistant under head coach Jim Holloway finds himself sitting squarely at the head of the coaches’ table, with all of the paperwork and decisions accumulating.
It’s quite a to-do list – and it involves a lot more than football. It includes developing relationships, acquiring buy-in, and establishing priorities.
Terry was hired in March and immediately brought a strength coach aboard. Then, 6:30 a.m. workouts started the Monday following spring break. Terry wondered: Who will buy-in? He also had a message: You better buy-in because this is important. An average of 40 players lifted every morning.
“There was a day in June when we went as hard as we could on them, and a bunch of coaches said that day that they thought the kids were starting to buy in,” Terry said. A day in early August found 60 Demons in the weight room.
Terry isn’t shy about the importance of culture. There aren’t just three phases to the game – offense, defense, and special teams. There’s another phase: Call it chemistry or culture. Just understand it’s an important dimension.
“When a kid can open up to you and trust you, the door is wide open. They know you believe in them and they believe in you,” Terry said. “It’s not all highs on Friday nights. There are a bunch of lows on Fridays. If that kid knows that you know exactly what’s going on in his life, you have a better chance of riding those highs a lot longer. If you don’t have a great culture, you’re going to struggle on Friday night.
“I want these kids to enjoy the moment and their high school experience. I want them to look back when they’re 40 years old and say, ‘I loved my high school’ whether we’re 4-6 or 10-0. It doesn’t matter. They should enjoy every bit of it.”
Increasing participation consists of buy-in from every level. That is, high school, junior high, and youth. More players mean more depth. And more depth means more competition at each position and a greater chance of surviving injuries throughout the season.
“The high school coaching staff is going to be really involved in the junior high program,” Terry said. “We’ll go to almost every game they have. Then, it goes all the way down to the youth. The youth coaches have been in every meeting we’ve had (first week of August). Get everyone on board and understanding the same concept, and you have a chance to be pretty good in the long run.”
This involves developing relationships beyond the game. In early August, Duncan seniors and coaches took the program’s senior trip to Lake Texoma. There was no football talk. They played cornhole, fished, enjoyed good food.
“That night on the trip, though, we circle up and get into deeper things than just football,” Terry said. “We try to figure out where people are coming from, what’s their background. In the past when we’ve done it, there have been kids crying and coaches crying.
“Football is such a grind. You have to open up to a little more than just football. Kids see you care about them and love them, and that translates to wins.”
PHOTO BY KELLY WRAYWith a familiar face returning to the sidelines at Halliburton Stadium, Coach Matt Terry will now serve as the lead coach for Duncan Football program rather than just an assistant. He hopes to bring back a different look for the Demons’ program.
Terry, an assistant at Duncan before moving on to Altus to take over another job, comes directly from Pauls Valley High School. He returns to the program where he acquired his coaching start.
After celebrating the homecoming for him and his family, Terry feels exhilarated to lead this program and make a return back to Class 5A. He believes the program is only as good as the assistant coaches, and he’s confidently equipped with the best of the best.
“It is always good to run a program, you get to run it your own way, but I mean you’re only as good as the assistants you have in your office,” Terry said. “All of these guys have bought in, they love coaching and they love kids. The players are starting to buy in a little bit, which as a first-year coach, you never know when the buy in is going to happen.
“I think it was a Tuesday of workouts and we hammered them pretty hard and they didn’t complain,” he said. “They just work and work. So, the buy in is starting and they got better throughout the summer and spring ball was great. I think it is happening a lot faster than we all anticipated. We are all just excited to go to the season.”
Terry is used to only playing one scrimmage a year, but Duncan will have two this year with no zero-week
game for the coach. His goal is to keep the kids engaged throughout the long time period.
Part of the team makeup for the Demons is a core senior group, which will help Terry with their vast varsity experience coming into the 2023 campaign.
“We do have a core group of seniors. They are going to set the foundation for as long as I’m here,” Terry said. “They have done a great job this summer. We had Preston Bruehl, who hasn’t missed a day this summer and will be a guy on defense that we will lean our hat on and see if he can go make plays for us.”
An additional returning senior is Chris Kouts. More returning seniors who will appear on the line include Caden Cogburn and Nathan Channel. Beyond that, the Demons will likely see three sophomores on the line.
“You have to lean on those two seniors to get you through the hard times early until those guys can start
3-7
2021: 4-6
2020: 6-5
2019: 6-4
2018: 9-3
“Our first expectation is to make playoffs; second one is to host a first-round game. This district is as tough as I’ve seen it, so if you just get in this district, you’re doing something.”
-Matt Terry Duncan Head Football Coach
2022: 3-7 overall; 3-4 in district Coach: Matt Terry – At Duncan: 0-0, first year; Overall: 13-8, two years.
Last Playoff Appearance: 2020, first round loss to Bishop McGuinness, 41-21.
Returning Starters: 9; 5 offense, 4 defense.
Players to Watch: WR/S Landon Holthaus, FB/TE Preston Bruehl, QB/ RB Chris Kouts, QB Sawyer Rice, RB Tavion Holland, OL Nathan Channel; OL Kaden Cogburn.
Primary Strengths: Experience and depth in skill players on offense, as well as the defensive edges. Of the two defensive ends and two linebackers, three of those four starters will be seniors. At skill positions on offense, quarterbacks Chris Kouts and Sawyer Rice lead the way. They combined for 102 completions for 1,057 yards and 7 touchdowns in 2022. Landon Holthaus, who made 27 catches for 319 yards last season, is a solid possession receiver with great hands. Preston Bruehl, a strong player with great size, can play at fullback and/or tight end.
Potential Problems: Inexperience on the offensive line. The Demons will start three sophomores on the offensive line. “Being a sophomore on the offensive line on Friday night is tough, especially when you go against Lawton High, Piedmont, and Guthrie right off the bat,” Terry said. “Early on, the offensive line could be an area of concern – but it could be one of our better areas by the end of the season.”
Key Losses: OL Devon Lolar; RB Bryson Brooksher, who led the Demons in rushing with 947 yards last season; WR Preston Giles, who made 20 catches for 319 yards and had 40 tackles on defense, will miss the season because of an injury.
Newcomers: WR Daveon Carr, a 6-foot-3 basketball player, decided to play football this season and could make an impact as a wide receiver; OL Walter Rhodes, 6-3, 320; OL Corbin Waid; OL Jacob Conn.
PHOTO BY KELLY WRAY
RB/LB Tavion HOLLAND
figuring it out,” Terry said. “So really, in the first week, those seniors, you’ve got to lean on because some sophomores are worked on.”
Other returning starters, like Landon Holthaus, Cooper Kelly and Evan Howton will see some key times for the defense and potentially on offense as well.
Terry also mentioned having two athletes who could fit into the role at quarterback -- Kouts and Sawyer Rice, who each glimpsed some time in 2022. Additionally, a young Tavion Holland will appear at running back.
Newcomers who could factor in the lineup for the Demons are Daveon Carr, Sincere Young, Corbin Way, Jacob Cobb, Walter Rhodes and Onyx Mayfield, who might make out with playing time.
With the season beginning with two home games for the Demons, Terry feels thrilled to have juniors like Jackson Poage, who will play a considerable part during game time.
“I want to play hard every Friday night, but our main goal is, we want to get in the playoffs. It doesn’t really matter if you are first or fourth, if you get in, you’ve got a chance,” Terry said.
“Our first expectation is to make playoffs; the second one is to host a first-round game,” he said. “This district is as tough as I’ve seen it, so if you just get in this district, you’re doing something. If you get a first and second, you are playing good football.”
It didn’t take long for Preston Bruehl to start seeing dividends from Duncan’s new workout regimen.
Already described as a beast in the weight room, the versatile senior has flourished under new coach Matt Terry’s system, which features organized exercises and timed sets.
The vibe “is totally different” from years past, said Bruehl, a starting defensive end who’s versatile enough to play multiple positions on both sides of the ball. “It’s flipped completely.”
It used to be that workouts were written on the board of the weight room, and the players completed them at their own pace. Not so anymore, Bruehl said.
There’s a lot of accountability now, and the repetitions are timed, meaning players are required to finish certain exercises in an assigned amount of time.
Bruehl has seen his squat max go up by 100 pounds to 510 in five weeks. His benchpress max has increased by 30 pounds to 315.
All of that could mean bad news for Duncan opponents who could see Bruehl coming at them from different directions. He could lineup at fullback or tight
end. He has great hands and is hard to tackle.
Terry has Bruehl penciled in as a starting defensive end. However, the first-year Duncan head coach anticipates that he could have as many as four twoway starters. Bruehl might be one of them.
Bruehl was in on 44 tackles last season and made one sack. He had two tackles for lost yardage and forced one fumble. He’s strong enough to play as a down lineman and help stop the run, but he’s also athletic enough to rush off the edge or cover a pass route.
His versatility shows on offense, where he’s a big target with good hands at tight end and a tough runner to tackle at fullback. Terry said Bruehl runs good routes and is a solid blocker.
“He’ll start on defense and be in the offense quite a bit,” Terry said. “He may be a guy who starts both ways. He’s a big kid, and he loves the weight room. He loves to work. If half of that locker room would develop his work ethic and want-to, we’d be all ready.
“Kids like him who love the game … it’s hard not to move them around and find a place for them to play.”
When
Duncan
head coach Matt Terry looks at Landon Holthaus, he sees well beyond the small body frame.
He notices, instead, a multitude of talents, a huge heart, and all of the options Holthaus provides him.
The 5-foot-9 senior could be one of four or five Demons who start on both sides of the ball this season. Holthaus is already penciled in as a starting wide receiver – and don’t be surprised if he starts at cornerback or safety.
Holthaus is a twosport star at Duncan. In the spring, he is s starting centerback for the Demons soccer team. “Playing soccer translates to football,” he said. “The dribbling in soccer allows me to be quicker running routes in football.”
But it is two intangibles that Terry likes most about Holthaus – his intelligence and his leadership.
“Landon is very smart,” Terry said. “You tell him once and he knows exactly what to do. He’s a good leader. So, he’s one of those guys that you can move around and play anywhere.”
Holthaus was a primary target for Duncan quarterbacks last season. He led the Demons in receiving yards with 27 catches for 319 yards in eight games. That gave him an average of 11.8 yards per catch and almost 40 yards receiving per game.
His targets could increase this season, as Preston Giles,
who was second on the club in receiving in 2022, will miss the season because of an injury.
To be a good receiver, you have to “be smart enough to know the plays, have good hands, and have good timing,” Holthaus said. Terry said Holthaus owns those tangibles. More than anything, Holthaus is dependable, Terry said.
“He’s undersized, but he has great hands, Terry said. “He’s not a guy who’s going to stretch the field, but he’s a possession guy. If it’s third-and-12, you can throw that 12-yard route to him and know he’s going to be there and catch it. If it’s third-and-6, you can throw that 6-yard route to him. He’s going to catch it.
