Courtney Walker, left, and Edmond Santa Fe are the best girls' basketball team in the state. PHOTO BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN

Here is my first girls’ basketball power poll. This one just covers the large schools (6A and 5A). Tomorrow, I’ll have one for 2A-3A-4A.

Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment or shoot me an e-mail.

1. Edmond Santa Fe (6A, 21-0)
No brainer at No. 1. Texas A&M signee Courtney Walker and company are the clear favorites to win their second straight 6A title. The Wolves’ smallest margin of victory is 15. The biggest question mark surrounding this team is its strength of schedule. The Wolves haven’t really been tested this season.
Record vs. this poll: 2-0

2. Shawnee (5A, 21-0)
The Wolves lost Tulsa signee Caitlyn Ramirez to an ACL tear before the season, but it hasn’t seemed to affect them much at all. Move-ins Taylor and McKenzie Cooper obviously helped ease the blow, and guard Kelsee Grovey, another Tulsa signee, has shown herself to be one of the best players in the state.
Record vs. this poll: 3-0

3. Midwest City (6A, 21-0)
Two and three were tough to choose, because I think Midwest City has a terrific team and, I think, is the only team right now in 6A with a legitimate shot at beating Santa Fe. I watched the Bombers and Shawnee scrimmage in the preseason and it was a good matchup. After watching both teams play, I like the Wolves just a little better right now.
Record vs. this poll: 3-0

4. Tulsa East Central (5A, 21-3)
Shawnee’s chief competition in Class 5A. Two of the Cardinals’ losses were to out-of-state teams in a season-opening tourney in Tennessee, and the other came to Jenks on Jan. 20. But East Central has also beaten Jenks this season.
Record vs. this poll: 1-1

5. Edmond Memorial (6A, 16-5)
The Bulldogs five losses are: Twice to Santa Fe, twice to Midwest City and once to Shawnee. Memorial and Midwest City are lined up for a possible third game in areas.
Record vs. this poll: 1-5

6. Jenks (6A, 18-4)
Jessica Washington has returned from an injury but isn’t 100 percent. The Trojans lost in overtime to Muskogee on Tuesday.
Record vs. this poll: 2-3

7. Deer Creek (5A, 19-3)
Since a one-point loss to 4A Piedmont on Jan. 13, the Antlers have reeled off nine straight wins, including a big win at Carl Albert. Deer Creek is peaking at the right time and seems poised for a run at state.
Record vs. this poll: 2-1

8. Carl Albert (5A, 17-5)
The Titans go through rough shooting stretches, which cost them in recent home losses to Deer Creek and Shawnee. CA got a break in their playoff position and should be considered a lock for the state tournament.
Record vs. this poll: 0-2

9. Muskogee (6A, 16-6)
Since losing to Stillwater in the finals of the John Nobles Tournament in Moore on Jan. 21, the Rougers have reeled off seven straight wins, including Tuesday’s overtime upset of Jenks. Muskogee also has impressive wins over Tulsa Union and Bixby, and has beaten Sapulpa twice.
Record vs. this poll: 1-1

10. Bishop McGuinness (5A, 18-5)
Irish got off to a rocky start to the season after losing several starters, and adjusting to a new head coach, Shawn Clark. But the team has been on a roll, losing just twice since Dec. 17. Both of those losses — three points to Cascia Hall and in overtime to PC North — came with top scorer and rebounder Elyse Hight hurt.
Record vs. this poll: 0-2

Deer Creek's Kooper Ruminer correctly picked the final score of Super Bowl XLVI. PHOTO PROVIDED

Out of 28 high school football players who participated in my Super Bowl XLVI picks challenge, Deer Creek linebacker Kooper Ruminer is the only one who correctly picked the New York Giants’ winning score of 21-17.

The Giants were the underdog in these picks; 16 of the 28 guys who participated picked the New England Patriots to win. Besides Ruminer, those who picked the Giants to win were:

Joel Blumenthal (Deer Creek); Landry Chappell (Guthrie); Casey Curtis (Putnam City); James Flanders (Midwest City); Justice Hansen (Edmond Santa Fe); Ry Huff (Edmond Memorial); Blake Jarwin (Tuttle); Jared McElhany (Blanchard); Tyler Melton (Anadarko); Jesse Vester (Stillwater); Josh Way (Wayne).

A big thanks to everyone who participated. That was fun, and I plan to do it again next year. Although next year, I won’t wait until the night before to contact players! Hopefully in the future we have a lot more pickers.

Ruminer was No. 19 on The Oklahoman‘s first Super 30 for the Class of 2013, which ranks the top 30 college football prospects in the state. He led Deer Creek with 125 tackles and 10 sacks as a junior.

Deer Creek's Hunter Dinkines will sign with Southwestern Oklahoma State on Wednesday. PHOTO BY SARAH PHIPPS, THE OKLAHOMAN

Deer Creek receiver Hunter Dinkines, who will sign with Southwestern Oklahoma  State on Wednesday, discovered his interest in SWOSU in an unusual way.

Dinkines was on an unofficial visit to Henderson State in Arkansas on Sept. 17, when the Reddies were hosting Southwestern.

The Deer Creek receiver watched the Bulldogs pull the upset and came away impressed with Southwestern’s intensity.

“I just saw how bad they wanted to win the game,” Dinkines said. “It just kinda kicked in; I thought maybe I should look into Southwestern.”

So Dinkines came back home and e-mailed Bulldogs coach Dan Cocannouer, who quickly replied and invited him to visit Weatherford the next weekend, when SWOSU beat Central Oklahoma.

He went back to see Southwestern play a third time — a 23-20 home win over Arkansas Tech on Nov. 5.

Two weeks ago, Dinkines went on an official visit, came home and decided to commit.

“I think the future is gonna be bright with SWOSU,” Dinkines said. “I just knew it was the place for me.”

Dinkines’ relationship with Cocannouer goes back further than his recruitment this season, though.

Dinkines went to Cheyenne Middle School in Edmond, and went through Edmond Santa Fe’s offseason program during the summer leading to his freshman season while Cocannouer was still the Wolves’ coach. Dinkines and his family moved to the Deer Creek school district just before his freshman season started.

“I wasn’t able to be coached by him, but I knew who he was,” Dinkines said. “I got a good feel for how he was as a coach.”

Dinkines is impressed with Cocannouer’s success at Southwestern so far. The Bulldogs went 5-6 this season, and the former Edmond Santa Fe coach seems to have his alma mater moving in the right direction.

Cocannouer was 70-26 in eight seasons as the Wolves’ coach.

“You can really tell where he wants the football program to be,” Dinkines said. “I have a good feeling about it.”

As a senior, Dinkines had 711 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns for the Antlers, who finished the season 7-4 with a playoff berth.

Dinkines father, Bill, was a standout player for Putnam City West when it finished 14-0 and won the Class 4A state championship in 1981.

Edmond Santa Fe sophomore quarterback Justice Hansen is the 2011 All-Edmond Offensive Player of the Year. PHOTO BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN

EDMOND — I have planned on putting together an All-Edmond football team for some time, but, for a variety of reasons, am just now getting to publishing it on the blog.

This was an extremely difficult team to put together because so many teams in Edmond had such terrific seasons. Edmond Santa Fe is obviously the team that stole most of the headlines because of its amazing turnaround from 1-9 to 10-2 and District 6A-2 champion, but Edmond North made a quarterfinal run and almost knocked off eventual state champion Tulsa Union at its place.

Deer Creek put up impressive offensive numbers and had some defensive standouts as well. Oklahoma Christian School is also well represented on this team.

And even though Edmond Memorial had a down year and missed the playoffs, the Bulldogs still had players like linebacker Matt Hickman and lineman John Scheihing that deserved recognition.

I apologize for this coming out so much later than the rest of our football postseason stuff. But here it is:

All-Edmond team
Offense
QB — Justice Hansen, Edmond Santa Fe
RB — Brennan Miyake, Deer Creek
RB — Jarion Tudman, Edmond North
WR — Hunter Dinkines, Deer Creek
WR — Tre Kelley, Edmond Santa Fe
TE — Troy Davis, Edmond North
OL — Nick Lovelace, Oklahoma Christian School
OL — Heath Newland, Edmond North
OL — Cole Parsons, Edmond North
OL — Chad Reitz, Edmond Santa Fe
OL — John Scheihing, Edmond Memorial

Defense
DL — Nolan Boyd, Deer Creek
DL — Josh Crouch, Edmond Santa Fe
DL — Michael Onuoha, Edmond Santa Fe
LB — Matt Hickman, Edmond Memorial
LB — Clyde Jasper, Oklahoma Christian School
LB — Brynden Pitzer, Edmond North
LB — Kooper Ruminer, Deer Creek
DB — Conner Bays, Edmond Santa Fe
DB — Christian Contreras, Edmond North
DB — Khari Harding, Edmond Santa Fe
DB — Logan Magill, Oklahoma Christian School

Special teams
K — Keegan Carter, Oklahoma Christian School
P — Camden Bohnert, Edmond North
KR — Trevan Smith, Edmond Santa Fe

Offensive Player of the Year: Justice Hansen, Edmond Santa Fe
Defensive Player of the Year: Brynden Pitzer, Edmond North
Coach of the Year: Lance Manning, Edmond Santa Fe

Second team
Offense
QB — Joel Blumenthal, Deer Creek
RB — Zak Anderson, Oklahoma Christian School
RB — Jared Benway, Edmond North
RB — Phillip Sumpter, Edmond Santa Fe
WR — Dale Jefferson, Edmond Santa Fe
WR — Garrett Molinsky, Edmond North
OL — Allston Hadley, Edmond Santa Fe
OL — Taylor Myers, Oklahoma Christian School
OL — Brandon Roberts, Edmond Santa Fe
OL — Will Wiedenmann, Edmond North
OL — Mac Wilsey, Edmond Memorial

Defense
DL — Chris Carter, Edmond Santa Fe
DL — Clint Edgeman, Deer Creek
DL — Russell Sivard, Edmond North
DL — Ian Smith, Deer Creek
LB — Ragan Land, Edmond North
LB — Austin Loomis, Deer Creek
LB — Jerremy Moore, Edmond Santa Fe
DB — Zach Birts, Edmond Santa Fe
DB — Luke Frankfort, Oklahoma Christian School
DB — Christian Peterson, Edmond North
DB — Caden Sander, Deer Creek

Special teams
K — Ken Bingham, Edmond North
P — Matt Freeman, Edmond Santa Fe
KR — Ottugo Ananaba, Deer Creek

First-team
Offense
Quarterback: Raymond Little, El Reno
Running back: Nathan Blakely, Ada
Running back: Darvonte Winston, Carl Albert
Tight End: Kyle  Kanady, Deer Creek
Wide receiver: Rashad Copeland, El Reno
Wide receiver: Alex Polston, Carl Albert
Offensive lineman: RayShawn Cato, Carl Albert
Offensive lineman: Cooper Davis, Guthrie
Offensive lineman: Steve Dunham, Carl Albert
Offensive lineman: Matt Eppler, Ada
Offensive lineman: Hayden Seifert, Guthrie
Kicker: Easton Ramsey, Carl Albert
Punter: Sam McCann, Ada

Defense
Defensive lineman: Nolan Boyd, Deer Creek
Defensive lineman: Zack Brown, Guthrie
Defensive lineman: Willis Lusk, Carl Albert
Defensive lineman: Micah Tiger, Ada
Linebacker: John Clark, Guthrie
Linebacker: Kevin Jones, Carl Albert
Linebacker: Jermiah Reed, Carl Albert
Linebacker: John Whitlock, Noble
Defensive back: Tyliq Brazille, Southeast
Defensive back: Taylor Hawkins, Carl Albert
Defensive back: Darion Winston, Carl Albert

Second-team
Offense
Running back: Chase Bowker, Ada
Running back: Tyre LeBlanc, Carl Albert
Tight end: Clint Simek, Guthrie
Wide receiver: Hunter Dinkines, Deer Creek
Wide receiver: Hunter Long, Noble
Offensive lineman: Tristan Clark, Western Heights
Offensive lineman: Malachai Galbrath, Guthrie
Offensive lineman: Grant Oliver, Carl Albert
Offensive lineman: Jacob Stein, El Reno
Offensive lineman: Craig Waters, Western Heights
Kicker: Esau Perez, Guthrie
Punter: Antonio Cueto, Southeast

Defense
Defensive lineman: Darren Colquitt, Carl Albert
Defensive lineman: Clint Edgeman, Deer Creek
Defensive lineman: Michael Holder, Southeast
Defensive lineman: Josh Raper, Western Heights
Linebacker: Austin Ferguson, El Reno
Linebacker: Devonte Henderson, Western Heights
Linebacker: Gumaro Murphy, Southeast
Linebacker: Ian Smith, Deer Creek
Defensive back: Trez Jackson, Carl Albert
Defensive back: Harley Dodd, Deer Creek
Defensive back: Donte Rocco, Western Heights

Here are some of the players who are expected to sign this week:
BASEBALL
Blake Estep, Jones (Penn St.)
Isaac Hellbusch, Deer Creek (Arkansas)
Taylor Hawkins, Carl Albert (OU)
Ty Hensley, Edmond Santa Fe (Ole Miss)
Chase Stephens, Deer Creek (UCO)
Jordan Watson, Edmond Santa Fe (OSU)

BOYS BASKETBALL
Aaron Anderson, Edmond Santa Fe (Fresno St.)
Blake Blanchard, Deer Creek (Southwestern)
Matt Christiansen, McGuinness (San Francisco)
Joe Edmonds, McGuinness (San Francisco)
James Woodard, Edmond Memorial (Tulsa)
D’Andre Wright, Lawton Eisenhower (Tulsa)

GIRLS BASKETBALL
Kelsey Barnwell, Kansas (Missouri-Kansas City)
Ashley Clark, Midwest City (Tulsa)
Courtney Cowan, Kansas (Northeastern St.)
Ali Decker, Edmond Memorial (Wichita St.)
Toni Smith, Del City (Fresno St.)
Courtney Walker, Edmond Santa Fe (Texas A&M)

GOLF
Taylor Moore, Edmond Memorial (Arkansas)
Abby Thompson, Deer Creek (OCU)

GYMNASTICS
Keara Glover, Putnam North (Auburn)

SOFTBALL
Liz Broyles, Blanchard (Missouri-Kansas City)
Braxton Coil, Edmond North (Missouri St.)
Shalee Cordell, Newcastle (OBU)
Kaylin Hinshaw, Putnam North (Mid-America)
Leslie Miller, Blanchard (OU)
Kady Self, Edmond North (OU)
Caitlin Sill, Tuttle (Tulsa)
Bryana Wade, St. Mary (North Texas)
Brooke Zukerman, Lawton MacArthur (UCO)

TENNIS
Sarah Bowen, Heritage Hall (Hofstra)

VOLLEYBALL
Emily Belz, OCS (Henderson St.)
Sydney Fioretti, Edmond Santa Fe (OBU)
Hannah Holkum, Edmond Santa Fe (North Carolina St.)
Barbara Jackson, Edmond Santa Fe (OCU)

WRESTLING
Matt Manley, Perry (Missouri)

Last week:
Ryan: 6-4, 1-0
Jason: 8-2, 1-0
Scott: 8-2, 1-0

Overall:
Ryan: 65-26, 8-1
Jason: 63-28, 7-2
Scott: 60-31

Ryan
Heritage Hall 40, Kingfisher 14
Jenks 35, Norman 28
Tulsa Union 35, Stillwater 28
Lawton 26, Westmoore 21
Pryor 17, Tulsa Central 13
Deer Creek 34, Ada 7
Anadarko 42, Weatherford 7
Midwest City 42, Norman North 7
McAlester 35, Tulsa Washington 20
Blanchard 22, Bridge Creek 14
Lock of the week: McAlester over Tulsa Washington. The Buffaloes offense has been just too good this season and the Hornets have struggled at times offensively themselves. McAlester wins the district title and remains undefeated.

Jason
Heritage Hall 31, Kingfisher 17
Stillwater 42, Tulsa Union 38
Jenks 27, Norman 14
Westmoore 14, Lawton 10
Pryor 17, Tulsa Central 13
Ada 31, Deer Creek 28
Anadarko 45, Weatherford 14
Midwest City 42, Norman North 24
McAlester 24, Tulsa Washington 17
Blanchard 14, Bridge Creek 9
Lock of the week: Westmoore over Lawton. Westmoore’s defense has been
impressive all season  -  save for last week’s shootout with Mustang -
and I think the Jaguars can hold the Wolverines out of the endzone just
enough to come away with a win. A Westmoore win would likely throw the
2nd, 3rd and 4th playoff spots into a three-way tie between these teams
and Edmond North. All three teams are close in district points, so such
a scenario favors North, which ends its season with U.S. Grant.

Scott
Heritage Hall 31, Kingfisher 17
Tulsa Union 42, Stillwater 38
Jenks 28, Norman 24
Lawton 23, Westmoore 20
Pryor 28, Tulsa Central 22
Deer Creek 21, Ada 17
Anadarko 42, Weatherford 35
Midwest City 48, Norman North 21
McAlester 34, Tulsa Washington 28
Blanchard 12, Bridge Creek 8
Lock of the Week: Tulsa Union over Stillwater. Often, the loss of a key player at a key time — in this case, the suspension of RB Kendall Holmes, who was having a huge year – seems like it will be devastating for a team. And many times, it is. But many other cases, it becomes a unifying moment. This could have been the last poke the Redskins needed to wake up for a run to the state title.

Last week:
Ryan: 7-3, 1-0
Jason: 6-4, 1-0
Scott: 6-4, 0-1

Overall:
Ryan: 59-22, 7-1
Jason: 55-26, 6-2
Scott: 52-29, 6-2

Ryan:
Jenks 28, Broken Arrow 24
Edmond North 17, Edmond Santa Fe 14
Lawton 28, Putnam City 9
Norman 28, Muskogee 15
Tulsa Central 26, Coweta 17
Carl Albert 35, Deer Creek 26
Douglass 27, Glenpool 24
Anadarko 33, Tuttle 14
Heritage Hall 38, Bethany 14
Wynnewood 20, Wayne 14
Lock of the Week: Carl Albert over Deer Creek. The Titans offense has steadily improved throughout the season and they have both the secondary speed to hold the Antlers’ receivers down and the front seven to get pressure on Deer Creek’s quarterback.

