2020 Inside Owasso Football Preview

InsideOwasso

2020 FOOTBALL PREVIEW

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FOOTBALL PREVIEW

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOOTBALL PREVIEW

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4 ............................... Who is Gameday Okahoma?

6 ............................... Our Staff 7 ................................ Merrill Media Group 8 ............................... Owasso Rams 20 .............................. Before Madden 30 ............................. Rejoice Eagles 38 ............................. Games to Watch in 2020 42 ............................. 2019 Playoff Scores 44 ............................. District Alignments 48 ............................. Claremore Zebras 49 ............................. Football Quiz 56 ............................. Skiatook Bulldogs 62 ............................. Highway 20 Bowl 70 ............................. East Side Dominance 72 ............................. Collinsvile Cardinals 80 ............................. Sperry Pirates 82 ............................. Oologah Mustangs 85 ............................. Vype Rankings 86 ............................. Verdigris Cardinals 88 ............................. Claremore Sequoyah Eagles

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FOOTBALL PREVIEW

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

GO: Gameday Oklahoma is covering the Metro

A

fter the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the world of sports, we know that all of you sports fans in the Tulsa Metro area are hungry for sports to begin.

Well, we are here to feed that animal hunger with raw meat. Sports are back, and we are bringing it all to you for free.

We are Gameday Oklahoma, a digital allsports website that will be smothering all four corners of the Tulsa Metro. We will cover 42 high schools with several different viewing formats for you. Since we are all digital, and since we don’t have a print product, we can bring your team results to you instantly through our website, www.gamedayoklahoma.com, or on Facebook and Twitter. You can view us on your desktop or laptop computers, iPads, notebooks or smart phones.

We will cover 42 high schools with several different viewing formats for you.

We will provide coverage for schools, teams and certain sports that are regularly ignored by other local news outlets. We will provide schedules, game stories, event photography, game previews, contests, players of the week, scores and stats from each sport, not just the most popular.

The 42 high schools in our coverage area will be Owasso, Rejoice Christian, Bixby, Broken Arrow, Jenks, Union, Berryhill, Catoosa, Claremore, Cleveland, Collinsville, Coweta, Glenpool, Inola, Kellyville, Kiefer, Mannford, Oologah, Prue, Sand Springs, Sapulpa, Claremore Sequoyah, Skiatook, Sperry, Verdigris, Wagoner, Bishop Kelley, Cascia Hall, Holland Hall, Lincoln Christian, Metro Christian, Regent Prep, Summit Christian, Victory Christian, Tulsa Central, Tulsa East Central, Tulsa Edison, Tulsa Hale, Tulsa McLain, Tulsa Rogers, Tulsa Washington and Tulsa Webster.

And best of all, our content is 100 percent free to read. That’s right, no “pay wall” and no “please enter your credit card number.”

The future of sports is here.

For sports news or to send in your results, stats, college signings, coaching changes, homecoming photos, etc. ... email rick@oknewsgroup.com.

To advertise, send an email to grant@ oknewsgroup.com, kelly@oknewsgroup.com, karen@oknewsgroup.com or paige@oknewsgroup.com.

The future is here.

Sports are back.

So flip that coin, call it in the air, and let’s play some ball. RH

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW

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EVERY PLAY! EVERY GAME!

If you can't make the game, we've got you covered! Join Grant Merrill, Steve Mowery, and Kelly Ward on 100.1 KYFM and online at InsideOwasso.Com!

Official Broadcast Partner Of The Owasso Rams

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FOOTBALL PREVIEW

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

MEET THE TEAM GRANT MERRILL

RICK HEATON

KAREN BENNETT

Owner grant@oknewsgroup.com (918) 407-7265

Senior Sports Editor rick@oknewsgroup.com (918) 703-8720

General Sales Manager Specializing in all things Merrill Media Group Karen@oknewsgroup.com (918) 815-9385

LAUREN MERRILL

TOM FINK

BRUCE HUGILL

Tulsa Moms Owner lauren@tulsamoms.com (918) 407-7265

News Reporter specializing in Rogers County tom@oknewsgroup.com (918) 344-3389

Multi-Media Executive Specializing in Skiatook, Collinsville and Osage County bruce@oknewsgroup.com (918) 695-0050

KELLY WARD

REESE VOISE

PAIGE MAYER

COO/Director of Social Media kelly@oknewsgroup.com (918) 510-1590

Tulsa Moms Senior Staff Writer reese@tulsamoms.com

Multi-Media Executive Specializing in TulsaMoms and Rogers County paige@oknewsgroup.com (918) 924-6950

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW

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Dear Valued Reader, As the owners of the Merrill Media Group, we would like to thank you for picking up a copy of our first-ever printed magazine. We started this company in 2017 with the idea that we wanted to find new and innovative ways to bring you the information you want about what is happening in your community. Up until now, it has all been online – but there is still something to be said for the magazines that you can touch and feel, and keep for years to come.

This football preview comes at a time when no one knows what is going to happen this fall.

We have been operating under the plan that fall sports will start as usual, and so far that has not steered us wrong. We are hopeful that the athletes in our communities will get the chance to play as usual, and that all of our kids will have a normal and prosperous school year. So with that, we are moving forward and previewing what we expect will be a fantastic year of action for our area teams.

We have assembled an all-star team of key people at the Merrill Media Group. I would like to say thank you to Rick Heaton who has developed the content for this project. He is one of the most respected sportswriters in the state, and as you’ll see by the stories you read, there is a reason he has that reputation. Karen Bennett has led her team that includes Bruce Hugill and Paige Mayer, and has worked with our advertisers for this issue. Tina Crawford who has designed the layout of the whole book, with help from Neal Trotter. I also appreciate Kelly Ward, who as our Chief Operating Officer oversees all of our projects and has done a great job of keeping the communications flowing between all of our key people.

This football preview may just be another magazine for our readers, but for our company, it is a major milestone as we begin adding print titles to our stable of online publications. Over the next few months, you’ll be seeing more high-quality products just like this one. Our company could not have made this move without the talents and contributions of the people that I just listed, and we are very grateful for each one of them. God has blessed us with such good people, and we will never take that for granted.

We appreciate all of our advertisers and marketing partners who made this happen. We could not do what we do without the support of our community.

From our family to yours, thank you. We hope you enjoy the 2020 Gameday Oklahoma Football Preview.

Grant and Lauren Merrill

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FOOTBALL PREVIEW

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

THE HUNTED: Blankenship warns teams are coming for Owasso

O

wasso football coach Bill Blankenship immediately changed the culture when he took over the Rams program three years ago.

Since then, Owasso has won two of three 6A-I state championships, including last year’s 14-6 win over Jenks to complete a perfect 13-0 season.

That makes Owasso the team to beat, like it or not.

“I would like people to think that,” Blankenship said. “We feel pretty good about it.”

Blankenship, however, would rather be the hungry lion and not the one that just had a big gazelle for dinner. In football, it’s better to be hungry.

“The hungry part of it really matters,” he said. “It is really hard to go back-to-back because you have to keep an edge about you, and that goes totally against us as human nature. Human nature is we’ve accomplished something and we want to take a deep breath, pat ourselves on the back and have people tell us how good we are. That’s just human nature. It’s really hard to keep enough edge, or hunger. It’s a whole lot easier to coach a team that got close and didn’t get it.”

So that edge can come from different areas, maybe an “us against them” mentality. But for Blankenship, he just tells his team the truth.

“The thing we talk to our players about is that we are now the target,” he said. “We are the ones that everybody is trying to be like. We’ve won two of the last three state championships.

For the first time in two decades, seniors at Union and Jenks are about to graduate without winning a state championship in their high school careers. Where are you going to point to as the place that’s setting the tone? I would like to think that after winning two out of three, means that people have to point at us. I don’t want them to, but we better be ready because we’re going to get everybody’s best shot.”

Teams are going to go into the season with blinders on. There will be no in-person scouting

of talent of opponents because there will be no 7-on-7 drills this summer, and no team camps.

Not much tape to look at or information to be collected.

“I don’t know much, that’s the hard part,” Blankenship said. “I just think we are all in the same boat. Nobody is getting practice in. Usually by now, we’re seeing each other, going over to Union, Jenks or Broken Arrow for 7-on-7, and none of us are getting to see each other. It’s really going to be interesting to see how it all plays out. COVID got us all.”

If Blankenship were to pick state rankings and district rankings, without choosing the Rams, he would put Union at the top of the district, followed by Mustang, Moore, Norman North, Edmond North, Southmoore and Putnam City.

In state rankings, Blankenship puts Jenks, Union and Broken Arrow in the top three spots, once again excluding Owasso. In fact, many are picking last year’s bridesmaid, Jenks.

“OK Preps and somebody else had them ranked as the preseason No. 1,” Blankenship said. “Last year was a really un-Jenks like start (1-3) and you have to give Coach (Keith) Riggs and their staff a lot of credit because they had a lot of gut-checks to be a team to make it back to the state championship. I don’t know what they graduated.”

Last year was a rebuilding season for Broken Arrow, according to Blankenship, and they should be in the same boat as Owasso. And Union is an unknown, since those team camps have been cancelled.

One good thing that came out of the shutdown — Blankenship knows he isn’t ready to call it a career just yet.

“I’ve joked a lot about it with my wife,” he said. “Quarantine didn’t do anything to make me want to retire, let’s put it that way. My wife and I had a lot of time together and a lot of time that I didn’t put toward football. I missed it more than I ever did.” RH

FOOTBALL PREVIEW

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

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RAM COACHES

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

HEAD COACH Bill Blankenship Staff not pictured STRENGTH & CONDITIONING: Jordan Johnson HEAD ATHLETIC TRAINER: Zach McGinty ATHLETIC DIRECTOR: Zach Duffield DEFENSE: Darnell Walker; Assistant Defensive Backs, Levy Adcock; Defensive Line OFFENSE: Jerrod Hart: Assistant Wide Receivers

ANTONIO GRAHAM Assistant Head Coach, Defensive Coordinator

JOSH DEPREE Linebackers

DOMINIQUE FRANKS

GARY LABASS Assistant Defensive Line

BRAD CALIP Assistant Head Coach, Running Backs

JUSTIN MORSEY Co-Offensive Coordinator, Run Game, Offensive line

ZAC SIMMONDS Co-Offensive Coordinator, Pass Game, Quarterbacks

CHRISTIAN HOOD Wide Receivers

ASA POTEETE Tight Ends, Hybrids

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FOOTBALL PREVIEW 11

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The play that secured the championship

G

etting to the state championship game in 2019 seemed a lot easier than it probably was the Owasso Rams.

They stormed through opponents on their way to an eventual street fight against Jenks in the 6A-I state championship game on a frigid night at Wantland Stadium on the campus of the University of Central Oklahoma. Jenks had little trouble getting to the final game as well.

The two teams were scoring machines throughout the playoffs. Owasso scored 52 and 42 points in the first two rounds, while Jenks was even better, posting easy wins with 55 and 48 points.

But that all went out the window in the championship game. It was defense. It was strategy. It was a game of what-ifs and what-could-have-beens.

The tight game only saw 20 total points

scored. And it also came down to a play many thought was insane at the time.

THE PLAY With points at a premium, it was a gutsy play at the Owasso 10 yard line midway through the fourth quarter.

It was 4th-and-inches.

The Rams had already come up short of four other fourth down attempts, but to attempt one at their own 10 was, well, not something many other coaches would have attempted.