“He’s going to be a guy who can help get the quarterback out of binds. He blocks well on the edge, and he never complains. He’s the kind of guy we want in this locker
2020-5A
1 : DUNCAN OVER EISENHOWER 21-3
2 : BISHOP MCGUINNESS OVER DUNCAN 41-21
2019-5A
1 : CARL ALBERT OVER DUNCAN 48-7
2018-5A
1 : GUTHRIE OVER DUNCAN 23-20
2012-5A
1 : BISHOP MCGUINNESS OVER DUNCAN 34-20
2011-5A
1 : DUNCAN OVER ADA 45-7
Q : MCALESTER OVER DUNCAN 37-21
2010-5A
1 : CARL ALBERT OVER DUNCAN 30-27
2009-5A
1 : GUTHRIE OVER DUNCAN 20-12
2007-5A
1 : DUNCAN OVER NOBLE 35-7
Q : EAST CENTRAL OVER DUNCAN 52-8
2005-5A
1 : SHAWNEE OVER DUNCAN 35-16
2001-5A
1 : DOUGLASS OVER DUNCAN 54-0
1999-5A
1 : JOHN MARSHALL OVER DUNCAN 34-7
1997-5A
1 : DUNCAN OVER WOODWARD 52-21
Q : DUNCAN OVER ALTUS 48-20
S : CARL ALBERT OVER DUNCAN 35-6
1996-5A
1 : DUNCAN OVER BISHOP MCGUINNESS 43-15
Q : WOODWARD OVER DUNCAN 9-7
1994-5A
1 : EL RENO OVER DUNCAN 49-14
1993-5A
1 : DUNCAN OVER GUTHRIE 38-0
Q : DUNCAN OVER JOHN MARSHALL 21-20
S : DUNCAN OVER DURANT 26-14
C : CARL ALBERT OVER DUNCAN 23-6
1992-5A
1 : CARL ALBERT OVER DUNCAN 13-0
1991-4A
1 : DUNCAN OVER CHICKASHA 27-6
2 : DUNCAN OVER HARRAH 27-0
Q : DUNCAN OVER GUTHRIE 21-13
S : DUNCAN OVER OKMULGEE 20-0
C : ADA OVER DUNCAN 21-6
1990-4A
1 : DUNCAN OVER CAPITOL HILL 50-7
2 : DUNCAN OVER SHAWNEE 13-10
Q : MACARTHUR OVER DUNCAN 21-14
1989-4A
1 : CARL ALBERT OVER DUNCAN 32-6
1987-4A
1 : DUNCAN OVER CARL ALBERT 9-6
Q : DUNCAN OVER BIXBY 7-0
S : DUNCAN OVER CLAREMORE 7-6
C : MCLAIN OVER DUNCAN 7-6
1985-4A
1 : DUNCAN OVER DOUGLASS 14-6
Q : DUNCAN OVER CARL ALBERT 19-13
S : NORTHEAST OVER DUNCAN 7-3
1984-4A
1 : DUNCAN OVER CHOCTAW 35-0
Q : DUNCAN OVER ARDMORE 35-13
S : DUNCAN OVER DURANT 41-14
C : DUNCAN OVER BISHOP KELLEY 10-7
1983-4A
1 : DUNCAN OVER MACARTHUR 21-0
Q : DUNCAN OVER WOODWARD 20-6
S : DUNCAN OVER ARDMORE 33-2
C : DUNCAN OVER BROKEN BOW 21-0
1982-4A
1 : DUNCAN OVER CHOCTAW 21-14
Q : DUNCAN OVER CARL ALBERT 27-20
S : ARDMORE OVER DUNCAN 23-0
1981-3A
1 : MUSTANG OVER DUNCAN 16-7
1980-3A
1 : DUNCAN OVER CARL ALBERT 21-6
Q : DUNCAN OVER CHOCTAW 18-8
S : MUSTANG OVER DUNCAN 23-6
1979-3A
1 : ADA OVER DUNCAN 14-0
1978-3A
1 : DUNCAN OVER ADA 43-14
Q : DUNCAN OVER GUTHRIE 29-0
S : DUNCAN OVER MACARTHUR 14-13
C : DUNCAN OVER JENKS 32-13
1977-3A
1 : DUNCAN OVER CARL ALBERT 20-12
Q : DUNCAN OVER SOUTHEAST 27-21
S : DUNCAN OVER ADA 7-0
C : DUNCAN OVER STILLWATER 19-6
1976-3A
1 : DUNCAN OVER ADA 13-7
Q : DUNCAN OVER SOUTHEAST 41-10
S : DOUGLASS OVER DUNCAN 13-9
1975-3A
1 : DUNCAN OVER CHOCTAW 19-16
Q : DUNCAN OVER GUYMON 9-0
S : ARDMORE OVER DUNCAN 10-7
1967-3A
S : MIDWEST CITY OVER DUNCAN 14-12
1952-A
Q : DUNCAN OVER ALTUS 34-7
S : MIDWEST CITY OVER DUNCAN 39-12
1945-A
Q : DUNCAN OVER ALTUS 14-7
S : DUNCAN OVER ARDMORE 18-12
C : DUNCAN OVER WILL ROGERS 17-7
When it comes to hard work and positive attitudes, the Duncan POM Team holds tightly to their goals and ethics.
First year Duncan POM Coach Jana Marks acknowledged six solid seniors who make up half of the POM squad for the 2023-2024 campaign.
“They have been amazing with our new squad,” she said. “Leading with strength and grace. Their maturity and guidance ... will make a difference in how they perform.”
The crew’s main goal is to become more involved in community events, whether volunteering or having a presence to represent Duncan High School.
“I expect this group of ladies to continue exemplifying a hard work ethic and positive attitudes while encouraging students to be more involved through school spirit and creating unity,” she said.
Marks said the group is currently working on skills they need to perform their state routine.
She said this routine will be choreographed by Chelsea Shores.
“They have already learned new routines from their summer camp at OU, that they will continue to perfect for halftime performances,” she said.
Marks said this is her first year coaching POM at DHS and her expectations for the year are to grow the program and continue the tradition to represent DHS with sportsmanship, responsibility and school spirit.
Marks said aside from coaching POM, she has three daughters who all took dance since they were in preschool. Now, two of them dance competitively.
This year, Marks said they have six senior captains, because she wanted each one of them to all have a role their final year.
“I split them into pairs,” she said. “Each pair was given a specific set of tasks that they are in charge of completing. This gives everyone a voice and a leadership role within the squad while keeping a consistent line of communication.”
With a focus of building relationships with each other, Marks said she wants to bring strength to the team, both mentally and physically.
“Additionally, the new cheer coach and I decided prior to our season starting that we wanted our teams to work out together and create a bond between our spirit squads,” she said. “We have built relationships by spending early mornings together working out and getting stronger.”
It’s all about creating new opportunities and giving the girls something to be apart of, according to Marks.
She said this summer, they went to OU Spirit camp and stayed in the dorms, which also brought a level of unification to the group of girls.
“They worked their tails off dancing and learning new things and that is already a favorite moment and we haven’t even started our season,” she said.
Marks said she’s proud of each of the ladies who make up the group.
“I am so proud of how hard you are working to make this year the best one yet,” she said. “From our seniors to our freshmen, you have been putting in the extra time -- early, early mornings are tough -- and effort, and I can’t wait for our community to see what I seen.”
She said her seniors have been a saving grace to her as a brand new coach.
“I can’t wait to enjoy this ‘last’ with all of you,” she said. “Let’s go get that state championship again.”
With each new season, Duncan’s cheerleading squad remains focused on pumping up levels of enthusiasm and creating life-long memories in the group.
Over the summer, the Cheer crew worked to prepare themselves for the upcoming game season, as well as the national competitions they’ll attend.
Duncan Cheer Coach Jesse Milburn said for the 2023-2024 campaign, the line up of ladies worked diligently throughout the summer on perfecting their stunts and tumbling.
“We will be bringing a lot of excitement to the sidelines this year,” she said.
Milburn, in her first year of coaching cheer at the high school level, said one of the spirit squad’s main goals this year is working as a team to make the school proud.
“We want to bring more school spirit to our community and DHS games,” she said.
As in years past, the Duncan Cheer team will once again work on raising their skill level and expertise.
According to Milburn, the
group has added several new stunts and tumbling requirements to fulfill this goal.
“We will be competing at nationals this season with a routine choreographed by Donnie Davis with Xtreme Thunder Cheer,” she said.
Equipped ith a main focus of building a positive culture for the school and lifelong relationships within the team, Milburn said she hopes they can continue to learn lifelong lessons which will benefit the team beyond just this year and long after they graduate from DHS.
Milburn said she takes extreme pride in each one of the girls on her team.
“This team has lifted weights and ran all summer preparing for their season,” she said. “They’ve had some very early and long practices all summer. I’m so proud they took their summer work so seriously.”
Two seniors lead the squad. With one junior following the seniorship, this year’s team has a heavy underclass that is comprised of seven sophomores and five freshmen.
PHOTO BY TAMARA GREGORBringing the beat isn’t anything new for Duncan Band, but this year the group of musicians will push themselves even harder now that the band instructor for the last 36 years has joined Oklahoma Bandmaster Association Hall of Fame.
Under the direction of Jeramy Haas, who enters his 37th year of teaching, the group of band students are sure to do one thing: Carry on the Demons’ musical legacy.
The group of just under 70 members began percussion practice on July 25. The full band then keyed up the music on July 31. On July 9, Duncan’s band was also spotted once again bringing the music to the sidelines of the annual Dehydrator, which raises money for the group for the school year ahead.
The goals are simple, Haas said: Make awesome music throughout each of their performances and build rela-
tionships amongst the band members.
Of course, other objectives will fall onto their horizons. This includes attending multiple marching contests, a variety of performances and showing community pride by attending parades.
“We will compete in three marching contests this Fall: in Ada, Elgin and the Regional Marching Contest in Yukon, plus performances at our football games,” Haas said. “Our marching show is called ‘The Silence in the Storm.’ It features music by Simon and Garfunkel and the rock group AC/DC.”
While there remains a lot to accomplish this year, there’s an enthusiasm for supporting the Demons and the Duncan community as a whole.
“The students are excited to continue their support of Duncan High School and the Duncan community,” Haas said. “This year we are able to march in the Veteran’s Day
Parade on Nov. 11. We haven’t been able to do that for a few years because it has fallen on the same day as our All Region and All State Band audition day.”
The key throughout the year, Haas said, is an involved set of upperclassmen helping pave the way for the younger musicians joining the ranks. The musicians will fall under the lead of seniors and Drum Majors Jessica Hernandez and Korpez Taylor.
“The upperclassmen always do a great job of being a good example of how to do things right for our new students in the High School Band,” he said. “We have a good group of ninth graders that are picking things up really fast.”
Watching their progression throughout the year builds Haas’ enthusiasm for the program as well.
“I love seeing the improvement of the students throughout the year and just spending time with the students,” he
said.
While the group engages the crowd and helps pump up the student athletes, Haas encourages attendees to provide the extra “oomph’ to the musicians as well as the players.
“I hope that Duncan fans will cheer for the DHS Band as they perform their halftime show, as well as the Cheerleaders and Pom just like they would cheer for the football team,” Haas said.
Haas also encourages the community to attend other band performances outside of the games. He said concerts are free and slated for 7 p.m. on Dec. 11, March 4 and May 14.
This year’s Duncan Band Boosters, which support not only the Duncan High School Band but also the Duncan Middle School bands, is lead by President Malcolm Talbot.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
The Duncan Demon Band, boasting just under 70 musicians this year, is ready to bring the beat to the sidelines throughout the upcoming football campaign. This year’s ensemble will fall under the direction of Drum Majors and seniors Jessica Hernandez and Korpez Taylor.
Like a twister bent on delivering chaos, change swirled all around the Empire football program last season.
It lifted the Bulldogs from the friendly confines of 8-man football and set them among the Goliaths of Class A, an 11-man division not encountered by Empire for seven seasons.
There was the obvious district change that accompanied the leap in classifications and a second half schedule that left the Bulldogs dazed and drooling.
And after all of those head-spinning adjustments, Empire head coach Brant Hayes wants … more change?
“A breath of fresh air,” the fifth-year Empire skipper said. “I think we got complacent.”
Hayes guided Empire to the playoffs in his first seasons on The Hill, thanks to the performances of all-area players like Gabe Daiz, Mithcell Monteith, Jackson Carrio, and McCray Weber
But last season, the Bulldogs jumped to a county-best 4-0 start only to watch their momentum melt down the stretch as Empire lost five of its last six games. The Bulldogs finished a respectable but somewhat unfulfilling 5-5.
“All of those players in years past made us look good, and we thought, ‘Well, this stuff worked the last few years, so why shouldn’t it work again?’ We didn’t have the same cats last year. I think that’s why change will be good. It’s not that I thought last year wasn’t a success, but it could have been better.”
Hayes ignited the changes by
moving coaching assignments. He has moved away from his customary role of offensive play caller and will call defenses this season.
Hayes put Keith Burton in charge of the offense and offensive play calling, believing that Burton’s emphasis on power blocking and straight-ahead running better fits the Bulldog’s personnel.
The Bulldogs use a zone-blocking scheme in Hayes spread offense that was geared to stretch defenses horizontally. In Burton’s offense, Empire will be more run-oriented and emphasize running the ball vertically in smash-mouth style.
The offensive adjustment was born of necessity. Easton Beck, a two-year starter at quarterback for Empire, transferred to Velma-Alma this summer and left the QB spot vacated. Sophomore Cale Porter, who’s never taken a snap under center, will fill the void.
So, even after all of the changes it experienced last season, Empire is in for more adjustments this year.
“What’s going to be tough for our guys is, we’re going to be moving people around and learning all new systems. So, we’re kind of back to Square One,” Hayes said.
“All of these guys have had just me as offensive coordinator. Now, coach Burton is going to call different stuff. His blocking schemes are going to be different. It’s going to be a big change offensively.”
Porter is going to need help from the running game until he gets settled in at quarterback. That’s good news
5-5 2021: 10-2 2020: 9-2 2019: 4-7
2018: 5-6
2022: 5-5 overall; 2-5 in district Coach: Brant Hayes – At Empire: 2816, fifth year; Overall: 33-31, six years.
Last Playoff Appearance: 2021, second round loss to first round loss to Balko-Forgan, 52-6.
Returning Starters: 9; 4 offense, 5 defense.
Players to Watch: QB/DB Cale Porter, RB/DB Damian Goldsberry, TE/LB Landon Burton, OL/DL Nathan Menga, OL/DL Chase Kaspereit, FB/ LB Kamdyn Whetstone, WR/DB William McMahan, OL/DL Joaquin Sarmiento.
Primary Strengths: Run game. The Bulldogs need the run game to be strong, especially early as new sophomore quarterback Porter gets settled under center. Empire’s offensive front struggled last season because of miscommunication and misunderstanding about blocking schemes. Assistant coach Keith Burton will take over play-calling duties and coach the offensive line. An improved offensive line would pave way for Porter, who’s proved he can run by returning multiple punts for touchdowns last season, and Damian Goldsberry, a top-level running back.
Potential Problems: Inexperience overall and inexperience in the new offense. Burton will install a more run-oriented offense that features less spread and less pocket passing. To take advantage of Porter’s speed, the Bulldogs will likely move the pocket, having him roll out on pass-run options. Porter has never played quarterback, and though three starting offensive linemen are back, they are likely to be at different positions. Three of the four starting defensive linemen could be freshmen.
Key Losses: QB Easton Beck (transfer), WR Shelby Shelton, WR Nycolas Spigner, OL Mace Monteith, DL Korbin Terrio, TE/DL Brodric Spigner (transfer).
Newcomers: DL Aiden MacGregor (5-7, 211), DL Emilio Hernandez (5-11, 253), DL Raymond Sarmiento (5-8, 181), WR/DB Cutter Rochell.
