How they got here: Carl Albert/Bixby…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Give yourself a hand if you had the Titans and Spartans mixing it up for the gold ball. Wait, you mean Tulsa Central didn’t beat Bixby in the first round? Couple of overachievers here.
Carl Albert vs. Bixby
When: 1:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater (Ryan Aber and myself will be there)
Carl Albert (11-2)
Week 1: Booker T – L, 27-6
Week 2: Choctaw – W, 28-0
Week 3: Duncan – W, 38-6
Week 4: Capitol Hill – W, 69-12
Week 5: Shawnee – L, 34-31
Week 6: Noble – W, 43-0
Week 7: Guthrie – W, 40-14
Week 8: Ardmore – W, 47-14
Week 9: Durant – W, 42-17
Week 10: Harrah – W, 41-0
Playoff Week 1: Lawton MacArthur – W, 51-19
Playoff Week 2: Bishop Kelley – W, 34-31, 2 OT
Playoff Week 3: El Reno – W, 44-7
Bixby (9-4)
Week 1: Jenks – L, 47-6
Week 2: Glenpool – L, 35-14
Week 3: Claremore – W, 35-20
Week 4: Miami – W, 49-7
Week 5: Bishop Kelley – L, 21-17
Week 6: Tulsa Hale – W, 42-8
Week 7: Pryor – W, 41-10
Week 8: Skiatook – W, 28-0
Week 9: Tulsa Rogers – W, 52-0
Week 10: Booker T – L, 10-2
Playoff Week 1: Tulsa Central – W, 17-13
Playoff Week 2: Shawnee – W, 28-21
Playoff Week 3: Guthrie – W, 27-20
How they got here: Jenks/Tulsa Union…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
This will be the start of short posts to show you how the teams in the finals and semifinals got to where they are. Let’s start with the 6A championship between – who else – Jenks and Tulsa Union.
Jenks vs. Union
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Chapman Stadium, Tulsa (Ryan Aber will be there)
Jenks (13-0)
Week 1: Bixby – W, 47-6
Week 2: Union – W, 27-25
Week 3: Owasso – W, 41-3
Week 4: Claremore – W, 34-13
Week 5: Sapulpa – W, 62-27
Week 6: Broken Arrow – W, 42-24
Week 7: Tulsa Memorial – W, 41-17
Week 8: Bartlesville – W, 63-40
Week 9: Muskogee – W, 58-15
Week 10: Sand Springs – W, 56-21
Playoff Week 1: Yukon – W, 44-6
Playoff Week 2: Ed Memorial – W, 28-14
Playoff Week 3: Southmoore – W, 44-26
Union (12-1)
Week 1: Broken Arrow – W, 17-6
Week 2: Jenks – L, 27-25
Week 3: Muskogee – W, 41-0
Week 4: Stillwater – W, 45-7
Week 5: Owasso – W, 42-7
Week 6: Yukon – W, 33-10
Week 7: Choctaw – W, 52-7
Week 8: Ponca City – W, 42-0
Week 9: US Grant – W, 79-0
Week 10: Enid – W, 31-6
Playoff Week 1: Claremore – W, 27-9
Playoff Week 2: Lawton – W, 63-25
Playoff Week 3: Broken Arrow – W, 24-13
Private schools POW: Barry Sanders, Heritage Hall…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Not many candidates to choose from, but really, the Heritage Hall sophomore running back could win it every week. He had that type of season.
In a 34-20 loss to Pawhuska, Barry Sanders caught a 37-yard touchdown and ran for 136 yards with a score. And Charger fans can only wonder had his TD reception not been called back because of pass interference in the fourth quarter.
Teams keyed in on Sanders all season, but it never mattered. He was as versatile player as can be at this level, leading the team with six interceptions and took a couple back to the house.
He was also the team’s punter. Sanders is quick to give credit to the line and just about anybody else. He’s not a glory hog, but this team certainly rallies around him.
With another year under his belt, it’s scary to think what he is going to do as a junior.
Other Heritage contenders:
Cooper Cloud, QB: Cloud came up big for the Chargers through the air. He had the TD pass to Sanders and also orchestrated a beautiful last-minute drive in the first half that led to a touchdown.
Cale Courtney and Tanner France: The two combined for the hook-and-lateral touchdown at the end of the first half. Courtney became a reliable target after being moved from QB earlier this season. Courtney caught a 13-yard pass and flipped it to a streakin’ France, who went the final 12 yards for the score.
Markus Wakefield, OL/DL: He busted up Pawhuska’s run game on defense and paved the way for the Chargers’ own running attack.
Heritage defense: Limited Pawhuska to 59 rushing yards and 55 passing yards. Not much more this unit could have done.