The alternative was to punt the ball to the Trojans, give them a short field, and risk a possible game-tying drive. But not gaining that first down would have virtually locked a score by Jenks with at least a field goal, and a good chance at the tying TD and ensuing two-point conversion.

Jenks hadn’t scored since taking a 6-0 lead on the Rams SEE PLAY, Page 14

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 13

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14 FOOTBALL PREVIEW PLAY from Page 12 before the No. 1 team in the state roared back to lead 14-6 on a touchdown pass from Cole Dugger to Kelan Carney and a two-yard TD run by Emaud Triplett late in the third quarter.

But Owasso coach Bill Blankenship kept the offense on the field and called Dugger’s name on the quarterback sneak, which was just enough for the first down.

Barely.

By a hair.

It was that hair that allowed the Rams to keep the ball for most of the remainder of the game and gain valuable field position.

Jenks got the ball back but with less than a minute left, didn’t have enough time to tie the game, as two late end zone prayers were left unanswered.

“Ultimately, if you can’t make a foot, we probably can’t be champions,” Blankenship said of his 4th-and-1 call. “Our defense was playing great. I just didn’t think we could keep giving them chances after chances. We had to try and grind it out.”

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In the end, that crazy call ended up being the key to the team’s second state championship in three years. It propelled them to a 13-0 season, the first perfect season in school history. it also launched them to a No. 14 national ranking. RH

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RAM OFFENSE

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

Nine return from title game starting lineup

O

wasso lost five big contributors from last year’s team, including quarterback Cole Dugger, tight end Mario Kirby, wide receiver Payton Lusk, center Allen Carey and running back Isaiah Jacobs.

However, the Rams lost just two players who started the 2019 6A-I state championship game. Lusk and Jacobs were injured for the 14-6 win over Jenks that completed a 13-0 season, and Owasso’s second gold ball in three seasons.

Dugger will be a key loss to graduation.

And Owasso head coach Bill Blankenship has two or three possible replacements.

“We’ve got to find a quarterback,” he said. “Of the guys that are here, Solo Skalnik will be a junior and Austin Havens moved here last year from North Carolina, will be a sophomore. Both guys are really pretty, big and tall, 6-feet-3 that can throw it and run it. I would say those two guys have the lead. We had a kid move in from Claremore named Seth Hammer, I’ve never seen him throw, but he’s another big dude. That will be an interesting competition.”

Blankenship isn’t worried about receivers, where the Rams are stacked.

“We’ve got a lot of receivers back that played a lot,” Blankenship said. “Kelan Carney (40 receptions for 552 yards and seven touchdowns), Ronnie Thomas (33458-6), Trey Goins (22-315-5) and Cole Adams (22-525-5) were all considered starters and they have all returned. Trey is the only senior, so we’ve still got some growth potential. Jaray Austin is probably the fifth of the bunch, but had some good plays. We’re really deep at receiver, and deep in the offensive line.”

Returning linemen include Dillon Gilbert, Hilton Moseby, Grayson Isaac, Logan

Ledbetter and Anthony Lawrence.

Returning at running back is Derrick Overstreet, who ran for 541 yards and two scores and caught 134 passes for 274 yards and two TDs. “Derrick had the load once Isaiah (Jacobs) went out in Week 4,” Blankenship.

“Derrick got a lot of playing time and he will be just a junior.”

Blankenship sees two or three competing for Kirby’s open spot at tight end.

“We might use a lot of four wide receiver sets,” Blankenship. “But I have really been impressed with Jaxon Woods that I think can play that position really well.

He was really thin as a sophomore, but he came in after quarantine weighing 210. For a guy with some speed, 210 gave me some encouragement.” RH

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 17

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RAM DEFENSE

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

Lots of shoes to fill for the big red wall

T

his is the biggest question mark for Owasso football coach Bill Blankenship.

How will be replace so many of last year’s defensive starters that held Jenks to just six points in the 6A-I state championship football game, a 14-6 win.

The defense was the team’s strength last season, but graduation was not kind to Owasso.

“We took a lot bigger hit to graduation on defense,” Blankenship said. “The two inside linebackers are back and that’s good.

That’s the upside. The downside is we lost a lot of really good players across the defense.”

Back are both backers Emaud Triplett, who will play for Army at West Point after graduation, and Branden Dye. “Those guys were the leading tacklers,” Blankenship said.

Triplett had 140 tackles eight sacks, eight tackles for loss and an interception.

Dye had 112 tackles with seven sacks, five tackles for loss and an interception.

But gone are most of the defensive backs like Deuce Mayberry, Omarr Baker, Tristin Profit, linebacker Dawson Adams, tackle Jaden Love and defensive ends Haydcen Grant and Andre King.

“We have to replace the safety, both corners and an outside linebacker/strong safety,” Blankenship said. “It’s a little bit scary. We lose two defensive ends, and King was our sack leader, but we’ve got Michael Jamerson back, who started in the interior.”

Jamerson had 34 tackles and three sacks last year.

“We’ve got a couple of guys that played defensive line, Caleb Nealis and Ontario Wilson,” Blankenship said. “And we think we’ve got some real prospects. Tyler Rich,

Emaud Triplett, photo courtesy of Rick Heaton

it looks like he could be a real difference maker. He was a really good wrestler and I think he will compete. He’s a big ol’ boy. I think we’ll have a good four-man rotation for the inside spots.”

Tight end Dwaylen Reed may play some defensive end, as will Christian Ray. Filling the secondary holes will be harder to do.

“The only guy in the secondary returning is Gage Laney,” said Blankenship of his senior with five interceptions last year. “He’s a two-year starter. Cody Chase played some after some injuries. He’s a good parttime starter. With him and Gage, that gives us two guys that played back there.”

Blankenship is hoping the young guys in the secondary can fill those holes left over.

“We really expect Chantz Lucas and Braxton Bickham to play,” Blankenship said. “Chantz is Keon Hatcher’s brother.

He’s little, he didn’t get Keon’s size but he’s a good one. We know we’ve got some guys that will help us, we’re just not sure where they are going to play.” RH

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 19

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AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

Before Madden, we had to make do

F

or all you kiddos out there, believe it or not, we all didn’t always have Madden to fulfill our football cravings. Now, the amazing graphics, game play, options and popularity of the game are taken for granted.

Growing up, there was no Madden, which didn’t come out until 1988. Instead, we had to make do with what we had, which was very little.

The first true video games were pretty crude, but even before that, they made something called Electric Football, which was a big metal football field that vibrated, enabling the plastic players to move erratically up and down the field. No punching a play and watching it go, and no rules except your own.

Each year, in the Sears Christmas Catalog, they would have that game, equipped with the teams from the previous Super Bowl. My first one had the Pittsburgh Steelers vs. the Dallas Cowboys. The game also provided stickers with the numbers for you to place on the uniforms, which was harder than the game of Operation. They never would stay on, never would be on there straight, and usually ripped in half.

But, we made due.

I wore about four of those game boards out, but it wasn’t enough. I somehow convinced my parents to order each NFL team so I could set up my own league and played games all day long. The vibrating sound of this game was as annoying as nails on a chalkboard, so I commend my parents for not taking a hammer to this game.

Now, I had every NFL team, but that wasn’t enough either. So eventually, I took teams like the New Orleans Saints, Cincinnati Bengals, etc., and used my car model paint to paint the players in the colors of the Big 8 teams. It didn’t matter, I only played two teams against each other, Oklahoma and Nebraska. Back then, those were the only two teams that mattered.

Eventually, things got a little better.

The next phase was Electronic Football, the hand-held version with the red dots, directional buttons and a beeping sound that usually got me busted for playing under the covers at night when I should have been sleeping. At least this game kept score, but it was still pretty lames compared to Madden’s standards.

SEE MADDEN, Page 22

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 21

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22 FOOTBALL PREVIEW MADDEN from Page 20 The next phase was the television video game Intellivision, which was supposed to be a step up from Atari, but was still crude as far as graphics. Some of the games on Intellivision were good, but none of them were sports, and especially football. Plus, about the biggest TV set back then was about 19 inches, and forget about high-def flatscreens or 4K ... no.

That got me through high school.

Now, Madden is something I could never have imagined playing as a kid. I would never had gotten any chores done, any homework completed, or gone outside at all.

So now, you can play Madden online against people from around the world, with digital images that look just like the real players. They have Madden tournaments where the winners can earn hundreds of thousands of dollars and become famous.

Makers of the game get to meet players, rank them for game play and make a living engrossed in this franchise. How do you

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get THAT job?

It’s a far cry and a huge leap from Electric Football, where a foam football half the size of a kernel of corn usually got lost on day one. The grandstands were a cardboard picture of fans that clipped to the far side of the board. The first down markers were yellow plastic with magnets on the bottom to keep them from moving over the board.

Eventually, the game came out with a directional base for the little plastic players, which was meant to allow the kid to guide players to go where they wanted. But it didn’t work. Most of the time, one player would be running round in a circle while all the other players worked their way to the sidelines.

It was what it was.

I’m sure some of the readers of this story remember that game, and other younger readers will think I am telling tales. But these pictures prove it. Enjoy these times football fans. You’ve got it made. RH

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AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

Breaking down the opponents Week 0: August 28 Edmond Santa Fe at Owasso, 7:30 p.m.

The Wolves will prove to be a tough first opponent for the Rams. They finished 8-3 on the season before being bumped out of the playoffs with a 4128 loss to Moore in the first round.

They had a big win at Jenks in Week 9, 33-30, which was part of a five-game winning streak to finish the regular season.

Week 1: September 4 Owasso at Fayetteville, Ark., 7 p.m.

Fayetteville didn’t have a great season, but still made it to the second round of the playoffs in Arkansas. The Bulldogs finished the season 6-6, and by far their worst beatdown of the season came at Owasso, where the Rams destroyed them 51-19.

Fayetteville made it to the second round, but lost 42-14 to Bryant to end their season.

Week 2: September 11 Owasso at Broken Arrow, 7 p.m.

The Rams beat Broken Arrow twice last season. The Tigers, who won the state championship in 2018, lost at home on Sept. 13 by a lopsided 42-19 score. Later, in the 6A-I semifinals, Owasso once again downed the Tigers 42-27.

Broken Arrow had some big wins last year, beating Jenks 17-15, topping Union twice 14-0 and 35-31 in the state quarterfinals. They did lose to Edmond Santa Fe 23-21 in 2019 for their only other loss for a 9-3 mark.

Week 3: September 18 BYE WEEK

Week 4: September 25 Tulsa Union at Owasso, 7:30 p.m.

It was what many would consider a down year for the Tulsa Union Redskins. At 6-5 and a first-round playoff exit, expectations and results have usually been a legitimate run at a state title.

And there is much history between Union and Owasso. Union coach Kirk Fridrich coached Owasso for one season before leaving to Union-Tuttle Stadium. It was Owasso that snapped Union’s district stranglehold several years back. Owasso’s coach Bill Blankenship was also the pilot of the Union program in its heyday. To top it all off, it was Owasso that beat Union in the state finals in 2017, Blankenship’s first year at Owasso.

Union was ousted from the playoffs last year with a 35-31 loss to Broken Arrow.

Week 5: October 2 Owasso at Norman North, 7 p.m.

At 3-7, Norman North gave Owasso very little trouble in a 52-13 game last season. The Timberwolves started out 0-3 and then had a four-game losing streak before winning their last two games of the regular season. By then, it was too late and the T-Wolves missed the playoffs.

Week 6: October 9 Edmond North at Owasso, 7:30 p.m.

For homecoming, Owasso will invite the Huskies to town.