PHOTO BY KELLY WRAY K Francisco GARCIAfor the Bulldogs, because they have one of the county’s best running backs in Damian Goldsberry.
Goldsberry was a workhorse for the Bulldogs’ last season, and his load will likely only grow in the new offense. That suits Goldsberry fine. He rushed for 783 yards and 8 touchdowns on 191 carries last season.
Late last season, Empire started to use Kamdyn Whetstone as a fullback and lead blocker for Goldsberry, and Hayes said that will continue this season.
Hayes isn’t going to look for Porter to replace Beck’s 1,334 passing yards and 12 passing touchdowns. Beck was a drop-back pocket passer in the traditional sense. Porter will be more a threat to run, and Burton plans to roll him out
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Celebrating 60 years of serving the community!
and give him plenty of runpass options when situations allow.
“We’re going to be more run-oriented than in the past,” Hayes said. “We can spread it on some plays and let Cale run the option. I think him and Damian running the option will be good.
“For us to compete, we have to have the ball as long as we can. We have to play keep-away. I think we can get to the point where we throw the ball. We can get to where we can bootleg or run some
naked bootlegs. We’ll get Cale on the run where he can feel comfortable.
“But if we call a pass play and it’s a spring out, it will be like a run for him unless a receiver is down the field is so wide open he’s doing jumping jacks.”
When Porter does throw, he’ll be targeting tight end Luke Burton or wideouts Christian Benetiz, William McMahan, or Cutter Rochell. None of them started at wide receiver last season, but Benetiz played half the snaps
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because he rotated in play calls.
The Bulldogs graduated their two leading pass catchers from a year ago. Nycolas Spigner led the team with 467 yards and five touchdowns on 26 catches. And Shelby Shelton was a threat on the outside and scored Empire’s first touchdown back in 11man when he caught a swing pass and raced about 80 yards for a touchdown in the season opener against Rush Springs. It was Empire’s only score, as the Bulldogs won, 8-0.
“For us to compete, we have to have the ball as long as we can. We have to play keep-away. I think we can get to the point where we throw the ball. We can get to where we can bootleg or run some naked bootlegs.”
-Brant Hayes Empire Head Football CoachChristian Benitez makes a tackle in Empire’s win over Cordell last season.
‘The outside guys are going to have to buy into the fact that we’re not going to throw the ball like we have in the past,” Hayes said. “They’ll have to blocking receivers first.”
Offensive line personnel will be on the move too. Sean Allen and Chase Kaspereit shared time at right tackle last season. Allen will move to center and fill the hole left by Mace Montieth’s graduation. Kaspereit will move to left tackle and replace Cayden Langford, who decided not to play this season. Shad McDaniel will be the starter at right tackle.
Junior Nathan Menga will start at right guard and senior Joaquin Sarmiento will return as the starting left guard.
The youth movement hit the Empire defensive line more than at any other position. Three freshmen – Aiden MacGregor (5-7, 211), Emilo Hernedez (5-11, 253), and Raymond Sarmiento (5-8, 181)– will likely start.
Even though Sarmiento is the smallest of the three, Hayes said he is the most ready to play on Friday nights in Empire’s 5-2 scheme.
Defensive tackles Kaspereit and Menga return to their starting roles. Kaspereit made 28 total tackles, including four for losses. He made one sack and forced one fumble. Menga made 25 total
tackles, including four for losses. He forced one fumble.
Burton, the Bulldogs second leading tackler with 108 total last season, will return at linebacker and be joined by new starter Whetstone, who made 86 tackles a year ago.
Empire lost their leading tackler, Brodric Spigner (149), to a transfer to Velma-Alma. His brother, Nycolas, who paced the Bulldogs in interceptions with 3, graduated and left an opening at safety for McMahan to fill. Goldsberry will be at the other safety.
Porter returns as starter at one corner, and either Rochell or Benetiz will start at the other.
Returning sophomore Francisco Garcia will handle the kickoff and place-kicking duties.
Hayes said Apache and Walters are the top dogs in District A-2, but he believes Mangum is athletic enough to win the league title. He said Mangum is one of the few teams in the district that spreads the field and throws the ball a lot.
“I think Mangum might win it just because of how athletic they are,” he said. “Walters is predictable. They run that flexbone and they don’t get out of it, but can you stop it?”
Snyder dropped out of the district and went independent 8-man.
Empire head coach Brant Hayes has as much trouble describing Damian Goldsberry’s running style as opponents have stopping it.
The Empire running back is elusive, but he’s not a jitterbug.
Very few catch him in the open field, but he doesn’t have traditional breakaway speed.
He’s small, but he likes to lower his head and punish tacklers.
Goldsberry’s running style offers enough variables to confuse any defense. But this much Hayes does know he’ll get from his talented senior:
Goldsberry is always going to give hearty effort and be someone who can carry the load.
“I don’t know how to describe it,” Hayes said of his back’s running style. “It’s a weird combination. He’s not really a jitterbug. He’s going to lower his head and run over you before he tries to juke you out – but once he’s in the open, he’s gone. There aren’t many people who will catch him. He’s elusive, but his center of gravity is so low. If you hit him hard, he’s not coming down. You have to tackle him.
“He wants to put a foot in the ground and go. And he takes a beating. He hasn’t grown much since he was a freshman.”
Goldsberry sprang onto the scene as a sophomore in the fourth week of the 2021 season. He rushed for 201 yards and seven touchdowns against Grandfield that night and has been a key part of the Empire offense since then.
Last season, Goldsberry had 191 carries for 783 yards and eight touchdowns as the Bulldogs played 11-man football for the first time in seven seasons.
Goldsberry ran for 160 yards
and three touchdowns in a 41-34 comeback victory over Healdton in the third week of the season. Don’t expect Goldsberry’s workload to lighten anytime soon. With a new starting quarterback under center, Empire expects to run the ball more this season.
Empire will start sophomore Cale Porter at quarterback, after the exodus of two-year QB Easton Beck. Porter has never started a varsity game at quarterback. He’ll be under center more than Beck was.
Beck operated primarily out of the pistol or shotgun to ignite the Bulldogs’ spread offense.
The increased focus on the running game suits Goldsberry just fine.
“I think the new offense fits me pretty well,” Goldsberry said. “We’ll be running most of the time, and I’m ready for the workload.”
Goldsberry is closing in on 3,000 to 3,500 yards for his career.
“He doesn’t want the limelight. That’s what’s crazy,” Hayes said. “He’s a hard worker, and he’s really started to work hard in the weight room. He’s a tough kid.”
DAMIAN GOLDSBERRY RB2021-B
1 : EMPIRE OVER STROTHER 48-29
2 : BALKO OVER EMPIRE 52-6
2020-B
2 : ALEX OVER EMPIRE 38-20
2019-B
1 : ALEX OVER EMPIRE 52-6
2018-B
1 : ALEX OVER EMPIRE 54-8
2017-B
1 : WELEETKA OVER EMPIRE 44-22
2013-A
1 : EMPIRE OVER CRESCENT 48-13
2 : HOLLIS OVER EMPIRE 29-6
2012-A
1 : CRESCENT OVER EMPIRE 28-25
2011-A
1 : HOLLIS OVER EMPIRE 48-13
2010-A
1 : CARNEGIE OVER EMPIRE 42-0
2001-A
1 : CROOKED OAK OVER EMPIRE 37-10
1994-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER EMPIRE 41-0
1991-A
1 : EMPIRE OVER WAYNE 7-0
2 : SEILING OVER EMPIRE 15-6
1990-A
1 : DIBBLE OVER EMPIRE 35-14
1989-A
1 : EMPIRE OVER SAYRE 41-14
2 : EMPIRE OVER TEXHOMA 14-7
Q : EMPIRE OVER CRESCENT 49-7
S : EMPIRE OVER MAUD 32-28
C : RINGLING OVER EMPIRE 31-3
1988-A
1 : TIPTON OVER EMPIRE 10-3
1985-A
1 : HOLLIS OVER EMPIRE 22-17
Cale Porter knows what it’s like to put his team’s fate into his own hands.
In a four-game span last season, the freshman punter for Empire converted two fake punts into big plays for the Bulldogs. He took one of those fake punts 55 yards to the endzone against Cordell in an Empire blowout.
Porter, a sophomore, will move from wide receiver to starting quarterback this season.
We did what the Blue Devils couldn’t do – we caught up to Porter and asked him about the chicanery.
The Mag: How do you know when it’s time to run a fake punt?
Porter: I know it’s time to run a fake punt when I see that a defender is not blocked and close to me before I start my punting motion.
The Mag: What is going through your mind when you first take off on a fake punt?
Porter: When I first take off running, I think to myself where the first down is and where the closest defender is and what move I can make to get a first down.
The Mag: You were a freshman last season and already had two fake punts for first downs. If I set the over/ under for you doing it eight more times before you graduate, are you taking the over or the under?
Porter: I’m taking the over.
The Mag: What do you think of taking over the quarterback spot?
Porter: It’s something that’s new to me. I’ve never played quarterback. I’ve always been a wide receiver, but I want to do whatever helps the team, and I believe this will help the team.
The Mag: How does the offensive line look?
Porter: It looks pretty good. We have some freshmen who are coming up, and they are big. I think they are going to play a big role.
The Mag: Anyone there to throw the ball to?
Porter: Oh, yes. I’m thinking of Christian Benitez and Francisco Garcia. We’re going to have a spread option where I can get the ball to (running back)
STORIES BY TAMARA GREGOR AND CHARLENE BELEW
Anew POM squad surfaced at Empire Public Schools this year and they seek to make it memorable in their inaugura campaign while promoting school spirit.
Empire POM Coach Sarah Lemons said this year, the POM team will look to set their standards high.
“We have a team of great girls that want to set the bar high and make Empire proud,” she said.
According to Lemons, a few of the lineup’s goals include working together as a team, nurturing school spirt and of course, attending competitions.
Lemons said she expects the POM crew to become stronger dancers. She also anticipates making an impact on
the community, as well as boosting school morale.
In an effort to work on a variety of skills and talent, the Empire POM Team is ready to learn some new dance routines and techniques.
Lemons said a few of their team
members have dance experience, but most of the squad is new to the dance and POM scene.
“We have been working on technique as well as getting all new routines for the year,” she said.
Lemons said the POM program is brand new for Empire this year. This is her first year coaching at the school. Her background includes working in the dance industry for over 40 years, along with teaching dance for 28 years.
Lemons said the main focus of the team is to build school spirit and unity.
“While we strive to become better dancers and performers, our main goal is to improve our school atmosphere,” she said.
“Our main goal is to improve our school atmosphere.”
-Sarah Lemons
Empire POM Coach
Equipped with determination and the willingness to succeed, Empire Cheerleaders have prepared diligently for the upcoming season.
Bulldogs Cheer Coach D’Raye Rochell said she expects her cheerleading lineup to grind vigorously throughout the season as they work to achieve their goals for the campaign.
Rochell said her main focus for the team this year is to hone in on promoting school spirit and building up more crowd involvement during games.
This year’s Cheer team will rely on three seniors, three juniors and two soph-
omores.
With a decade of cheerleading experience herself, Rochell focused on competition cheer, which makes it no surprise her team has made it to state every year during her tenure.
According to Rochell, the team will continue to labor tirelessly as they push toward making this year one of the best seasons to date.
Along with installing a hard working attitude into the team, Rochell said she hopes the squad will prove they are willing to try anything and everything as they work toward new goals and look to build up their Empire.
Alarge number of high school musicians will turn out to cheer on their small school athletes on the sideline this season.
Kim Butler, band instructor for the Empire Bulldogs, said this year’s Empire High School Marching Band has 52 students who will participate throughout the year in building school morale while keying up the music from the sidelines.
The over-50 high school musicians began their practices on Aug. 10 and will fall under the lead of Drum Majors Dawson Gibbons, Ella Stidham and Teagan Pelton.
The goals, Butler said, target growing skills in both leadership and musicianship. From there, the focus is to win a first place award in the drumline competition at the State Fair Band Day Parade, which would make their third year in a row.
While competition is in
the forefront of the group’s minds, halftime variety is also an expectation.
“Our halftime shows vary weekly with our students learning a new marching formation each week Empire has a home game,” Butler said. “Songs are picked from our rotation of marching pep band music and different each home performance as well.”
The most anticipated halftime show for the Bulldogs will come on Nov. 3 at the last home game. It has been a crowd favorite for several years, Butler said.
“We do have one very special marching show that the community loves to watch,” she said. “It is our annual Glow Show. All the stadium lights are turned off during halftime and our band students perform a special marching formation and dance covered from head to toe with glow sticks. Our students and crowds love it.”
With the State Fair Parade, the Glow Show, halftime performances and various honor bands students perform in, the band has much to look forward to throughout the campaign ahead of qualifying for State Solo and Ensemble.
While accomplishing these goals and checking off the variety of events, Butler said watching the younger musicians look up to the upperclassmen is beneficial for the band as well as her as a director when it comes to developing the program.
“The older musicians hold sectionals for everyone in their section, including the younger musicians, to help them with their music and during marching season, marching fundamentals,” she said. “The younger students look up to the older students as role models and are not afraid to ask for help on a variety of topics. Older students also work with younger
students during lunch after they eat for more one on one time.”
If there was one thing Butler wanted the community to know, it’s how much love and dedication the student musicians pour into each and every single performance while living their regular, dayto-day lives.