Jason:
Broken Arrow 27, Jenks 24
Edmond North 21, Edmond Santa Fe 17
Lawton 31, Putnam City 7
Norman 26, Muskogee 17
Tulsa Central 24, Coweta 14
Carl Albert 41, Deer Creek 14
Douglass 17, Glenpool 14
Anadarko 31, Tuttle 14
Heritage Hall 35, Bethany 14
Wayne 13, Wynnewood 10
Lock of the Week: Anadarko over Tuttle. The Tigers are always a tough, well-coached team under Phil Koons. I expect that Sheldon Wilson won’t be able to run wild like he has all year against Tuttle. But the Warriors, at home, will be too tough,

Scott:
Jenks 30, Broken Arrow 28
Edmond Santa Fe 21, Edmond North 20
Lawton 28, Putnam City 21
Norman 34, Muskogee 28
Tulsa Central 28, Coweta 24
Carl Albert 42, Deer Creek 24
Douglass 28, Glenpool 21
Anadarko 34, Tuttle 28
Heritage Hall 38, Bethany 28
Wayne 27, Wynnewood 22
Lock of the Week: Norman over Muskogee. Norman is beyond motivated to finish this season strong after finding themselves facing potentially being left out of the playoffs. I’d look for a big day from Donovan Roberts, as well as the passing attack to give the Tigers momentum heading into the Week 10 battle with Jenks.

Friday
Field 4
Mustang/Broken Arrow winner vs. Moore/Tulsa Union winner, noon
Owasso/Edmond North winner vs. Jenks/Edmond Santa Fe winner, 4 p.m.

Saturday
Field 1
Championship, 4 p.m.

Class 5A
Field 1
Thursday
Carl Albert vs. Coweta, 11 a.m.
McAlester vs. Deer Creek, 1 p.m.
Tahlequah vs. Shawnee, 3 p.m.
Lawton MacArthur vs. Grove, 5 p.m.

Friday
Carl Albert/Coweta winner vs. Lawton MacArthur/Grove winner, 2 p.m.
McAlester/Deer Creek winner vs. Tahlequah/Shawnee winner, 4 p.m.

Saturday
Championship, 1:30 p.m.

Class 4A
Thursday
Field 4
Blanchard vs. Bethany, 11 a.m.
Oologah vs. Purcell, 1 p.m.
Fort Gibson vs. Tuttle, 3 p.m.
Berryhill vs. Harrah, 5 p.m.

Field 1
Friday
Blanchard/Bethany winner vs. Oologah/Purcell winner, noon
Berryhill/Harrah winner vs. Fort Gibson/Tuttle winner, 2 p.m.

Saturday
Championship, 11 a.m.

A couple of times a year I throw out my rankings and start fresh, take an overall look at the season and don’t constrain myself with past rankings. This is one of those weeks and while their figures to be other classes that are more drastically affected, there is a bit of that here. The biggest questions in my mind were where to place Edmond Santa Fe (and Lawton) and what to do with Putnam City. I considered dropping Broken Arrow a spot but the Tigers still stand as the only team to really challenge Union this season and I’ll give them their small bump Friday. Edmond Santa Fe goes from just outside to No. 8 after their win at Lawton. The Wolverines drop to No. 10. Owasso stays in at No. 9 but has a tough test this week against Union.

Class 5A
1. Guthrie (2)#5-0
2. Lawton MacArthur (5)#5-0
3. Carl Albert (3)#5-0
4. Tulsa East Central (1)#5-0
5. McAlester (4)#5-0
6. Deer Creek (6)#4-1
7. Tulsa Washington (7)#2-3
8. Tulsa Kelley (8)#3-1
9. Ardmore (9)#2-3
10. Coweta (10)#2-3

There’s no shame in being any one of the top five teams here although there was some definite shaking up as I reevaluated from scratch. Guthrie has won every one of its game by 28 or more points, helping the Bluejays move to the top spot. Tulsa East Central falls to No. 4 after their close call against Coweta. Any of the five teams on top could come out with a gold ball but it was time to make some adjustments there. On the bottom half, it hurts that I can’t include Tulsa Central here but looking over their resumes, I’ve got to leave Ardmore and Coweta in ahead of them. Ardmore has played Carl Albert and McAlester tighter than anyone this season and their other loss was to Lawton MacArthur. Their schedule to start has been tough but they shouldn’t lose the rest of the way. Coweta pushed Tulsa East Central and Tulsa Kelley to the brink and their other loss was a close one to 4A power Wagoner. Tulsa Central gets its chance for a statement this week when it faces East Central.

Class 4A
1. Douglass (1)#4-1
2. Wagoner (2)#5-0
3. Catoosa (3)#5-0
4. Clinton (4)#4-1
5. Harrah (5)#5-0
6. Elk City (7)#5-0
7. McGuinness (8)#3-2
8. Hilldale (10)#4-1
9. Sallisaw (9)#3-2
10. Broken Bow (6)#3-2

There wasn’t much shuffling here, save for Broken Bow and Hilldale. Catoosa and Wagoner are on a collision course toward what should be a very entertaining game Oct. 20. Elk City has been impressive but gets a tough test this week against No. 7 McGuinness. Douglass and Clinton’s losses don’t count against them because of the competition they came against. Hilldale got its statement win at Broken Bow but the Hornets win Week 1 against Pryor is looking better and better and their only loss came to No. 2 Wagoner.

Class 3A
1. Heritage Hall (1)#5-0
2. Anadarko (2)#5-0
3. Cascia Hall (3)#5-0
4. Bethany (4)#4-0
5. Metro Christian (5)#5-0
6. Tuttle (6)#5-0
7. Purcell (7)#5-0
8. Kingfisher (8)#5-0
9. Seminole (9)#5-0
10. Berryhill (10)#5-0

I did the same thing here as in other classes and came up with the same thing I had. I considered swapping Seminole and Berryhill on the bottom end and Kingfisher and Purcell one step above that but didn’t pull the trigger in the end. Berryhill’s win over Glenpool in the first week doesn’t look as strong as it did then (not that it’s not a big win still) and Seminole beat a pretty good Stigler team on the road. Berryhill plays at Cascia Hall this week in what should be one of the week’s best games.

Class 2A
1. Davis (1)#4-1
2. Millwood (2)#4-1
3. Lincoln Christian (3)#5-0
4. Stroud (5)#5-0
5. Jones (4)#5-0
6. Vian (7)#5-0
7. Hennessey (6)#3-2
8. Colcord (8)#5-0
9. Talihina (10)#5-0
10. Frederick (NR)#5-0

Made a mistake last week here dropping Frederick out in the first place. Their win over St. Mary was very similar to Washington’s and Washington has two losses, which pushed Frederick into the rankings. Vian moves up a spot while Hennessey drops while Stroud and Jones switch places. Stroud has still given up just seven points all season and shut out four of its opponents. There are still six undefeated team that remain unranked: Comanche, Talihina, Newkirk, Chelsea, Wyandotte and Adair. All are in districts with ranked teams, though, so they’ll get their chances.

Class A
1. Woodland (1)#4-0
2. Thomas (2)#5-0
3. Wynnewood (3)#5-0
4. Minco (5)#5-0
5. Wayne (7)#4-1
6. Morrison (6)#4-1
7. Mangum (9)#4-1
8. Okeene (10)#3-2
9. Elmore City (8)#4-1
10. Foyil (NR)#3-2

At the top, this class was relatively easy as I was pretty comfortable with the top three. After that, there was some switching around after No. 4 Afton fell to Foyil 33-8. First, I swapped Wayne and Morrison. Wayne’s overall resume is slightly better at this point. Mangum and Okeene move up two spots while Elmore drops one after its loss to Wynnewood. Foyil moves in after an impressive win over Afton, beating out Rush Springs for that final spot despite Rush’s 5-0 record. That was a tough choice but Foyil’s two losses came to a pair of still-undefeated Class 2A teams–Chelsea and Adair.

Class B
1. Caddo (1)#5-0
2. Davenport (2)#5-0
3. Kiefer (5)#4-1
4. Fox (6)#4-1
5. Dewar (7)#3-2
6. Gans (4)#4-1
7. Cherokee (8)#4-1
8. Seiling (9)#4-1
9. Wetumka (10)#4-1
10. Pond Creek-Hunter (NR)#4-1

It was tough to drop Laverne all the way out from No. 3 but looking schedule-by-schedule, it had to be done. Laverne beat Cherokee, 45-8, in Week 2, but fell to Pond Creek-Hunter on Friday night. Pond Creek-Hunter’s only loss came to Seiling, who lost to Cherokee by two on Friday. So Seiling pulls off the rare moving up by dropping a game feat by leapfrogging Laverne. Pond Creek-Hunter has to stay in ahead of Laverne so Laverne falls all the way out but still has Seiling remaining on its schedule. It’s tough to ignore what Welch is doing in B-4 but they’ve beaten just one team that is above .500 to this point. They play Kiefer on Oct. 20.

Class C
1. Deer Creek-Lamont (1)#5-0
2. Timberlake (3)#4-0
3. Temple (4)#5-0
4. Sharon-Mutual (10)#3-2
5. Shattuck (2)#4-1
6. Covington-Douglas (5)#4-1
7. Tipton (6)#4-1
8. Coyle (7)#4-1
9. Forgan (8)#4-1
10. Ryan (9)#3-2

The big change here came due to Sharon-Mutual’s 38-22 win at Shattuck. Sharon-Mutual jumped all the way from No. 10 to No. 4. Its only losses came to Seiling and Timberlake and they remain the only team to score on Timberlake this season (They scored 44 in the loss). Shattuck drops just below Sharon-Mutual while Covington-Douglas, Tipton, Coyle, Forgan and Ryan all drop a spot. Arkoma is the lone undefeated team remaining unranked but Keota is the only over .500 team they’ve beaten.

With Westmoore falling out from No. 8 after its loss to Edmond Santa Fe, there were two logical candidates to take the spot: Edmond Santa Fe, who was ranked before its loss to Midwest City the week before, and Stillwater. I chose the Pioneers based on their recent performances but just barely. Santa Fe gets a tough test next week at Lawton. A good performance there, win or lose, gives the Wolves a chance to move back in.

Class 5A
1. Tulsa East Central (1)#4-0
2. Guthrie (2)#4-0
3. Carl Albert (3)#4-0
4. McAlester (4)#4-0
5. Lawton MacArthur (5)#4-0
6. Deer Creek (6)#3-1
7. Tulsa Washington (7)#1-3
8. Tulsa Kelley (8)#2-1
9. Ardmore (9)#1-3
10. Coweta (10)#3-1

Ardmore and Tulsa Washington still in the rankings at 1-3? Absolutely. I’ve never understood why teams drop in rankings after they lose to a high ranked opponent (in most cases). While Tulsa Washington has plenty to work on, the Hornets are still very talented, especially on the defensive side. They lost to Carl Albert, Abilene, Texas, and Tulsa East Central. They’re going to be right there at the end, regardless of what their record now is. Ardmore is similar. They beat Ada to start the season before running into the murderer’s row of Carl Albert, McAlester and Lawton MacArthur the last few weeks. They shouldn’t lose the rest of the way. Speaking of Lawton Mac, I think next week is the week I totally deconstruct my rankings in this class especially and build from scratch. I think the Highlanders might be the best team in the class right now, although I think all five of the top teams are very good. The team I hate to leave out is Tulsa Central, who is 4-0 going into next week’s game against Grove.

Class 4A
1. Douglass (1)#3-1
2. Wagoner (2)#4-0
3. Catoosa (3)#4-0
4. Clinton (5)#3-1
5. Harrah (6)#4-0
6. Broken Bow (7)#3-1
7. Elk City (8)#4-0
8. McGuinness (4)#2-2
9. Sallisaw (9)#2-2
10. Hilldale (NR)#3-1

McGuinness drops four spots after getting manhandled on the road at Clinton. They might be a better team than that but hard to tell right now as the only varsity team they’ve beaten to this point was Tulsa Kelley, another team I’m not sure what to think of through four weeks. I suspect McGuinness will climb up. Hilldale moves into the rankings after a big win over Poteau gave the Hornets back-to-back blowouts after playing Wagoner pretty tough in Week 2. Piedmont and Cleveland gave me pause in those spots, though. Piedmont because of its offense and Cleveland due to its defense. Cleveland has allowed just 33 points all season. Elgin dropped out after getting thumped by Piedmont

Class 3A
1. Heritage Hall (1)#4-0
2. Anadarko (2)#4-0
3. Cascia Hall (3)#3-0
4. Bethany (4)#4-0
5. Metro Christian (5)#4-0
6. Tuttle (6)#4-0
7. Purcell (7)#4-0
8. Kingfisher (8)#4-0
9. Seminole (10)#4-0
10. Berryhill (NR)#4-0

I’ve been looking to get Berryhill into the rankings for a few weeks but since no team in my top 10 had lost a game through three weeks, I couldn’t do it. Sequoyah Tahlequah finally broke that stretch this week with its loss to Verdigris. Everything else remains the same with Seminole moving up one slot. There are several other undefeated teams in the class right now as well.

Class 2A
1. Davis (1)#3-1
2. Millwood (2)#3-1
3. Lincoln Christian (3)#4-0
4. Jones (4)#4-0
5. Stroud (5)#4-0
6. Hennessey (6)#2-2
7. Vian (7)#4-0
8. Colcord (8)#4-0
9. Washington (9)#3-1
10. Talihina (10)#4-0

Nothing changes here as all of the top 10 teams won last week. Hennessey is ranked at No. 6 because their only losses came close against Jones and to 3A No. 8 Kingfisher.

Class A
1. Woodland (1)#3-0
2. Thomas (2)#4-0
3. Wynnewood (3)#4-0
4. Afton (4)#4-0
5. Minco (5)#4-0
6. Morrison (6)#3-1
7. Wayne (7)#3-1
8. Elmore City (8)#4-0
9. Mangum (9)#3-1
10. Okeene (10)#2-2

Nothing changes here either as all of the top 10 teams won.

Class B
1. Caddo (1)#4-0
2. Davenport (3)#4-0
3. Laverne (4)#4-0
4. Gans (NR)#4-0
5. Kiefer (5)#3-1
6. Fox (6)#3-1
7. Dewar (7)#2-2
8. Cherokee (8)#3-1
9. Seiling (9)#4-0
10. Wetumka (2)#3-1

It’s hard to figure out where to slot Wetumka in here after a previously unranked Gans team beat them 52-22 Friday. I slid Davenport and Laverne up a spot before slotting Gans at No. 4. As I kept going down, comparing schedules, I wound up with Wetumka holding on at No. 10. They might be a bit better than that but of the teams ahead of them, only Cherokee has had a blowout loss (at Laverne). Wetumka isn’t likely to be challenged until the final two weeks of the season when they get zcaddo and Dewar back-to-back.

Class C
1. Deer Creek-Lamont (1)#4-0
2. Shattuck (2)#4-0
3. Timberlake (3)#3-0
4. Temple (5)#4-0
5. Covington-Douglas (6)#4-0
6. Tipton (4)#3-1
7. Coyle (8)#4-0
8. Forgan (7)#2-2
9. Ryan (9)#2-2
10. Sharon-Mutual (NR)#2-2

Covington-Douglas moves up a spot after beating previously fourth-ranked Tipton. Tipton drops a couple of spots to six after the close loss. Coyle continues to move up the rankings to No. 7 but they’ll get a tough test this week with No. 1 Deer Creek-Lamont. Sharon-Mutual moves into the rankings, replacing Thackerville in the final spot.

By Ryan Aber

From left to right, Luke Davis, Landry Chappell, Bryan Dutton, and Blake Belcher have Guthrie eyeing a Class 5A championship in 2011. PHOTO BY PAUL HELLSTERN, THE OKLAHOMAN

EDMOND — A huge District 5A-1 battle is The Oklahoman’s top-ranked high school football game in the state, and I’m fortunate enough to be covering it.

Deer Creek will host Guthrie tonight at 7:30 p.m. in one of the state’s tougher district’s first big game.

Adding to this game’s intrigue is the rivalry aspect. These schools aren’t terribly far apart and several of the players on opposing teams are friends.

Guthrie leads the all-time series 4-2.

Both teams are also extremely well-coached. Deer Creek’s Grant Gower and Guthrie’s Rafe Watkins, who has led the Bluejays to two state titles, are two top-notch coaches.

WHEN GUTHRIE HAS THE BALL

Guthrie has the ability to strike from the air or on the ground. Junior quarterback Bryan Dutton has started since he was a freshman, and put up huge numbers last year as a sophomore. But so far this season, the Bluejays have relied more on the ground game.

Senior Luke Davis has rushed for 306 yards and three touchdowns, averaging just over 7.2 yards a carry. But Dutton has also been a force carrying the ball, as has sophomore Kai Callins.

Guthrie, which has averaged 263 rushing and 115 passing yards a game, isn’t choosing to run more because they can’t throw; rather, the Bluejays have a giant offensive line — anchored by left tackle Blake Belcher (6-foot-5, 280 pounds), a Tulsa commit —  that bullies opposing defensive fronts. And with runners like Davis, Dutton, Callins, and others, why would you need to throw?

But if forced to, the Bluejays absolutely could shred opposing secondaries. Dutton has thrown seven touchdown passes through three games and no interceptions. Sophomore Donovan Jordan has caught three TD passes and senior tight end John Clark can make plays in the air game as well. And don’t forget senior move-in Clint Simek, who has quickly made his presence felt for the Bluejays with two TD catches.

But don’t sit on Deer Creek’s defense. The Antlers are extremely talented on that side of the ball — especially up front. Austin Loomis, Kooper Ruminer, Alec James, Clint Edgeman, Nolan Boyd and Ian Smith have all played extremely well for a defense that is allowing just 59 yards rushing per game.

But the Antler defense did collapse in the fourth quarter of a 38-31 win over Piedmont in Week 1 — a game Deer Creek led 38-14 at the end of the third. The Antler defense was great in Weeks 2 and 3, but the opponents (Shawnee and Tecumseh) were teams they should have dominated.

Deer Creek quarterback Joel Blumenthal has thrown six touchdowns this season. PHOTO BY BRYAN TERRY, THE OKLAHOMAN

WHEN DEER CREEK HAS THE BALL

Deer Creek’s offense is much more balanced than it was last year.

I guess that’s what happens when you lose Alex Christensen (1,725 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns in 2010).

But the Antlers might be better on offense this year, and it’s because of that balance.

Quarterback Joel Blumenthal, a junior, has thrown for 558 yards and six touchdowns in his first full year as a starter. And he’s got some big-time receivers to throw to, starting with senior Hunter Dinkines, who has caught two TDs. Junior Jared Rayburn, who caught my eye and just about everyone else’s at the Top of the World Classic scrimmage in Norman, is a huge threat who has also caught two TDs.

Blumenthal also has a reliable tight end in senior Kyle Kanady, who has one TD catch this season.

And in the ground game, the Antlers are doing just fine. Junior Brennan Miyake has rushed for 395 yards and six TDs on the season.

The Deer Creek ground game is going to be interesting to watch, because, as Guthrie senior linebacker Landry Chappell said, Deer Creek will be the first team that will try to run the ball on the Bluejays’ defense. Every other opponent Guthrie has faced has been a pass-first team.

Not that it has mattered. The Bluejays have been absolutely dominate on the defensive side of the ball, allowing an average of just over 98 yards a game and a total — that’s right, a three-game total — of seven points all season.