Edmond North won just one game last season, and against the Rams, didn’t score in a 44-point blowout. Their only win was a 21-20 upset of Edmond Memorial.

SEE BREAKDOWN Page 26

Always EARNED, GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 25

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26 FOOTBALL PREVIEW BREAKDOWN from Page 24

Week 7: October 15 Owasso at Southmoore, 7 p.m.

The short week brings a Thursday game on the road halfway across the state.

If last year is any indication, the Rams should have their way with the SaberCats, who finished 1-9 last year.

Southmoore managed just one field goal in a 55-3 loss to the Rams. Their only win last year was over Edmond North, 24-17.

Week 8: October 23 Owasso at Mustang, 7 p.m.

Could this be the trap game? Where Owasso is surprised by Mustang, which finished 7-4 last year?

Owasso has three games in a row where its opponents combined for a 5-25 record. And Mustang gave the Rams one of their toughest games of the 2019 season, with Owasso winning 24-10.

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Mustang’s season ended against a surging Jenks team last year, 55-28, in the first round of the playoffs.

Week 9: October 30 Moore at Owasso, 7:30 p.m.

The Moore Lions had a decent season in 2019. Despite a lopsided loss to Jenks in the state semifinals, they were a tough out. Owasso won their meeting with the Lions 34-7 last year, and finished the season 6-5.

Week 10: November 6 Putnam City at Owasso, 7:30 p.m.

Senior Night is always an emotional game, and the Rams would love nothing more than to send off their 12th-graders with a win over the Pirates, who finished last year with just one win.

Owasso and Putnam City didn’t meet last season, as they played in 6A-II. But the Pirates didn’t score until game four, a 14-0 win over Putnam City West. After that, PC scored just 19 points in their next five games. RH

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NEW TERRITORY: Rejoice moves up to 2A

I

t would be easy to make a David vs.

Goliath reference to this year’s Rejoice Christian football team.

But being behind the eight-ball isn’t something Eagles head coach Brent Marley is worried about.

“Looking at the schedule, it’s like ‘whoa’,” Marley said. “We’re excited about it.”

Marley pointed out that after his team made it to the Class A state semifinals last year and finished 12-1 with a perfect 10-0 district record, repeating that record this year will be a lot tougher.

“We’ve got four returning starters on each side of the ball and three of those kids go both ways,” Marley said. “Graduating your quarterback, your main receiver, your tailback, key linemen, four senior linebackers that started.

You had a really good one that moved to Cushing. And then we’re making the bump (to Class 2A). We have a thing we try to live by around here, and that’s 1-0. We tell the kids excellence is the next five minutes. “We’re really just looking at Cashion.”

That will be their first game of the new season in Zero Week (Aug. 28).

“They were the state runner-up in Class A,” Marley said. “If we had beaten Ringling, we would have played them in the finals. Most people thought it was going to be a Rejoice-Cashion state finals. We’ve got to be ready.”

Other mean-looking Friday nights will include hosting Beggs on Sept. 4. They play at Claremore Sequoyah on Oct. 9, a team that just dropped down from 3A, and the final two weeks of the season at Adair and against district champion Sperry in Week 10.

Yikes.

“We’ve got to be ready,” Marley said. “Every week, we’ve got to be prepared. It’s exciting.

We’re talking about trading punches. This is real football, being in battles late and finding out who you are, having to come back from adversity. Who are you going to be?”

The returning player list is short and sweet.

The Eagles return Stockton Ryan, a 6-2, 230 pound center and middle linebacker; Logan Linnell, a 6-0, 240 pound offensive tackle; sophomore Jay Miller at receiver. And kicker Ben Brown also returns.

“He’s a great kicker,” Marley said. “He’s probably our highest recruit we have.”

With so few returners, that means a lot of new faces will be taking the field this season.

And the big question is, who will be the Eagles’ quarterback?

According to Marley, the job is between sophomore Chance Wilson, a 6-3, 180 pounder who played free safety for the Eagles as a freshman, and Sammy Armentrout, a 6-0, 180 pound junior. Wilson had a big year on defense last year, he had six interceptions and returned most of those for touchdowns.

Hunter Jennings has the early nod as the starting running back. The 5-10, 175 pound senior has some skills.

“He will be tremendous,” Marley said.

“Nate Anderson rushed for 1,700 yards and 40 touchdowns last year, and now we have Hunter stepping up. He averaged 10.2 yards per carry last year. Now, it’s his turn. Hunter is the fastest running back I’ve ever had, he might be the fastest player I’ve ever had. He gets a crease, it’s over with.”

He was also on the state champion 4x100

SEE REJOICE, Page 32

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 31

The Rejoice football Eagles have been training hard in preperation for the challenging 2020 season ahead of them! The Eagles have a strong home schedule and welcome the Owasso community in cheering them on to victory!

RISE ABOVE IN 2020!

Visit us online at our new Eagle Athletics website.

rejoiceathletics.com

Rejoice Christian Schools admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, priviledges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of it’s educational policies, admissions policies, scholarships and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.

32 FOOTBALL PREVIEW REJOICE from Page 30 relay team a few years back, so he does have serious wheels.

“The kid can run,” Marley said. “He’s a different kind of back.”

Miller, returning at wide receiver, could also be a difference-maker.

“He can be really really good,” Marley said.

“Jay has a chance to be the best we’ve ever had.”

Add in Grady James at the slot, and it could be a dynamic duo.

“Grady will be a playmaker,” Marley said.

“He is a Julian Edelman type.”

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

He said Bryce Revard and Colten Abel have shown a lot of progress.

Marley also expects some other newcomers to help in 2020, like Drevin Reed at strong safety and slot receiver; Jace Jenkins at receiver and defensive back who Marley calls extremely fast; Peyton Baker at receiver and defensive back; Josh Hendricks and Trevor Gage at receiver.

“We’re going to be extremely young, but I’m excited with what we have,” Marley said.

“We’ve got to not make those freshmen and sophomore mistakes.”

RH

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FOOTBALL PREVIEW 33

34 FOOTBALL PREVIEW

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

Rejoice is building a football culture

F

ifteen years ago, there was no high school called Rejoice Christian.

It was just a small private school located on the grounds of a church on 106th and Highway 169.

But it began to grow. It outgrew the church building. Grades 9-12 were added and it then outgrew the bigger converted church building on 86th Street. And with a healthy donation from benefactor Eddy Gibbs, a new campus was completed at its current location.

But all along the way, at every level, Rejoice football has been good. Good in the Christian League. Good in 8-man. And now, good in 11-man.

Better than good, actually. Playoff good.

Deep playoff runs. State ranked good. Undefeated regular season good.

Brent Marley is about to begin his sixth season at the helm of the Eagles, moving over from Victory Christian to a program and school that didn’t have much to offer as far as amenities.

When they were eight-man, they played at

LEFT: Senior Hunter Jennings, running back CENTER: Coach Brent Marley RIGHT: Senior Grady James, defensive back Ator Field where the sidelines were narrowed with white-painted fire hoses. Literally. Fire hoses.

“People tell me about the fire hose days,” Marley said. “I’m thankful that my first year here...we were just in the second year of 11man, but the school was still on 86th Street and we played at Ator. We had a 60-yard practice field on 86th Street. We had a little bitty locker room that nobody used — players used their cars after school to get ready for practice. We had a little garage off to the side that had one bench press and a couple of bars. We would go to Collinsville to go train there in the mornings and in the offseason. All the players had to pay a monthly fee.”

Going through that made Marley not only appreciate the first-class campus the Eagles now

SEE CULTURE, Page 36

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CULTURE from Page 34 enjoy, but it also endeared him to the Rejoice fans, who know he went through the lean times to get to the riches.

“Coming from Victory, now that we’re here and are blessed with the facilities that we have, I can’t imagine leaving this for a school with a 60-yard practice field and using a old stadium for games and having a garage with one bench as a weight room,” he said. “What were we thinking?

What are we doing? I look back at that first year in 2015 at that old campus and playing off site, and it was one of the best years in my 19 years of being a coach. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

I’m thankful I had that year to know Rejoice as it used to be.”

Marley arrived right on time. He was in on the construction of the new school and athletic facilities that shine brightly from Highway 169.

It has been an adventure, to say the least. But like the Eagles have built a campus, they have also built an athletic program to be proud of.

“I just told somebody it’s like a big ol’ ship was being built and you don’t know all the ins and outs of the ship, and it’s lost out in the ocean,” he said. “We’re moving and we have to go somewhere. It’s a great time to be here. You’re moving constantly — like COVID — you’re constantly finding new things out. We’ve got to get better at that, we’ve got to do that ... it’s a constant work in progress. But it’s been fun. A lot of coaches go through their whole career and never get to do anything like this.”

Home field has been good to Marley. What he and his staff and administration have built have resulted in just one home loss since Marley arrived. One home loss in five years, and that was by two points to the eventual state champions.

Two of his former players now play for the University of Oklahoma. Others see that it’s possible and want to follow in those shoes.

He says he is building a culture. “It’s hard to beat a person who won’t quit,” Marley said.

That mantra, like that empty field to the north of Rejoice Christian Church, has turned into something special.

“As a coach, with the newness and buildings and getting to establish culture, it’s really cool,” Marley said. “It’s like you have a blank canvas and you’re trying to paint a picture, and get to have a say in that. It’s a blessing to be able to do that.” RH

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Games to watch in 2020 Week 0

Edmond Santa Fe at Owasso — And it begins, the start of the title defense for the Rams, who open the season at home after winning the 6A-I gold ball last year after a 13-0 season.

Cashion at Rejoice — It could have been last year’s state championship game had the Eagles made it past the semis.

Week 1

Beggs at Rejoice — The Eagles’ first game ever in Class 2A, takes on a Beggs teams that finished in the semifinals last season.

Rejoice moves up a division and will be tested early.

Oologah at Collinsville — Oologah has owned this game for the past several years, but Collinsville has eyes on bigger things in 2020.

Sperry at Verdigris — Two playoff teams from last year. Sperry was a quarterfinalist in 2A, while Verdigris made it to the semis in 3A

Week 2

Owasso at Broken Arrow — Owasso won the state championship in 2017 and 2019 and Broken Arrow won it in 2018. No hype is needed for this one.

Collinsville at Skiatook — Separated by just a handful of miles, these two rivals hook up in the pre-district season. Throw out the records when these two teams meet.

Claremore at Oologah — Usually, these two teams meet up in the scrimmage season at the Rogers County Rumble, but this year, they meet when it counts. This will be a new experience for both teams, which are just a stone’s throw apart.

Week 3

Luther at Rejoice — Luther made it to the 2A state semifinals last year, and will be another tough test for the Eagles.

Week 4

Union at Owasso — The tide has turned in this rivalry. For years, the Redskins had the upper hand, but now the Rams are not only beat the Redskins for the 2017 championship, they have dominated them recently.

Each coach has coached at both schools, so there is a lot of familiarity. And it is the district opener.

Week 5

Oologah at Skiatook — Suddenly, this game counts for districts. The two teams are close in proximity, and with this being a district game, this could turn into a fierce rivalry.

Week 6

Collinsville and Claremore — It’s not that it is just a rivalry, but these two teams don’t particularly like each other. Collinsville has had their way with the Zebras in recent years, but home field advantage may make this game close. The winner will have the inside track to a home playoff game.

Sperry at Adair — This game could mean a lot toward district placement.

Week 7 Claremore at Tahlequah — This game has been a tough out for the Zebras in recent years, despite their win over the undefeated Tigers last year. It’s a tough road game every two years for Claremore.