“I would like our community to know that band students are very hard working,” Butler said. “My students are involved with many other organizations — Student Council, softball, basketball, Academic Team, E-Sports, etc. — at school, in addition to band. Some students also work jobs outside of school and every band student maintains passing grades.”
Overall, what stands out the most, Butler said, is “our band students are very well rounded leaders in the making.”
Marlow head coach Matt Weber needed a game program, Google people search, and three private investigators to learn all the new names and faces that surrounded him this time last year.
Gone were 20-plus graduated seniors from the Outlaws’ unbeaten, Class 2A State championship team of 2021. And in their places was wide receiver and defensive back Avrey Payne … and a bunch of mostly untested athletes seeing their first change to start.
It was new faces in almost all the places.
Oh, what a difference a year makes.
All those new faces are familiar now. They represent experience –game-winning experience – and established performers at almost every position.
The learning curve has flatted for the Outlaws this season.
And it was about time.
“Returners – that’s our team strength,” said Weber, whose team welcomes 15 returning starters from the 7-4 playoff team of a year ago. “We had exactly one returning starter last year, so this is quite a bit different from last season.”
Or even several seasons before that.
Graduation has been one of Marlow’s biggest nemeses. It wiped the Outlaws’ entire starting offensive lines in each of the past three seasons, and it had taken a majority of skill position players and left the defense with holes.
Not this year.
All five starting offensive linemen return – and they’re big. Three of the
five stand 6-foot or taller and weigh 300 pounds or more.
Behind them, the quarterback is back. The second-leading receiver returns. Half of the defensive line has starting experience. And the linebacking corps is amped to go headhunting again.
“In my 27 years of coaching, this group has done more in the offseason than any other group I’ve had, and I’m talking mainly about the weight room,” said Weber, whose roster is 62 players deep without freshmen.
Marlow’s roster will feature 86 players when the freshmen suit for varsity action in the playoffs.
“These guys were coming up to lift six days a week on their own. It became a hangout place,” Weber said. “I can say we’re going to look good in our uniforms. Hopefully that equates to being a good football team.”
It all starts up front, where the ‘Big Uglies’ do their work.
The Outlaws return two seniors on the right side of the offensive line. Kaden (Lucas (6-3, 305) graded better last season than any of the other returning linemen. The starting right tackle finished 92 percent of his blocks and made 14 pancake blocks last season. He was second team All-Area.
Joseus Flores (6-0, 300), who started two years ago before an injury pushed him to the sideline, is penciled in at right guard. Flores also started part of the 2021 season before injury pushed him to the sideline.
Owen Long (6-1, 235) is back at center.
The left side is manned by tackle
2022: 7-4
2021: 15-0
2020: 11-1
2019: 7-4
2018: 5-6
2022: 7-4 overall; 5-2 in district Coach: Matt Weber – At Marlow: 76-32, 10th year.
Last Playoff Appearance: 2022, first round loss to PerkinsTryon, 49-0.
Returning Starters: 15; 7 offense, 8 defense.
Players to Watch: QB Cade Gilbert, WR Barron Gage, OL Kaden Lucas, OL, Joseus Flores, OL/DT Owen Long, Brock Smith, OL Jason Manning, DE Ely Gray, LB Jase Hunt, LB Hudson Morgan.
Primary Strengths: Almost everyone is back for the Outlaws, who carry a streak of 11 consecutive playoff appearances into 2023. Marlow didn’t return any starting offensive line for the past three years, but this season all five of the Outlaws linemen are back. And they’re big. Four of the five stand 6-foot or taller and weigh 300 pounds or more. Quarterback Cade Gilbert returns for his season after passing for 1,555 yards and rushing 631 more. He’ll have Barron Gage as a target again this season. Gage caught 34 passes for 741 yards and seven touchdowns. Headhunters Eli Gray, Jase Hunt, and Hudson Morgan return on defense.
Potential Problems: Kicking game. The Outlaws punter was injured during an intrasquad scrimmage. Gilbert handled most of the placekicking duties last season and made 34 of 39 extra-point attempts. Marlow also has to replace two of its primary offensive weapons from a year ago. Running back Lane Jones and All-Area player of the year Avrey Payne both graduated. Jones ran for 611 yards and 14 touchdowns on 103 carries. Payne caught 45 passes for 756 yards and eight touchdowns.
Key Losses: RB Lane Jones, WR/DB Avrey Payne, TE Easton Dittner.
PHOTO BY KELLY WRAY FS Blayd HARRISBrock Smith (5-11, 215) and guard Jason Manning (6-2, 310).
That group paved the way for an average of 319 yards and 31.6 points per game last season, as the Outlaws finished third in the district and lost at Perkins-Tryon in the first round of the playoffs.
Marlow head coach Matt Weber, who’s seen a talented defender or two, describes Jase Hunt as a natural linebacker, a player born to play the position.
Hunt, a 6-0, 200-pound senior, has the eyes of an eagle when it comes to locating the ball. He runs fast -- and when he reaches the ball carrier, he arrives with bad intentions.
“He’s a true linebacker, built for the position,” said Weber, a 27year coaching veteran. “You don’t teach a true linebacker – a true linebacker teaches you. And he’s that type of kid. He’s a see-ball, get-ball kid.”
Hunt, along with defensive lineman Brock Smith and defensive backs Brayden Bowman and Avrey Payne, keyed a Marlow defense that lifted Marlow into the playoffs for a fifth consecutive season. The Outlaws finished 7-4.
Hunt was instrumental in keeping opposing offenses at bay. He made 112 tackles (10 per game) last season. He recorded eight tackles for losses and two sacks.
He seemed to always be around the ball. It was see ball, see Hunt.
Hunt says he keys on the offensive guards. “If the guard pulls, I follow him,” Hunt said. “If he doesn’t pull, I match the running back’s path.” And that’s
how he finds the ball so often and so quickly.
Hunt brings a bigger frame into this season. He weighed about 175 pounds last year. Through work in the weight room, he’s added 25 pounds of muscle. And “he’s still running well,” Weber said.
The Outlaws’ defense allowed 18.2 points per game in 2022. They gave up 302 total yards per game and 5.2 yards per play.
Hunt believes the defense can be better this year.
“We should be a lot better,” Hunt said. “Most of us started last year and we’re back, especially on the defensive line.”
Hunt is looking forward to one game in particular – a contest against Perkins-Tryon Sept. 15. The Demons handed Marlow two of its four losses last season, a 34-21 defeat in Week Three and a 49-0 loss in the opening round of the playoffs.
The Outlaws will have to deal with Tre’ Stevenson, a tank of a running back who ran for 163 yards on 28 carries in their first meeting last year. Stevenson will be a senior this year.
“I’m looking forward to that,” Hunt said. “Maybe we can get some revenge for what happened last year. They basically put a lineman at running back, and he can run. We’ll have a different defense for him this year.”
“To people in the stands, we may look basic in what we do offensively,” Weber said. “Because of our inexperience, our offensive line in the past few years has to really think. We cut (the playbook) to three run-blocking schemes and two pass-blocking schemes to simplify things for them. We’re going to look like we do a whole lot because of the numbers of sets we use. We’ll dress it up with motion, but it will be the same plays out of a lot of different sets.”
A bulked-up Cade Gilbert is back at quarterback. Gilbert wrestled in the 144-pound weight class and won a state championship in March. After offseason conditioning, he now weighs 183 pounds.
Gilbert earned first team All-Area honors last season by completing 63 percent of his passes for 1,554 yards and 19 touchdowns. He was just as much a threat to run as to pass, leading the Outlaws in rushing with 631 yards on 141 carries.
Gilbert won’t be able to handoff to Lane Jones this season. Jones graduated after rushing for a team-best 14 touchdowns and a team second-best 611 yards in 2022.
Senior King Harrison (5-11, 150)is the frontrunner to replace Jones at running back. Harrison ran for 218 yards and two touchdowns on 39 carries last season.
Also receiving reps at running back are Jonathan Brite (6-0, 170), who finished third in the 200 meters in the Class 4A State Track Meet, and Clayton Robinson (5-10, 190), a between-the-tackles runner, Weber said.
Brite rushed for 119 yards on 17 carries last year. Robinson carried just once, gaining nine yards and scoring a
3A-2
• Heritage Hall (13-1)
• T-Marlow (7-4)
T – Sulphur (4-5)
• Pauls Valley (6-5
• Lone Grove (8-3)
• Plainview (5-5)
• Douglass (2-8)
• Dickson (1-9)
touchdown.
Junior Jacob Crowson (6-0, 170)is set to replace Payne, who led the Outlaws in receiving last year with 756 yards and eight touchdowns. Payne now plays for Northeastern Oklahoma State. Crowson didn’t make any catches last season.
Returning senior Barron Gage (6-2, 191) will likely be Gilbert’s favorite target, and he’s likely to see a lot more double-coverage than he did last year. Gage was the second leading receiver for Marlow last season with 34 catches for 741 yards and seven touchdowns.
Cody Weber, who caught four passes for 10 yards in 2022, is set to start in the slot.
“Barron and Avrey were such a good combination last year,” Weber said. “It was funny how, whichever one of them had the best game, that’s who drew the other team’s best cornerback the next game. Barron is going to gain a lot of attention, but he’s a good, strong athlete. He’s a guy that you can throw it up to and he’s going to win most of those 50-50 balls.”
The Outlaws’ 4-2 defense features defensive ends Payton Edie (6-4, 195), a part-time
starter in 2022, and Ely Gray (6-1, 190), a full-time starter last year.
Smith is slated to start at defensive tackle and be the only Outlaw to start on both sides of the ball in the early going. Gage Hixon (5-11, 210) is the other starting tackle.
Marlow returns two of its best players in linebackers Jase Hunt (6-0, 198) and Hudson Morgan (6-2, 203). Both were first team All-Area selections last season. Hunt is a senior and Morgan is a sophomore.
Cody Weber (5-10, 165), Keller Kizarr (5-9, 148), and Kaden Harris (5-9, 156) fill the cornerback slots. Blayd Harris (5-10, 167) returns at free safety, and Korbin Dittner (5-11, 184), Lawson Knox (6-0, 173), and Bratz Bateman (5-9, 167) are battling for starting dibs at the other safety position.
Marlow allowed an average of 302 yards and 18.2 points per game last year.
Jeremy Gage knows it will hit him at some point. When the cheering stops and equipment is put in storage to stay another offseason, Gage will reflect on the football careers of his two sons and what a blessing it was to coach them.
Gage’s youngest son, Barron, is entering his senior season of football. And in six more months, there will be no more Gage father-son combination walking the Outlaws’ sidelines.
They are one of three father-son combos on the Outlaws roster this season. Cody Weber, son of head coach Matt Weber, is set to start at slot receiver, and Cade Gilbert, son of offensive line coach Chad Gilbert, is the starting quarterback. All three players are seniors.
“You don’t think about it at the time, but I know it’s going to hit me hard later,” said coach Gage, whose older son, Bo, a 2017 Marlow graduate, also played for the Outlaws. “Both of my sons were waterboys at one time. It goes by so fast. I have pictures of them on their first day of seventh grade, and to see how much things have changed is amazing.”
But before the emotions flow, there is work to do – a championship to chase. And both coach and son figure big into the Outlaws’ chances to return to the top.
Barron just missed leading the Outlaws in receiving last season, finishing behind All-Area Player of the Year and All-Stater Avrey Payne. Gage caught 34 passes for 741 yards and seven touchdowns. Payne finished with 45 receptions for 756 yards and eight touchdowns.
Payne now plays for Northeastern Oklahoma State. That could mean Gage will see more double-teams this season.
He’s not convinced that will be the case.
“We have a really good receiver in Jacob Crowson, and I think it will be hard to double me with him on the other side,” Barron Gage said. “It’s hard to put two on one when we good receivers. Our O-line has been getting after it. I think we’ll be able to run the ball better.”
Head coach Weber said it may not matter if Gage is doubleteamed.
“He’s a good big athlete, and we hope he continues to make plays whether he’s covered or not,” Weber said. “He’s a tough guy to cover. You can throw it up to him and he’s going to win most of those 50-50 balls.”
Double covered or not, Barron plans to enjoy his senior season. And so does his dad.
“I always wanted to play for my dad,” Barron said. “I always watched him coach, and it was kind of a dream of mine to play for him. It’s fun. He’s the same person on and off the field, but he definitely has a higher sense of urgency on the football field.”
Said coach Gage: “It’s rewarding coaching your son. I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.”