And with that, we turn the page to the winter sports (basketball, swimming and wrestling). The basketball season tips off this week for most schools.
Edmond POW: Deer Creek wrestler Heath Boyd…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
We have officially entered the winter sports season here in the Edmond scene. With no football teams playing, we turn our attention toward swimming, wrestling and basketball.
And Deer Creek wrestler Heath Boyd couldn’t have asked for a better start to his senior season. Boyd cruised to victory after victory and won a 9-2 decision in the 152-pound final to take the title at the Sean Pyle/Johny Hendricks Open at Edmond Memorial. And with it, he is the Edmond Player of the Week.
Edmond has certainly had its fair share of top wrestling stars, and it will be interesting to see who emerges from this year’s crop. I’ve been expecting big things from North’s Sam Eccles for a while now, so maybe he’s going to put it all together.
Deer Creek and Memorial each had four grapplers place while North had three.
For wrestling coverage, fellow chum Matt Patterson is your man. Nobody covers the high school/college wrestling scene like Matt.
North starts the regular season Tuesday against Putnam North while Santa Fe will host Putnam West. Memorial won’t kick off its regular season until Thursday with a home dual vs. Perry. Deer Creek is going to the hit the mats Dec. 8.
The Edmond basketball squads will also begin play this week as almost all the teams are going to start going at it Friday.
State championship and semifinal sites…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Eight games Saturday, two Friday. Here ya go.
Class 6A Championship
At Chapman Stadium, Tulsa
Jenks vs. Tulsa Union, 7:30 p.m. Friday
Class 5A Championship
At Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater
Carl Albert vs. Bixby, 1:30 p.m. Saturday
Class 4A Championship
At Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater
Star Spencer vs. Douglass, 7:30 p.m. Saturday
Class 3A Championship
At Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater
Cascia Hall vs. Berryhill, 7:30 p.m. Friday
Class 2A Semifinals
At Skiatook HS
Lincoln Christian vs. Pawhuska, 1:30 p.m. Saturday
At Yukon HS
Millwood vs. Kingfisher, 7:30 p.m. Saturday
Class A Semifinals
At Putnam City Stadium (both)
Hennessey vs. Tonkawa, 1:30 p.m. Saturday
Oklahoma Bible vs. Stroud, 7:30 p.m. Saturday
Class B Championship
At Stillwater HS
Garber vs. Canton, 7:30 p.m. Saturday
Class C Championship
At Stillwater HS
Timberlake vs. Seiling, 1:30 p.m. Saturday
Private schools: Playoff Week 3 recap…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Well, we’re shutting down our doors in the private school realm as the last of the teams went down this week in Heritage Hall’s 34-20 loss at Pawhuska.
Heritage (8-5)
Mistakes and a hard-hitting defense led to a rather surprising result. Heritage had 11 penalties for 110 yards and a couple of really bad snaps.
Pawhuska helped out forcing five lost fumbles and also intercepting a pass and having two sacks. Just wasn’t a good night to be a Charger.
It was Murphy’s Law. Just nothing we could do on this night. Once it got bad, it just kept rolling in that direction.” – coach Andy Bogert
You can’t force urgency. And while the seniors on both sides of the ball looked like they realized this could be their last game, I didn’t see it 100 percent.
That’s not to say that the Heritage youngsters didn’t want to win that game with everything in ‘em because they did. I know they did, but you can’t duplicate that feeling of ‘this might be my last game if we don’t win.’
The seniors (Austin Smith, Tanner France, Logan McGrath, Travis Harrison, to name the key contributors) won’t be forgotten, but the future looks spectacular for Heritage. As long as those kids don’t let the hype get into their heads, no reason we’re not talking about at least another quarterfinal appearance.
Knew Barry Sanders and Marc Robinson were going to be great. They were. Found out early how good Sterling Shepard is going to be. But the one kid who made the biggest strides, to me, is Markus Wakefield. He’s a beast on the line. And with him as lead blocker in the second half, Heritage really had things moving. Also, very interested to see what a healthy Quintaz Struble can do.
After an 0-3 start, Heritage rebounded to win the district title but fell short of defending its title. But with the talent coming back, 2010 can’t come soon enough.
SMQ: Douglass vs. Weatherford…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Came in expecting to see another hard-hitting instant classic. Problem was Douglass didn’t want to cooperate. From the second quarter on, never really felt like Weatherford was going to hang with the Trojans.
Douglass was too focused, executed too perfectly, wouldn’t be denied. Led by the defense and running game (shocker there, no?), the Trojans are moving on to the 4A championship.
Douglass 22, Weatherford 6
This game changed on one play. With Kevin Forbes and Quinton Neil battling for yards on the ground, Weatherford simply had no answer for Aliston Cobb.