The Bluejays are flat-out stacked at every position, leaving the Antlers with very few safe places to go. And it all starts with Chappell, the unquestioned leader and heart and soul of the Guthrie defense.

Up front, the Bluejays have big size and speed in Trevor Blassingame, Zac Brown, Richard Brothers and Vincent Norris. Not only do these players help stuff the run game, but they will also look to get pressure on Blumenthal — pressure he hasn’t seen yet this year.

Guthrie’s secondary is dangerous as well. One player to watch there is Callins, who started as a freshman at cornerback last year, intercepting five passes, and has only improved.

PREDICTION TIME

Deer Creek is a really good team. The Antlers will make noise in the district and are a shoo-in for a playoff spot. But Guthrie is a great team, a state title contender and will be too much for the Antlers to handle. Guthrie 28, Deer Creek 17.

Last week:
Scott: 9-1, 1-0
Ryan: 8-2, 1-0
Jason: 8-2, 0-1

Overall:
Ryan: 22-8, 3-0
Scott: 22-8, 2-1
Jason: 21-9, 1-2

Ryan
Guthrie 28, Deer Creek 14
Clinton 21, McGuinness 17
Norman 35, Sapulpa 30
Wagoner 27, Vinita 14
Ryan 22, Thackerville 18
Purcell 28, Sulphur 26
Seq. Tahlequah 20, Verdigris 13
Westmoore 21, Edmond Santa Fe 17
Seminole 14, Valliant 7
Midwest City 28, Yukon 9
Guthrie 34, Deer Creek 28
Lock of the week: Norman over Sapulpa. Sapulpa will score points on Norman but the Tigers defense has the potential for some big stops in this one that will prove to be the difference.

Scott
Clinton 21, McGuinness 17
Norman 38, Sapulpa 28
Wagoner 28, Vinita 21
Thackerville 42, Ryan 35
Purcell 33, Sulphur 28
Seq. Tahlequah 49, Verdigris 31
Edmond Santa Fe 21, Westmoore 14
Seminole 35, Valliant 24
Midwest City 27, Yukon 24
Lock of the week: Guthrie over Deer Creek. Deer Creek has a lot of talent, and is close to breaking through as a great team. But Guthrie is already there. This will be a close one, but I’ll take the Bluejays’ big-game experience to win out.

Jason
McGuinness 21, Clinton 14
Norman 35, Sapulpa 27
Wagoner 28, Vinita 21
Ryan 35, Thackerville 31
Purcell 38, Sulphur 24
Seq. Tahlequah 31, Verdigris 21
Edmond Santa Fe 27, Westmoore 24
Seminole 34, Valliant 24
Midwest City 35, Yukon 17
Guthrie 28, Deer Creek 17
Lock of the week: Edmond Santa Fe over Westmoore. 
I watched Edmond Santa Fe play Midwest City, and while they clearly weren’t better than the Bombers, they showed that they can play with almost anyone. I think the 2-1 Wolves get back on track by winning their district opener at home.

Deer Creek's Austin Loomis visited Indiana this weekend. PHOTO PROVIDED

Deer Creek junior linebacker Austin Loomis took an unofficial visit to Indiana this weekend for the Hoosiers’ game against South Carolina State.

He has also received interest from Air Force, Tulsa, Missouri, Kansas State and Ball State.

Loomis and the Antlers, ranked No. 6 in Class 5A, face a stiff test this week when it hosts No. 2 Guthrie to open district play.

Unfortunately, that first visit happened to be at Saturday’s Tulsa-Oklahoma State game.

Ruminer, who has gotten some interest from the Golden Hurricane, was on an unofficial visit. He talked to players, stood on the field and got a tour of facilities.

But after a three-hour-plus weather delay, Ruminer decided to go home.

Ruminer, who has season tickets to Oklahoma football games, said he was disappointed that his first college visit ended that way. But he was happy that he at least got to see the Golden Hurricane play two weeks ago in Norman.

The ill-fated visit came one day after another big individual performance by Ruminer. He had 10 tackles, forced two fumbles and recovered one in the Antlers’ 49-14 win over Tecumseh on Friday. Through three games, Ruminer has 37 tackles this season.

Deer Creek's Joel Blumenthal had a big day in his team's Week 1 win over Piedmont. PHOTO BY BRYAN TERRY, THE OKLAHOMAN

Deer Creek’s offense, which was more run-oriented last season, is off to a good and balanced start after Friday’s 38-31 win over Piedmont.

“The way it worked out, we were about 52 percent run and 48 percent pass,” Antlers coach Grant Gower said. “It was very good to see the production we had through the air and on the ground. Obviously, everybody hopes to have that balance offensively.”

Junior running back Brennan Miyake accounted for 306 total yards in the win, rushing for 238 yards and two touchdowns and grabbing six receptions for 68 yards.

Quarterback Joel Blumenthal, also a junior, threw for 205 yards and two scores and ran for 45 yards and one touchdown.



Deer Creek coach Grant Gower, left, expects the stadium will be ready for Friday' s home game against Shawnee. PHOTO BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN

Because its stadium expansion wasn’t complete, Deer Creek was forced to relocate its season opener against Piedmont to Yukon’s old stadium.

Deer Creek is undergoing a massive stadium improvement project that will take several years to complete.

Last year, the stadium got artificial turf, new lights and a track. This year, the home side is expanding to seat 3,500 fans.

Coach Grant Gower said that, while he can’t make any guarantees, he expects this week’s home game against Shawnee to go on as planned.

“I just got out of a construction meeting, and things are looking very good for this Friday,” Gower said Saturday. “They are making a lot of headway.”

The game was moved because renovations at Deer Creek’s stadium aren’t completed yet.

“Right now it just isn’t feasible to play it there, so we decided to go ahead and move it (to Yukon),” Gower said.

The Antlers have another home game scheduled for next Friday, September 9, against Shawnee, and Gower said he hopes the stadium is ready by then.

Deer Creek has undertaken a massive athletic expansion project that will span several years. Last year, the stadium added new lights, artificial turf and a track around it. This year’s project is expanding the home stands to seat about 3,500 more people.

The next phase, which has already begun and is set to be completed by next summer, is adding a new field house west of the stadium.

Deer Creek Blaine Powell, right, and Taler Buck finished first and second, respectively, at the Guthrie Cottonwood Flats Invitational meet on Saturday. PHOTO BY PAUL HELLSTERN, THE OKLAHOMAN

Deer Creek’s Blaine Powell won the Class 5A-and-below, three-mile boys race at the annual TIG Guthrie Cottonwood Flats Invitational, and the performance earned him The Oklahoman’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week honors.

Powell ran the race in 15:31 for a five-second victory over teammate Taler Buck. The Deer Creek boys placed six runners in the top 10, winning the race as a team. The Deer Creek girls also won their race as a team.

Deer Creek quarterback Joel Blumenthal throws a pass during the Top of the World Classic at Harve Collins Field in Norman on Friday. PHOTO BY BRYAN TERRY, THE OKLAHOMAN

NORMAN — Want to see a rising Oklahoma high school football star? Go watch a Deer Creek game and pay attention to No. 4, Jared Rayburn.

I have to give credit where credit is due, though. During the first week of fall practices, I asked Antlers’ quarterback Joel Blumenthal for a player I hadn’t heard of that I should keep my eye on in 2011. He said Jared Rayburn, because he is “the next Sterling Shepard” (A comparison that has more to it than you might think, but more on that at a later date).

I made a mental note and moved on, and then ran into Joel before Friday’s scrimmage. He called Jared over and introduced me to him — “This is Jared Rayburn, the guy I was telling you about.”

Then Rayburn went out and was the undisputed star of the Antlers’ 21-21 tie in their half-game with McAlester.

He caught two touchdown passes, and neither of them were in his top two most impressive plays of the night.

Both of those came on the team’s final drive.

Trailing 21-14, Blumenthal started to scramble at about Deer Creek’s 40-yard line. He was trying to direct Rayburn (5-foot-9, 165 pounds) to go upfield, but Rayburn saw Buffaloes’ defensive lineman Jesse Lane (6-3, 225) coming, and made a bone-crushing crack block that left Lane — who is six inches taller and 60 pounds heavier than Rayburn — literally wobbling off the field.

Then, on fourth-and-long later in the drive, Blumenthal scrambled out of the pocket and found Rayburn deep downfield for about a 50-yard reception (Give me a break; it’s hard to keep track of exact stats during a scrimmage). Rayburn later caught the tying TD pass from Blumenthal.

So after the scrimmage, I mentioned to Blumenthal how he probably has a future in scouting because of how right he seems to have been about Rayburn. “I told you so!” he said.

Indeed, Joel. Indeed.

“It was awesome,” Antlers coach Grant Gower said. “It was 72 degrees at 5:45 this morning, and we got a ton of things done. It went very well.”

Most impressive of all? Gower said not a single player was late or absent from the early practice.

“I was very pleased with that,” Gower said. “Everybody was there, and we didn’t have any stragglers.”

Gower said he was most pleased with his team’s level of retention. The Antlers return six starters on offense and seven on defense from last season.

“We started off very crisp, which is one of the nice things with having spring ball, 7-on-7 camps and all that additional stuff,” Gower said. “Our retention level was really good.

“We have a lot of intelligent players.”

Deer Creek's Michael Fulmer was drafted by the New York Mets, while Brian Anderson was drafted by the Minnesota Twins.

State championships are nice but this might rank right up there for the Deer Creek baseball program.

One day after another there was an Antler or former Antler being selected in the MLB Draft. Deer Creek is in a unique position in terms of location. It’s like its own isolated community.

But that’s part of what makes it special, baseball coach Ron Moore said. It wasn’t just Michael Fulmer, Brian Anderson and Derek Vaughn celebrating, the whole Deer Creek community played a role.

“This is an accumulation of not just one person but of the whole program,” Moore said. “One of the things we talk about is individual recognition comes from team success.”

It started Monday night when Fulmer, a right-handed pitcher, was selected by the New York Mets with the 44^th overall selection. Anderson followed Tuesday afternoon when chosen by the Minnesota Twins in the 20^th round.

Anderson was an interesting case because Moore said Anderson was being looked at hard by some teams as early as the ninth round as a pitcher. However, Anderson chose to enter the draft as a shortstop. It made him fall a little bit down the draft, but he’s still in a pretty good spot.

As for Vaughn, a Deer Creek graduate now at Texas Wesleyan, he was picked in the 47^th round by the Tampa Bay Rays. Anderson and Fulmer have both signed with Arkansas.

So in talking to Moore, I put him on the spot: ‘you ready to go through all of this again with Isaac Hellbusch?’

“It’s funny because at our first practice we had more than 40 scouts,” Moore said. “They came to see Michael and Brian, but it was an opportunity for everybody to get noticed. Ike certainly took advantage of that.

“He took more of an ownership of the team this year. Even though he was just a junior, he felt like this was his team, too.”

Hellbusch was one of the better pitchers in the area. And combined with Santa Fe’s Ty Hensley, is another potential big prospect for next year’s class.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Edmond Santa Fe's Clayton Blackburn and Conor Costello (not pictured) were drafted two picks within each other Tuesday.

Edmond Santa Fe’s Conor Costello had to interrupt his own celebration for another one. I guess that’s a pretty good reason, right?

Costello was excited about being selected by the Cincinnati Reds with the 505th pick (16th round) of the MLB Draft. By the time he could let it all sink in, another Santa Fe player was selected. Not two minutes later, pitching star Clayton Blackburn was picked by the San Francisco Giants at No. 507.

“This feels so awesome,” Costello said. “I’ve been playing with him the last five years so to get drafted right by him is really cool.”

Blackburn and Costello were two vital cogs of a crazy-talented group of Wolves that reached the 6A state semifinals.

Costello has signed with Arkansas and was a first-team Big All-City selection, while Blackburn was a first-team Big All-City selection and first-team All-State pick by yours truly. Blackburn is headed to Oklahoma.

Blackburn was also involved in one of my favorite moments of the year, an epic pitching duel won by Blackburn in a 1-0 win at Deer Creek against Michael Fulmer.

Fulmer, of course, could also be headed to Arkansas. He was selected with the 44th pick by the New York Mets. And another Antler, Brian Anderson, is gonna be a Hog, too. So it’s possible to have Blackburn, Fulmer and Costello all in the same lineup.

“If we end up all going there, it’s going to be awesome because we’re all supposed to be roommates,” Costello said. “It’s an exciting time.”

Costello, 6-4 and 200 pounds, hit .373 with five home runs and 33 RBIs. He also was 5-2 on the mound with 57 strikeouts in 44 innings. Blackburn, 6-4 and 22o pounds, was 10-1 with a 1.37 ERA with 106 strikeouts in 66 innings. He hit .375 with seven home runs and 45 RBIs.

UPDATE: Heh, didn’t take long. Anderson got drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 20th round (No. 628). Anderson is a phenomenal shortstop and hitter. Fulmer has given Anderson a lot of credit for Fulmer’s success as a hitter this season. Anderson was first-team All-State and Big All-City.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Deer Creek's Michael Fulmer is one step closer to accomplishing his dream of playing in MLB.

Deer Creek’s Michael Fulmer was busy making the rounds after being selected with the 44th pick of the MLB Draft by the New York Mets.

Was able to get in touch with him recently and here are some of the nuggets.

On the last hour:

“This has been unbelievable. I’ve never experienced anything like that in my life. This is a dream come true.”

On the night’s event:

“We had a big watch party with more than 100 people. We had the entire baseball team and all the families. I want to thank them for all their support and their contributions to my success.”

On when the Mets first contacted him:

“They called around the end of the first round. My agent got back to me and said if I was still around, the Mets were thinking about taking me with the 44^th pick.”

On the moment of hearing his name:

“We got the call from the Mets area scout. My eyes lit up. I didn’t say a word to anybody. And then when they said my name the whole place just exploded. It was the happiest moment of my life.”

On other interested teams:

“From my understanding, the Rangers gave a call to my agent. The Rays were the team I thought. They had a lot of picks, and we had a great relationship with their area scout. They made a lot of great picks tonight, too. Right now, I’m just happy to be a Met. They’ve been in contact with me throughout the season, and I just kind of had that gut feeling.”

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Deer Creek pitcher Michael Fulmer was selected with the 44th pick of the MLB Draft by the New York Mets.

Wow, what a night. Started with the selections of Owasso’s Dylan Bundy and Broken Arrow’s Archie Bradley. Closed it out with Deer Creek ace Michael Fulmer being selected in the compensation round.

Great stuff. For those that don’t know, Bundy was selected with the fourth pick by the Baltimore Orioles. A great fit, obviously, as his brother, Bobby, is also in the Orioles organization.

Good friend and Broken Arrow star only had to wait another15 minutes before his name was called by the Arizona Diamondbacks with the seventh pick.

And then we waited. But not that long. With the 11th pick of the compensation round and 44th overall selection, former New York Mets pitcher Frank Viola made the announcement that the Mets had selected Fulmer.

“I think his work ethic is about as good as I’ve ever seen from a young man,” Deer Creek coach Ron Moore said. “The majority of the scouts that have seen him say he’s 18 years old going on 25-30. He’s extremely mature.

“Whether it’s in the SEC or in rookie or Class A ball, Michael’s going to be ready. We’re all proud of him.”

I’m still waiting to hear back from Fulmer. I ‘guess’ he’s a little busy right now. Fulmer, The Oklahoman’s Big All-City Player of the Year and a first-team All-State selection, was dominant on the mound for the Antlers. He went 10-2 with a 0.72 ERA and 127 strikeouts in 68 innings.

He was a beast this year. He went from being a solid prospect last year to being one of the top pitchers around. He put on a lot of weight and said all it did was add to his leg strength.

Fulmer also became a complete player and was one of the best hitters for the Antlers this season. He has signed with Arkansas as has teammate Brian Anderson and Edmond Santa Fe’s Conor Costello.

I echo the maturity comments made by Moore regarding Fulmer. Just a great kid to be around and capped off an incredible night for Oklahoma baseball.

For my story on Fulmer being named Big All-City Player of the Year, go here. And when Fulmer calls me back, I’ll update.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

In an incredibly close decision, Broken Arrow's Archie Bradley (hoisting trophy) was named The Oklahoman's All-State Player of the Year.

OK, the feedback hasn’t been as negative as I thought. There have been questions about the selection but no irrational sentiments voiced so far.

Knew it was going to be an eye-opener to select Broken Arrow’s Archie Bradley instead of Owasso’s Dylan Bundy as The Oklahoman’s All-State Baseball Player of the Year.

Ryan Aber and myself did not make this selection to cause a stir, believe me. It was a tough one, and I still blame Ryan for why there will never be co-players of the year.

It stems back to the senior seasons of Keiton Page at Pawnee and Rotnei Clarke of Verdigris. Both won state championships. Clarke set the state scoring record. Incredibly tough. Ryan chose Page as the Player of the Year.

Since then, no matter what, it’s eliminated Co-Players of the Year. Though this is close to that, Page over Clarke is about the best case for the co-player honor.

I felt it last year in tennis with undefeated state champions (and clearly the two best singles players in the state) Mia Lancaster of Bishop McGuinness and Julie Labarthe of Heritage Hall. Picked Labarthe, definitely irked some but that’s OK.

So that brought us to this year. We were convinced on Bradley. Then Bundy was named the Gatorade Player of the Year. Then Bundy was named the National Player of the Year. Oy. But I’ve always viewed this as a high school award.

It’s what you did on the field/court/mat, etc. It’s not about potential. Bundy is projected to be the higher draft pick and that’s fine. And heck, it’s been great to see the genuine friendship between the two so I don’t feel there is a real rivalry.

Owasso's Dylan Bundy and Broken Arrow's Archie Bradley - two of the better Oklahoma HS pitchers in a LONG time.

This could have kinda been settled in April when the two teams were scheduled. It was rained out. This could have been settled at OneOK Field in Tulsa in the Class 6A state championship. Bundy didn’t pitch. Bradley did. And he pitched, maybe not his best, but the most important game of his life. He was dominant with 14 strikeouts and leading the Tigers to the state championship.

I don’t hold it against Bundy or his coaches/advisers that believed it was in Bundy’s best interest to not pitch. Heck, maybe it was after the backlash of what happened in 2010 with Bundy’s arm.

But I also wasn’t going to use it against Bradley for going out there and getting the job done on the biggest high school stage possible.

If you wanna play the stat game, Bundy was slightly better than Bradley in most major categories on the mound and at the plate. There weren’t many glaring differences between the two. You’re talking about hundredths separating ERAs. Three earned runs for Bradley compared to two for Bundy.

It’s nitpicking no matter which way you slice it. So instead of trying to knock down Bundy or Bradley to give out the honor, I chose to reward Bradley for an outstanding season that culminated with a magical outing on that Saturday in May.

Obviously expect both players to hear their names called Monday night, and it should be an incredible feeling for both of them. But I also feel the right choice was made for the All-State Baseball Player of the Year.