SEE GAMES Page 40

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GAMES from Page 38 Week 8 Owasso at Mustang — The second crossstate road trip in a row for the Rams.

Mustang will be looking for the upset, as most teams will with the defending state champs.

Oologah at Wagoner — It hasn’t happened in a few years, but for three straight seasons, Wagoner defeated Oologah for the 4A championship. Those memories don’t just go away.

Bristow at Skiatook — This late in the season, districts are getting settled. In this district, things won’t be settled until these two play, and something big could be on the line.

Week 9

Rejoice at Adair — Adair is a perennial power, and this will be one of Rejoice’s toughest road tests this season.

Claremore at Sapulpa — The Chieftains

dropped from 6A-II to 5A, and will need to win games like this to improve their playoff stock.

Collinsville at Pryor — Always a tough game at Pryor, as the Tigers are one of few teams these days with a real grass field.

Week 10

Pryor at Claremore — The Highway 20 Rivalry pits two teams that dislike each other.

Most years, this is the last game of the season for good reason, and many times, it can be a spoiler game.

Sperry at Rejoice — Two playoff teams from last year, could be for playoff positioning.

Tahlequah at Collinsville — This game might be for a district title, or at least one home playoff game on the line.

Wagoner at Skiatook — Wagoner won three straight state titles a few years ago, but haven’t been back in a few years. Skiatook could make noise with a win here. RH

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2019 Class 6AI

First Round Moore 41, Edmond Santa Fe 28 Jenks 55, Mustang 28 Owasso 52, Norman 14 Broken Arrow 35, Union 31 Semifinals Jenks 48, Moore 20 Owasso 42, Broken Arrow 27 Finals Owasso 14, Jenks 6

Class 6AII First Round Stillwater 77, Sapulpa 6 Choctaw 29 Muskogee 21 Bixby 42, Midwest City 10 Del City 33, BT Washington 7 Semifinals Stillwater 62, Choctaw 12 Bixby 47, Del City 19 Finals Bixby 40, Stillwater 36

Class 5A First Round Noble 28, Woodward 14 Bishop Kelley 27, Collinsville 0 Edison 55, Pryor 27 Bishop McGuinness 46, Ardmore 14 Carl Albert 48, Duncan 7 McAlester 49, Claremore 28 Coweta 42, Tahlequah 21 Piedmont 24, El Reno 21 Quarterfinals Bishop Kelley 28, Noble 7 Bishop McGuinness 42, Edison 41 Carl Albert 38, McAlester 7 Piedmont 62, Coweta 21 Semifinals Bishop McGuinness 48, Bishop Kelley 22 Carl Albert 24, Piedmont 0 Finals Carl Albert 30, Bishop McGuinness 15

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

Play0ff Rewind Class 4A

First Round Weatherford 28, Cushing 6 Sallisaw 9, Grove 7 Broken Bow 28, Bristow 3 Tuttle 17, Chickasha 7 Bethany 20, Clinton 0 Wagoner 42, Fort Gibson 7 Poteau 47, Cleveland 20 Cache 42, Tecumseh 20 Quarterfinals Weatherford 53, Sallisaw 33 Tuttle 14, Broken Bow 13 Wagoner 21, Bethany 14 Poteau 40, Cache 7 Semifinals Weatherford 16, Tuttle 7 Poteau 7, Wagoner 3 Finals Poteau 9, Weatherford 7

Class 3A First Round Heritage Hall 42, Purcell 0 Stigler 55, Berryhill 21 Lincoln Christian 56, Inola 7 Kingfisher 45, Marlow 42 Plainview 49, John Marshall 15 Checotah 36, Cascia Hall 22 Verdigris 41, Idabel 6 Perkins-Tryon 35, Sulphur 6 Quarterfinals Heritage Hall 34, Stigler 9 Lincoln Christian 55, Kingfisher 14 Plainview 58, Checotah 34 Verdigris 42, Perkins-Tryon 28 Semifinals Lincoln Christian 33, Heritage Hall 6 Plainview 55, Verdigris 13 Finals Lincoln Christian 42, Plainview 21

Class 2A First Round Chisholm 41, Okemah 8 Beggs 62, Nowata 28 Eufaula 32, Tahlequah Sequoyah 0

Lindsay 48, Lexington 46 Metro Christian 69, Kiefer 30 Meeker 44, Oklahoma Christian 14 Washington 45, Comanche 13 Holland Hall 34, Atoka 0 Vian 56, Hartshorne 19 Millwood 14, Davis 10 Jones 49, Perry 21 Adair 58, Dewey 6 Kingston 42, Community Christian 0 Hugo 41, Spiro 13 Sperry 59, Kansas 2 Luther 26, Chandler 8 Second Round Beggs 27, Chisholm 8 Lindsay 15, Eufaula 14 Metro Christian 42, Meeker 20 Washington 17, Holland Hall 14 Vian 47, Millwood 16 Adair 32, Jones 27 Kingston 22, Hugo 12 Sperry 38, Luther 0 Quarterfinals Beggs 60, Lindsay 7 Metro Christian 55, Washington 13 Vian 45, Adair 0 Kingston 14, Sperry 7 Semifinals Metro Christian 42, Beggs 31 Vian 35, Kingston 7 Finals Metro Christian 42, Vian 34

Class A First Round Thomas-Fay-Custer 41, Sayre 6 Minco 41, Elmore City-Pernell 7 Rejoice Christian 42, Hominy 19 Wewoka 56, Central Sallisaw 22 Ringling 36, Watonga 0 Frederick 48, Oklahoma Bible 21 Stroud 48, Warner 7 Pawhuska 52, Oklahoma Union 6 Pawnee 54, Colcord 0 Wayne 33, Savanna 14 Mangum 31, Mooreland 12 Dibble 28, Crossings Christian 20 Gore 27, Konawa 6

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

Barnsdall 33, Commerce 7 Cashion 45, Rush Springs 0 Texhoma 32, Hobart 15 Second Round Thomas-Fay-Custer 47, Minco 45 Rejoice Christian 62, Wewoka 18 Ringling 27, Frederick 0 Pawhuska 34, Stroud 26 Pawnee 44, Wayne 21 Mangum 28, Dibble 6 Barnsdall 29, Gore 26 Cashion 45, Texhoma 6 Quarterfinals Rejoice Christian 47, Thomas-Fay-Custer 28 Ringling 28, Pawhuska 12 Pawnee 64, Mangum 7 Cashion 28, Pawnee 16 Semifinals Ringling 28, Rejoice Christian 19 Cashion 34, Pawnee 16 Finals Ringling 20, Cashion 14

Class B First Round Shattuck 48, Garber 0 Burns Flat-Dill City 54, Central 6

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 43

Dewar 68, Wetumka 28 Summit Christian 51, Prue 12 Waurika 54, Cyril 6 Pioneer-Pleasant Valley 44, Turpin 6 Daven port 54, Oaks Mission 0 Weleetka 54, Arkoma 8 Canadian 62, Gans 12 Depew 54, Watts 12 Cherokee 52, Seiling 6 Snyder 64, Wilson 18 Regent Prep 62, Yale 6 Strother 28, Keota 20 Alex 52, Empire 6 Laverne 42, Ringwood 12 Second Round Shattuck 40, Burns Flat-Dill City 26 Dewar 72, Summit Christian 27 Pioneer-Pleasant Valley 38, Waurika 8 Davenport 46, Weleetka 6 Canadian 62, Depew 12 Cherokee 52, Snyder 6 Regent Prep 54, Strother 0 Alex 44, Laverne 30 Quarterfinals Shattuck 62, Dewar 28 Davenport 54, Pioneer-Pleasant Valley 0 Cherokee 50, Canadian 48

Regent Prep 59, Alex 14 Semifinals Shattuck 30, Davenport 14 Regent Prep 49, Cherokee 0 Finals Shattuck 24, Regent Prep 19

Class C First Round Pond Creek-Hunter 54, Fox 6 Covington-Douglas 38, Midway 14 SW Covenant 50, Webbers Falls 18 Timberlake 28, Mountain View-Gotebo 24 Tipton 52, Sharon-Mutual 50 Sasakwa 70, Coyle 60 Graham-Dustin 52, Bluejacket 6 Waynoka 52, Maysville 28 Quarterfinals Pond Creek-Hunter 48, Covington-Douglas 0 Timberlake 40, SW Covenant 26 Tipton 76, Sasakwa 42 Waynoka 28, Graham-Dustin 14 Semifinals Pond Creek-Hunter 54, Timberlake 8 Waynoka 72, Tipson 48 Pond Creek-Hunter 54, Waynoka 89 RH

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2020 District Alignments 6AI District 1 — Broken Arrow, Edmond Memorial, Edmond Santa Fe, Enid, Jenks, Norman, Westmoore, Yukon 6AI District 2 — Edmond North, Moore, Mustang, Norman North, Owasso, Putnam City, Southmoore, Union 6AII District 1 — Edmond Deer Creek, Del City, Lawton, Midwest City, NW Classen, Putnam North, Stillwater, US Grant 6AII District 2 — Bartlesville, Bixby, Booker T Washington, Choctaw, Muskogee, Ponca City, Putnam West, Sand Springs

3A District 2 — Dickson, Kingston, Little Axe, Lone Grove, Madill, Pauls Valley, Plainview, Sulphur 3A District 3 — Checotah, Tulsa Webster, Lincoln Christian, Locust Grove, Seminole, Tahlequah Sequoyah, Stigler, Westville 3A District 4 — Berryhill, Tulsa Central, Holland Hall, Inola, Jay, Mannford, Verdigris, Vinita

2A District 1 — Alva, Blackwell, Chisholm, Hennessey, Luther, Newkirk, Oklahoma Christian School, Perry 2A District 2 — Chandler, Crossings Christian, Jones, Kellyville, Meeker, Millwood, Prague, Star Spencer 5A District 1 — Altus, Ardmore, Capitol Hill, Dun- 2A District 3 — Bethel, Christian Heritage, can, El Reno, Lawton MacArthur, Noble, Southeast Community Christian, Crooked Oak, Holdenville, 5A District 2 — Bishop McGuinness, Carl Albert, Lexington, Purcell, Washington Lawton Eisenhower, Guthrie, Guymon, Piedmont, 2A District 4 — Coalgate, Comanche, Davis, Western Heights, Woodward Frederick, Lindsay, Marietta, Marlow, Tishomingo 5A District 3 — Bishop Kelley, Coweta, Durant, 2A District 5 — Cascia Hall, Heavener, Keys, East Central, Edison Prep, McAlester, Shawnee, Tulsa Panama, Pocola, Roland, Spiro, Vian Rogers 2A District 6 — Antlers, Atoka, Eufaula, Harts5A District 4 — Claremore, Collinsville, Glenhorne, Hugo, Idabel, Valliant, Wilburton pool, Tulsa Memorial, Tulsa Hale, Pryor, Sapulpa, 2A District 7 — Beggs, Haskell, Henryetta, Tahlequah Kiefer, Metro Christian, Morris, Okmulgee, Victory Christian 4A District 1 — Bethany, Cache, Chickasha, 2A District 8 — Adair, Claremore Sequoyah, Clinton, Elgin, Elk City, Newcastle, Weatherford Dewey, Kansas, Nowata, Rejoice Christian, Salina, 4A District 2 — Ada, Blanchard, Classes SAS, Sperry Cushing, Harrah, John Marshall, Tecumseh, Tuttle 4A District 3 — Bristow, Catoosa, Cleveland, A District 1 — Burns Flatt-Dill City, Fairview, Grove, Miami, Oologah, Skiatook, Wagoner Hooker, Merritt, Mooreland, Sayre, Texhoma, 4A District 4 — Broken Bow, Fort Gibson, Thomas-Fay-Custer Hilldale, Tulsa McLain, Muldrow, Poteau, Sallisaw, A District 2 — Boone-Apachem, Carnegie, Cordell, Stilwell Hobart, Hollis, Mangum, Minco, Walters A District 3 — Cashion, Crescent, Hinton, Okla3A District 1 — Anadarko, Bridge Creek, Doughoma Bible Academy, Oklahoma Christian Academy, lass, Heritage Hall,. Kingfisher, McLoud, Mount St. Tonkawa, Watonga Mary, Perkins-Tryon SEE DISTRICTS Page 46