That’s the thing about the Trojans. You can stop one, maybe even two of their backs, but what happens when that third or fourth guy comes? Cobb’s first carry was a 68-yard touchdown run, and that set the wheels in motion. It gave Douglass a 14-6 lead, a lead it would never relinquish.
Douglass really keyed in on Kale Sawatzky and didn’t allow him to do anything offensively. Defensively, yeah, Sawatzky was as good usual. I had Sawatzky with six carries for two yards to go with three receptions for 14 yards.
Douglass stepped it up in this game. Little things like both of the two-point conversion runs by Neil and Cobb stood out to me. They were both stopped at the line of scrimmage but willed themselves in for the two points. Wouldn’t be denied on this night.
With Cobb leading the way in the first half, Neil did his part in the second half, highlighted by a 58-yard touchdown run that had me writing ‘game over’ in my head. Douglass rushed for 327 yards.
Weatherford was going to have to come back via the passing game. Jake Barrios would have, and I’m fairly certain of that, but he didn’t have any time to throw it the entire night. He was sacked seven times and was intercepted.
For Weatherford, a dream season came to an end, but that senior class has left its mark and made the Eagles a player again.
As for Douglass, a rematch with Star Spencer looms in an all-Oklahoma City Public Schools 4A final.
Boneman’s Breakdown
- Barrios tried to do too much at times. He wanted to make the big play so bad that it sometimes led to him losing even more yardage.
- I’ve never seen a game where a team (Douglass) didn’t throw one pass, but nobody else seemed really shocked about that. I still am. QB Antyoun Smith did make a play, though, as he was the one who picked off Barrios.
- I have now seen the most impressive defensive player of the season and his name is Norris White for the Trojans. On this night, he could not be stopped. I had him unofficially for four sacks.
- There were many skirmishes late in the game, but I’m not placing blame here. You had one proud team (Weatherford) getting ready to lose for the first time and one proud team (Douglass) relishing a HUGE win. There were combustible elements there. Emotion will do that to ya.
So that sets the stage for Douglass (10-3) vs. Star Spencer (11-2) for the gold ball. The time and all that other good stuff will be released by the OSSAA later today.
Game Blog: Sallisaw vs. Star Spencer
By Ryan Aber
raber@opubco.com
Looks like the final will be Star Spencer 46, Sallisaw 13. Still 1:42 left.
9:09 What a start to the half for Star Spencer. First, the Bobcats defense holds the Black Diamonds to 3 and out, then on the first play, Darwin Rideau breaks one up the middle for a 55-yard touchdown.
Star Spencer 26, Sallisaw 7 10:06 remaining in the third
Douglass vs. Weatherford – Game Blog
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
DOUGLASS 22, WEATHERFORD 6 -FINAL
I lost my wireless connection before the game began. I tried to keep ya posted on Twitter. Douglass vs. Star final. Ooh boy, can’t wait for that one.
Douglass defense dominated. Douglass running game dominated. Quinton Neil and Aliston Cobb each had huge games and Douglass didn’t throw one pass the entire game.
Much more Sunday.
7:08 – I have no idea where this wireless connection is coming from, so it might come and go. Until then, I’ll try to update as much as possible on the Weatherford/Douglass game at Yukon.
I ate enough food for two people, so I’m ready to go to close out an exciting weekend of high school football. Connection permitting, I’ll be updating on Twitter @BPrzybylo as well.
Game capsule: Southmoore vs. Jenks
Southmoore (11-1) vs. Jenks (12-0)
When: 7:30 p.m. tonight
Where: Putnam City Stadium
Southmoore
Why the SaberCats can win: Southmoore has the weapons to compete with Jenks and hold an advantage in the area of its receivers vs. Jenks’ secondary. The receivers have all had big games and they’ve also had games where they all got the ball.
Jenks
Why the Trojans could win: The same reason they always win — lots of talent and experience.
Key matchup: Southmoore offensive line vs. Jenks defensive front. The SaberCats, who have three players committed to Oklahoma and as many as six Division I-A recruits, may actually have more star-power than the mighty Trojans. However, while Southmoore is loaded at the skill positions on offense, if the offensive line doesn’t contain or at least slow the Jenks D-line, they won’t be able to perform in the high-octane manner they have all season.
Quarterback Kendal Thompson is the key. The junior standout has to have time to operate. If he does, the west side could very well have a team in the 6A final next week. If not, Jenks will keep things status quo.
The pick: Jenks 33, Southmoore 31. While this is the biggest game in Southmoore history, it’s not even the biggest game of the season for Jenks. The Trojans only see the semifinals as the last step before they reach the main game they’ve had their sights on all season.