2022-3A
1 : PERKINS-TRYON OVER MARLOW
49-0
2021-2A
1 : MARLOW OVER PURCELL 63-20
2 : MARLOW OVER CHANDLER 38-7
Q : MARLOW OVER CAS. HALL 38-7
S : MARLOW OVER EUFAULA 28-16
C : MARLOW OVER WASH. 17-13
2020-2A
2 : MARLOW OVER BETHEL 70-33
3 : MARLOW OVER CHANDLER
31-28
Q : METRO CHRISTIAN OVER MARLOW 35-31
2019-3A
1 : KINGFISHER OVER MARLOW 45-42
2018-3A
1 : HERITAGE HALL OVER MARLOW
42-0
2017-3A
1 : PLAINVIEW OVER MARLOW 67-48
2016-3A
1 : SULPHUR OVER MARLOW 28-7
2015-3A
1 : JONES OVER MARLOW 21-14
2014-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER LITTLE AXE
49-21
2 : CUSHING OVER MARLOW 41-7
2013-3A
1 : SEMINOLE OVER MARLOW 52-19
2012-3A
1 : SEMINOLE OVER MARLOW 59-7
2007-3A
1 : KINGFISHER OVER MARLOW 45-7
2006-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER TUTTLE 16-14
Q : MARLOW OVER LOCUST GROVE
25-10
S : MARLOW OVER HUGO 17-6
C : SEQUOYAH CLAREMORE OVER MARLOW 32-3
2005-3A
1 : KINGFISHER OVER MARLOW 21-20
2004-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER TUTTLE 42-31
Q : VICTORY CHRISTIAN OVER MARLOW 46-7
2002-3A
1 : SEMINOLE OVER MARLOW 21-14
1999-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER SEMINOLE 28-17
Q : DEER CREEK OVER MARLOW 23-6
1998-3A
1 : PURCELL OVER MARLOW 34-20
1997-4A
1 : MARLOW OVER MCLOUD 35-7
Q : CLINTON OVER MARLOW 14-3
1996-4A
1 : MARLOW OVER CUSHING 24-14
Q : WEATHERF. OVER MARLOW 30-0
1995-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER SEMINOLE 21-13
Q : TUTTLE OVER MARLOW 14-7
1994-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER TUTTLE 35-6
Q : MARLOW OVER SEMINOLE 10-7
S : MARLOW OVER VINITA 45-10
C : FREDERICK OVER MARLOW 34-13
1993-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER KINGFISHER 26-18
Q : FREDERICK OVER MARLOW 20-13
1992-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER TUTTLE 35-15
Q : MARLOW OVER MILLWOOD 24-14
S : MARLOW OVER LOCUST GROVE 28-20
C : NEWCASTLE OVER MARLOW 21-11
1991-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER BLACKWELL 31-0
2 : MARLOW OVER PLAINVIEW 14-8
Q : WEATHERFORD OVER MARLOW 10-0
1990-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER JONES 28-0
2 : MARLOW OVER NEWCASTLE 34-6
Q : SEMINOLE OVER MARLOW 17-14
1987-3A
1 : SEMINOLE OVER MARLOW 29-7
1985-3A
1 : PAULS VALLEY OVER MARLOW 39-17
1984-3A
1 : PAULS VALLEY OVER MARLOW 28-6
1983-3A
1 : MARLOW OVER ELK CITY 20-7
2 : MARLOW OVER PERRY 13-10
Q : MARLOW OVER BISHOP MCGUINNESS 27-0
S : DURANT OVER MARLOW 10-0
1981-2A
1 : MARLOW OVER MILLWOOD 31-20
Q : NEWCASTLE OVER MARLOW 49-22
1980-2A
1 : MARLOW OVER KINGFISHER 17-12
Q : LINDSAY OVER MARLOW 7-6
1978-2A
1 : MARLOW OVER HARRAH 14-7
Q : CLINTON OVER MARLOW 13-7
1976-2A
1 : CLINTON OVER MARLOW 21-6
1966-B
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER MARLOW 21-8
1964-B
1 : MARLOW OVER VELMA-ALMA
25-7
Q : MARLOW OVER JONES 47-0
S : MARLOW OVER HOBART 28-6
C : MARLOW OVER BIXBY 25-12
1963-B
1 : MARLOW OVER HOBART 42-8
Q : LINDSAY OVER MARLOW 20-14
1962-B
1 : MARLOW OVER HOBART 36-0
Q : LINDSAY OVER MARLOW 14-8
1959-B
1 : MARLOW OVER HOBART 52-12
Q : MARLOW OVER ARDMORE
DOUGLASS 30-0
S : MARLOW OVER CHANDLER 82-6
C : MARLOW OVER HOMINY 32-0
1958-B
1 : HOBART OVER MARLOW 20-12
1953-B
1 : MARLOW OVER WILSON 33-6
Q : BETHANY OVER MARLOW 20-19
1952-B
1 : MARLOW OVER VELMA-ALMA
12-7
Q : MARLOW OVER MOORE 33-14
S : TONKAWA OVER MARLOW 18-14
1946-B
1 : SAYRE OVER MARLOW 19-12
1945-B
1 : MARLOW OVER ANADARKO 53-0
Q : MARLOW OVER PURCELL 39-0
S : WAGONER OVER MARLOW 13-12
Through high standards and competitive training, the Marlow Bootleggers will strive for the best and seek to amp up their fellow athletes this coming season.
With a new school year and a fresh start ahead of them, the squad worked throughout the summer on relationships, skills and performances for Marlow game days.
Marlow’s newest Bootlegger in charge, head coach Tristyn Ivory, said the group’s energy, drive and work ethic will make them stand out, both on and off the field.
The goal is to grow relationships, Ivory said, and she hopes they will continue to build on these ties so they can last a lifetime, along with the memories made throughout the year.
Ivory said she expects the team to give their best effort in all they do throughout the campaign.
She said the Bootleggers are current-
ly working on five halftime performances and they aim to have outstanding kick-lines.
This new coach is no stranger to Marlow. Ivory said she was a Bootlegger from 2013-2017.
“I grew up at Marlow and am so excited to be back on my favorite team,” she said.
This year, the Bootleggers team will compete at the Game Day Competition for the first time.
The group’s main focus will fall on Friday night performances, team bonding and doing their best at competition.
Ivory said “Bootlegger is a legacy that
you will be part of the rest of your life” and she wants this team to enjoy every aspect of it.
“Enjoy every moment because it goes by way too fast,” she said. “I can’t wait to see you guys perform under those Friday night lights. I am so proud of all the hard work you’ve already put in.” Leesha Crowson will act as assistant coach for the Marlow Bootleggers.
Strength and energy bring the Marlow Cheerleading squad together as a team to motivate and encourage anyone who comes across their path.
Marlow Cheer Coach Amy Herchock said they have a super energetic and eager group of cheerleaders who are proud of their school and their community.
With a goal to keep building on school spirit and pride throughout the year, the squad looks forward to making it to the Game Day state competition.
“I expect hard work and commitment from the team to show up to every single practice and give 100% and then 1% more,” Herchock said.
This year, the Marlow Cheerleaders are working toward more elite stunts.
According to Herchock, the group will also push the stunting and tumbling to a higher level.
Herchock said part of her main focus this year is to “create a squad who is leading the crowd and encouraging the athletes, which is where cheer originated from.”
“My secondary focus is the competitive side,” she said. “It’s always good to be able to showcase the hard work and efforts of your squad and allow them some spotlight, too.”
With an extensive background in coaching, Herchock will begin her 16th
year as a cheer coach and her seventh year at Marlow.
Herchock, who grew up in Bartlesville, said she was a cheerleader through high school, as well as in college at Oklahoma Christian and Northwestern Oklahoma State University.
“I have expectations of the squad to represent their school and community with the utmost integrity and put in hard work and persevere when it gets tough,” she said.
According to Herchock, they plan to incorporate a lot of fun into the season and they have several game
themes planned out, including a fun homecoming week.
“(We) have worked hard on game day run throughs already,” she said.
Additionally, Herchock said
they will take a group to perform at the Citrus Bowl game on New Year’s Day.
Herchock said “Boone,” the Marlow mascot, will make several appearances as well.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
2022: Marlow 62, Comanche 0
2021: Marlow 36, Comanche 0
2020: Marlow 42, Comanche 13
2017: Marlow 70, Comanche 15
2016: Marlow 57, Comanche 0
2015: Marlow 24, Comanche 8
2014: Marlow 45, Comanche 14
2013: Marlow 60, Comanche 0
2012: Marlow 19, Comanche 6
2011: Comanche 14, Marlow 8
2010: Marlow 49, Comanche 26
2009: Marlow 26, Comanche 21
2008: Marlow 33, Comanche 13
2007: Marlow 35, Comanche 0
2006: Marlow 33, Comanche 0
2005: Comanche 21, Marlow 13
2004: Comanche 33, Marlow 20
2003: Comanche 23, Marlow 6
2002: Comanche 7, Marlow 0
2001: Comanche 14, Marlow 6
2000: Comanche 27, Marlow 10
1991: Marlow 35, Comanche 0
1990: Marlow 47, Comanche 3
1987: Marlow 31, Comanche 2
1986: Marlow 35, Comanche 7
1985: Marlow 28, Comanche 0
1984: Marlow 13, Comanche 12
1981: Marlow 48, Comanche 6
1980: Marlow 21, Comanche 0
1979: Marlow 10, Comanche 6
1978: Marlow 21, Comanche 7
1977: Marlow 14, Comanche 7
1976: Marlow 13, Comanche 0
1975: Marlow 27, Comanche 0
1974: Comanche 13, Marlow 0
1973: Comanche 10, Marlow 0
1972: Comanche 20, Marlow 0
1971: Marlow 9, Comanche 6
1970: Marlow 7, Comanche 6
1969: Comanche 7, Marlow 0
1968: Marlow 19, Comanche 6
1967: Marlow 50, Comanche 12
1966: Marlow 14, Comanche 0
1965: Marlow 44, Comanche 22
1964: Marlow 27, Comanche 0
1963: Marlow 57, Comanche 0
1962: Marlow 46, Comanche 0
1961: Marlow 28, Comanche 14
1960: Comanche 14, Marlow 6
1959: Marlow 41, Comanche 6
1958: Marlow 39, Comanche 0
1957: Marlow 42, Comanche 13
1956: Marlow 12, Comanche 0
1955: Tie
1954: Marlow 33, Comanche 4
1953: Tie - Marlow 6, Comanche 6
1952: Marlow 26, Comanche 0
1951: Marlow 18, Comanche 0
1950: Comanche 25, Marlow 7
1949: Comanche 14, Marlow 6
1948: Marlow 13, Comanche 6
1947: Comanche 15, Marlow 0
1946: Marlow 7, Comanche 0
1945: Marlow 39, Comanche 0
1944: Comanche 25, Marlow 0
1943: Comanche 19, Marlow 6
1942: Marlow 15, Comanche 0
1941: Marlow 25, Comanche 7
1940: Marlow 24, Comanche 0
1938: Comanche 12, Marlow 0
1937: Comanche 12, Marlow 0
1932: Marlow 57, Comanche 0
1931: Marlow 14, Comanche 0
1930: Marlow 32, Comanche 0
1929: Marlow 29, Comanche 6
1928: Marlow 12, Comanche 0
1927: Comache 13, Marlow 0
1926: Comanche 6, Marlow 0
1925: Marlow 33, Comanche 0
At Cotton Electric Cooperative, we’re proud to be a part of the community, bringing people together by providing energy for all the things you love.
Gary Robinson arrive to the Comanche High School campus right before spring ball started. That’s when he realized the Indians will see a young group, but he can already tell they have an appetite to win and play ball well.
Robinson, who comes directly from Grandfield High School in Oklahoma, has more than a decade worth of high school coaching experience in Texas. He was impressed with the numbers he saw for 2023.
“The kids have a good sense of urgency, they hustle around and are very coachable and they’re hungry to win,” Robinson said. “We are going to be very, very young this year and I think that is a good thing. We can develop these kids into good football players and we’ve got a bright future for the next several years I think.”
The first practice of 2023 came during Midnight Madness when Robinson brought the community together to celebrate the first workout of the new season. The team only has two seniors on the roster.
Development will prove to be crucial. Although CHS will return several in 2024, 2023 may not be a year to see the team develop a hard nose fight in each battle, Robinson said.
“Most importantly, every game that we play, no matter who our opponent is, we want to watch them fight to the very end,” Robinson said. “That is what we want to see out of our kids this year and we will let the score take care of itself at that point.”
Robinson is the main offensive mind for the team while defense will fall under the Defensive Coordinator in Coach Connor Kelly.
As the team progresses for the 2023 season, the Indians will have a new signal-caller for the year after Robinson turned over the keys to the offense to Colby Shannon, who is a developing leader.
“He has already stepped up over the summer and became the leader while putting out messages. He remind(ed) all of the kids to be here in the summer and you can see he is a natural leader,” Robinson said. “I think it is going to be one of those things where he will be leading this whole program.”
Evan Dodd will fall into the secondary slot on the defensive side of the ball. Robinson believes he will become a force on the field for the Comanche Indians.
“He was here majority of the time this summer lifting weights and did a great job in our seven-on-seven tournament, hustled around and made several interceptions,” Robinson said. “I’m hoping that he will step up to be a leader for the defense and he will also play receiver for us on offense
“The kids have a good sense of urgency, they hustle around and are very coachable and they’re hungry to win ... We’ve got a bright future for the next several years I think”
-Gary Robinson Comanche Head Football Coach
2022: 3-7 overall; 2-5 in district
Coach: Gary Robinson — First year at Comanche
Last Playoff
Appearance: 2021, First round loss to Washington, 55-20.
Players to Watch: QB Colby Shannon, DB Evan Dodd, RB
Cannon Clift, RB Cooper
Dobbins, OL RJ Roberts, OL Jonathan Alvarez, WR Hollister Pollock.
Primary Strengths: Defense will be the key for the Indians. Comanche will replace a lot of offensive players, which will help in the development of a new program under Coach Gary Robinson. Coach Connor Kelly will become the defensive coordinator and Robinson will lead the offense. The team will look at new starters at QB, RB and WR. They have a good sense of urgency.
Potential Problems: The offense will have a lot of new linemen along with skill positions. If the development of the players goes slow, they will run into a few problems in Class 2A.