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46 FOOTBALL PREVIEW DISTRICTS from Page 44 A District 4 — Dibble, Elmore City-Pernell, Healdton, Ringling, Rush Springs, Stratford, Wayne, Wynnewood A District 5 — Afton, Commerce, Fairland, Ketchum, Oklahoma Union, Pawhuska, Quapaw, Wyandotte A District 6 — Caney Valley, Chelsea, Chouteau-Mazie, Hominy, Morrison, Pawnee, Woodland A District 7 — Allen, Konawa, Liberty, Mounds, Okemah, Savanna, Stroud, Wewoka A District 8 — Canadian, Central Sallisaw, Colcord, Gore, Hulbert, Porter Consolidated, Talihina, Warner B District 1 — Balko-Forgan, Canton, Laverne, Weiling, Shattuck, Turpin B District 2 — Cherokee, Kremlin-Hillsdale, Okeene, Pond Creek-Hunter, Ringwood, Waukomis B District 3 — Central High, Cyril, Empire, Snyder, Tipton, Waurika

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

B District 4 — Alex, Bray-Doyle, Caddo, Strother, SW Convenant, Velma-Alma B District 5 — Dewar, Porum, Quinton, Webbers Falls, Weleetka, Wetumka B District 6 — Arkoma, Cave Springs, Gans, Keota, Summit Christian, Watts B District 7 — Barnsdall, Covington=Douglas, Garber, Olive, Pioneer-Pleasant Vale, Yale B District 8 — Davenport, Depew, Drumright, Foyil, Prue, Regent Prep C District 1 — Beaver, Boise City, Buffalo, Corn Bible Academy, Geary, Sharon-Mutual, Tyrone, Waynoka C District 2 — Fox, Grandsfield, Maysville, Mt View-Gotebo, Paoli, Ryan, Temple, Thackerville C District 3 — Bluejacket, Copan, Deer Creek-Lamont, Medford, South Coffeyville, Timberlake, Welch, Wesleyan Christian C District 4 — Bowlegs, Coyle, Graham-Dustin, Maud, Midway, Oaks Mission, Sasakwa, Wilson (Henryetta) RH

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FRESH FACES: Zebras must replace Big 4

L

Left: Junior DeShawn Kinnard, Running Back osing players to graduation is a conCenter: Coach Jarrett Hurt stant in high school football. Every Right: Junior Ethan Grimett, Linebacker year, coaches must say goodbye to key players, and then find players to step in and fill those shoes.

Receiver Brooks Sherl and a host of other For Claremore High School football coach receivers will try to fill those shoes left by Jarrett Hurt, the shoes he had to fill are size 19s. Kedzior and Skinner. “We’re confident in the His “Big 4” — quarterback Charlie Murdock, guys we have and feel they will be more than running back Jace Hightower, and receivers capable to replace the guys we lost.”

Dylan Kedzior and Quentin Skinner — are all Other returning players of note are Blake Bagone. con and Roman Morris will be on the line, and But the coach, as always, stays calm and cool Ethan Grimett returns to anchor the defense. and looks at the positives.

“Ethan started every game at inside lineback“We lost a quarterback, a tailback and a er,” Hurt said. “Ethan is a great player, one of couple of dynamic receivers, but we are very our leading tacklers on defense last year.” confident in the Hurt has others players we’ve got “The thing about football...the that will also help coming back,” important thing about football.. his team from last Hurt said. year. is that it is not just about Those key “We’ve got a positions will be lot of guys coming football.” — Terry Pratchett replaced by Noah back that we feel Smallwood at quarterback, and Deshawn Kinreally good about,” Hurt said. “Jett Woods on nard will be the new tailback. the defensive line really came on last year for “He’s a dynamic player,” Hurt said of Kinus. Reid Brasel and Riley Hoke, those guys nard. “He actually started the first game last played fullback and linebacker and we’re really year against Bartlesville and had a great night. excited about those kids.”

Then he was the tailback the night we beat unHurt is also ready to bring up last year’s defeated Tahlequah at Tahlequah last year when freshmen who will make an impact as varsity Jace was hurt. We are very confident in what sophomores.

Deshawn brings to the table.”

SEE ZEBRAS Page 50

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 49

THINK YOU ARE A FOOTBALL FAN? THINK YOU KNOW THE GAME?

Let’s see just how smart you are with the Gameday Oklahoma Knowledge Bowl.

1. How wide is a football field?

A. 50 yards B. 50 1/3 yards

C. 53 yards D. 53 1/3 yards

2. How far apart are the uprights on the goal posts?

A. 20 feet, 6 inches B. 23 feet, 4 inches

C. 22 feet, 8 inches D. 21 feet

3. Who was the last player to win the Heisman who wasn’t a quarterback or a running back?

A. Charles Woodson B. Desmond Howard

C. Tim Brown D. Jadeveon Clowney

4. Which team has the most Super Bowl losses?

A. Buffalo Bills C. Dallas Cowboys B. Green Bay Packers D. Denver Broncos 5. Which quarterback has thrown the most interceptions in a career?

A. Vinny Testaverde B. Fran Tarkenton

C. Brett Favre D. Eli Manning

6. How many interceptions did Troy Aikman throw in his career?

A. 88 C. 127 B. 92 D. 141 7. Lawrence Taylor won three NFL defensive player of the year awards. What other player also won three?

A. Charles Woodson B. J.J. Watt

C. Reggie White D. Bruce Smith

8. Which NFL team had the longest winning streak, including playoffs, with 23 wins?

A. New England Patriots B. Indianapolis Colts

C. Green Bay Packers D. Pittsburgh Steelers

9. How many NFL teams have never been to a Super Bowl?

A. 2 B. 3

C. 4 D. 5

10. Which team had the most consecutive losses?

A. Tampa Bay Buccaneers B. Detroit Lions

13. The horse collar tackle was deemed illegal because of which player?

A. Lawrence Taylor C. Deion Sanders B. Ray Lewis D. Roy Williams 14. Owasso has won two of the last three state championships. Their first was a tie in 1974.

Who did they tie?

A. Enid B. Stillwater

C. Durant D. Ada

15. What was the score of the first bedlam football game?

A. Oklahoma 46, Oklahoma A&M 6 B. Oklahoma 75, Oklahoma A&M 0 C. Oklahoma 66, Oklahoma A&M 12 D. Oklahoma 22, Oklahoma A&M 20 16. What was Bob Stoops’ bowl record?

A. 10-7 B. 9-9

C. 8-10 D. 11-6

17. Four-time Super Bowl champion Jon Kolb is from Owasso. Where did he attend college?

A. Oklahoma B. Northeastern State

C. Oklahoma State D. Missouri

18. Locust Grove’s Mason Fine set the state high school passing yards record in 2015.

Against which team?

A. Inola B. Claremore Sequoyah

C. Hilldale D. Berryhill

19. Who has the most rushing yards in Oklahoma Sooners history?

A. Adrian Peterson B. Billy Sims

C. Samaje Perine D. Steve Owens

20. How many bowl games has the University of Tulsa competed?

A. 21 B. 25

C. 28 D. 15

C. Cleveland Browns D. Houston Oilers

11. In the most recent NFL draft, which position was drafted the most?

A. Linebackers B. Wide receiversa

C. Defensive backs D. Offensive linemen

12. The first NFL draft pick in 2016 was Jared Goff.

Where did he attend school?

C. Oregon State D. California

Answers: 1. D; 2. B; 3. A; 4. D; 5. C; 6. D; 7. B; 8. B; 9. C; 10. A; 11. A; 12. D; 13. D; 14. D; 15. B; 16. B; 17. C; 18. B; 19. C; 20. A

A. Vanderbilt B. Stanford

50 FOOTBALL PREVIEW

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

ZEBRAS from Page 48 “We’re always excited for the ninth graders to move up to the sophomore class and join our high school team,” he said. “Gannon Sherl, a receiver and defensive back, Scout Cutsinger, Rhett Hightower at running back and several linemen can help us.”

And a newcomer, B.K. Seago is now a Zebra.

“B.K. Seago is a move in from Skiatook,” Hurt said. “He’s a fullback and linebacker. He’s a highly competitive kid and he is a highly competitive wrestler.”

This year begins with a trip to Bartlesville for the Sept. 4 season opener. Before that, the Zebras will have two scrimmages, at Coweta and at home against Wagoner. This means the end of the Rogers County Rumble, which featured the Zebras, Oologah, Sequoyah and Catoosa.

“I prefer a one-on-one format where we can get our seventh, eighth, ninth, JV and varsity some good reps in the same night,” Hurt said.

“It’s more of a controlled atmosphere when it’s against one team instead of having four teams out there.”

Teams are behind due to the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown, and are just finally getting face-to-face contact with coaches. But ever the

Coach Jarrett Hurt, photo by Means Photography optimist, Hurt sees it as a good thing.

“I think in a lot of ways it was great for the kids to have a break and catch their breath and have some time off,” Hurt said. “Every sport these days is year round and kids really don’t get a chance to slow down and take a break. We are looking at it as a positive thing. We don’t look at it like we’re behind, we’re just excited to get started.” RH

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Wishing all the players a safe & successful season!

Show Class.

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52 FOOTBALL PREVIEW

ZEBRAS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE Date SEPT 4 SEPT 11 SEPT 18 SEPT 25 OCT 2 OCT 9 OCT 15 OCT 23

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Smallwood brings big-time upside

T

wo-year starter Charlie Murdock is no longer the Claremore quarterback. Due to graduation, that spot now belongs to Noah Smallwood, who has impressed the coaching staff even back when he wasn’t yet on varsity, enough to get the early nod to call the shots behind center for the 2020 Zebras.

“I can remember him in ninth grade playing quarterback,” said Claremore football coach Jarrett Hurt. “Earlier in the year he had run over about three kids one night, and the opposing fans were yelling at the refs to flag him for targeting, and he was the quarterback. It tells you a little bit about his competitive spirit.”

Smallwood is a 5-10, 150-pound junior. Not big by any means. But that has never stopped him from playing the most important position in three different sports while at Claremore.

“He is a very, very good athlete,” Hurt said. “He’s

Noah Smallwood, photo by Means Photography a quarterback for us, he’s the point guard in basketball and the shortstop in baseball. That tells you a lot about that kid. He’s a competitor. He’s got a fire burning inside him and he loves to compete. It doesn’t matter what season, he loves to compete.”

As a sophomore, Smallwood played on varsity as a cornerback and a wide receiver. But moving to quarterback this year gives Hurt and his offensive play-callers many options.

“We’re excited about having him,” Hurt said.

“He’s going to bring a new dynamic to our offense this year with his running ability. He’s very elusive.”