And if you wanna read even more on Bradley and Bundy, here is a tremendous piece by Matt Baker of the Tulsa World. Baker spent the majority of this week with the super studs to see what’s on their minds hours away from their lives being changed forever.

- All-State Player of the Year, Archie Bradley of Broken Arrow

- Big All-City Player of the Year, Michael Fulmer of Deer Creek

- Little All-City Player of the Year, Blake Estep of Jones

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Back to the topic, the different format for the final day of the camp kinda makes doing scrimmage-by-scrimmage reports pointless. There were so many. If you saw me, I was basically anchored on the 50 yard line and kept my head on a swivel between the two fields.

Midwest City
Bombers had highlight of the day for me. In a hotly contested battle with Stillwater, the Bombers used some of that Bomber Magic on the final play.

Quarterback Ronnie Davis gave it to Cornell Neal, who chucked it into the end zone to Zeke Lewis for the scrimmage-winning score. What made the play, really, was the fact Midwest City got the snap off with 1 second left in the 10-minute scrimmage. But the snap did count.

If you ask me, Stillwater was the darling of this camp. Stillwater opened people’s eyes all three days. However, Midwest City also showed it’s still among the best. And though early indications are that Stillwater is going to be a player this season, the Bombers showed they’re not going away anytime soon, either.

Second highlight of the day: Ricky Reeves of Midwest City one-on-one against Stillwater’s Jesse Vester. How’s that for an early June battle between two of the best athletes in the state?

Stillwater
Like I said, no team impressed me more. Got a chance to talk with Jesse Vester and Jerame Littell during those first two days. Had a good chat with coach Tucker Barnard on this final day. I won’t spoil it because I’m writing a big Stillwater story for Monday’s paper. How’s that for a tease?

Bishop McGuinness
Irish were learning on the job in this camp, said coach Justin Jones. Not only are coach and players still trying to adjust to everything, but the Irish had maybe the least amount of practices coming into the event. Jones said because of dead week during finals, the Irish only had six practices. Or as he put it, ‘three offensive practices and three defensive practices.’ I’m not sold on the McGuinness offense yet, but ya gotta love that defense, especially those linebackers.

Deer Creek
Getting off the mat to finish the job. In a scrimmage against, ooh, I wanna say Stillwater, QB Joel Blumenthal tweaked his ankle on the final play. In the ensuing scrimmage against Bixby, Blumenthal found Hunter Dinkines for a touchdown on the final play. Came away really impressed with Brennan Miyake. He’s already a big boy. Deer Creek was missing some key linemen and had to battle 6A teams for those three days so not going to be too harsh. Coach Grant Gower was extremely pleased and that’s good enough for me.

Norman North
Enjoyed seeing Bryan Payne do his thing. He’s a little dude, but he’s got some game in him. Between him, Emilio Gatewood and Raymond Demby, that was a nice set of backs last year. Payne looks like he’ll have to be the man, but if he can endure the punishment, that’s OK. Coach Wade Standley said it was just Day 12 of the team and him together so like most coaches at this point, happy to get some good reps in.

Edmond North
I really like Luke Hoskins. I’m not sure how the X-and-Os battle is going between Jesse Mathews and Hoskins, but Hoskins has looked good. Also glad to see Jared Benway take some big shots and bounce back up. Really hope Benway can stay healthy. Jarion Tudman was also back in action Friday after being banged up Wednesday. This is another team that I’ll see a lot more of in the future so I didn’t critique the Huskies too much.

OCS
A lot of the names I’ve grown to love with the Saints are gone, but coach Derek Turner is extremely excited about this group. He admits they’re a young squad, but he said the talent in the freshman/sophomore class is some top notch stuff. Hope to see more of the Saints this summer.

- Edmond Santa Fe wasn’t there on the final day. That’s alright, know there will be plenty of other times I’ll catch up with Lance Manning and company…Little Axe coach Ted Dorrell is excited to be a head coach again, that’s for sure. The Indians took a big hit via graduation, but Dorrell has some real fire…McLoud coach Eric Cardin said his team is young, but a camp like this always helps out. Realistically, Redskins are one year away, but Cardin is pumped for the future…Didn’t get to meet with Tecumseh coach Greg George too long. He said he loved the camp, best camp his team goes to. Savages did OK from the action I saw.

- Some of these same teams are out at Boone Pickens on Saturday for the Red Bull Game Breakers. I won’t be there, but I have ‘correspondents’ who will fill me in.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

A couple in particular, Stillwater and Deer Creek, made goalline, last-second stands to preserve scrimmage victories. I guess if you wanna call them victories.

Stillwater vs. Edmond Santa Fe

Never had I anticipated a 20-minute scrimmage between two 1-9 teams more than what I did as the final scrimmage of the day. Santa Fe looked great against Bixby and Pioneers showed a lot against Midwest City.

This one was as good as I hoped. Midwest City and Edmond North was going on at the same time, but the intensity and battle was just a little bit better with the Wolves and Pioneers so that’s who I stuck with.

Big heart showed by Stillwater QB Jerame Littell. He took a nasty shot that led to an interception. On the next drive, aired it out to Jesse Vester for the touchdown.

Wolves bounced back. With big brother Reggie Smith watching, Trevan Smith showed his speed. Trevan is small, but he’s got a lot of wiggle to him and scored.

Littell led another touchdown drive to set the stage for the final minutes. Justice Hansen threw it in the end zone as time expired, and it was picked off. Big thing that Littell and coach Tucker Barnard stressed was the ability to finish.

When you’re 1-9, at least a few of those games are decided in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. You have to learn how to finish. That’s what the Pioneers are doing so far at Edmond North. Great physical battle.

Deer Creek vs. Bixby

The Antlers had already wrapped up the ‘scrimmage victory.’ Based on rules, Bixby shouldn’t have been allowed one more play. But Deer Creek coach Grant Gower told Bixby to go one more play. He wanted his kids to experience a fourth down-like atmosphere.

Deer Creek stopped the Spartans short of the end zone in a 7-0 victory.

Antlers defense was the star in this one. To go with the last-second stop, Deer Creek stopped Bixby on a fourth-and-one earlier in the scrimmage.

Deer Creek scored on its second play from scrimmage as QB Joel Blumenthal found RB Brennan Miyake cutting across the middle and Miyake did the rest.

Miyake said it was a big boost to be going against Edmond North and Midwest City earlier in the day. It made the Antlers ready for a team like Bixby.

Midwest City vs. Edmond North

Caught glimpses of this. After Christian Peterson picked off a MWC pass, it seemed like the Bombers settled down after that. A lot of stops for losses for Midwest City against Edmond North. Bombers also found the end zone a couple of times. Wish that hadn’t gone head-to-head with Stillwater and Santa Fe.

Norman North vs. Shawnee

Another one that I didn’t get to fully see. A lot of woofin’ in this one. Teams had to separated a couple of times. T’Wolves’ fans, who is No. 3? I’m enjoying watching him work, that’s for sure. I didn’t see either team score in the 10-12 minutes I was able to watch.

Bishop McGuinness vs. Altus

I tried to watch, but what I was really thinking was why was Altus in full pads? Every other team was wearing shorts, but the Bulldogs were padded up. It makes a big difference. The Irish were still able to win, but that was a strange sight to see.

- Got a chance to briefly talk with Little Axe coach Ted Dorrell. I told him I can’t keep track of all 15 teams. He told me ‘try learning your players’ names in an environment like this.’ Dorrell was an assistant at Jones last season.

- Interesting talking with Santa Fe defensive coordinator Kenny Young when Irish were playing. He admits he’s still cheering for McGuinness and always will be. Ten years doesn’t just disappear with a change in jobs.

- Windy as heck out there. Don’t know if videos with Littell and Miyake will be deemed salvageable. If not, just look for some isolated plays from the scrimmages.

- Format change for Friday. Teams will start at 8:30 instead of 8 a.m. Also, more scrimmages. 10-minute scrimmages will begin at 9:40 and go to about 11:30-11:45. Either way, I’ll be out there. My format changes, too. I try to talk with players Wednesday and Thursday. Friday, I’ll be asking coaches what they learned in the three days so probably won’t be any videos.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

The format was the same, too, thankfully. Teams go from station-to-station and then 20-minute scrimmages start at 11 a.m.

The first scrimmage I’m always going to be able to sorta give a better account. After that, it gets sketchy because I’m trying to track down players/coaches from the finished scrimmage and also watch the next set of teams.

Bishop McGuinness vs. Shawnee

Not the best start to this one for either team. In fact, that was kind of the general trend where teams started slow and then picked up the pace.

Irish turned the ball over first time in possession, and the Wolves capitalized. However, in final two possessions, Irish looked a lot better. The first was a sustained (well, as sustained as you can get going 40 yards) drive that ended in a Camden Tharp touchdown rush.

And then in the final minute, Tharp threw the ‘scrimmage-winning’ touchdown pass. He said it’s a lot different environment under coach Justin Jones as opposed to Kenny Young.

People are normally quick to say that’s bashing the former coach, but it’s not, if you ask me. Different doesn’t imply anything except that things are ‘different.’

Young was an in-your-face, no nonsense type of guy. Jones is a little more hands on, Tharp said. Tharp admitted it was tough initially in the scrimmage because the Irish were playing a lot of JV. To go from that to Shawnee is a leap, for sure. Gonna have to pick me up a Wolves roster for the next two days. Saying No. 2 and No. 12 had good days doesn’t amount to much, my fault.

Edmond Santa Fe vs. Bixby

This started the trend of things getting chippy. The Wolves are playing with a real chip on their shoulder, for the lack of a better term. The last two years have been tough to endure, and they’re looking to show things are going to be different right from the get go.

Leading that charge is wide receiver Tre Kelley. He was a-woofin’ and hollerin’ all scrimmage. He also backed it up. QB Justice Hansen looked good on a touchdown carry. Really excited to see what Phillip Sumpter and Trevan Smith can do in the open field.

But more than the offense, great day by the defense. Kenny Young has the team playing in a different tempo, swagger, and it showed in Day 1. I wanna say it was Santa Fe 14, Bixby 0 but don’t quote me on that one.

Midwest City vs. Stillwater

Ooh, pumped to see what is happening with the Pioneers right now. Cleaned house with the coaching staff, and the kids just look a little happier to go to work.

Obviously when you talk about Stillwater, it starts with QB Jerame Littell and WR Jesse Vester. Wednesday was no different as Vester made some outstanding plays, and Littell got to showcase his arm.

Stillwater made a nice late charge in this one. Not gonna judge the Midwest City offense too much because a lot of key players to replace. And this was a scrimmage that I was really scrambling to see. Hope to get a better look at the Bombers on Thursday or Friday.

Deer Creek vs. Altus

Deer Creek coach Grant Gower said he was really pleased with the team’s effort. Antlers scored on all three of their possessions.

When you’re talking about DC, Altus and the Irish, you’re looking at 5A teams that are going against 6A teams the entire time until this scrimmage portion. You get to see how much it helps to go against the speed of MWC, Edmond North, etc., when get back down to 5A.

- Look for videos with Tharp, Kelley and Vester on NewsOK. I’ll be keeping tabs on the health of Edmond North RB Jarion Tudman. He landed knee-first on the track on a tackle and had to ice his knee. Goal is to catch a better glimpse of Norman North, MWC, OCS and a couple of others on Day 2.

- And for the record, the 15 teams: Edmond North, Edmond Santa Fe, Midwest City, Bixby, Norman North, Stillwater, Deer Creek, McGuinness, Shawnee, Altus, OCS, Meeker, McLoud, Tecumseh, Little Axe.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

2011 Suburban Conference

All – Conference Team

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Sr. Brian Anderson- Deer Creek­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

PITCHER OF THE YEAR

Sr. Michael Fulmer- Deer Creek­­­­­­­­­­­­

NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR

Fr. Gavin Lavalley- Carl Albert

COACH OF THE YEAR

Ron Moore- Deer Creek

Deer Creek quarterback Joel Blumenthal is ready to be 'the man' for the Antlers.

For the majority of the state, spring football kicked off Monday. Scott Wright and myself are going to try to make as many different stops as we can in the next two weeks.

I began my two-week journey at Deer Creek and that place is getting a makeover. The smallest press box in the state is officially gone, whoo hoo. The Antlers are having major renovations done. It’s such a beautiful area near the school, but it definitely needed an upgrade.

The stadium isn’t the only thing that is changing. Gone is unstoppable force Alex Christensen at quarterback and in is the smooth game of junior-to-be Joel Blumenthal.

Blumenthal rose to prominence (and me getting emails) with his performance for the freshman team. Last year, he saw spot duty and added another dimension to the passing attack.

This year? It’s his time to shine.

I got to learn a lot the last couple of years watching Alex, but I’m excited about what we have going on here,” Blumenthal said.

It was only the first hour of the first day, but Blumenthal is already starting to put his mark on the club. He was very assertive in applauding his teammates and on constructive criticism.

He knows what he needs to work on, and he’s been doing that. He’s put on some pounds since last year, and I believe his biggest thing is he has to learn how to get rid of the ball quicker.

Obviously not going to find out if that happens during spring ball, but Blumenthal did mention how that is something he has been addressing.

Running back Brennan Miyake also looked solid in his first practice. Going from Alex and Colten Sander to Blumenthal and Miyake.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

* Pitchers Clayton Blackburn (11), Michael Fulmer (11) and Kyle Shaw (3) combined for 25 strikeouts out of a possible 42 outs.
* Nobody had more than one hit. Blackburn had lone RBI on sacrifice fly to score Lacy.
* The only Antler to not strike out was shortstop Brian Anderson (Arkansas signee). Anderson didn’t have one of the two hits, though. Three Wolves didn’t K (Conor Costello, Brady Newville and Zac Cobble). However, none of them figured in the only run.
* Blackburn’s no-hitter was broken up by a bunt single with two outs in the fifth by Hunter Dinkines. The single eventually led to the final out of the inning at home plate when DC tried scoring from second base on the bunt.
* Blackburn struck out seven consecutive batters at one point. Fulmer retired 10 of the last 11. Only person to reach had the courtesy runner caught stealing.
* The loss snaps Deer Creek’s 21-game winning streak and is first loss to in-state opponent.
* Santa Fe’s Lonny Cobble: “We’re as healthy as we’ve been all season today. Our arms are coming back, and we’re feeling really good.”
* Deer Creek’s Ron Moore: “Anybody who says a loss is a good thing before the playoffs – that’s a bunch of bull. You want to win every game. We let a couple of opportunities slip away. The competition level today was great and Michael threw the ball really well.”

5:54 – Kyle Shaw strikes out the side.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – Final

5:46 – Fulmer closes the day by retiring 10 of his last 11. The only batter to reach had the courtesy runner picked off on a caught stealing. Fulmer goes 7 IP, 5 H, 11 K. Blackburn has reached his limit, too. Kyle Shaw in to close out the show.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – Bot 7th

5:36 – Antlers try to play small ball again but to no avail. Blackburn gets Ross Stracke to pop out on a nice effort by Newville to retire the side.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – End 6th

5:30 – Fulmer picks up strikeout No. 10 and retires the side 1-2-3. He has now taken down the last eight batters. Blackburn will throw the sixth. Coach Lonny Cobble said he was going to try to limit Blackburn to 5 innings or 80 pitches. But when you’re throwing as good as Clayton is, hmm, tough to do, no?

5:24 – Ooh, a heads up play by Ty Hensley keeps it 1-0. After making a throwing error to start the inning, Hensley triggers the rundown to end the inning. Hunter Dinkines picked up the Antlers’ first hit on a bunt with Chase Stephens at second base. Instead of throwing to first, Hensley kept the ball, which enabled the Wolves to gun down Stephens at the plate (attempting to score from 2nd on the bunt). Blackburn with two more Ks to give him 10.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – End 5th

5:15 – We were so close to having a half inning without a strikeout. But Fulmer struck out the final batter of a 1-2-3 inning. He’s got 9 for the day.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – Bot 5th

5:08 – A great defensive play at short by Brady Newville, add in another strikeout and the Antlers are retired in order. Blackburn has 8 Ks through four, too.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – End 4th

5:02 – Fulmer works around a couple of singles, strikes out two to give the Arkansas signee eight through four frames.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – Bot 4th

4:52 – Wow, it’s reached a point where if the ball is hit, that’s cause for celebration. Blackburn punches out two more before Brian Anderson ends the streak at seven on a ground out. Thirteen Ks between Blackburn and Fulmer.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – End 3rd

4:47 – Everything you would expect from these two. Fulmer gives up a one-out single to Zac Cobble and strikes out the next two to give him six so far.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek – Bot 3rd

4:38 – Blackburn is on fire. The OU signee has now struck out five consecutive batters in fanning the side in the bottom of the second.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – End 2nd

4:32 – Fulmer brings it in this frame. Retires the side 1-2-3 and strikes out the final two batters looking. He’s got four Ks through two.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – Bot 2nd

4:25 – Blackburn works out of it. Two uncharacteristic errors by the Wolves, but Blackburn strikes out the final two batters to escape out of the jam. Not sure how crowd is looking on TV, but it’s packed here at John Hundley Memorial Field and the ‘blue out’ by Deer Creek is certainly adding to it.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – End 1st

4:12 – Edmond Santa Fe gets on the board first. Kyle Lacy jacked a triple and was brought in via sacrifice fly by Clayton Blackburn. Lacy was down 0-2 and took a tough pitch. A lot of people (yours truly included) thought it was strike three. Given new life, Lacy hit a towering drive to left-center. Michael Fulmer had two Ks.
Edmond Santa Fe 1, Deer Creek 0 – Bot 1st

3:32 – Arrived at John Hundley Memorial Field for the battle between Deer Creek and Edmond Santa Fe. Great crowd for the game still being 30 minutes away. Will post inning-by-inning updates. Can’t make it out here, game is also being televised LIVE on Cox.

Kyle Lacy and Jackson Matthews have played big roles in helping Edmond Santa Fe this season.

There should be a ‘Boneman’ championship trophy given to the winner of Saturday’s Edmond Santa Fe and Deer Creek baseball game. Somebody get on that and design the trophy. We only have a day to get it done.

I haven’t gotten to see Broken Arrow or Owasso this season (and we know how awesome both of those teams are), but when you talk about the west side, it’s been the Wolves and the Antlers.

There’s not much more either team can do to stand out at this point. They’ve both made their mark on this season and both know it won’t matter unless they can claim that championship in two weeks. Regardless, it should be a whole lotta fun at John Hundley Memorial Field at Deer Creek.

Coaches Lonny Cobble and Ron Moore have said they’re going to throw their aces – Michael Fulmer for the Antlers and Clayton Blackburn for the Wolves. Fulmer, of course, has signed with Arkansas, while Blackburn is going to be a Sooner.