Key Losses: QB
Kooper Doucet, OL
Cade White, WR/DE
Noah Presgrove, RB/ LB Jack Newton, WR/ DB Logan Bain, OT/LB
Kasen VanBuskirk, C/DE
Brady Dobbins and RB/ LB Braylen Butler.
although he may be one of our main guys on defense.”
Out of the newcomers for the team, Robinson said Kanon Clift will play as the running back to start the season. He believes Clift will brnig about a short yard situation for the Indians.
Cooper Dobbins, a freshman, will also work to develop over the years for the Indians, along with center RJ Roberts, a junior for Comanche this year.
Another name to look for is Jonathan Alvarez, another offensive lineman who will prove a big focus for the Indians. An additional offensive mainstay will come in Hollister Pollock, who will appear as a receiver for the offense.
With the Indians looking forward to the future and 2023, Robinson said the goal is to win some games and get to the ultimate target each team looks for -- competing for State Championships.
“Everyone wants to play
2A-3
• Washington (15-0)
• Lindsay (8-4)
• Community Christian (7-5)
• Frederick (8-4)
• Purcell (5-5)
• Comanche (3-7)
• Crooked Oak (2-7)
• Little Axe (0-10)
and wants to be practicing on Thanksgiving week and get to December ... That is ultimately everyone’s goal at some point in their career,” Robinson said. “I think right now, the most important thing is that we take one day at a time. We are just going to try and put good practices together every day while trying to do the little things right.”
Colby Shannon got a glimpse last year of what it’s like to be a starting varsity quarterback. Now the Comanche junior is ready to bring the leadership position into full view.
Shannon has been named starting quarterback by new Comanche head coach Gary Robinson. Starting is nothing new to Shannon. He started as a wide receiver his freshman year – and he would have started at wide receiver again last season if partially torn ligaments in his ankle hadn’t robbed him of the first eight games.
He returned to start at receiver in the ninth game of the season and then he started at quarterback in the season finale against Purcell, a 35-0 loss.
Now he’s QB1.
“He is already stepping up over the summer and become the leader while putting out messages and he is reminding all of the kids to be here in the summer and you can see if he is a natural leader,” Robinson said. “I
think it is going to be one of those things where he will be leading this whole program.”
Shannon said the team feels closer than in the past.
“It feels good,” he said.
“We’re really close to each other. We have good practices every day, and practices are more intense. We go full pads more.”
Shannon will be running a balanced offense from the spread formation, he said. He said he’ll be a better quarterback for having played receiver.
“I feel comfortable starting a quarterback,” Shannon said. “Our offensive line is good, and I have good receivers to throw the ball to. We’re going to run the spread, but it will be pretty balanced. Because I was a receiver, I know where the holes are to throw ball and it helps me read the defenses.”
Odd year’s seem to be kind to the Indians. In 2021, they finished 7-4 and in 2019 they were 6-5. Last season, the Indians went 3-7, which was a repeat of 2020.
Kanon Clift’s journey last season would have confused even Siri.
Clift, a freshman in 2022, was rerouted to different positions three times, and it took a while for him to proceed to the route that suited him the best.
He started the season on the sidelines, joined the starting lineup as a fullback in the third game, moved to the offensive line when injuries cut the Indians’ depth up front, and then returned to fullback when the injured linemen returned.
Back and forth – round and round, he went.
But now he’s happy to have landed as Comanche’s starting running back and outside linebacker this season.
“Playing on the offensive line was different,” Clift said. “I learned a lot, but I like playing running back better. It suits me better.”
That’s the hope of new Comanche coach Gary Robinson. A 20-plus year veteran
of Texas High School football, Robinson has brought a new sense of toughness and urgency to the southern Stephens County school.
Clift said the Indians didn’t lift weights often during past offseasons, but that changed this summer.
“Everyone liked lifting and liked Coach making us do more things to be better,” Clift said. “I’m excited. The whole team is excited.”
Clift said the Indians are installing an up-tempo offense.
“It’s a lot more intense than ever,” he said. “It’s a hurry-up offense. You get the signs and you go. In practice, we just keep going and going.”
But it won’t be a pass-happy offense, Clift said.
“We’re going to be balanced,” Clift said. “Our offensive line is smaller than some offensive lines, but it is faster. That will help us when we pull guards or tackles.”
2021-2A
1 : WASHINGTON OVER COMANCHE 55-20
2020-2A
1 : BETHEL OVER COMANCHE 27-0
2019-2A
1 : WASHINGTON OVER COMANCHE 45-13
2012-2A
1 : DAVIS OVER COMANCHE 59-12
2011-2A
1 : COMANCHE OVER COALGATE 49-28
2 : JONES OVER COMANCHE 38-0
2005-2A
1 : COMANCHE OVER HERITAGE HALL 27-26
2 : COMANCHE OVER TISHOMINGO 21-20
Q : COMANCHE OVER COLCORD 35-33
S : CHANDLER OVER COMANCHE 41-14
2004-2A
1 : COMANCHE OVER FAIRVIEW 23-15
2 : SULPHUR OVER COMANCHE 34-6
2003-2A
1 : BETHANY OVER COMANCHE 43-8
2002-2A
1 : HERITAGE HALL OVER COMANCHE 64-12
2001-3A
1 : TUTTLE OVER COMANCHE 24-3
2000-3A
1 : TUTTLE OVER COMANCHE 21-0
1996-2A
1 : COMANCHE OVER FAIRVIEW 34-8
2 : COMANCHE OVER MEEKER 22-8
Q : WEWOKA OVER COMANCHE 18-7
1995-2A
1 : WATONGA OVER COMANCHE 20-13
1993-2A
1 : ALVA OVER COMANCHE 34-13
1992-2A
1 : WATONGA OVER COMANCHE 34-7
1984-2A
1 : KINGSTON OVER COMANCHE 27-7
1980-A
1 : HOBART OVER COMANCHE 55-6
1979-A
1 : COMANCHE OVER PLAINVIEW 13-0
2 : FREDERICK OVER COMANCHE 33-12
1978-A
1 : COMANCHE OVER MADILL 28-14
2 : FREDERICK OVER COMANCHE 30-16
1977-A
1 : COMANCHE OVER BLANCHARD 14-7
2 : COMANCHE OVER TISHOMINGO 32-0
Q : COMANCHE OVER NEWCASTLE 25-20
S : WATONGA OVER COMANCHE 21-7
1974-2A
1 : COMANCHE OVER CLINTON 34-20
Q : COMANCHE OVER SULPHUR 26-14
S : PURCELL OVER COMANCHE 10-6
1969-B
1 : COMANCHE OVER SULPHUR 26-8
Q : STROUD OVER COMANCHE 57-6
1947-B
1 : ELK CITY OVER COMANCHE 13-13
1944-B
1 : WEATHERFORD OVER COMANCHE 21-19
STORY BY TAMARA GREGOR
Sporting community pride and school spirit, the Comanche cheerleading squad has set out to bring positivity and motivation to town.
The crew will continue to build high expectations and good sportsmanship at each one of the Indians’ games this year.
Comanche Cheer Coach Kristy Houston said her team aspires to stand out in the crowd, and highlighy their ability to work together to boost morale and
community pride.
Houston, an experienced mentor to the girls, has coached for over 25 years.
She said her cheerleading background includes being a Comanche Public Schools cheerleader for six years herself.
“My expectations are ... always conduct yourself in a positive influential manner ... to be a community servant above all else and be a leader in and out of uniform,” she said.
Houston said their goals as a team this year will include serving their community, as well as the school wherever and however they can.
One of Houston’s other focuses includes “to conduct ourselves in a positive sportsmanship manner that will influence and motivate others.”
The team will also hone in on their, cheers and chants.
Despite having a memorable season in 2022 after making it all the way to the Class B State SemiFinals, the job felt unfinished for the Velma-Alma Comets. They hope to finish that story in 2023.
STORY BY ANDY MORPHEWB-4
• Velma-Alma (10-4)
• Cyril (5-6)
• Waurika (7-4)
• Wilson (4-7)
were happy with what they had accomplished, but they still had an emptiness not being able to win and go to the finals and have a chance to win it all.”
• Alex (0-10)
The task the Comets aim to finish will see them hoisting the golden football trophy for the first time since 1994. In 2022, the team sported a great power, however they want 2023 to come across more like 1994.
• Central High (3-7)
Ten seniors made the exit ahead of the 2023 season, but a few returners who had the State Playoff experience will make a come back appearance equipped with one of their best springs in recent memory.
Coach Randy Norton, who enters his sixth season as the Comets head coach, said he will always remember 2022, however he noticed the returning players wanting more.
“It meant a lot to me and meant a lot to Coach Burton, the other guys and the kids. Having played all the way to the finals in school, I knew that we have always talked about if you get into the quarterfinal, round three, you are playing good football,” Norton said. “It just felt like to win in the quarterfinal. To go play in the semi-finals was getting over a hurdle. It just gives us another step just to see how hard it is and how dedicated you have to be.
“Our kids weren’t satisfied … they
Velma-Alma will go without its top two offensive linemen who were three-year starters, but Norton said they are actively looking to replace them. Some of the guys on the top of that list could be Luke Pollock, Landon Swisher, Landon Richardson or Jake Bench, but it will remain an open competition.
One of the returning starters that played big minutes, Slade Strickland, could figure in a role on the defense. Ryker Sanner and Kole Pierce will also look to play major roles.
On offense, the Comets will have their signal-caller return in quarterback Mikey Griffith, a junior.
Norton said he watched Griffith’s progression develop over the course of last year’s campaign.
“He did well early but after about five weeks -- about week six, the game really slowed down for him and he kind of, at that point, became a veteran. It took about about four or five games to get used to the speed, taking care of the ball,” Norton said. “He will be about 6-foot-2 and 205 pounds and will be as fast as he has ever been. He is a very physical player and he has a good vision but he likes to run the ball north and south. He is throwing the ball really well.”
2022: 12-4
2021: 11-1
2020: 9-3
2019: 9-0
2018: 1-9
2022: 10-4 overall; 5-0 in district
Coach: Randy Norton — sixth season at Velma-Alma. Overall record: 41-16
Appearance: 2022, Class B Semi-Finals loss to Laverne 52-36.
Returning Starters: 4
Players to Watch:
QB/LB Mikey Griffith, WR/ DB Slade Strickland, Ryker Sanner and Kole Pierce.
Primary Strengths:
The skill positions are going to have returning starters including QB Mikey Griffith, who was lights out for his sophomore season in 2022. Finally, an upper classman, Griffith will rely on Slade Strickland who will bring a key factor on offense as well. There are also a lot of returners who will play both offense and defense. Depth will also prove a strength as they had several players who got to play as young athletes due to playoff injuries. The team will rely on that to begin the season.
Potential Problems:
The offensive and defensive line remains young and will have very little or no starting experience, which means they will be put to the test early in the 2023 campaign.
Comets head coach Randy Norton said they have several options for the players on the line and it will take some time to develop them.
Key Losses: WR/DB
Crue Garrett, WR Joseph Davis, RB Tucker Oliver, LB Anthony Hernandez, OL
Kaeden Abshire, OL Bryan Ely, DL Kade Stewart and OL Stetson Page. ANCE
PHOTO BY KELLY WRAY DB Slade STRICKLANDOther newcomers who will figure in as part of the team will include Brodric Spigner, a transfer from Empire, along with some other athletes who transferred in but are waiting to see about eligibility.
With the season starting and the Comets looking to do well in their district and possibly go back to the Class B Playoffs, Norton said the expectations are high at Velma-Alma.
“I think by the time January got here, some of these kids really dedicated to the weight room and running,” Norton said. “My sophomore year was the first year we had made the finals and we got beat and were runner-up. The town was so proud of us and we were happy with our accomplishment, but we didn’t meet our goal. Winning a State Championship is extremely, extremely difficult.
When Division
1 recruit Tristan Wainscott graduated in May 2022, outsiders may have expected a dip in production from Velma-Alma’s quarterback position.
But not the insiders. They knew Mikey Griffith. They knew of his physical ability and how spectacular he could be. He didn’t disappoint them.
The ball has to bounce around sometimes, have a little luck and stay healthy.
“It is such a long season; it is a marathon,” Norton said. “These guys have learned this and they want to feel that and there will be only one team that finishes a season the way they want to finish the season. We just hope that could be us this year.”
Griffith accounted for 3,312 total yards and 46 touchdowns as he guided the Comets to the Class B State Semifinals in his sophomore season. He passed for 1,628 yards and ran for 1,684 more. How do you top that?
anyone I’ve seen. Then, you add the fact that he’s coachable.”
“Oh, he’s gotten better,” VelmaAlam head coach Randy Norton said. “He’s bigger. His arm strength is better. He’s throwing the ball better, and he’s making good decisions in practice. He had a great season last year, and we’re expecting another good one this year.”
Griffith spent a lot of time this summer working out in Argyle, Texas, where he has family members. “I’ve been throwing the ball all summer long and working out with guys in Argyle,” he said. “I think we’ll be better.”
Norton said last year that Griffith practices and plays with a purpose – and that purpose is to be great.
“I don’t know if I’ve coached a player who is as intent on working to be great as him,” Norton said. “From diet to exercise, his commitment is as strong as
And he has playmakers all around him. Wide receiver Connor Akers returns for his sophomore season after catching seven passes for 300 yards. Six of his catches went for touchdowns.
Langston Walker is also back after catching 19 balls for 233 yards and six TDs.