But more than that, Smallwood has that intangible that coaches love.

“He’s got a big heart,” Hurt said. “You need a big heart to play football. He’s about 150 pounds, but he’s dynamic and he is one tough sucker.” RH

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 55

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4A doesn’t get much easier for Skiatook

T

he Skiatook football team is now one Miller sees Wagoner as the team to beat in of the larger Class 4A teams in the the district. state, instead of one of the smallest “I think Wagoner will be tough,” Miller said.

5A teams.

“They got most all of their kids back and will Not that it really matters, since their 4A disbe tough like they are every year. Grove will be trict is just as tough as their 5A schedule was. good this year, Oologah is always tough, and Now, they must see Wagoner and Oologah, Bristow won the district last year. We want to two teams who played each other for the state get into the playoffs and our goal is to win the championship three years in a row not too long district. Hopefully, we’re competitive.” ago. They have In order to do district champion “In life, as in football, you won’t that, they will have Bristow. They have to find a way to a resurged Catoosa go far unless you know where replace their do-itteam. They have all star from the last the goalposts are.”

Grove, who is gofour years, Jayden

—Arnold H. Glasow Garner, who graduing to be tough.

Yes, 4A is here, ated will now play but is it an advantage for the Bulldogs? ball for the University of Central Oklahoma.

“We feel like it’s a pretty solid district,” said “I don’t know if you can replace him,” Miller Skiatook head coach Vance Miller. “I’m from said. “He was very talented. We will miss here, and back when I played, we were 4A. But Jayden. He could do it all. He punted, played we’ve been 5A since I’ve been coaching.”

SEE 4A, Page 58

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58 FOOTBALL PREVIEW 4A from Page 56 wildcat quarterback, sometimes at running back, receiver, he played cornerback, safety, outside linebacker. He started for us as a freshman and it seemed like we had him for a long time. We had his brother before that, so we’ve had a Garner in the program for a long time.

We’ll miss him.”

But the good news is the Bulldogs have some returning players from last year that will help Miller.

“We’ve got most of our guys coming back, a good core of kids,” Miller said. “We’ve got a good sophomore class coming in and it will be interesting to see who rises to the top of that group.”

Miller praised three returning offensive linemen that will anchor that group.

“We’ve got center Forrest Johnston who played as a freshman and is one of our coach’s sons,” Miller said. “He’s started the last two years and is a junior. Offensive guard Alex Goekler, a three-year starter for us, and lineman Max Petrunak.”

Miller also praised his sophomore quarterback, Mason Willingham.

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“He started as a freshman for us last year,” Miller said. “He had a really good year. He’s very athletic, a great kid and very talented. He’s smart, and understands football and he can run and throw it too. He’s quiet but he’s a good leader.”

Skiatook has three options at running back with senior Reece Womack, junior Silvio Falance and sophomore Braedon Foster.

Returning wide receiver senior Cash Cooper will be big this year.

“He is our main target,” Miller said. “And (junior) Joe Overstreet...he’s 6-3 or 6-4 and he’s really worked hard and gotten stronger.”

Foster will also return on defense, as will inside linebacker Alex Johnson.

Miller is ready to start his 4A journey, beginning with a roadie to Glenpool on Sept. 4.

“We’re real excited,” Miller said. “We’ve lost some kids for several different reasons. So our numbers are down. We always hung at the bottom of the 5A, but now we’ve dropped to being one of the top in 4A. It’s all new territory for us. Some of the teams are just as tough as the ones we played in 5A, so it’s all new to us.

We’re excited about that. I think every week will be tough.” RH

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Highway 20 Bowl still means a lot

F

or Skiatook High School, it doesn’t matter what’s at stake, their football game with Collinsville is a must-play and a must-see game every year.

The annual game has had some big-time consequences in the past. If it’s not a key district game, then it’s for the Highway 20 Bowl trophy, bragging rights for the winner between the two teams just a stone’s throw apart.

In 2015, the two teams faced off in the Class 5A state semifinals. No. 2 Skiatook and No. 8 Collinsville met for the second time of the season, this time for a chance to go to the state finals.

Collinsville got hot in the second half and won 23-3.

The rivalry game has been going on for nearly 120 years.

“At one time, it was pretty close in wins,” Skiatook coach Vance Miller said. “But I think Collinsville got us now, but it’s not too big of a swing. For the gate, it’s always going to be a

packed house. It’s not as big, but probably kind of like the Jenks-Union deal. Everybody gets into that week, being so close.”

This year, the two teams will be at 7 p.m. on Sept. 11 at Skiatook. But this is not a district game, since the Bulldogs have dropped to Class 4A for at least the next two seasons. This is a bragging game with a trophy and a puffed chest as the reward.

“I think it’s become a heated rivalry,” said Miller, who used to play in this game for Skiatook back in the day. “It’s definitely grown over the years. It used to be Sperry and Skiatook, but then we outgrew Sperry and Collinsville became the new rival. It’s become a heated rivalry.”

According to Miller, a former Skiatook Quarterback Club President Roger Upton started the Highway 20 Bowl and it has raised the stakes of this game ever since.

“He got it started for us and they do a trophy,

SEE BOWL, Page 64

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 63

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

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64 FOOTBALL PREVIEW BOWL from Page 62 it’s a pretty neat deal for the kids,” Miller said.

“It’s a big week for both schools.”

Collinsville head coach Kevin Jones agrees.

“It is heated, but I think it’s more heated for the student bodies and the fans,” he said. “It’s more about them than anything else. Our teams have a great deal of respect for each other and I know the coaching staffs do. I can’t remember there ever being an incident on the field.”

And this rivalry has intensified since both

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

teams have had a lot of success in the last handful of seasons.

“The success they’ve had and we’ve had, and the good players we’ve both had with a five year period,” Miller said. “We played them in the semifinals. In 2014, we were in the finals, in 2015 they were in the finals. It’s nice to see one team or the other making a run. It’s fun.

We know their coaches and our administrations know each other. It’s a heated rivalry, but it’s fun too.” RH

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East side dominates state 6A titles in past 20 years

W

hen talking about football dominance, there is no doubt that the east side of Oklahoma rules the roost when it comes to state championships in the larger classifications, especially in the past 20 years.

Take Class 6A-I as an example.

Midwest City was the last west-side school to win the state title in the largest classification, and that was 1995. Since then, it has been the Big Four, Jenks, Union, Owasso and Broken Arrow.

Since that year, the streak began with Jenks winning 13 championships, including strings of six in a row, and four in a row. Their last title

“A man who complains about the way the ball bounces is likely the one who dropped it.”

— Lou Holtz

was in 2015.

Union won eight titles since the 2002 season, and the Redskins had a streak of four straight from 2008-11.

That 21-year two-team domination finally came to an end in 2017 with the Owasso Rams beating Union for the thrilling championship.

The next year, Broken Arrow got its first-ever state championship. Following that was the Rams’ 14-6 win over Jenks just last year.

But it’s not just in 6A-I. In 6A-II, which began play in 2014, has never seen a west-side team win. Bixby has five of those titles, and the other belongs to Booker T. Washington. RH

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Cardinals following in the footsteps of success

T

he young kids see what can happen when those before them see tremendous success. But for those young Collinsville football players, the path has been blazed by former Cardinals like top national recruit Levi Draper, and Division I players Seth and Grayson Boomer.

Draper changed things around the Cardinals program, according to head coach Kevin Jones.

The four-star linebacker eventually signed with national power Oklahoma Sooners, but just transferred to Arkansas.

“Levi came in and changed everything,” Jones said. “Division I coaches, they don’t care how good you are, they care about how good you can become.”

Jones said skill isn’t the only thing that matters, and getting recruited by major colleges is more difficult than it looks. Which is why the recent Division I signees are something to strive for.

“The thing that kids and parents don’t understand is they are looking for things you can’t coach, like wingspan,” Jones said. “I never knew how important wingspan was, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Parents don’t understand, they are going to recruit size and speed. These kids definitely got their parents thinking about scholarships.”

So who will be the next big-time recruit?

Will he emerge for the 2020 Cardinals?

Left: Senior Zach Morris, Defensive Line Center: Coach Kevin Jones Right: Senior Caden Buoy, Wide Receiver This team will have its share of good players.

“I would say the core of our team is the junior class,” Jones said. “Some of those kids got to play last year as sophomores. A lot of really good players didn’t get to play as sophomores.

I think we’re going to have a talented team.

We’re just inexperienced.”

But things look good early so far for the Cards.

“Our team chemistry in our summer workouts are better than any year I’ve been here,” Jones said of his 10-year reign. “It’s been awesome. Our kids are just hungry. I think it’s because of COVID and having to be quarantined. They’re just excited to be back and seeing each other. Our chemistry is awesome. I think we’re going to be a really tough team.”

The Cards finished 8-3 last year and were runner-up in the district to Tahlequah. Jones thinks the two teams will be there at the top again, along with newcomer Sapulpa, a team that dropped down to 5A from 6A-II. “To me, I would say it’s us, Tahlequah and Sapulpa,” Jones said. “I think those three teams will be in the top four. Sapulpa has got a running back that’s a sub 4.5 (second 40 yard

SEE FOOTSTEPS, Page 74

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74 FOOTBALL PREVIEW FOOTSTEPS from Page 72 dash). Hopefully, they don’t have too many other weapons. Glenpool is going to be better.

They’re going to be real competitive. Claremore is going to be competitive. Pryor had a move-in at quarterback from Cleveland who is really going to save the day for them.”

So who will save the day for the Cardinals?

Two seniors are high on Jones’ list of great players.

“Caden Buoy is a big one,” Jones said.

“He played wide receiver and defensive back.

He will play a whole lot on each side of the ball. And Zach Morris is going to be a factor, especially on the defensive line. He can play nose guard or defensive end and is probably the strongest kid on our team. Those two are going to be really big contributors.”

Jones also likes three-year starter Kaden Jones at left tackle.

“He’s going to be a heck of a player for us,” he said.

Nate Wilkins will try to fill the shoes of Eli Benham, who transferred to Sperry. He will play inside linebacker.

At running back, Jones will lean on Brayden Gilkey.

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

“He is out bell cow,” Jones said. “He split time at running back last year and I think he rushed for between 600 and 700 yards and had eight or nine touchdowns. And he played linebacker for us.”

Payton Stacy will also get carries and will play linebacker.

“What we started doing is we want to get our best guys on defense,” Jones said. “Especially those skill guys, and we can kind of rotate them on offense. We’ll probably have a rotation at running back.”

At quarterback, Jones expects Andrew Carney to be big trouble for opposing defenses.

“He played running back as a seventh and eighth grader,” Jones said. “He kind of converted to quarterback, but he had some injuries last year. He wasn’t quite ready as a sophomore.

But he’s ready now. He’s going to be a tough one. Not that he can’t throw the football, but he is going to be a punishing running quarterback.”

Non-conference games include a home game against Oologah in Week 1, a trip down Highway 20 for the annual Skiatook game in Week 2, and in Week 3, the Cards will host Bartlesville before opening district play at Tulsa Hale in Week 4. RH

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CARDINALS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Photo courtesy of Cardinal Facebook page

Date SEPT 4 SEPT 11 SEPT 18 SEPT 25 OCT 2

OCT 9 OCT 15 OCT 23 OCT 30 NOV 6

Opponent Time OOLOGAH 7:00 at SKIATOOK

7:00 BARTLESVILLE 7:00 at TULSA HALE 7:00 SAPULPA 7:00 (HOMECOMING) at CLAREMORE 7:00 GLENPOOL 7:00 at TULSA MEMORIAL 7:00 at PRYOR 7:00 TAHLEQUAH 7:00 (SENIOR NIGHT)

GO, CARDINALS!