No idea how long either will throw. I can’t imagine them going more than 4-5 innings. It might be where they reach a certain pitch count limit and then are taken out. For however long they’re both on the mound, it will be a showcase of two of the best. And again, for the west side, the version of Archie Bradley vs. Dylan Bundy.

Deer Creek started the season 6-0 before going 0-4 in a tournament in Alabama. It fueled the team, initially, and the Antlers haven’t let up yet. Brian Anderson is one of the best players around and has also signed with Arkansas. Every time I see him I’m more impressed. Fulmer is also a solid hitter, and I like what Ross Stracke brings to the table. And Isaac Hellbusch, well, his stock has gone up so much since the beginning of the season.

The "Arkansas boys" as Michael Fulmer and Brian Anderson have led Deer Creek to another great season.

The Antlers have won 21 consecutive games and have not lost to an in-state component this season. Notable wins include at Carl Albert, Norman North, Westmoore, Stillwater, Chickasha, Guthrie (twice), Bishop McGuinness (twice).

Santa Fe has been every bit as good as expected. This season also marked coach Cobble’s 500th win with the Wolves but that didn’t serve as a distraction.

Between Conor Costello (Arkansas) and Ty Hensley and Blackburn, that’s a scary trio either on the mound or at the plate. Easton Mitchell has surprised me all season as a pitcher, and the ‘Kyles’ Lacy and Shaw can both bring it.

The Wolves’ biggest win was last Saturday at Broken Arrow. Under next year’s single elimination format, that would spell the end of the Tigers. I think that’s part of the reason the coaches weren’t in favor of that. Show you can do it again. That’s another argument for another time.

Santa Fe has had the target on its back and has been up to the challenge. Two wins against Yukon, Putnam City North. Wins against Norman North, Westmoore, among others.

The game was originally scheduled for 6 p.m. However, Santa Fe has Prom on Saturday so the game has been moved (yay) to 4 p.m. and will also be on Cox.

So as I asked in the title, No. 3 Edmond Santa Fe (6A) vs. No. 1 Deer Creek (5A)…what more do you want?

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Let that sink in for a moment. Wow, gotta say that’s pretty cool. Owasso, led by uber-star pitcher Dylan Bundy, went from No. 4 in the last rankings to the top slot.

Broken Arrow went from No. 5 to No. 8. Of course with OKRankings.com rankings completed last week, yes, you can say Owasso is No. 1 in the nation and not even No. 1 in the state. That’s not a bash on anybody, but it is certainly weird to say.

The Rams are 26-1 and have been simply dominant all season. And like Deer Creek (No. 1 in 5A), Owasso has not lost to an in-state opponent. That was true of Broken Arrow until third-ranked Edmond Santa Fe won at BA on Saturday night.

The Baseball America rankings are released every other week, and it just happened to be at the right time for Owasso and its supporters.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

And focused.

Coming off a grueling Deer Creek Classic tournament championship that saw the Antlers defeat Westmoore and Norman North, I was kinda expecting an emotional letdown against Chickasha.

It didn’t happen. The team was crisp in earning an 8-0 victory Monday night at Deer Creek in six innings. The Chicks are a legit top 5 team in 5A, and Isaac Hellbusch went right through them.

The junior had a no-hitter for 5 2/3 innings before Collin Hightower broke it up with Chickasha’s only hit of the game. Hellbusch struck out eight in six innings.

Offensively, it was the Ross Stracke show. The senior had a two-run triple, doubled and then closed out the game with a two-run double. Biggest confusion was the score. Was it 9-0 or 8-0? DC was up 6-0 when Stracke cleared the bases with another double. However, once that second run crossed, game over. So even though the ninth run crossed the plate, game was done at 8-0.

Deer Creek’s Jon Wilson also had a solid performance with a two-run double. Wilson, Brian Anderson and Stracke were really the only hitters to have success off pitcher Chris Nye. However, Chickasha’s defense let itself down by committing four errors.

Coach Brad Gore said coming into the game how important the defense was, and it failed the Chicks again vs. the top-ranked Antlers.

Sounds like a broken record, but that puts the winning streak at 20 games for Deer Creek and the Antlers still have not lost to an in-state opponent.

The countdown is on…Saturday. No. 1 Deer Creek vs. No. 3 Edmond Santa Fe. Ooh boy, get giddy just thinking about it. One of several great matchups between 5A-6A teams as all clubs look to stay sharp before regional play.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Norman North was on early against Deer Creek pitcher Isaac Hellbusch. The Timberwolves had two hits and a run across the plate by the time Caleb Simpson was up to bat.

Runners were at second and third and Simpson rifled one up the middle. Unfortunately for him, it went right into Hellbusch’s glove and started a double play.

“That was a game changer,” Hellbusch said.

The Timberwolves got one more across via an error and then were stoned by Hellbusch the rest of the way as Deer Creek rallied for a 4-2 victory at the Deer Creek Classic on Wednesday.

Hellbusch didn’t allow another hit the rest of the way and finished the game with 10 strikeouts, including fanning the final two batters of the game.

Hellbusch had an RBI double in the first inning and thought maybe we were headed for a slugfest. Um, we weren’t. The score remained that until the bottom of the sixth when the top-ranked Antlers notched three in the frame without the ball leaving the infield on the run-producing hits.

We had infield hits, safety squeezes, one error, good base running and a 2-1 deficit became a 4-2 advantage for the Antlers.

“We practice for things like that,” coach Ron Moore said. “You have to be able to find a way to win games any way possible.”

The wind, which wasn’t too bad initially, really picked up and there weren’t going to be any HRs hit on this day. In the sixth, George Haaland had an RBI single, Cameron Davis ends up with the game-winning safety squeeze while Haaland scored from second on an infield single by Hunter Dinkines.

Norman North pitcher Ryan Allen was great for five innings. And really, he didn’t throw bad pitches in the sixth but the breaks went against him. He gave up four of the seven hits in the frame and also struck out seven for the fourth-ranked TWolves.

Circumstances beyond either team’s control forced the No. 1 5A team against the No. 4 6A team at 1 p.m. on a Wednesday, but it was well-played and fun to attend.

Norman North has won 17 of its last 19 games. I have seen the two losses. The Timberwolves are going to make sure I don’t come to any more of their games. Deer Creek still has not lost to an in-state opponent.

Norman North had a good strategy by running on Hellbusch as the TWolves had five stolen bases in the first inning. But unable to get many runners on after the first inning, the running attack didn’t play a big role.

Look for a video with Hellbusch on NewsOK. The Classic continues throughout the rest of the week, with the championship Saturday night.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Thursday
Edmond North vs. El Reno, 10 a.m.
Westmoore vs. Guthrie, 1 p.m.
Noble vs. Norman North, 4 p.m.
Deer Creek vs. Miami, 7 p.m.

Friday
Miami vs. Noble, 10 a.m.
Miami vs. Norman North, 1 p.m.
El Reno vs. Guthrie, 4 p.m.
Edmond North vs. Westmoore, 7 p.m.

Saturday
Times and teams to be decided later based on all teams participating.

Crazy to think Deer Creek and Norman North will play each other. I’ll be there for that one as it’s No. 1 in 5A vs. No. 4 in 6A. Should be fun.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Too early for 2013 class talk? Maybe, but Deer Creek's Joel Blumenthal is one to watch.

Before we get to the weekly news and notes on some of the top recruits, really think some recruiting experts are missing the boat on the class of 2012.

Heritage Hall’s Barry J. Sanders dominates the headlines and has for the last couple of years. And then when a program like Oklahoma offers players such as Jenks’ Alex Ross and Heritage Hall’s Sterling Shepard, that obviously makes people stand up and notice.

Those three again were recognized with Sanders at No. 51, Shepard at No. 85 and Ross at No. 89 of the Scout 300. And then that was it. Really?

No love for Norman RB Donovan Roberts or Douglass OL Cayman Bundage? Or an OL like Blake Belcher from Guthrie? And we might all be sleeping on just how good Ramsey Hamilton of Beggs after how well he has fared in workout/combine atmospheres.

I really like this class. Hey, maybe I’m overestimating how good this class is going to be, but I can tell you that I’m already excited for the fall. Heck, even spring practice.

With that said, more news and notes:

- Edmond Santa Fe has been off the radar lately, but that should change this year. Not only is Ty Hensley a top baseball/football prospect, defensive back Conner Bays performed extremely well at an Under Armour combine last weekend in Houston. It’s going to be a new looks Wolves team so it will be very interesting to see how this team gels together.

- When you start talking about the 2013 class, it starts in Lawton with D.J. Ward, but I’m wondering just how far up the ranks Deer Creek’s Joel Blumenthal is going to go. He performed well at a combine in Dallas in late March and has been invited to Tampa for a top camp in the summer. It is invite only with 25 quarterbacks from 15 different states.

- Mention Casady recruiting for 2011, and you go right to DL Graham Bennett and LB Garrison Lee. However, don’t forget about Mac Katigan. He’s going to Princeton’s Junior Day this weekend and has also been invited to the junior days at Yale and Dartmouth. Dartmouth seems like a natural fit considering his older brother, Austin, is a freshman on the football team.

- Incredibly busy time of year when it comes to combines. Casey Curtis of Putnam City is off to a couple more on this weekend. We won’t call Curtis ‘Scott Wright’s boy,’ but Scott is very high (rightfully so) on the ability of Curtis. With more info, read Scott’s blog.

- OKVarsity.rivals.com is going to have its in-state combines next month. The Oklahoma City area one is May 21 at Yukon, while the Tulsa area is May 28 at Broken Arrow. For much more info, here ya go. I definitely intend to attend both combines but have no idea if I’ll be able to. Justin Mitchell does a great job with the OKVarsity site, and it’s a very well-run exhibition.

- A couple of forgotten kids are starting to make some noise. Edmond North RB Jared Benway missed all of his junior season with a broken leg but is back and looking good. Same can be said for Heritage Hall quarterback Quinn Shanbour. Shanbour left Bishop McGuinness a day before the season opener. HH coach Andy Bogert said Shanbour played a vital role in helping the team practice against opposing QBs last year. Shanbour just returned from a visit to the University of Arizona.

- As always, you got info, drop me a line. You went to a camp? Let me know how it went.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

He absolutely understands how to pitch right now. What I mean by that is he is able to think his way out of jams and think himself into strikeouts.

Whether or not my babbling makes sense, I’ll tell ya what does: 16 strikeouts against one of the most high-powered offenses in the state.

Fulmer was impressive in a 10-2 win at Carl Albert on Monday night.

The offense wasn’t too shabby, either, for the third-ranked Antlers. Deer Creek launched five homers and not one of them was close to not going out. Isaac Hellbusch, Ross Stracke, Chase Stephens, George Haaland and Fulmer notched a homer of his own.

Antlers jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on back-to-back jacks in the top of the first. Going into the bottom of the third, it was 6-0. This game changed in the bottom of the fourth. Fulmer definitely put himself in a tough spot. With bases loaded and nobody out, Fulmer struck out the next two batters before walking in a run. He then recorded another strikeout to end the frame.

From there, well, Fulmer was nearly unhittable. Going against studs like Alex Polston, A.J. Wilson and Taylor Hawkins, among others, Fulmer did a great job of mixing up his pitches and keeping the hitters off balance.

Last year’s was a slugfest from beginning to end. We could have been down that route this year, but Fulmer didn’t allow that to happen.

Coming in relief was an eye-opening performance for Carl Albert freshman Cameron Warren. He struck out the first four batters he faced and finished with 6 Ks in 4 2/3 innings of work. Very impressed with the way he controlled his emotions against such a good team.

Look for a video with Fulmer, an Arkansas signee, on NewsOK on Tuesday.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Guthrie star Kentrell Brothers completed one of the more intriguing recruiting stories in the last year. The Bluejays star, who has signed with Missouri to play football, wasn’t shy to take as many different recruiting trips possible.

One Brothers down and here comes another. Sophomore Richard Brothers will be joined by Deer Creek sophomore quarterback Joel Blumenthal at the Under Armour combine in Dallas this weekend.

Richard Brothers had 83 tackles last season. Blumenthal has been a name to watch for the Antlers since his freshman season. He saw spot duty at QB last year but should be the starting quarterback for Deer Creek in 2011.

- As already reported, Norman’s Donovan Roberts nabbed two more offers with Iowa State and Arizona joining Michigan and Indiana. He’s going to get overlooked because of Jenks’ Alex Ross and Heritage Hall’s Barry J. Sanders, but Roberts is the real deal. The offers are starting to roll in, and I don’t think they’re going to stop anytime soon.

- Fellow chum Matt Baker of The Tulsa World says Cascia Hall stud LB Conner Sherwood has earned his first offer as Tulsa has offered the Commando junior. I like Sherwood and definitely think the next couple of months will see him on more people’s radar.

- Jenks defensive tackle Ashton Henderson also made news with receiving an offer from Louisville. Looking at the measureables (is that a word?), you have to like Henderson. I’ve never seen the 320-pounder play so I can’t comment too much on him. I know DT is becoming more and more important in today’s game.

- Very intrigued what is going to happen with Edmond Santa Fe’s Ty Hensley. I think he’s a solid as they come when you’re talking about a baseball prospect. However, he is not letting go of football. Might he be in the same spot as Broken Arrow’s Archie Bradley? Is it something where he’s looking for football and baseball? Hensley is getting looks in both sports, but baseball remains the sport where there is more interest.

- Anadarko’s Sheldon Wilson continues to be bombarded by schools showing interest. No official offers, but he’s getting letters from schools all over the nation. Very intrigued to see how Anadarko (as a community) handles the attention. It’s going to be a wild ride for the Wilson and the Warriors in the next 6-9 months.

- As I always say, you got news, ship it this way.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

I never want to see the same game twice in one season. There are so many good games out there that I hate to see the same teams play. But I did it Monday with Deer Creek and Carl Albert.

And you know what? Knowing what happened in the first game gave me a lot more insight into how the second game turned out.

Both the Carl Albert girls and Deer Creek boys learned from the meeting two weeks ago and figured out what to do to earn the victory.

Carl Albert 47, Deer Creek 44 (Girls)

The Titans had a 16-point lead in the first matchup. Monday night CA was up 13-3 and then it happened. The Antlers made a run. But instead of looking dumbfounded, the Titans fought back, and it led to a fun fourth quarter.

In the end, it was the Titans defense (most notably Whitney Robinson and Toni Cheadle) that helped Tim Price’s girls to the win.

CA was up eight at halftime, but Deer Creek had erased that by the end of the third quarter. There were four lead changes in the fourth quarter. The Antlers had two possessions in the final 11 seconds to try to tie it but could not get a shot off.

Great to see Ashley Gibson back for the Antlers. She was back to her normal self in the second half and finished with 15 points. You add Gibson with Jalyn Jackson and then sprinkle in Alexa Adair, this team is going to make a run in the next couple of weeks.

This was a break out game for Cheadle. Well, at least for when I’ve seen her. Price told me she still has a lot to learn on the offensive side of the ball, but she is a force on defense. Why? Because she can play up top in a 1-3-1 like she did a lot Monday and she has the size to play the post.

And Robinson, well, I’ve never seen someone love playing defense so much. It appeared DC was trying to get Adair open for a three, but Robinson would not let it happen in the final seconds.

Gibson had 15 points and Adair had 12. Cherrell Price had a game-high 16 points for the Titans, while Cheadle added 12.

Deer Creek 64, Carl Albert 59 (Boys)

The Antlers blew an 11-point lead in the first meeting. This time around it was a 15-point cushion that almost went away, but it didn’t.

CA worked it down to four on two occasions but never any closer. Heck of a game for the Antlers’ big men. I’ve been waiting for Josh Fields and Anthony Clark to assert themselves. They certainly did in this one.

And to be fair, a lot of credit has to go to Jalen Burnett, who did a great job of getting the big boys involved and made some nice passes to set ‘em up.

Fields had 14 points, while Clark had 9. Burnett and Garrett Hermanski each had 12 points. For Carl Albert, best game I’ve seen from Stetson Goss. Shot lights out in the first half with three 3s and finished with 13 points.

Antonio Marshall came up big in the rally and closed out with 12 points.

And I’m breaking my rule again Tuesday as going to see Midwest City and Del City for a second time. Scott Wright is headed to a great potential showdown between McGuinness and Ardmore.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

If you have any, send ‘em this way (bprzybylo@opubco.com).

First up? Deer Creek. The Antlers had four (two boys, two girls) sign to play soccer.

Deer Creek's Emily Hartshorn (Middle Tennessee), Blake Lawson (West Texas A&M), Arianna Pugliese (UCO) and Shawn McLaws (Coastal Carolina).

Seriously. Carl Albert was up 17-1 and sophomore Gioya Carter was unstoppable with 15 of those points. But late in the fourth, it was 52-41 Deer Creek. Or in other words, 51-24 from that point on. The final score ended up being 54-48 for the Antlers, who bounced back nicely after a loss to Piedmont.

Freshman Whitney Jones led Deer Creek with 13 points, but this game belonged to junior post Jalyn Jackson. I call her a post, but she’s also probably the best ball handler on the team. Battling illness, Jackson gutted it out and scored nine of her 12 points in the second half. She also had three assists in the third quarter.

There really was no stopping Carter, but she wasn’t as involved in the second and third quarters. One point in the second and six in the third (though most were free throws). Carter closed the night with 30 points. The dropoff was substantial with Aaliyah Sebock next with seven points.

Cherrell Price and Alicia Frazier just couldn’t get it going on this day.

Carl Albert 60, Deer Creek 52 (Boys)

The Titans flipped the script in this one. Jay Price’s boys were down 32-20 early in the third before rallying for a much needed road victory.

First time I got to see Carl Albert, and I want to see them again. Is this team always this balanced? There wasn’t one player you have to see, but there were a handful of solid contributors from Dondre Brookins to Carlbe Ervin and Darrain Winston and Antonio Marshall. Add in the shooting of Jared Price off the bench, interesting group this season.

Eventually, Carl Albert turned up the intensity on defense and Deer Creek did not respond well to the pressure. And then Garrett Hermanski picked up two fouls in 20 seconds to give him four fouls. He never got into a rhythm.

Carl Albert was up 53-52 with 1:06 left and thought we were headed for another buzzer beater. Not to be as the Titans iced the game at the foul line and Deer Creek was never able to hit that big shot.

Jalen Burnett had a game-high 13 points for the Antlers, while Ervin led four Titans in double figures with 12 points.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Never.

But that’s exactly what happened Thursday night at Deer Creek. Thanks to Billy Wilson, the Tigers can rejoice in a big victory against the Antlers, 36-29.

Wilson took on Trevor Gorman in the 189-pound match. However, because Wilson has been sick with the flu all week, he weighed in at 176 pounds.

And it showed, especially early. Gorman was dominating the action, nearly scoring a pin in the first minute. Through two periods, it was 10-5 and at one point in the third it was 13-7.