The Comets will have to replace running back Tucker Oliver, who averaged 9.93 yards per carry and scored 22 touchdowns. Oliver is playing at Oklahoma Baptist.
Griffith’s favorite target, Crue Garrett, also graduated. Garrett, an all-state athlete in golf and basketball, caught 60 passes for 866 yards and nine touchdowns.
Griffith made his presence felt on defense, too, last season. He made 100 total tackles, including six for losses. He made five interceptions and scored one defensive touchdown.
Langston Walker celebrates a touchdown during the Comets’ victory over Cyril in 2022.
2022-B
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER CANTON
50-0
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER RINGWOOD
52-6
Q : VELMA-ALMA OVER REGENT PREP 40-26
S : LAVERNE OVER VELMA-ALMA
52-26
2021-B
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER CYRIL 50-0
2 : SHATTUCK OVER VELMA-ALMA 44-26
2020-B
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER SNYDER 58-56
3 : VELMA-ALMA OVER TURPIN
62-38
Q : PIONEER OVER VELMA-ALMA 36-32
2015-A
1 : MINCO OVER VELMA-ALMA
41-27
2014-A
1 : STRATFORD OVER VELMA-ALMA
46-7
2013-A
1 : MINCO OVER VELMA-ALMA
49-32
2012-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER WATONGA 52-48
2 : THOMAS OVER VELMA-ALMA 55-6
2011-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER MANGUM 52-26
2 : MINCO OVER VELMA-ALMA 51-18
2010-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER SAYRE 34-0
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER OKEENE 28-14
Q : WOODLAND OVER VELMA-ALMA
38-22
2009-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER HOLLIS 48-0
2 : CASHION OVER VELMA-ALMA 41-21
2008-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER HINTON 31-21
2 : OKEENE OVER VELMA-ALMA 48-13
2007-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER MAYSVILLE 22-10
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER TEXHOMA 14-7
Q : WOODLAND OVER VELMA-ALMA 21-8
2006-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER DIBBLE 26-0
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER BEAVER 41-14
Q : VELMA-ALMA OVER WOODLAND 46-22
S : VELMA-ALMA OVER CRESCENT 27-7
C : OKEENE OVER VELMA-ALMA 24-14
2005-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER WELLSTON 34-15
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER HINTON 32-16
Q : VELMA-ALMA OVER COMMERCE 23-18
S : WASHINGTON OVER VELMAALMA 34-6
2004-A
1 : OKEENE OVER VELMA-ALMA 42-7
2003-A
1 : CROOKED OAK OVER VELMAALMA 27-0
2001-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER WAYNE 48-6
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER CARNEGIE 35-14
Q : VELMA-ALMA OVER CROOKED OAK 34-12
S : VELMA-ALMA OVER KANSAS 33-7
C : HOMINY OVER VELMA-ALMA 3-0
2000-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER MINCO 28-6
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER TURPIN 27-0
Q : APACHE OVER VELMA-ALMA 41-13
1999-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER WALTERS 42-0
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER HINTON 33-21
Q : TURPIN OVER VELMA-ALMA 21-7
1998-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER CARNEGIE 41-6
2 : LAVERNE OVER VELMA-ALMA 30-10
1997-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER SAYRE 16-8
2 : LAVERNE OVER VELMA-ALMA 42-8
1996-A 1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER SAYRE 36-22
2 : SEILING OVER VELMA-ALMA 12-7
1995-A 1 : RUSH SPRINGS OVER VELMAALMA 15-14
1994-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER EMPIRE 41-0
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER OKEENE 28-0
Q : VELMA-ALMA OVER HOLLIS 28-14
S : VELMA-ALMA OVER QUAPAW 32-6
C : VELMA-ALMA OVER TEXHOMA 19-18
1993-A 1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER HINTON 48-16 2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER WELLSTON 47-22
Q : VELMA-ALMA OVER RUSH
SPRINGS 14-0
S : VELMA-ALMA OVER MAUD 7-0
C : VELMA-ALMA OVER TEXHOMA 37-26
1992-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER RUSH
SPRINGS 28-7
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER TEXHOMA 47-26
Q : VELMA-ALMA OVER OKEENE
20-6
S : VELMA-ALMA OVER WASHINGTON 14-12
C : RINGLING OVER VELMA-ALMA 20-12
1991-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER RUSH
SPRINGS 14-0
2 : SHATTUCK OVER VELMA-ALMA 28-0
1990-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER WAYNE 21-13
2 : SHATTUCK OVER VELMA-ALMA 51-6
1989-A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER DAVENPORT 22-6
2 : CRESCENT OVER VELMA-ALMA 34-0
1987-2A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER TISHOMINGO 26-8
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER VIAN 21-12
Q : DAVIS OVER VELMA-ALMA 35-0
1986-2A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER MANGUM 27-13
2 : VELMA-ALMA OVER HOLDENVILLE 24-23
Q : OKEMAH OVER VELMA-ALMA 23-13
1985-2A
1 : KINGSTON OVER VELMA-ALMA 26-10
1984-2A
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER PLAINVIEW 18-10
2 : CHANDLER OVER VELMA-ALMA 35-20
1983-A
1 : CACHE OVER VELMA-ALMA 57-12
1970-A
1 : PURCELL OVER VELMA-ALMA 16-15
1968-B
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER PURCELL 28-6
Q : STROUD OVER VELMA-ALMA 21-7
1967-B
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER WYNNEWOOD 34-6
Q : VELMA-ALMA OVER STROUD 21-14
S : HOBART OVER VELMA-ALMA 22-0
1966-B
1 : VELMA-ALMA OVER MARLOW 21-8
Q : VELMA-ALMA OVER HARRAH 28-13
1964-B
1 : MARLOW OVER VELMA-ALMA 25-7
1952-B
1 : MARLOW OVER VELMA-ALMA 12-7
1951-B
1 : WAURIKA OVER VELMA-ALMA 40-6
1950-B
1 : WAURIKA OVER VELMA-ALMA 21-6
1949-B
1 : WAURIKA OVER VELMA-ALMA 24-19
With blue ribbons and new stunt work under their belt, the Velma-Alma cheerleading squad looks forward to bringing the crowd to their feet at upcoming games this season.
Velma-Alma Cheer Coach Rebekah Herring said this year, the cheerleading team attended the UCA camp from June 18-21 at the Gaylord Texan.
“The team received two blue ribbons for evaluations, fourth
overall in camp routine, fifth overall in cheer and chant and three spirit sticks,” she said. “Khloe Kulbeth was chosen as the pin it forward award winner.”
Herring said over the next year the group will focus on their stunt skills, as well as their crowd leading during game season.
“We also will work to improve school spirit throughout the community by serving as positive role models,” she said.
This year’s All American Cheer-
leaders are Paige Wainscott and Savanna Wainscott.
Herring said this is her second year as the high school cheerleading coach and she is proud of the squad’s team work, as well as their commitment to raising morale throughout the season.
“They have put in a great deal of work this summer and it shows in their improvement in skills,” she said. “We are looking forward to an amazing year.”
Congratulations!
Congratulations!
Your performance on the field and in the classroom make us proud, and we wish you all the best, all they way to the championships. Here’s to a safe, successful and exciting 2023 season. Go, Comets!
Senior Class of 2019
Senior Class of 2019
Good Luck to the Velma Football Team!
“So happy to share in the excitement of your graduation day and so VERY PROUD of you too!”
E&S Oil/Livestock Nutrition & Gift Shop
“So happy to share in the excitement of your graduation day and so VERY PROUD of you too!”
Supporting our Comets for over 30 years!
Main & Purdue, Velma, OK
Main & Purdue, Velma, OK
Supporting our Comets for the past 30 years!
580-444-2573
580-444-2573
As we kick off another exciting football season, we’d like to wish the Velma-Alma High School Football Team good luck and much success. You’re the best on the field, and we’ll be cheering for you all the way to championships!
Congratulations!
Senior Class of 2019
“So happy to share in the excitement of your graduation day and so VERY PROUD of you too!”
Dusty Ketner stood on the sidelines on a hot August day, his eyes affixed to his gasping players running sprints as sweat dripped from inside their helmets, and he pondered the innerworkings of the teenage mind.
“I don’t understand the concept of working this hard and not expecting to win,” said Ketner, the new Central High head football coach. “It’s too hard of work.”
If Ketner were a minister, he’d preach from the gospel of mindset.
Mindset must change if the Central football program is to ever again approach what it was when Ketner himself was a Broncho offensive lineman.
Ketner played and coached at Central during the early 1990s when the Bronchos ascended to football glory with four-consecutive trips to the state championship game.
During that four-year span, from 1992 to 1995, Central won three stat titles and lost only one game.
The Bronchos won. It was expected, almost like a natural consequence of being alive. It was just the way things were.
And they were that way because each Central class aspired to be better than its predecessor, Ketner said. His 1992 class wanted to be better than the class before it, and the class before it wanted to be better than the class that preceded it, and so on.
Those kinds of expectations have drifted away from the Central football program. The Bronchos last winning season came in 2017 when Central finished 7-4, and they haven’t had a playoff victory since 2004.
So, Ketner finds himself talking to his players about mindset all the time … as they huddle for play calls in practice, as they condition, as they sit in the locker room before and after practice.
He hopes his message rings clear and doesn’t sound like the teacher’s voice from Charlie Brown cartoons.
“I hope they hear what I’m saying –I think they do,” Ketner said. “I think they’ve taken the easy way out sometimes in the past and I’m not sure anyone has every called them out for it. It’s my job to point out when they do things right and when they don’t do things right. I’m a fundamentals guy. I pay attention to where their hands go down, how they take their first step, everything.”
When Ketner sees his team’s fundamentals improve, he’ll know the message is reaching listening ears, he said.
It was a strange offseason in Central. It was as though everyone left, and a lot did.
Head coach Gerald White left for a job in Hollis in late June, and Central graduated all but three starters. Graduated are starting Cooper Walters, running back Levi Young, and linemen Kolten Bethune, Sean Klein, Colton Ladd, and Johnathan Mejia.
Payton Spencer, who saw time at quarterback, running back, and middle linebacker, also graduated.
That batch of players represent nearly every passing and rushing yard and touchdown the Bronchos scored in finishing 3-7 in 2022.
In their place will step inexperience and youth. And that might not be a
2022: 3-7 2021: 3-7 2020: 2-7
4-6
2018: 2-7
2022: 3-7 overall; 1-4 in district
Coach: Dusty Ketner – At Central: 0-0, first year; Overall: 0-0, first year.
Last Playoff
Appearance: 2019, first round loss to Burns Flat-Dill City, 54-6.
Returning Starters: 3; 2 offense, 1 defense.
Players to Watch: C/MLB Van Roberts, WR Bailey Johnson, TB/DB Cole Griffith.
Primary Strengths: Good numbers and youth. The Bronchos have a large sophomore class, which has pushed their overall participation to 25 players. Nearly every position group will have an underclassman starting. Senior center Van Roberts has shown great leadership during the offseason and fall camp, and he’ll have a chance to mentor some young offensive linemen. New head coach Dusty Ketner likes the youth movement. It’s sometimes easier to implement a new system with inexperienced payers, Ketner said.
Potential Problems: The Bronchos lost nearly all of their offensive production. Gone is the team’s leading passer Cooper Walters, leading rusher Levi Young, and big target tight end Kolten Bethune. Those players produced nearly every yard and every point in 2022.
Key Losses: QB/DB Cooper
Walters, RB/DB Levi Young, TE/ DE Kolten Bethune, OL/DL Sean Klein, RB/LB Payton Spencer, DE Colton Ladd, OL Jonathan Mejia.
Newcomers: QB/TE Dirk
Couch, QB/TE Landon Johnson, OL/DL C.J. Wright, OL/DL Julian Findley, OL/DL Brock Johnson, TE/DL Logan Castle, TE/DL Harrison Smith, TE Hayden Marcum, LB Jensen Nunez.
bad thing, Ketner said.
“You’d like to have a locker room full of experienced seniors who’ve won,” Ketner said. But since it’s a new program and system he’s installing, “it’s easier to make adjustments if you don’t have 16 returning starters.”
The Bronchos have three returning starters – lineman Van Roberts, wide receiver Bailey Johnson, and defensive back Cole Griffith.
Roberts, a senior leader and mainstay on the offensive line, will start and center and middle linebacker. Johnson will be back at wide out, and Griffith, a junior, will move to tailback.
Everyone else is new to the starting lineup.
“We have competition everywhere,” Ketner said. “I told them that no one has a starting spot. You have to earn it.”
Ketner said he has about 12 players battling for eight sports. Two of them are sophomores Dirk Couch and Landon Johnson, who are vying for the starting quarterback job. The runner-up in the quarterback battle will likely get starting dibs at tight end.
Ketner described Johnson (6-1, 200) as a big, strong athlete.
Tyler Mendon will join Baily Johnson as the other wide out.
Ketner is evaluating a slew of linemen, including six sophomores and one senior. In the fray to start in the trenches are senior Morgan Parkhurst and sophomores
C.J. Wright (6-2, 250), Julian
B-4
• Velma-Alma (10-4)
• Cyril (5-6)
• Waurika (7-4)
• Wilson (4-7)
• Alex (0-10)
• Central High (3-7)
Findley, Brock Johnson, Logan Castle, Harrison Smith, and Hayden Marcum.
Castle, Smith and Marcum are also receiving consideration at tight end, Ketner said.