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Cardinals were so close to perfect 2019 regular season

A

few bounces in a different direction, and the Collinsville football team could have won a district title, finished 10-0 in the regular season, and avoided a matchup with a red-hot Bishop Kelley team in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs in 2019.

But a 13-12 loss to Oologah in the season opener and an overtime loss to Tahlequah in a game that decided the district championship and two home playoff games were the Cards’ only shortfalls.

A 27-0 loss to Bishop Kelley in the playoffs was a culmination of a season plagued with injuries paired with a young team that might not have been ready for prime time.

“It was a bad matchup for us,” Collinsville coach Kevin Jones said. “With the injuries we had last year, by Week 11, we got just about everything we could out of our guys.

We came up short against Kelley and we were outmanned. I didn’t realize how big their kids were. When we got out there for pregame, these guys were giants. They just beat us.”

But the Cards had run out of gas after a long season.

“Kelley had a good squad,” Jones said.

“They didn’t have as many injuries as we had, but they had injuries to their top four players — their running back, their nose guard was a really good player who tore his ACL, and their best wide receiver and defensive back tore his ACL. They had a slew of injuries. If they had all their best guys, they might have beaten McGuinness in the semifinals.”

If that ball had bounced differently against

Tahlequah, the Cardinals would have won districts and avoided Kelley altogether.

“Tahlequah, that was a heck of a game,” Jones said. “They had a good squad last year.

If their quarterback didn’t get hurt in Week 10, they probably go 10-0. He was kind of their leader and it hampered what they could do offensively. We went up on them toward the end of the game and they got the ball back and we just couldn’t stop them. They went down and tied it up and they just beat us in overtime.”

The Cardinals finished with eight wins, but it didn’t look like they would be that successful after losing 13-12 to Oologah in the season opener. It was a tough game for Collinsville.

“Oologah is a huge rivalry,” Jones said. “I take credit for that one, we weren’t ready. We were really young last year. We had good talent but we were young. Leading up to Game 1, we were so worried about getting reps. We get to the end of practice and it was so hot last fall in August, that if we condition now, we’re going to get charges brought up against us. We can’t condition, and we were out of shape. We had kids throwing up on the sideline. That was the hottest game I’ve ever coached in. It is what it is...they beat us.”

This year, the Cardinals will open the season against — guess who — Oologah, at home on Sept.

4, once again setting the stage for a run at the playoffs once again. RH

“Pressure is something you feel when you don’t know what the hell you’re doing.”

— Peyton Manning

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Sperry wants more of those district titles

L

ast year Sperry won the district title and had a 10-0 regular season.

You would think as good as the Pirates have been lately that winning district championships is the norm. But it’s not.

“We hadn’t done that since 1992,” Sperry head coach and district coach of the year Robert Park said. “That’s a long time to go without one. For a while, we were in Cascia Hall’s district, and they were a tough out.”

But the Pirates were due. They won them all until the third game of the 2A playoffs when they traveled to Kingston and lost 14-7. That ended a 12-game winning streak.

“The last three years, we’ve won over 40 football games,” Park said. “Last year was a good year but we came up a little short. We went down there in the mud bowl against Kingston and they beat us. That happens. The elements will get you sometimes.a” Now, with those seniors gone, it will be up to the next guys.

“There will be a lot of new faces out there,” Park said. “We graduated a heavy senior class that we’re very talented. But we like what we got coming back. Those guys have been waiting their turn.

The last four years here have been really good for football. They know what’s expected so they have been showing up this summer.”

Park returns three offensive linemen and some other key parts. He has a new quarterback in Carson Hendrix, who Park is excited about as well.

“He’s a heck of an athlete,” Park said. “Kind of been waiting his turn. We’ve got three offensive linemen who are really talented, got some linebackers back. We’ve got a good little core group, but we got some new faces and they’re going to have to learn to play.”

A new player to the team is transfer Eli Benham, who comes from Collinsville.

“He was a state champion this winter in wrestling,” Park said. “We’re excited. We’re ready to get going.”

Park is also excited about his new athletic facility being constructed, complete with a new weight room and the works. That, and the COVID-19 guidelines, and distractions are plentiful around Sperry. But Park has confidence it won’t be a problem.

“It won’t be a distraction,” he said. “My staff

Coach Robert Park, photo by Sperry Schools has been with us for a long time. We’ll get around that. We’ve got guidelines from the OSSAA, we’re taking temperatures, wearing masks, disinfecting our stuff every 30 minutes. We’re by the book. But it’s affecting everybody the same.

We’re ready to get going and get into our new facility.”

Sperry has a tougher-than-normal schedule in 2020. Games against 4A Wagoner and 3A Verdigris highlight the pre-district season. But in district, the Pirates face powers Adair and Rejoice Christian, who made the Class A semifinals last year. And Claremore Sequoyah will much improved after dropping down from 3A. “We’re familiar with some of them,” Park said.

“We’re familiar with Adair. It will be kind of fun, new faces to play against. It was hard to schedule our first three games because nobody wanted to play us. We had to schedule Wagoner in Week 3. We’re not afraid to play anybody. We’ve been playing Sequoyah in the regular season for a long time and we end up in the same district. We’ve seen Rejoice on film a couple of times. Coach Marley does a heck of a job.”

The Pirates open at Mannford on Zero Week.

So they will have to be ready from the kickoff to the season.

“We’ll be scrambling when we get the goahead,” Park said. “If our kids show up, we’ll get it done.” RH

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 81

PIRATES FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Photo courtesy of Pirates Facebook page

Date SEPT 4 SEPT 11 SEPT 18 SEPT 25 OCT 2

OCT 9 OCT 15 OCT 23 OCT 30 NOV 6

Opponent Time OOLOGAH 7:00 at SKIATOOK

7:00 BARTLESVILLE 7:00 at TULSA HALE 7:00 SAPULPA 7:00 (HOMECOMING) at CLAREMORE 7:00 GLENPOOL 7:00 at TULSA MEMORIAL 7:00 at PRYOR 7:00 TAHLEQUAH 7:00 (SENIOR NIGHT)

LET’S GO, PIRATES!

“The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.”

— Vince Lombardi

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Oologah adjusts to fourth new head coach

D

ue to different circumstances, Darrin Wegner is Oologah’s fourth football coach in as many years.

Wegner replaces Chad Weeks, who will remain on staff as an offensive line coach, which will help Wegner in his transition to Oologah.

Wegner is hoping to bring some consistency to the position.

“After Brandon Craig left, I’ll be the third coach since then,” Wegner said. “It’s four coaches in four years. If you’re a senior at Oologah, I will have been the fourth coach they’ve had. This is a program with a ton of tradition. I think there is a desire to have some stability and build.”

Oologah had a run of three consecutive state runner-up finishes in 4A. The last two seasons have not matched that success, but Wegner hopes to bring that back to the blue and gold.

And it all starts with the first game of the season at Collinsville.

“Oologah and Collinsville both have a bunch of tough kids that get after it,” Wegner said. “That will be exciting. It will be a challenge. Oologah kids are tough kids and we’ll be up for the challenge.”

Game two, the Mustangs will host old rival and Rogers County foe Claremore.

“We will be renewing our rivalry with Claremore,” Wegner said. “It will be the first time we’ve played Claremore since 2013, so I think there’s some excitement about that. We’ve got a tough non-district schedule. And we have a darn good district. 4A-3 is a black and blue district.

There’s no doubt we’ve got a tough schedule.”

After the non-district game with Hilldale, the district season starts and it’s the same old teams at the top of the heap.

“Obviously, Wagoner has been on an unbelievable run,” Wegner said. “They have a big senior class and I think we’re all trying to catch them this year. I think a sleeper will be Grove. Bristow graduated a lot of kids but is always tough to handle.

It will be a dogfight for those four spots to get into the playoffs.”

Wegner is new, but knows who his leaders are going to be.

Senior Blake Salt is a returning starter and will take the snaps again this year.

“We’re going to be a young football team,” Wegner said. “We don’t have a huge senior class, we have 11 seniors at this time. Blake got a lot of snaps for Oologah as a junior, so we’re excited about him.”

Nathan Wegman is a returning senior offensive lineman, and senior Wade Bright returns at running back and outside linebacker.

“Those three seniors will be our leaders,” Wegner said. “And in general, we are young. I’m excited about our offensive and defensive line. I feel like we are deep there. We need to develop some depth at wide receiver and in the secondary.”

Junior Gabe Grazier will be one of the key returners on the line, and Wegner expects big things from the younger players coming up.

“We’re really excited about our younger classes,” he said. “We think there is some talent there that we can develop and bring along, so it will be interesting.” RH

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GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

MUSTANGS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Photo courtesy of Mustang Facebook page

Date SEPT 4 SEPT 11 SEPT 18 SEPT 25 OCT 2 OCT 9 OCT 15 OCT 23 OCT 30 NOV 6

Opponent at COLLINSVILLE CLAREMORE

HILLDALE at GROVE at SKIATOOK MIAMI CATOOSA at WAGONER CLEVELAND at BRISTOW

Time 7:00 7:00 7:00 7:00 7:00 7:00 7:00 7:00 7:00 7:00

PLAY BALL! “Everyone has the fire, but the champions know when to ignite the spark.”

— Amit Ray

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Coronavirus bad timing for new Oologah coach

W

hen Darrin Wegner was hired to be the new football coach at Oologah High School, nobody saw the adversity screaming down the highway toward the 4A school north of Tulsa.

It was the opposite of perfect timing. Instead, it was a perfect storm.

Although the coronavirus pandemic has plagued all football coaches in the state, it was especially hard for Wegner.

“I was offered the job in early March and took the job at the March 9 board meeting,” Wegner said. “I met the kids and had a team meeting. The next day, It all starts to cancel. I can remember going home on March 11, I had worked here all day and I had my laptop on my lap and I was working on some football stuff, and kids were filling out Google forms for me. And K-State and Oklahoma State were playing in the Big 12 basketball tournament on TV. And the next day, the Big 12 tournament was cancelled. High School state basketball was cancelled. And the dominoes started falling. I was thankful I got to meet our kids in person.”

Being a new coach and not having that time to get to know your assistant coaches, your players, anything, was a tough hurdle to overcome. It has been a learning process for everyone.

“I’ve been a teacher and coach for 22 years,

and there’s never been anything like this,” Wegner said. “I don’t think anybody really knows. You get new information to you all the time. There’s so much unknown to it. I’ve taken the approach that we just plan for the next day with the information we have at that time.”

So installing new offensive plays and schemes, and a new defense is extra hard to do through a Zoom meeting or some other digital format. No hands-on approach. Just winging it for right now.

“I think you’re adaptable and have to be flexible and go from there,” Wegner said. “Football coaches are so regimented, you like to have a schedule and everything is planned out;. This has changed that.”

But like every other team, those games in Zero Week are coming no matter how prepared the teams are.

“There’s been no spring football,” Wegner said.

“There’s been no team camps or 7-on-7. I’ve been with the kids in the weight room. I’ve had limited time with how much I have been with the guys in a football perspective. We’ve done all kinds of speed and agility work, but we didn’t have those 10 spring practices or a two-day team camp. At this time, I’m still learning about our football team. I know those four weeks in the fall are going to be really valuable when we get there before that opener against Collinsville.” RH

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 85

Vype 2020 Rankings It’s not a shock to see the Owasso Rams atop the Vype Magazine preseason football rankings for the 2020 campaign.