However, Wilson kept fighting. Down 14-12, he scored the two point takedown that turned into the pin with 1.3 seconds left. With Deer Creek’s scoreboard, you can see tenths of a second. It was ridiculous drama. On one side, the Tuttle contingent was going nuts. On the other, Deer Creek was in disbelief.

“He’s someone that has more heart than skill, but he found a way to do it,” Tuttle coach Matt Surber said.

Little did I know at the time, that would be the final match of the night. Alex Christensen earned a forfeit at 215 for the Antlers, and Tuttle’s Nathan Jackson did the same at heavyweight.

Entering the 189 match, it was 24-23 Tuttle. Give the Tigers two falls, Antlers one and boom, 36-29.

I expected Tuttle to win this dual, but when it was 20-9 Deer Creek and four straight Antler victories, I was singing a different tune.

Zach Dunlop earned a tough 3-2 win against Spencer. Raymond Prescott makes me look stupid by pinning Hawkins in the first period.

And then Beard goes up to 171 to take on Nolan Boyd. Boyd is one of the best in the state and showed it. After an early Beard takedown, Boyd cruised to a 10-4 win though he did lose a major decision in the final 20 seconds.

Phenomenal dual, glad I chose to attend this one.

“This was good for us. We needed a challenge like this,” Surber said. “Give credit to Deer Creek — that’s a real good team. We may have worked too hard this week because we were a little flat at first.”

The teams could see each other in certain matchups at the Chickasha Tournament this weekend.

Tuttle 36, Deer Creek 29
103: Chad Dunlop, DC, 17-1 tech. fall Danny Doherty (0-5)
112: Gunner Laffoon, Tuttle, pinned Carter Cooper (6-5)
119: Dakota Head, Tuttle, 5-0 dec. Tim Hicks (9-5)
125: Zach Dunlop, DC, 3-2 dec. Brody Spencer (9-8)
130: Atticus Young, DC, pinned Deakon Mincey (9-14)
135: Raymond Prescott, DC, pinned Sterling Hawkins (9-20)
140: Levi Berry, Tuttle, 6-4 dec. Cole Pacheco (12-20)
145: Isaac Beard, Tuttle, pinned Tanner Lackey (18-20)
152: Dylan Coppenbarger, Tuttle, 8-1 dec. Chad Draper (21-20)
160: Austin Elam, Tuttle, 4-3 dec. Taylor Williams (24-20)
171: Nolan Boyd, DC, 10-4 dec. Zachary Beard (24-23)
189: Billy Wilson, Tuttle, pinned Trevor Gorman (30-23)
215: Alex Christensen, DC, by forfeit (30-29)
285: Nathan Jackson, Tuttle, by forfeit (36-29)

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Bruce Gray Invitational
Boys
McGuinness JV 55, Star Spencer 54 – seventh place
OCS 74, Western Heights 72 – fifth place
Deer Creek 53, Enid 31 – third place
Mustang 72, Putnam North 64 – championship

Ahh, so that’s why Mustang is good. I said Sunday that neither myself nor Scott Wright had seen why the Mustang boys were getting so much respect.

Monday night I found out why. They do the little things. Especially Jacob Strassle and Zac Grismer – they do the dirty work necessary to earn the tough victories.

Any 50/50 ball last night went to the Broncos, no doubt about it. Putnam North made a nice run to make it interesting in the fourth quarter, but Mustang deserved this win.

I still don’t think Mustang has the greatest perimeter shooting team out there. But it doesn’t have to be if you execute in the other parts of the game, which is exactly what Alan Green’s boys do.

Another good game from PCN’s Armon Provo and Joe Summers. And with the Panthers going east, I could definitely see this team making the state tournament.

Mustang also made its free throws to get rid of any drama. David Glidden was 7 of 8 alone in the fourth quarter. Well played game.

Deer Creek 53, Enid 31

Nice statement by the Antlers here. A well-balanced effort sparked by the post players to earn this victory.

Josh Fields and Anthony Clark are both just juniors and the last two games they both looked good. This team has to be more than Garrett Hermanski, and it is so intrigued to see what happens against Piedmont and Carl Albert later this week.

After Alex Patterson went down, seemed like Enid was a little deflated.

OCS 74, Western Heights 72

Ah, the most fun game of the day. It was all Jack Warren of OCS and Alton Whittaker of Western Heights.

Then in the second half, it was all T.J. Holland of OCS and Western Heights’ Kenneth Mayfield. Warren and Holland – 51 points. Mayfield and Whittaker – 54 points.

Mayfield went nuts in the fourth quarter. He scored 23 points and shot the lights out. He made a three and Deer Creek’s Grant Gower was trying to announce it when the lights went out.

Almost a huge comeback by Western Heights who were down 65-51 midway through the fourth.

Warren had 27 with 19 in the first half. Holland had 24 with 18 in the second half.

OCS didn’t play McGuinness JV as I thought because no matter what, the Irish were going to play in losers’ games. They understood that and were fine with it. Even if McGuinness JV had beaten Mustang on Friday, Mustang would have advanced. For what it’s worth, the JV team went 2-1 and beat Star Spencer on Monday.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Bruce Gray Invitational
Girls
OCS 52, PC West 45 – seventh place
Deer Creek 53, Western Heights 50 – fifth place
Enid 40, Star Spencer 30 – third place
Putnam North 44, McGuinness 42 – championship

There it is. Putnam North making me look stupid.

Going into the championship, I thought the Irish were going to handle the Panthers. But by the end of the first quarter, knew differently.

Was a little worried for Putnam North after Joh’Vonna Mitchell picked up two fouls in the first four minutes, but Kelsey Abraham kept the team rolling in the first half and rightfully earned the MVP honors of the tournament.

Likewise, that was the best game I’ve seen from McGuinness’ Caroline Cameron, who scored 13 of her 18 points in the first half to keep the Irish within striking distance.

Rae Rae Brannon came up huge in the second half for PCN, scoring all 12 of her points after halftime.

Tremendous atmosphere in a game that pitted two non-hosting teams in a tournament final. Great battle down the stretch. And while last year Putnam North didn’t make that final basket, this year, yep, Mitchell did it.

Enid 40, Star Spencer 30

Seriously, Enid fans are lucky to get to watch Courtney Chelf every single game. She is something special. She had 13 of the team’s 15 points at halftime.

In the second half, more Pacers got involved and Enid really took control. Kept waiting for that Star Spencer run, just wasn’t in the cards this time around.

Enid’s a solid team, but solid won’t get the job done in 6A girls competition. Gonna be a dog fight in the next month for those state berths.

Deer Creek 53, Western Heights 50

The Antlers are coming around. You look at that lineup and see a bunch of freshmen and sophomores, but it’s coming together.

Sophomore Alexa Adair looks so much more confident than she did back in December. This team is learning to win the close games, and I think they’re right back in the hunt for a state berth.

Bayli Blanchard is doing a good job in the post, and it was a good battle between Blanchard and Western Heights’ star Dilan Webster.

The Jets made a big comeback in the fourth and took a 50-49 lead, but Adair hit four free throws in the final minute to earn the win.

***

Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com

Bruce Gray Invitational
Monday (I’ll be there)
At Deer Creek
Seventh place: McGuinness JV vs. Star Spencer, 11:30 a.m.
Fifth place: Western Heights vs. OCS, 2:30
Third place: Deer Creek vs. Enid, 5:30
Championship: Mustang vs. Putnam North, 8:30

I felt Deer Creek would have to play a near perfect game to beat Putnam North. The Antlers didn’t, and the Panthers cruised in the fourth quarter to a 69-53 victory.

I have never seen Garrett Hermanski bottled up like that. PCN’s Armon Provo, an explosive scorer in his own right, put the clamps on one of the best juniors in the state. Provo frustrated Hermanski, was extremely physical with him and never let Hermanski get into that groove.

Hermanski had five points at halftime and nine points total. Great job by Provo.

If it was Provo on defense, then it was the Joe Summers show on offense. He hit three 3s in the first half that really set the tone for his game. Antlers had to come out and guard him, and he’s too strong off the dribble.

It was interesting because Deer Creek’s Jalen Burnett is a really talented player. However, the size of Summers was something he simply could not deal with it. Burnett still managed to have a really good game, but it was a clear difference of 5A and 6A in terms of the size there.

In contrast, the Panthers learned why the Deer Creek community goes ga-ga over sophomore Joel Blumenthal. He was trying to put the team on his back in the third quarter. He scored 11 points, including connecting on three 3s to pull the game within 41-38. However, all runs must come to an end, and Deer Creek couldn’t muster a response after JR Simon hit a three-point play and Provo drained a 3 at the end of the third to make it 50-42.

Mustang 46, Enid 38

Interesting Mustang team. First time I’ve gotten to see them. Do a lot of the gritty things, not afraid to go in there and mix it up. Not sure if the Broncos have the perimeter shooting for a long run.

Impressed with Ben Berry and David Glidden. Speaking of Glidden, he took a nasty shot to his shoulder in the third quarter but missed minimal time. After getting checked out, he was right back out there.

I see why Mustang is so highly regarded by opposing coaches, but neither myself nor Scott Wright has seen Mustang on its best day. Perhaps that will be Monday?

Looking ahead to Monday…

Rematch of last year’s final when Provo absolutely went off for 33 points and a PCN title. I don’t see this one being a blowout at all, but I stated earlier I thought Rick Harris’ boys would win it so I’ll stand by that.

Deer Creek coach Matt Bailey faces his former squad, Enid, in the third-place game. It’s not as simple as Hermanski vs. Alex Patterson and whoever has the better game, his team wins, but it’s close. They trigger so much on their respective teams when they’re playing well.

And OCS, who I almost left for dead after Thursday, has a chance to claim fifth place against a surprising McGuinness JV team. After losses to Heritage Hall and Deer Creek, big response by the Saints against Star Spencer.

Bruce Gray Invitational
Monday (I’ll be there)
At Deer Creek
Girls
Seventh place: OCS vs. Putnam West, 10 a.m.
Fifth place: Deer Creek vs. Western Heights, 1 p.m.
Third place: Enid vs. Star Spencer, 4 p.m.
Championship: McGuinness vs. Putnam North, 7 p.m.

Somebody asked me Thursday to predict the winners in the Bruce Gray Invitational, and I said the McGuinness girls and the Putnam North boys. I was three minutes away from being wrong Saturday.

The Irish girls trailed Star Spencer 35-29 before going on a 13-2 run to win 42-37 and advance to Monday’s championship game.

I’ve never seen McGuinness look so lost as it did yesterday. Coach Jennifer Burch gave Star Spencer a lot of the credit as the 1-2-2 zone befuddled the normally efficient Irish.

Burch said when the offense is down, the defense can’t let up. It didn’t. Eventually it was the defense that spurred the run. The press was able to create turnovers and Elyse Hight came up big down the stretch as she has for basically the whole season.

Another great game by Sharane Campbell of Star Spencer. She’s a fighter, no doubt. Felt like Star had set up McGuinness for that knockout blow but simply never delivered it.

Putnam North 45, Enid 37

Another two years with Courtney Chelf, Enid fans are lucky. She’s a good one and her three-pointer at the end of the third made it 30-29 Enid going into the fourth.

However, this was a good statement made by the Panthers. I always look to Joh’Vonna Mitchell and Alexis Watson, but Kelsey Abraham was the star in this one. And give a lot of credit to Blaire Hall’s eight points off the bench.

Watson took a nasty fall midway through the third with PCN leading 27-23. She missed the rest of the third and start of the fourth before coming back in. She seemed OK, hope she is for Monday night.

Looking ahead to Monday…

I think Rae Rae Brannon is going to have to come up big for the Panthers. She’s tiny, but she has more quickness than what the Irish are used to dealing with. Mitchell cannot get in foul trouble against Hight and Alexa Lienhard (and vice versa on that one).

Third-place game should be a  good battle between Chelf and Campbell. I like Enid in a close one. Fifth-place game is intriguing in the grand scheme of things as Western Heights and Deer Creek might be still standing when it comes to the 5A state tournament. I like Dilan Webster to help the Jets prevail in that one.

Bruce Gray Invitational
At Deer Creek
Thursday
Boys
Mustang vs. McGuinness JV, 11:30 a.m.
Putnam City North vs. Star Spencer, 2:30
OCS vs. Deer Creek, 5:30
Enid vs. Western Heights, 8:30
Girls
McGuinness vs. Putnam West, 10 a.m.
Putnam North vs. OCS, 1 p.m.
Western Heights vs. Star Spencer, 4 p.m.
Deer Creek vs. Enid, 7 p.m.

Gonna be interesting to watch these two Deer Creek wrestling studs next month at the state tournament. Nolan Boyd and Alex Christensen are clearly among the best at their respective weight class.

Boyd was dominant at the Carl Albert Invitational, while Christensen bounced back from a loss to Guthrie’s Landry Chappell on Thursday to beat Chappell.

Here’s a short video with Christensen:

And here’s a short video with Boyd:

Been making the rounds with some of the kids that participated in the US Army National Combine in San Antonio. Here are some of their thoughts and impressions on last weekend:

Cayman Bundage, OL, Douglass

Douglass junior offensive lineman Cayman Bundage doesn’t have any official offers, but he turned a lot of heads at the U.S. Army National Combine in San Antonio.

Bundage, 6-foot-2 and 293 pounds, was a reason why the Trojans won their first state football championship since 1976.

Recruiting experts said Bundage was light on his feet and had one of the best techniques in pass blocking.

Bundage became a name to watch last summer after a strong performance in a Florida State camp. The Seminoles have continued to show interest in him. Oklahoma, Nebraska, Alabama and several others have been in contact with Douglass coach Willis Alexander regarding Bundage.

“Cayman has been ready to play since he was in the ninth grade just because of his quickness, his footwork and his understanding of how to play the game,” Alexander said. “He’s getting a lot of interest from BCS conference schools. He’s a center or guard in college, even though we’re playing him at tackle.”

Sterling Shepard, WR, Heritage Hall

There is no question that Heritage Hall junior wide receiver Sterling Shepard showed this season he is among the best in the state.

But at the U.S. Army National Combine in San Antonio last weekend, Shepard said he learned he can compete with other elite athletes from across the nation.

“I was really happy with the way everything turned out,” Shepard said. “They taught me a few things when it came to technique.”

Shepard said interest has increased dramatically. Shepard picked up his first offer from Oklahoma State in December and said Missouri, Alabama and UCLA are also showing strong interest.

Shepard also said it appears most schools have him pegged as a wide receiver. Defensive back was once an option but not too many schools are looking at Shepard there anymore.

Derek Deeds, WR/DB, Yukon

Deeds said, much like Shepard, the combine really helped him realize he can compete with some of the other top talents in the nation.

Deeds is a veteran of these all-star competitions as it feels like he was at just about every one imaginable in the summer.

The Millers star said three schools have heavy interest in him: Oklahoma State, Missouri and Tulsa.

Hunter Dinkines, Deer Creek

Dinkines has a rather odd story. Somewhere along the way this season, Dinkines broke his pinky finger.

From his father, Bill: “The week of playoffs against Tulsa Washington, he shows it to me and he can not straighten it out.  We taken him to the doctor and they enlighten us that not only is it broken but it had already healed.”

Dinkines had to have surgery to re-break the finger so that it could be put back properly. However, he was cleared to participate at the combine.

Barry J. Sanders, RB, Heritage Hall

Still recovering from foot surgery, Sanders did not participate in the 2011 combine. However, he did announce he will be playing in the 2012 US Army game.

Sanders has listed Alabama, Oklahoma State, UCLA and Florida State as his four early favorites and said the next couple of months he will be focusing a lot more on his recruiting.

***

I sent feelers out to some of the top recruits I knew were there. If they respond, I’ll have a Part II update. If you’re one of them, hey, drop me a line.

For the second year in a row, McGuinness is king at its own tournament.

51st McGuinness Classic
Saturday
McGuinness 77, NW Classen 61 (championship)
Norman North 64, Deer Creek 58 (third place)
Norman 57, Edmond North 41 – consolation championship
Guthrie 49, Yukon 47 – OT – seventh place

McGuinness 77, NW Classen 61

Um, picked the right teams in the final, wrong winner. And I mean WAY off. Figured NW’s athleticism would cause problems for the Irish. However, when you shoot the way Tondrell Durham’s club did this night, not an issue.

It started in the second quarter after a crisp first eight minutes by both clubs. The second quarter was all McGuinness.

And though Matt Christiansen was clearly leading the way, this was a team effort, no doubt. Everybody was playing a part. Matt Morrissey and Miles Newcomb were draining 3s. Joe Edmonds was taking it to the hole. The defense was stellar. Best all-around performance by the Irish I’ve seen in five games this year.

And the dunk Christiansen had at the end of the first half was incredible. That got everyone up. Strong move and the finish and the foul. Shouldof had my camera working.

At one point it was actually 54-23 in the third quarter. That won’t happen again, believe me. NW is too dang good. Jamil Donovan had a big night as did Keandra Nelson but slow start doomed this one from the beginning.

Christiansen was named MVP. Quinton Hardwick lost a tooth in the fourth quarter on a drive by Edmonds but should be just fine.

Norman North 64, Deer Creek 58

Really liked this game. Two pure scorers in NNorth’s Patrick Schaefer and Deer Creek’s Garrett Hermanski. And did they ever put on a show.

However, Schaefer also had big-time assistance from Matt Southard in the post. Add it up and TWolves walk out with third.

Coach Butch Roberts was very pleased with this weekend. “If you can’t win the championship, you wanna be able to say you went 2-1. We did.”

Just an off night for the Antlers. Managed to hang around and keep it close but didn’t see the comeback coming in this one. Just took too long for Jalen Burnett and Joel Blumenthal to get in a rhythm.

Norman 57, Edmond North 41

That first half was a clinic on passing, I tells ya. Norman isn’t flashy but this team executes well and plays hard under first-year coach Jeff McCullough.

The Tigers were up 15-1 after the first quarter and kept that margin the rest of the way. Interesting team because nobody jumps out at you. Connor Madole is a solid player. Like what George Kittle brings to the table. Brandon Southern is steady.

North’s bad start was just too much to overcome. Coach Jeff Tanner is seeing some good things, especially from the likes of Ed Baker and Brandon Rolfes-Lopez. Unfortunately, it won’t get any easier with Santa Fe coming to the Siberian Gym on Tuesday.

Guthrie 49, Yukon 47 – OT

A game not worthy of a seventh-place battle. Both teams gave tremendous effort in a tight game throughout. This was finally the day where I got to see what makes D’Anthony Perkins such a threat for the Millers. He was rolling with 24 points. He’s going to be quicker than just about everybody else out there.

However, this was also the day why I believe Guthrie is still a legit state tournament-worthy club. There is too much talent for this team to not put it together.

If you have a five of Kentrell and Richard Brothers, Kai Callins, Tim Zupo and Codee Gross – you should win some games.