The defense is less settled than the offense. Ketner plans to run a 3-3, but he said the lineup may not be set until Central travels to Grandfield for the season opener.
Ketner said defensive end may be the team’s deepest position, with Carter Garrett, Brock Johnson, and Landon Johnson vying for playing time on the edge.
Ketner sad Parkhurst may get the starting nod at noseguard.
Roberts will start at middle linebacker, and freshman Jensen Nunez, who had demonstrated ball hawking skills in fall practice, will likely fill another linebacker spot. Couch could start in the defensive backfield.
Other positions are too close to call, Ketner said.
The story of the Central football glory days is also the story of Van Roberts’ family.
They are one in the same, a parrel narrative. The Roberts’ name is synonymous with Central football’s ascension in the early 1990s, a stretch of time that saw the Bronchos lose just one game in four seasons and claim threeconsecutive state championships.
Van’s dad, Derek Roberts, was a senior cornerback on the Bronchos’ first state championship team in 1993. His uncle was a freshman in 1992 and lost one game, the 1992 Class C State Championship Game, in four seasons.
“There is a lot of Central football in my blood,” Van said. “I have some stuff to live up to. I’m hoping I can do it. I would love to be a part of bringing Central football back.”
Van Roberts is one of three starters returning from the Bronchos’ 3-7 campaign in 2022. Junior wide receiver and sophomore defensive back Cole Griffth return to their starting spots. All other starters graduated, including starting quarterback Cooper Walters and starting running back Levy Young.
That puts a heavy leadership role on Roberts, who will start at center and middle linebacker.
“Van will be one of our key players,” new Central head coach Dusty Ketner, a senior on the ’92 state runner-up team, said. “He’s taking senior leadership seriously.
Van is just a hard-nosed kid. He wants to do things right, and he’s like a sponge. He wants to learn and adapt to whatever we ask of him.”
A new coach provides new opportunities, Roberts said. He likes that Ketner is a part of Central football history, and he likes the style of play the new coach is promoting.
“A new coach gives us new opportunities to try some new things, and this new blood is ready to put in the effort,” he said. “Coach Ketner was part of Central’s runner-up team in 1992, so he knows how 8-man football is played and I think we’re going to see that this year. It’s going to be gritty and getting down in the trenches, and that’s the way I like to play.
“It’s a little different, but I got to know a lot of these guys in the offseason. I’m excited for this season. I think we’re going to do well.”
2020-B
1 : SOUTHWEST COVENANT OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 44-0
2019-B
1 : BURNS FLAT-DILL CITY OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 54-6
2017-B
1 : ALEX OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 60-14
2016-B
1 : GEARY OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 50-0
2013-B
1 : POND CREEK-HUNTER OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 38-0
2012-B
1 : LAVERNE OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 58-12
2010-B
1 : CHEROKEE OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 48-0
2004-C
1 : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER WAYNOKA 28-18
Q : DAVENPORT OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 6-0
1997-B
1 : OKLAHOMA
CHRISTIAN OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 35-12
1995-C
1 : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER RINGWOOD 47-0
Q : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER RYAN 49-0
S : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER WELCH 43-0
C : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER MEDFORD 56-12
1994-C
1 : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER TYRONE 51-6
Q : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER KREMLINHILLSDALE 47-0
S : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER POND CREEKHUNTER 34-8
C : CENTRAL MARLOW
OVER MEDFORD 52-20
1993-C
1 : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER TYRONE 56-6
Q : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER GRANDFIELD 53-6
S : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER WHITE OAK 43-18
C : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER BALKO 38-25
1992-C
1 : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER TYRONE 41-30
Q : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER HELENA-GOLTRY 23-0
S : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER MEDFORD 42-25
C : GRANDFIELD OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 26-14
1989-B
1 : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER ALEX 39-27
Q : OKLAHOMA
CHRISTIAN OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 36-33
1988-B
1 : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER ALEX 36-34
Q : OKLAHOMA
CHRISTIAN OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 34-13
1981-C
1 : OKLAHOMA
CHRISTIAN OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 36-29
1979-C
1 : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER DIBBLE 58-0
Q : LONE WOLF OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 56-14
1978-C
1 : ALEX OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 52-8
1966-2A
S : EL RENO OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 13-6
1947-A
Q : CENTRAL MARLOW OVER HUGO 34-0
S : FREDERICK OVER CENTRAL MARLOW 13-0
From football games to basketball matches and fundraisers, the Central High Broncho Cheer Team values school spirit and giving back to their district.
Central High Bronchos Cheer Coach Kelli Baker said her squad has dedicated themselves to working diligently over the summer to prepare for the upcoming football and basketball seasons.
Baker said she started out as a cheer mom 14 years ago and eventually became a cheer sponsor six years ago.
One of the teams goals this year, Baker said, is to improve their stunting, which is why they spent two days at a clinic.
“This really helped with stunting technique and confidence,” she said. “They later spent three days at cheer camp focusing on learning new material including cheers, sidelines, stunts, pyramids and dances.”
According to Baker, the camp staff was able to assist the team in building routines for future use.
She said they will take what they learned at the camp and utilize skills for halftime performances, as well as a variety of happenings, like the “Meet the Bronchos” homecoming event.
Baker said they look forward to homecoming each year.
“This year, we will celebrate our Broncho pride by supporting Breast Cancer Awareness through combining Homecoming with Pink Out,” she said. “Our school is blessed to have a community that rallies around our school and students.”
Funds raised from the Pink Out Homecoming will go back into the Central High community.
According to Baker, over the past couple years, they have continued to focus on building relationships with the band to coordinate their routines with songs the musicians play.
“We feel like this builds spirit among our students and provides our fans with the best experience during the games,” she said.
Over the years, the squad has continued to grow.
“We are really happy to see our squad is growing each year with more students showing an interest in cheer,” she said. “We are excited to have our first male cheerleader.”
The team continues to build
relationships with one another as well.
Baker said the team works to build others up with their spirt and encourage one another, as well as their fellow Central High Bronchos throughout the year.
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The Bray-Doyle Donkeys had to go back in time to find a new coach in 2023. The district found two brothers who are alumni and had past coaching experience at other schools to return a family atmosphere to the program.
Wade Whatley now comes back to the school he earned his diploma from in 2001 and will serve as the Donkeys new football coach. He brings his brother, Cody Whatley, who will help coach in the football program.
The two will contribute to the program that helped build their livelihood of coaching altogether. This bubbles up an excitement for head football coach Wade, who is itching to give back to the program that developed him.
“You talk about it being just awesome to get to come back and be at the program that changed who you are, then to get to lead it … it has been pretty awesome,” Wade said. “To get to do it with my brother I think is one of the best possible ways that I could have gotten to come back here.”
During the offseason, the Donkeys’ younger players get involved in the weight lifting and conditioning program that Coach Wade put in place. .
On the offensive side of the ball, the Donkeys will slow down the pace of play until they learn the new playbook. The numbers will also not be on their side on the high school level.
Wade will start out each week putting in the basic formation on offense, which will be called the heat formation. The Donkeys will stay in that formation for the majority of the time.
The playbook for defense will be the hard work of Cody. It will see a lot of speed to the ball and the deup feels
the linebacker core features the two to three best athletes on the team.
“Our goal is to keep the points down, keep the offense that we are playing off the field and staying on offense as long as we can,” Wade Whatley said. “We are going to play some games that are going to be in the 20s and 30s, and I know that is hard with 8-man football, but that is what we are going to try to do.”
Caleb Carson, the senior on the team for the Donkeys, will become the featured running back for BrayDoyle. Carson will also play inside linebacker on the defensive side of the ball.
Another athlete to be featured is Aaron Kelly, a junior for Bray-Doyle who will act the anchor of the offensive line as the center. He may also possibly be seen as a defensive end or linebacker.
Out at one of the wide receivers’ position is freshman Bladyn Harris, who is developing into a true athlete, according to the Donkeys head coach. Wade hopes once the lights come on, it will be a situation where Harris
2022: 0-9
2021: 1-9
2020: 2-6 2019: 2-8
2018: 3-8
“To get to come back and be at the program that changed who you are, then to get to lead it … it has been pretty awesome. To get to do it with my brother I think is one of the best possible ways that I could have gotten to come back here.”
-Wade Whatley
Bray-Doyle Head Football Coach
2022: 1-9 overall; 1-6 in district
Coach: Wade Whatley; First year at Bray-Doyle.
Last Playoff
Appearance:
2018 - first round loss to Snyder 62-12.
Returning Starters: 2 Players to
Watch: LB/QB Brody Whitney, LB/ RB Caleb Carson, DE/OL Aaron Kelly.
Primary Strengths: The Donkeys will play a slow pace on offense to try and implement a new system for the BrayDoyle offense while keeping the points down on defense. The linebacker core has a lot of speed. The lineup has the best two or three athletes over from the school and will return last year starting QB Brody Whitney.
Potential Problems: They have only had a week with the full number of players on the roster at 15 for the 2023 season. The Donkeys will rely on a lot of freshmen to play varsity minutes and hope they will not falter under the Friday Night lights pressure.
PHOTO BY KELLY WRAY
QB Brody WHITNEY
won’t play like a freshman.
Jadon McLaren will appear as one of the other wide receivers for offense. The junior will also defensive back on the other side of the ball.
Those four athletes proved to be big parts of the summer program.
With the Donkeys looking to compete in Class C and hoping to bring back a winning tradition, Coach Wade Whatley is optimistic that with the right situation, that win-rich legacy could return
as early as the 2023 campaign.
“We are not going to sit back here and go, ‘we are going to play in December for a gold ball, on a college football field somewhere against really good opponents,’ like, you know Tipton or Timberlake,” Wade Whatley said. “Our goal is to look at what we’ve got and to compete as often as we can every Friday night.
“In order for us to do that we have to get back on that whole deal of being absolutely all in,” he said.
It hasn’t been that long ago that coach Wade Whately watched film of running back Caleb Carson and thought, ‘Geez, we have to stop THAT guy.’
Not anymore.
2018-B
1 : SNYDER OVER BRAYDOYLE 62-12
2004-B
1 : PIONEER OVER BRAYDOYLE 40-6
1999-B
1 : RINGWOOD OVER BRAYDOYLE 20-14
1997-B
1 : GARBER OVER BRAY-
DOYLE 38-12
1996-B
1 : BRAY-DOYLE OVER GARBER 24-21
Q : MOUNTAIN VIEWGOTEBO OVER BRAY-DOYLE 44-8
1995-B
1 : WAYNOKA OVER BRAYDOYLE 26-8
Whately and Carson have joined forces at Bray-Doyle this year, and when Carson carries the ball, Whately won’t be yelling, “No. No.” Instead, he’ll be screaming, “Go. Go.”
Carson is back for his senior season with the Donkeys, and Whately is the new head football coach at BrayDoyle.
Whately coached Alex when the Longhorns faced Carson and the Donkeys in 2021.
“Caleb was supposed to play quarterback, and he was the one I was really worried about with his ability to get outside,” Whately said. “He got hurt on the second play of the game. He is a talented kid who plays really hard. I’d love to have several more players who play like Caleb. He’s fun to watch on film, and I can’t wait to see what he does on the field for us.”
From where he’ll take snaps is the question. Carson could play running back or quarterback, or he could get snaps out of the Wildcat formation, Whately said.
Whately estimates Carson gained about 80 yards a game last season.
Carson said he feels rejuvenated. Though his passion
for the game has never waned, Carson said there is a renewed sense of motivation around the Donk’s camp coming out of offseason.
“I’m super excited,” he said. “I’m looking forward to it more than ever. There is a lot of excitement everywhere. With the new coaching staff, everyone wants to see how we turn out. We have some good momentum coming out of the summer.”
Bray-Doyle went 1-18 over the past two seasons. The Donkey’s last victory came on Sept. 3, 2021, in a 28-20 win over Ryan.
But the lack of success hasn’t deterred Carson.
“Not at all,” he said. “If anything, it motivates me more. My goal for us is that we don’t have to cancel any games like we have in the past, and I want us to win some games. I want to enjoy it. It’s my senior year. I want to have fun.”
The 20232024
Bray-Doyle
Donkeys
Cheer lineup includes Senior Faith Ford, Junior Ashylnn Abney and Sophomores Alannah Fitzgerald, Sara Franklin, Kylie Chappell and Jordan Harrison. The squad will focus on bringing the Donkeys a healthy dose of school spirit.
The 2023-2024 Bray-Doyle Cheer squad will feature six young ladies who will strive to promote school spirit on campus, as well as throughout the community.
Though this team may be small in quantity, the girls make up for it with the quality of their team work, mentorship, strength and integrity in all they do to boost the district’s morale.
As they raise the attitude around them, the cheerlead-
ing squads utilizes one of their favorite chants: “Y-E-L-L everybody yell, BDHS!”
Cheer Coach Holly Miller said over the course of the year, the squad plans to focus on increasing their school’s confidence.
“The squad is looking forward to pep assemblies, mini-cheer camp and many games,” she said.
Miller said there is one returning senior who has stepped up to be a mentor to new cheerleaders and help them prepare for the upcom-
ing season and year.
“She, along with the other three returning members, are
excited to get back to cheering for the teams and making it a fun year,” Miller said.
“We say Bray-Doyle, you say Donkeys!”PHOTO BY TAMARA GREGOR
Luck Bray-Doyle! We are proud of you!