The Rams, entering its fourth year under head coach Bill Blankenship, are coming off their second Class 6A-I football championship in three years, and just finished off a perfect 2019 13-0 season.

So it was no surprise to see them as the team to beat this season.

Collinsville is coming off another solid season and is ranked No. 2 in 5A. The Cardinals were soundly defeated by Bishop Kelley in the first round of the playoffs last year.

Skiatook is ranked No. 7 in Class 4A. Verdigris is ranked No. 8 in 3A. And Sperry is No. 4 in Class 2A. 6A-I 1. Owasso 2. Union 3. Jenks 4. Edmond Santa Fe 5. Broken Arrow 6. Mustang 7. Norman North 8. Westmoore 9. Yukon 10. Moore

4A 1. Wagoner 2. Weatherford 3. Poteau 4. Tuttle 5. Blanchard 6. Cache 7. Skiatook 8. Bethany 9. Ada 10. Sallisaw

A 1. Cashion 2. Ringling 3. Pawhuska 4. Thomas 5. Okemah 6. Pawnee 7. Hobart 8. Tonkawa 9. Gore 10. Minco

6A-II 1. Bixby 2. Stillwater 3. Del City 4. Muskogee 5. Booker T. Washington 6. Choctaw 7. Midwest City 8. Putnam City North 9. Lawton 10. Edmond Deer Creek

3A 1. Heritage Hall 2. Lincoln Christian 3. Sulphur 4. Perkins-Tryon 5. Holland Hall 6. Stigler 7. Plainview 8. Verdigris 9. Kingfisher 10. Lone Grove

B 1. Cherokee 2. Shattuck 3. Pioneer 4. Laverne 5. Pond Creek-Hunter 6. Alex 7. Dewar 8. Snyder 9. Keota 10. Regent Prep

5A 1. Carl Albert 2. Collinsville 3. Bishop Kelley 4. El Reno 5. Piedmont 6. Noble 7. Bishop McGuinness 8. Edison 9. Tahlequah 10. Lawton MacArthur

2A 1. Beggs 2. Vian 3. Jones 4. Sperry 5. Millwood 6. Chisholm 7. Eufaula 8. Washington 9. Lindsay 10. Idabel

C 1. Timberlake 2. Tyrone 3. Mt. View-Gotebo 4. Medford 5. Buffalo 6. Sasakwa 7. Maysville 8. Midway 9. Sharon-Mutual 10. Coyle

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Verdigris is back for more in 2020

W

hen Travis East (pictured) took over as the Verdigris head football coach in 2016, he had his work cut out for him.

The Cardinals’ athletic programs were good at so many things — state championship soccer, basketball and baseball teams among others state-level teams — but the football team was not winning as much.

In East’s fourth season, his Cardinals won a district title and made it to the 3A semifinals.

They won two home games over Idabel and Perkins-Tryon before falling to Plainview, ending a 10-3 campaign.

“We’re doing good,” East said. “We had some success last year and hope to build on that in the future. The pressure...I don’t really feel that pressure anymore. But we put the pressure on ourselves to be as good as we can to be a good football team.”

This year’s season starts with a home game against 2A Sperry, another deep playoff team, on Sept. 4. And when the coin goes in the air, East will have a lot of familiar faces on his sideline.

“We’ve got a lot coming back,” East said. “We return a lot of kids. We lost some really good linemen up front. We had a really good line, and we had a really good linebacker and receiver that we lost. We won’t have one player that will take their spot, but it will probably be multiple players, especially at wide receiver.”

That receiver spot, held last year by Toby Willis, produced a lot of offense for the Cardinals in 2019.

“He had 1,500 yards,” East said. “We may not have a 1,500 yard receiver again this year, but we might have three go for 600. That’s the goal. But we return a really good quarterback and running back, and good defensive linemen, and our whole secondary is coming back. They’re really talented and we’re excited about that.”

Leading the defensive line is Evan Raines, who at 6-3, 255 pounds, and will anchor that first line of defense.

“He’s a big lineman,” East said. “He started for us for three years, and he’s a heck of a football player.”

Also back on defense are seniors Alek Hess at linebacker, and defensive backs Hayden Jones, Kaleson Marshall and Alec James.

“They are all seniors who play both ways,” East said. “They will do a great job.”

And the young bucks will also contribute again.

Last year, East had talented freshmen who are now a year older and ready.

“They are a super-talented group,” he said.

“Dylan White is our quarterback. He stepped in halfway through the season last year and did a great job down the stretch. He’s a great leader.

He’s gotten bigger, faster, stronger and he’s going to be a good one.”

Reese Roller and Caden Parnell are also sophomores who play both ways.

“Both are really good guys who are going to play linebacker and running back for us,” East said. “They do a great job.”

Anchoring the thin offensive line will be senior Jake Braman and sophomore Mason Young.

“I think we’ve got some really good kids there,” East said.

East thinks his team will be successful, but will do it differently in 2020.

“We had a group of seniors that had six or seven linemen and they were really good,” East said.

“We don’t have as many linemen, but we return a majority of our skill kids. I think we, as a team, are faster than we were a year ago. All the way around, we’re pretty athletic. We will be similar as we will distribute the ball well on offense, pass the ball well and have a balanced run game with it. On defense, we will attack and play multiple coverages and get after people.”

Last year’s semifinal run could have been a program-changer. There is a taste for winning even more now. And it is showing this summer.

“The atmosphere around here is great,” East said. “We have 50 or so kids here for summer pride and they work their butts off. They work hard and that’s a great group of kids. They’re ex-

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

cited to be back. As summer goes along we’ll amp up the competitiveness even more. Everything is a competition and we try to make it that way.”

And when the season finally comes around, it will be time for East and his Cards to take that next step. Expectations are higher now. And they want more.

“I think our kids are amped up and ready to do

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 87 it,” he said. “I think we will take a shot at winning districts and have a shot at winning the gold ball.

That’s the ultimate goal every program has. Our kids felt the success of that last year reaching the semifinals, and we all love the success, but we know the sour taste it left losing in the semifinals.

We want to get over that and take our shot at winning it all.” RH

CARDINALS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE Date AUG 21 AUG 27 SEPT 4 SEPT 11 SEPT 18

SEPT 25 OCT 2 OCT 9 OCT 15 OCT 23 OCT 30 NOV 6

Opponent Time SCRIMMAGE at KIEFER TBA SCRIMMAGE at CATOOSA TBA SPERRY 7:00 at MIAMI

7:00 VICTORY CHRISTIAN 7:00 (HOMECOMING) at JAY 7:00 BERRYHILL 7:00 at INOLA 7:00 at TULSA CENTRAL 7:00 MANNFORD 7:00 at HOLLAND HALL 7:00 VINITA 7:00 (SENIOR NIGHT)

Photo courtesy of Mustang Facebook page

LET’S GO, CARDINALS!

“To do things you’ve never done before, you have to do things you’ve never done before.”

— Sean Payton

88 FOOTBALL PREVIEW

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Sequoyah drops to Class 2A for 2020 season

S

ince taking the Claremore Sequoyah job, head football coach Rob Gilbreath (pictured) has yet to see all that hard work come to fruition.

Summer workouts, camps in the extreme heat and tough schedules have resulted in back-to-back winless seasons for the Eagles.

But that was all in Class 3A. Now, the Eagles drop to 2A and will play in District 8, which may be even tougher than the last two years.

In this district lies Class A powers Rejoice Christian, which finished last year at 13-1 with a trip to the semifinals after a perfect regular season before moving up to 2A this season; 12-1 district champion Sperry, who went undefeated in the regular season and didn’t lose until the state quarterfinals; and add in 11-2 Adair and 7-4 Dewey and this district is just as loaded. In fact, the entire district record from last year was 55-28.

“We have a really tough district even being 2A,” Gilbreath said.

“We have Adair and Sperry and Rejoice who are always powerhouses. It’s going to be tough, especially those three.”

Gilbreath spent eight years at the helm of the Claremore Zebras program and two at Tulsa Rogers before taking the Sequoyah job two years ago. Since then, times have been lean. But this year springs new hope of getting that first win since the 2017 season.

“Last year, we had two seniors,” Gilbreath said.

“This year, we have 15, so we have some leadership we were lacking last year. We dropped a class which helps, and we’ve got a good freshman class coming up and a few of those guys will be able to help us.”

Not only senior leadership, but big numbers and nine returners on offense and defense will also help.

“We have a lot more experience on the field this year,” Gilbreath said. “The improvement in the weight room has been tremendous from last year to this year. We’re having a really good turnout, we have 47 in here, varsity only. They’re all showing up and we’re looking for good things.”

Going winless for two seasons can wear on a

coach and his players. But expectations and attitudes are better this year, according to Gilbreath.

“I think our kids realize now that it takes hard work,” Gilbreath said. “You’ve got to have players. Last year, we played a ton of kids that weren’t ready to play yet. Last year, some of them didn’t want to put in the time and went on their way.

These guys are putting in the time and willing to work hard, and it’s going to show.”

Key returners are sophomore running back Logan Hattaway; receiver and defensive back, senior Tyler Kruis; two-way players Cody Pennington, Reese Rumsey, Malaki Zugelder, Dawson Rudd and Ethan Hancock.

“We have all of our lineman back from last year,” Gilbreath said.

Also back is sophomore quarterback Brett Burks, who suffered an injury last year. And his brother, Trey Burks who is a two-way starter at linebacker and offensive line.

Tucker McClurg and Cooper Horner are also two-way starters.

“We have some kids that came back out that haven’t played in a while,” Gilbreath said. “Blake Bedsworth, who is a really good basketball player, he played up until he was a freshman and then quit. Now he’s coming back out as a senior and he will help us. Braxton Bulman, a soccer player. He was our kicker last year and this year he is going to play a position. Logan Woody, he’s a tall receiver with good skills. Jacob Helt on the line and on defense. Hunter Bolay is a really good athlete. That’s a lot of guys coming back with playing experience.”

Being in 2A will be new to the Eagles. But Gilbreath expects Sequoyah to snap that losing streak. And to be in the hunt and make the playoffs.

“I would be very disappointed if we didn’t,” he said. “We’ve played Sperry several times. They’re a really good team. We know a little bit about them, but that’s about it. It’s all going to be new teams, new schemes, but it’s going to be the same for them with us.”

Sequoyah opens the season in Week 0 by hosting Rogers County foe Inola at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 28. RH

GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA | AUGUST 2020

EAGLES FOOTBALL SCHEDULE Date AUG 28 SEPT 4 SEPT 11 SEPT 18

SEPT 25 OCT 2 OCT 9 OCT 15 OCT 23 OCT 30 NOV 6

FOOTBALL PREVIEW 89

Photo courtesy of Eagles Facebook page

Opponent Time INOLA 7:00 at HASKELL 7:00

OPEN

LOCUST GROVE 7:00 (HOMECOMING) at KANSAS 7:00 at SALINA 7:00 REJOICE CHRISTIAN 7:00 at DEWEY 7:00 SPERRY 7:00 at NOWATA 7:00 “Nobody who ever gave ADAIR 7:00 his best regretted it.”

(SENIOR NIGHT)

— George Halas

GO, EAGLES!

ALL OUT, ALL GAME, ALL SEASON.

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92 FOOTBALL PREVIEW

AUGUST 2020 | GAMEDAY OKLAHOMA

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