Balance will be key for this team, and coach Pete Papahronis said shot selection will go a long way in determining what happens with his team. On this day, Kentrell, Gross and Callins (just a freshman) all scored 11 points. That’s what you want.

All-Tournament Team: MVP – Matt Christiansen, Irish. Team – Mikey Wilson and Joe Edmonds, Irish; Jamil Donovan and Quinton Hardwick, NW Classen; Patrick Schaefer, NNorth; Garrett Hermanski, Deer Creek; Connor Madole, Norman; Brandon Rolfes-Lopez, Edmond North; Kentrell Brothers, Guthrie; D’Anthony Perkins, Yukon.

Boneman’s Super 5: Matt Christiansen, Irish; Patrick Schaefer, Norman North; Garrett Hermanski, Deer Creek; Jamil Donovan, NW Classen; Joe Edmonds, Irish.

With Heritage Hall junior running back Barry J. Sanders and the rest of the top juniors in the area in San Antonio for a national combine, I sure didn’t expect Sanders to play a role in my coverage of the 51st McGuinness Classic.

However, he sure did. More on that in a minute. Here’s your basketball results.

51st McGuinness Classic
Friday
McGuinness 54, Norman North 50
NW Classen 67, Deer Creek 56
Edmond North 65, Guthrie 55
Norman 28, Yukon 22
Saturday
Seventh place: Yukon vs. Guthrie, 1:30
Consolation champ: Edmond North vs. Norman, 3 p.m.
Third place: Deer Creek vs. Norman North, 6 p.m.
Championship: NW Classen vs. McGuinness, 7:30

Well, when the brackets were released, I told anyone that would listen (who listens to me?) that the final would be NW Classen vs. McGuinness. And sure enough, it is. This should be a great one as the last three games between the two have been decided a grand total of five points.

NW Classen 67, Deer Creek 56

This was funny because even though the Antlers got off to a good start, their transition defense was a question mark. And the Knights took full advantage.

Garrett Hermanski had another dynamite game for Deer Creek. He scored 17 in the first half and 11 more in the second for a game-high 28 points. However, the team lost some steam in the third quarter.

NW coach Leroy Combs said, ‘our players realized we were going to have to play some defense to win this one. They did.’

Junior guard Jamil Donovan once again led the way with 13 points, and he made some really nice passes in tight quarters.

DC led 23-16 before being outscored 37-14 in the second and third quarters.

McGuinness 54, Norman North 50

He was 3-of-15 through three quarters. So what? That just doesn’t mean much when it comes to the potential of McGuinness forward Joe Edmonds.

Edmonds scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to stop Patrick Schaefer and the Timberwolves. This was a crisp game, went by extremely fast.

A lot of threes in this one. Schaefer was raining ‘em down. Miles Newcomb had four for the Irish, while Matt Morrissey added three more treys.

Schaefer was incredible on this night, really had his shooting eye on and finished with a game-high 24 points. However, Matt Christiansen won the battle against Matt Southard in the paint and the Irish did a good job of dictating play.

Norman 28, Yukon 22; Edmond North 65, Guthrie 55

Wish I could tell you something about these games, but I was working on my Barry Sanders/Nick Saban story during these two encounters. In fact, I got in touch with Sanders at halftime of DC/NWC and missed the third quarter of that one, too.

Was it a violation by Saban? Maybe, but I don’t think it was a big one. And it’s not something that will play a role (I don’t think) in the recruitment of Sanders. But it might be an eye-opener to us for about what’s to come as it pertains to Sanders in the next 12 months.

Sanders said he had a few people ask about Saban’s visit in San Antonio and teammates Sterling Shepard and Markus Wakefield were asked about it. All three had no idea this was going to become a big deal.

A lot of people point to the photo of Sanders and Saban with no sign of defensive coordinator Mark Adams. Sanders said Adams was right next to them and continued their conversation after Sanders and Saban said ‘hey.’

Ready to conclude the McGuinness Classic on Saturday. And for my story on the Sanders/Saban saga, here ya go.

51st McGuinness Classic
At Bishop McGuinness
Thursday
Deer Creek 57, Yukon 49
NW Classen 58, Norman 57
McGuinness 43, Edmond North 38
Norman North 48, Guthrie 38
Friday
Semifinals
Deer Creek vs. NW Classen, 6 p.m.
McGuinness vs. Norman North, 7:30
Losers’ Bracket
Yukon vs. Norman, 1:30
Edmond North vs. Guthrie, 3 p.m.

I got spoiled. The first set of games Thursday were a couple of good ones. I thought they’d all be like that. Didn’t quite happen like that, but a good start to the McGuinness Classic.

Deer Creek 57, Yukon 49

Scott Wright told me the Millers like to make/shoot 3s. Um, I didn’t realize what that actually meant until I saw it in person. Yukon had nine 3s through the first three quarters, but the Antlers were doing enough to stay tied.

Great call by Deer Creek assistant Michael Garbutt to go to a box-and-one on Yukon’s Matthew Burton. Burton is a threat as soon as he crosses half court. With him shut down, the Millers looked a little confused as to how to attack the Antlers defense.

Another strong game by Deer Creek’s Garrett Hermanski. If he is hitting early, he’s going to have a great night. He plays with a lot of confidence when he’s rolling (though who doesn’t?). Big contribution off the bench from Joel Blumenthal.

It feels like Blumenthal should start, but he’s in the perfect role of that sixth man who comes in and lights the spark.

Miller games I imagine don’t take too long. When you’re hoisting up threes, you’re not going to get to the foul line. I’m intrigued to see how Ralph Nigro’s team responds against Norman…

NW Classen 58, Norman 57

This was one of those weird games. Though Norman led nearly the entire way, you had that feeling the Knights were going to pull it out.

With players like Jamil Donovan and T’aries Taylor, I just cannot in good conscience count this team out, not even when it was 51-40 at the end of the third quarter.

Jeff McCullough is doing a great job of getting his kids to believe in his system and executing it. Tigers got a little tight in the fourth, and NW pushed the tempo. Paco Jones ended up scoring the game-winner with 15 seconds left.

Excited to see Donovan against Deer Creek’s Jalen Burnett in the point guard battle Friday night.

McGuinness 43, Edmond North 38

Nice to see Joe Edmonds back. Still not 100 percent and cramping in the fourth quarter, Edmonds energized the Irish faithful with eight points in the second quarter.

I’ll be honest, thought the Irish were going to run away with this one in the third quarter. North coach Jeff Tanner did a good job of keeping his kids’ head in the game, and Matt Christiansen picking up his fourth foul in the third quarter for the Irish certainly helped the Huskies out.

Still, North was down 37-29 in the fourth before Ed Baker tied it up with a 3 at 38-38 with 40 seconds left. Dean Fitzpatrick scored on a nice feed and North was unable to take care of the ball.

Cameron Haley came alive in the fourth for North, but I was scratching my head about the first three quarters. He needs to be a big part. We’ll see what this team brings Friday.

Norman North 48, Guthrie 38

Oy. Not all wins are pretty. But at 24-20 at the end of the third quarter, it was tough to try to paint this into something positive.

Timberwolves’ guard Patrick Schaefer had a big night as did forward Matt Southard. Guthrie had no rhythm and too many times it was just Kentrell Brothers trying to force something in the paint.

Guarantee both teams will have a better showing Friday.

Boys

Deer Creek 57, Yukon 49

Northwest Classen 58, Norman 57

Deer Creek 57, Yukon 49

Deer Creek*15*11*17*14 — 57

Yukon*13*13*13*10 — 49

DC — Hermanski 23, Blumenthal 10, Burnett 8, Caudill 5, Blanchard 4, Clark 4, Wayant 3.

YHS — Burton 17, Perkins 11, Williams 10, Koontz 5, Craig 4, Nicholson 2.

Northwest Classen 58, Norman 57

Norman*13*16*22*6 — 57

Northwest*15*8*17*18 — 58

NHS — Madole 15, Southern 14, Saxon 10, Long 7, Kittle 5, Edington 4, Murray 2.

NWC — Donovan 16, Taylor 14, Hardwick 13, Jones 7, Arnold 4, Nelson 4.

McGuinness 43, Edmond North 38

Norman North 48, Guthrie 38

McGuinness 43, Edmond North 38

Edmond North*9*8*6*16 — 38

McGuinness*8*15*6*14 — 43

EN — Baker 11, Haley 8, Rolfes-Lopez 7, Peterson 4, Ruben 3, Carver 3, Sanders 2.

BM — Edmonds 11, Christiansen 9, Wilson 9, Fitzpatrick 6, Morrissey 5, Newcomb 3.

Norman North*3*11*10*24 — 48

Guthrie*4*8*8*18 — 38

NN — Schaefer 19, Southard 12, Roberts 11, Kaplan 6.

GHS — K. Brothers 14, Callins 7, Gross 7, R. Brothers 6, Zupo 2, McFadden 2.

It’s that time of year again. Last year’s Love’s Travel Stops McGuinness Classic final between Carl Albert and Bishop McGuinness was one of my favorite moments from last year.

Another stacked field, and I’ll be out there all three days for all 12 games.

McGuinness Classic
Thursday
Game 1: Yukon vs. Deer Creek, 1:30
Game 2: NW Classen vs. Norman, 3 p.m.
Game 3: McGuinness vs. Edmond North, 6 p.m.
Game 4: Guthrie vs. Norman North, 7:30
Friday
Game 5: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2, 1:30
Game 6: Loser Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4, 3 p.m.
Game 7: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 6 p.m.
Game 8: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4, 7:30
Saturday
Game 9: Loser Game 5 vs. Loser Game 6, 1:30
Game 10: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6, 3 p.m.
Game 11: Loser Game 7 vs. Loser Game 8, 6 p.m.
Game 12: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 7:30

Is it never not football season? In the middle of a crazy-busy basketball tournament week, we gots us some football news to take care of.

First, Wednesday night is the Under Armour game from St. Petersburg, Fla. Texas commit Josh Turner of Millwood and Oklahoma commit Kendal Thompson of Southmoore are the two Oklahoma representatives.

For more on that, you can read Justin Harper’s story on Thompson right here.

Then from there, we go from Florida to San Antonio for the US Army National Combine and All-American game. The combine begins Thursday and runs through Saturday and will feature 500 of the best high school juniors in the country.

From what I know, Anadarko’s Sheldon Wilson, Deer Creek’s Hunter Dinkines, Yukon’s Derek Deeds and Stillwater’s Jesse Vester and Davion Carter will be there. If you know more, please drop us a line. EDIT: A lot more kids are going. Norman’s Donovan Roberts. Casady’s Mac Katigan. Douglass’ Cayman Bundage. Heritage Hall’s Sterling Shepard and Markus Wakefield. Still, if you know more, drop us a line.

Following the combine, the kids are able to stay and watch the All-American game Saturday afternoon on NBC. Oklahoma actually does not have a representative in the game.

So in between basketball tournaments like the Putnam City Invitational and Lady Jag Classic, we still have some football to talk about.

***

Also, Brandon Swindall of Millwood was named 1st MaxPreps All-American, while Booker T’s Derrick Alexander was given second team honor. Juniors Donovan Roberts of Norman and Sheldon Wilson of Anadarko made the junior squad.

Oh, it’s gonna be some fun times for Edmond basketball teams the next two months. Both boys and girls teams have some incredible talent. Don’t be too shocked if you see me always at an Edmond game down the stretch (sorry).

Memorial
Boys: Clearly the best 6A team in the state…right now. Love this team and hope they keep it together. We knew about Obi Emegano, James Woodard and Jared Jobe, but I think it’s going to be sophomore Jordan Woodard that might push this team. Competition is going to be fierce, though.

Girls: This is the year Alie Decker becomes a household name. She already is in the Edmond circles, but Decker is a top-tier player, for sure. You add in the shooting of Brooklyn Bell and the always-consistent coaching of Shane Coffey, Bulldogs are going to be right in the thick of things.

Santa Fe
Boys: The pieces are there, but they’re just not fitting yet. With Aaron Anderson and Josh Richardson, the Wolves have two incredibly talented players. Trying to find those leaders at the guard position is going to be crucial. I’ll see the Wolves on Tuesday vs. Putnam North.

Girls: Is this the best girls team in the state? I’ve believed for two years Courtney Walker is the best player in the state. The girls are still so young from Daisha Gonzaque to Arielle Cooper to Cameerah Graves, but this team gels well together.

North
Boys: Get my first taste of Husky boys basketball this weekend at the McGuinness Classic. Really want to see what first-year coach Jeff Tanner brings to the table. I know what he’s preaching, now I want to see it in action.

Girls: The loss to Stillwater notwithstanding, no reason for concerns for Kevin Korstjens’ girls. Elizabeth Donohoe remains one of the five best players in the state and TaNita Dewberry gives the team a solid second option.

Deer Creek
Boys: Is this team officially ‘my baby?’ I don’t know, I just love watching these boys play. You try watching coach Matt Bailey for one game and not come away more pumped up than what you were before. Garrett Hermanski and Jalen Burnett are anchoring this club. I’ll also see this team at the McGuinness Classic.

Girls: Rough start for Totsy Manning’s girls. A totally different team from last year’s incredibly talented club. The transfer of Kelsey Glover to Memorial hurt, too. I think this team will turn it around, especially when sophomore Ashley Gibson gets back.

This time we’re heading to Edmond. Very interesting dynamic here with a heavy North offense and a heavy Memorial defense.

Here ya go:

All-Edmond team
Offense
QB — Travis Townsend, North
RB — Alex Christensen, Deer Creek
RB — Jarion Tudman, North
RB — Kameron Doolittle, Memorial
WR — Garrett Molinsky, North
WR — Troy Davis, North
OL — Ross Stracke, Deer Creek
OL — Josh Crouch, Santa Fe
OL — Jacob Wright, Memorial
OL — Paul Kim, Deer Creek
OL — Lex Rosson, North

K — Camden Bohnert, North
P — Will Conant, Memorial

Defense
DL — Kyle Aschenbrenner, North
DL — Connor Myers, Memorial
DL — Jared Chambers, Memorial
LB — Ryan Adams, North
LB — Michael Coleman, Deer Creek
LB — Isaiah Byrd, Deer Creek
LB — Conner Bays, Santa Fe
DB — Jeff Balkenbush, Memorial
DB — Shawn McLaws, Deer Creek
DB — Trevan Smith, Santa Fe
DB — Gavin Fouts, Memorial

KR — Brandon Reece, Santa Fe

Offensive Player of the Year: Alex Christensen, Deer Creek
Defensive Player of the Year: Connor Myers, Memorial
Coach of the Year: Grant Gower, Deer Creek

Yes, I have three quarterbacks starting with Townsend actually playing the position and Christensen and Doolittle at RB. Eh, I think that team would work. Not a shock to see North featured heavily on offense and Memorial on defense. A lot of good players would have made this list but were injured (Phillip Sumpter of Santa Fe, Cale Olbert of Memorial, Colten Sander of Deer Creek, Jeremy Langston of Memorial). No doubts on my three awards, except defense could have been either Chambers of Myers. Knew it would be someone from Memorial. And how about the Edmond kickers? Bohnert, Conant and McLaws? Not too bad.

A little more tired than I thought. Two long days of basketball at Bishop McGuinness. Here’s what you can read in Sunday’s paper:

Deer Creek boys basketball coach Matt Bailey doesn’t want to put too much importance into a win in mid-December, but Saturday gave him a taste of what his team is going to see the rest of the year.

On first glance, the Antlers are going to be OK. Facing the constant pressure of Millwood, Deer Creek stayed composed to earn a 61-38 victory at the McGuinness Festival.

“Our kids did a great job and that comes from the leadership of Jalen (Burnett) and Garrett (Hermanski),” Bailey said.

Deer Creek was coming off an emotional overtime loss to McGuinness and had to play only 15 hours after completing that contest.

Sophmore Joel Blumenthal bounced back after a poor shooting night against the Irish to lead the way with 17 points Saturday. Hermanski added 14.

Deer Creek trailed 9-8 after the first quarter but outscored Millwood by 10 in the second quarter and seized control.

Millwood’s Michael Ervin had 10 points, while Kevonte Richardson added nine.

McGuinness 58, Western Heights 39 (boys)

The Irish outscored Western Heights 32-14 in the second and third quarters to pull away from the visiting Jets and go 2-0 in the Festival.

Guard Miles Newcomb led the way with 22 points, including connecting on six three-pointers. Center Matt Christiansen added 17 points.

Western Heights made five three-pointers in the first quarter to take a 15-11 lead into the second, but the Irish scored the first 11 points of the second quarter to set the tone.

The Jets received 14 points from Kenneth Mayfield and 13 from Alton Whittaker.

McGuinness 71, Western Heights 36 (girls)

The Irish used their defense to turn a 14-11 game late in the first quarter into a blowout victory to go 2-0 at the McGuinness Festival.

Junior Elyse Hight scored 13 of her 17 points in the second half as McGuinness outscored Western Heights 25-4 in the third quarter.

Caroline Cameron added 13 points for the Irish, while Western Heights was paced by Antoninet Webster’s 10 points.

Millwood 50, Deer Creek 27 (girls)

Another big start paved the way to the Falcons going 2-0 at the McGuinness Festival. Millwood jumped out to a 15-4 lead after the first quarter to take control.

Deer Creek worked the margin down to 28-18 in the final minute of the third quarter, but the Falcons responded with a 14-3 run to close the third and start the fourth and put the game out of reach.

Millwood was led by Dayla Threatt’s 16 points, while Bayli Blanchard had eight points off the bench for Deer Creek.

I had a hunch heading into the McGuinness Festival. Just a hunch that the Deer Creek boys were going to walk in to Irish Country and pull off the upset.

Good hunch but not the right result. In a hard-fought game by both teams, McGuinness pulled out a fun 52-47 win in overtime Friday night.

Wasn’t exactly the most aesthetically pleasing game, but the effort was there 100 percent. Big players made big shots in a contest where neither team had a lead bigger than five points and there were five lead changes alone in the fourth quarter.

Deer Creek’s Jalen Burnett gave the Antlers a one-point lead in overtime, but then the Irish scored the next six to put some distance between the two teams.

It was all Matt Christiansen in the first half for the Irish. He scored 14 of his 22 points in the first half and was dominating the game. The Antlers had no answer for him inside.

Conversely, the Irish had their fair share of troubles with Garrett Hermanski. Much bigger since the last time I saw him on a basketball court, Hermanski didn’t fade down the stretch and led his club with 22 points.

McGuinness led 42-39 when Hermanski drained a 3-pointer to tie it with 15 seconds left. Miles Newcomb’s attempt at a game-winner was off and to OT we went.

However, it was a big fourth quarter and OT by Newcomb that spurred this effort. He scored 7 of his 12 points in the fourth and OT. Team just has to tread water until star Joe Edmonds comes back.

Get your licks in on McGuinness now because you won’t get a chance later in the season.

Very interesting to see how both teams come back Saturday. Deer Creek has Millwood at 12:30, while McGuinness welcomes the Jets of Western Heights at 3:30.

I could watch those two coaching staffs all day. Tondrell Durham and Andy Fisher at McGuinness and Matt Bailey and Michael Garbutt at Deer Creek. Fun to just observe those four doing what they do. Great atmosphere for a December game.

Back at ya Saturday night.

McGuinness 49, Deer Creek 23 (girls)

As a sophomore, McGuinness’ Elyse Hight showed what she can do off the bench. As a junior, she’s showing she is already one of the top players in the state.

Hight scored a game-high 23 points as the Irish rolled the Antlers.

The Irish defense paved the way as Deer Creek never scored more than nine points in any quarter, and McGuinness outscored the Antlers by at least five points in every quarter.

Caroline Cameron had nine points, while Alexa Lienhard pitched in with eight. Deer Creek was paced by Bayli Blanchard, who had six points.

Millwood 53, OCS 40 (boys)

Every time Oklahoma Christian had a run in it, Millwood’s Drelan Triplett had the answer.

Tripplett scored a game-high 19 points in leading the Falcons to the victory.

The Saints went on an 8-0 run early in the fourth quarter to trim the lead to 41-31. Tripplett re-entered the lineup and scored two straight buckets to the push the lead back to 14 to silence the run.

OCS’s T.J. Holland led the Saints with 16 points.

Millwood 73, OCS 38 (girls)

Millwood’s defense sparked an early first quarter lead and the Falcons never looked back in cruising to victory.

Shamyia Johnson scored 16 points and Dayla Threatt notched 15 as Millwood had five players in double figures.

OCS’ Dani Childress had a game-high 19 points.

It’s been a great start to the season for the Deer Creek boys basketball team. The Antlers are 3-0 and are averaging nearly 80 points per game, led by junior Garrett Hermanski.

However, coach Matt Bailey’s club will face its biggest challenges of the season this weekend at the McGuinness Festival at Bishop McGuinness.

Deer Creek plays the Irish on Friday night and comes right back to play Millwood on Saturday afternoon.

Other teams involved in the boys and girls event include Oklahoma Christian School and Western Heights. There will be four games on Friday and Saturday. I’ll be there for all eight games.

McGuinness Festival
Friday
Millwood vs. OCS, 3 p.m. (girls)
Millwood vs. OCS, 4:30 (boys)
McGuinness vs. Deer Creek, 6 p.m. (girls)
McGuinness vs. Deer Creek, 7:30 (boys)

Saturday
Millwood vs. Deer Creek, 11 a.m. (girls)
Millwood vs. Deer Creek, 12:30 p.m. (boys)
McGuinness vs. Western Heights, 2 p.m. (girls)
McGuinness vs. Western Heights, 3:30 p.m. (boys)

You could make a lot of arguments for the likes of Courtney Walker of Santa Fe and Elizabeth Donohoe of North, but I’m givin’ it to the youngster, Jordan Woodard of Memorial.

He came up huge in the win Tuesday at Midwest City and also played well in the Edmond Open championship victory against rival Santa Fe.

His upside is tremendous, and he’s only beginning to scratch the surface of what he can become. We’re definitely going to see what he has because the Bulldogs are going to get tested time and time again this season.

Great week for Memorial. The key is to not suffer that emotional letdown, interesting to see the maturity of this year’s group of kids for Shane Cowherd.

Other contenders

Courtney Walker, Santa Fe, Basketball: In a close game, took over with her quickness and defense to lead Wolves to the Edmond Open championship over North.

Elizabeth Donohoe, North, Basketball: There wasn’t much Donohoe didn’t do at the Open, scoring a tournament-high 68 points in the three games. Huskies snapped Cache’s 30-game winning streak Friday.

Obi Emegano, Memorial, Basketball: He missed some gimmes and still finished with 19 points in the championship and also made the Super 5 for the Edmond Open.

Garrett Hermanski, Deer Creek, Basketball: Another good week for the junior. Get a good idea of where this team is at this weekend at the McGuinness Festival.

Andrew Dixon, North, Wrestling: Huskies placed fourth out of 30 teams with Dixon taking second place at 171 in the Mid-America Nationals Wrestling Tournament at Union.

Abbie Imes, North, Swimming: Continues to show she’s one of the best swimmers in the state, winning two individual titles at the Edmond/Norman meet last Friday.

We are fully entrenched in basketball for the Edmond schools. And frankly, that’s a good thing. There are so many good Edmond basketball teams this year — they’re all going to keep me on my toes.

To start the year no team had a tougher assignment that Shane Coffey’s Memorial girls at Norman. But junior Alie Decker has shown how much she has matured and how she is ready to be the team leader.

Decker scored 19 points in the road win against the Tigers and followed that with a 19-point win against an overmatched Moore team.

All Edmond teams are in for major battles this weekend at the Edmond Open. I hope to get a chance to be there. It will be tough, though, with football still left.

Other contenders

Brooklyn Bell, Memorial: It’s Decker leading the way, but Bell has been dynamite in the first week of the season with her fantastic shooting.

Obi Emegano, Memorial: He’s going to hear a lot of stuff from opposing fans, but he handled it well in Week 1 with impressive outings at Norman and vs. Moore.

Josh Richardson and Courtney Walker, Santa Fe: Did exactly what they’re supposed to do in victories against Stillwater and Mustang. Excited to see the Wolves again.

Jeff Tanner, North: Giving it to the new boys coach. That was the type of statement he was hoping to make, opening with a good win against a formidable Choctaw club.

Garrett Hermanski, Deer Creek: Maybe a game the Antlers lose last year? Hermanski scored 24 points in leading Deer Creek to a tough win against Harrah.

2010 District 5A-1 All-District Team

Player of the Year—Kentrell Brothers – Guthrie

Offensive Player of the Year—Alex Christensen – Deer Creek

Defensive Player of the Year—Quincy Johnson – Carl Albert

Lineman of the Year—Kyle Croak – Carl Albert

Coach of the Year—Rafe Watkins – Guthrie

Offense

First Team                                                                  Second Team

QB-Kenneth Mayfield – W Hts                                    QB-Ridge Gargasz – ER

RB-Kenton Whittington – Carl Albert               RB-Derrik Kelly – Guthrie

RB-Devonte Moore – ER                                             RB-Anthony Frazier – SE

WR-Dwight Dobbins – Carl Albert                               WR-Christian Johnson-Ada

WR-Deonte McCully – Guthrie                         WR-Gage Anderson-Noble

TE-Austen Roselius-Carl Albert                                 TE-Payton Patton-Ada

OL-Colin Walker-Carl Albert                                       OL-Pat Elliott-Carl Albert

OL-Bryce Sullivan-Guthrie                                           OL-Andrew Scribner-Ada

C-Anthony Frazier-Carl Albert                         C-Braden Young-ER

OL-Ross Stracke-Deer Creek                                      OL-Jacob Cardenas-Noble

OL-Caleb Clary-Ada                                                   OL-Paul Kim-Deer Creek

Defense

First Team                                                                  Second Team

DL-Randy Armstrong-Ada                                           DL-Shawn Hudson-SE

DL-Feliz Scott-Guthrie                                     DL-Ryan Vick-Ada

DL-Brent Bozarth-ER                                                  DL-Tanner Dyer-Ada

DL-Cale Russell-Ada                                                   DL-Ryan Thomas-Noble

LB-Isaiah Byrd-Deer Creek                                         LB-Trey Jones-Noble

LB-Tavin Deloney-SE                                      LB-Evan Elder-Deer Creek

DB-Marcus Ware-Guthrie                                            DB-Nick Anderson-Ada                DB-A.J.Wilson-Carl Albert                                                DBEric Mahoney-Deer Creek

DB-Ronald Lucas-Ada                                     DB-Nelson Williams-SE

DB-Jay Gogue-SE                                                       DB-Diontee Albert-Ada

DB-Michael Coleman-Deer Creek                               DB-Dylan Abner-ER

DB-Travis Brown-

K-Shawn McLaws-Deer Creek

P-Brady Bowers-Ada

Well, the crazy, uneven season for Edmond North finally came to an end Friday at Union. I swear this team had me scratching my head all season.

Some games I thought it would win, it wouldn’t. Then I’d think they’d lose, and they wouldn’t. Kept me on my toes all year.

And leading that charge was senior QB Travis Townsend. This offense isn’t really built for Townsend to rack up insane offensive numbers. But when he was on, he was extremely efficient.

Townsend threw a touchdown pass in the 58-17 loss to the Redskins. More importantly, the Huskies can build off of this after reaching the quarterfinals.

Other contenders

Alex Christensen, Deer Creek: Ever the workhorse to the end. Christensen rushed for 70 yards, but it wasn’t enough in a 23-0 loss at Booker T.

Troy Davis, North: Davis, a transfer from Western Heights, will have one more year with the Huskies. He scored the team’s other touchdown vs. Union.

Clayton Blackburn, Santa Fe, Baseball: Time to get some signings in. Blackburn signed with Oklahoma in a ceremony last week.

Obi Emegano, Memorial, Basketball: Emegano did the same as he signed with Western Illinois last Wednesday in a ceremony.

Taylor Moore, Memorial, Golf: No signing, but a commit. Moore, just a junior, committed to Arkansas over the weekend.

Connor Myers, Memorial, Football: No signing or commit, but Myers picked up offers from Army and Stephen F. Austin this week to give him four offers now.

Deer Creek (8-3) at Booker T. Washington (10-1)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Deer Creek
Why the Antlers can win: Because there is no question this team is playing their best ball at exactly the right time. The question is whether their best game can beat a team as talented and versatile as the Hornets.

Quote:

Eight teams left. Three weeks. Three games. That’s what we’re looking at. We don’t care who we have to play. It’s up to us.” – coach Grant Gower

Booker T.
Why the Hornets can win: Because this team is the scariest group of kids on paper. From Jordy Albert to Isaac Bennett to Tyler Locket to Derrick Alexander and everybody else in between, Darrell Hall stepped into the right situation.

Key matchup: Deer Creek’s ball control. Keep the Hornets off the field, and the Antlers might have a shot. Gonna have to play the perfect game, no turnovers, no missed FGs, etc. Big game for the O-line and Alex Christensen, Luke Bradshaw, Michael Coleman and Brennan Miyake.

The pick: Booker T. 30, Deer Creek 16. Toughest challenge yet for the Antlers, and they’ll fall a little short.

Boneman’s Antlers prediction record: 11-0.
Boneman’s Hornets prediction record: 11-0.

Deer Creek (8-3) at Booker T. (10-1)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday

It’s going to be a tough task for Deer Creek to beat top-ranked Tulsa Washington on Friday, but the Antlers are confident heading into the showdown.

One big reason has been the play of the offensive line, led by seniors Paul Kim and Ross Stracke.

“They’ve done a tremendous job all season but have played really well in the last couple of weeks,” coach Grant Gower said.

In Deer Creek’s 19-12 win at Ardmore, the Antlers took over with less than five minutes to play in the fourth quarter and never gave the ball back. Deer Creek converted four third down conversions and took a knee.

“It was a total team effort, and it was a great way to finish the game with how strong the line played,” Gower said.

Cannot disagree with that. Shawn McLaws has a fumble recovery for a touchdown and notched two field goals. Michael Coleman rushed for a score and recovered a fumble. This team is peaking at the right time.

I called him out in the five-minute guide, and he showed me up on Friday night. Edmond North running back Jarion Tudman rushed for 222 yards and a touchdown to shut me up in the Huskies’ 28-21 win at Yukon.

Tudman is deadly with the ball when he holds onto it. He held onto it against the Millers and became the workhorse he always has the potential to be.

It was a spirited effort by North, who has rebounded nicely from that 2-4 start. Is the upset possible? North is at Union on Friday.

Look for more on Tudman later this week.

Other contenders

Shawn McLaws, Deer Creek: Always around to play a big role. Fumble return for a touchdown, kicking field goals. He did a little bit of everything in the 19-12 road win at Ardmore.

Kameron Doolittle, Memorial: The senior closed out a tremendous career for the Bulldogs by rushing for more than 100 yards as Justin Merideth’s gritty bunch kept it close before losing to Lawton.

Travis Townsend, North: Senior quarterback wasn’t about to call it a career just yet, accounting for two touchdowns in the win.

Deer Creek offensive line: Less than five minutes and with the ball, Antlers line did its job as Deer Creek ran out the clock behind Alex Christensen and the offensive surge.

Will Conant, Memorial: Been regarded as one of the best kickers by yours truly for two years and showed it with two big FGs vs. Lawton.

Elizabeth Donohoe, North: You’ll be seeing that name a lot in the next couple of months as she signed with Oklahoma State last week.

Deer Creek (7-3) vs. Ardmore (6-4)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Ardmore

Deer Creek (W – Piedmont; L – Shawnee; W – Tecumseh; L- Guthrie; W – Southeast; W – El Reno; W – Western Heights; W – Noble; L – Carl Albert; W – Ada)
Why the Antlers can win: They’ve already encountered one must-win game in last week and came up big. This team is tested, knows it belongs with the top 5A teams. The defense picked up a lot of confidence for coming up big down the stretch last week.

Quote:

Every team at this point of the season deserves to be here. We’re happy we’re here. Now we just have to execute.” – coach Grant Gower

Ardmore
Why the Tigers can win: Admit I’ve underrated Larry McBroom’s kids for most of this season. Ardmore has quietly gone about its business, winning the games it needed to in order to get here.

The pick: Deer Creek 28, Ardmore 22. Seriously, if you saw Alex Christensen’s performance last week, then you know how tough it is to bet against him. Defense comes up in the fourth to send Antlers to quarterfinals.

Boneman’s Antlers prediction record: 10-0.

At 10:30 p.m. Friday, I thought for sure I had my Edmond Player of the Week. There was no way anybody could top the effort I had just witnessed from Deer Creek’s Alex Christensen.

You could make the argument it wasn’t topped, but with the whole season on the line, Memorial’s Gavin Fouts came up with the game of his life.

I had a feeling it would be his night. I mentioned him as the player to watch in the key matchup, but I never thought he would do what he did.

Fouts ended up with 163 rushing yards, a touchdown and most importantly on this night, two interceptions in the second half to give the Bulldogs a 38-21 win at Yukon to send them to the postseason.

That’s how you clinch a playoff spot. I’ll be there Thursday against Lawton.

Other contenders

Alex Christensen, Deer Creek: He was incredible. Running around and through tacklers all night in rushing for three touchdowns in a 31-28 win against Ada.

Jesse Mathews, North: Huskies were supposed to dominate US Grant, and they did. Mathews threw for two touchdowns and rushed for another to help North to a first-round date at Yukon.

Patrick Hinton, Santa Fe: He’s been a heckuva wide receiver all season, and he was able to score his first touchdown of the season in the last game as the Wolves finished a disappointing 1-9.

Kameron Doolittle, Memorial: Back to 100 percent is Memorial’s stud. He rushed for 156 yards and two touchdowns in the come-from-behind win.

Jarion Tudman, North: Notched another two rushing touchdowns but must find a way to not put the ball on the ground.

Brennan Miyake, Deer Creek: Definitely deserves some mention. Saved the game with his interception in the final minute.

Whoo, what a game Friday night at Deer Creek. Phenomenal atmosphere and two teams that gave us everything they have. Both Ada and Deer Creek have some problems, but it sure is not in the effort department.

A great back-and-forth battle with so much on the line. Glad I picked this game to attend, the final game at that Deer Creek Stadium. Massive renovations are in store that include a two-story (yay) press box.

Deer Creek 31, Ada 28

My biggest question entering the night was how Deer Creek was going to start. Bam, 20-yard run by Michael Coleman and it was 7-0 very quickly.

Anybody looking for an impressive aerial display certainly came to the wrong game. Though Deer Creek’s Alex Christensen and Ada’s Wyatt Robson made some timely throws, this was a game that belonged to the ground.

And it featured some big-time momentum shifts. The Antlers were up 17-6. Ada came out strong in the second half to take a 20-17 lead. Deer Creek responds with two more Christensen touchdowns to make it 31-20 midway through the fourth quarter.

The game ended in a big frenzy. Ada scored to make it 31-28 with 1:27 left. Then the onside kick. It sure looked like it didn’t go 10 yards. From my vantage point, I couldn’t tell if it hit a Deer Creek player first, though. If it did, the whole 10-yard mark means nothing.

All I know is that it seemed like maybe it was meant to be for Ada. But on the first play, Brennan Miyake picked it off and sealed the deal.

Boneman’s Breakdown

- What a game by Christensen. Every time you knew his number was being called, but it did not matter. Not. One. Bit. He’s a gamer that gives you everything he’s got. Finished with 242 yards and three touchdowns.

- Unsung hero was Shawn McLaws. It looked like a potential fake punt had blown up in Deer Creek’s face. However, he scrambled around and somehow booted a 34-yard punt. And his 44-yard field goal to make it 10-6 was big time. He didn’t get all of it (very low), but it cleared the cross bar. Big-time effort.

- Ada is going to be good, maybe great next year. Chase Bowker – junior. Robson – sophomore. Nathan Blakely – junior. Mason Girdley – sophomore. Look out for the Cougars in 2011.

- The press box situation at Deer Creek is certainly not ideal. But you know what it does? It gives you a great feeling of what the pulse of the crowd is. And that was a heckuva environment Friday.

- Up next: Ada (5-5) is at Lawton MacArthur (8-2) on Friday. Deer Creek (7-3) is at Ardmore (6-4) on Friday.

Ada (5-4) at Deer Creek (6-3)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Deer Creek Stadium, Edmond (I will be there)

Ada
Why the Cougars can win: You have to remember that this is the same team that took Guthrie to the absolute limit. Ada only lost that game 13-7. Ada also went the distance with an undefeated McAlester team (21-20). Don’t let the 55-12 loss to Carl Albert cloud that judgment.

Deer Creek (W- Piedmont; L – Shawnee; W – Tecumseh; L – Guthrie; W – Western Heights; W – El Reno; W – Southeast; W- Noble; L – Carl Albert)
Why the Antlers can win: Because the inferiority complex is gone. This team has to believe that it belongs with 5A clubs like Ada. It took too long against Guthrie and Carl Albert. They’ve got one more chance.

Quote:

I won’t allow it to happen again (slow start). All of us seniors will do whatever we need to do. This is our night.” – QB Alex Christensen

Key matchup: You guessed it, Deer Creek start. I’ma hit you over the head with this because it stands out so much. Antlers need a good start, and they should be able to settle down.

The pick: Deer Creek 24, Ada 18. Think I’ma be seeing a good one. With so much at stake for both teams, cannot wait for this one. Christensen powers his way through the Ada defense for the game-winning touchdown.

Boneman’s Deer Creek prediction record: 9-0.

DISTRICT 5A-1
Key Game: Ada at Deer Creek.
Guthrie: First.
Carl Albert: Second.
Ada: Third with win. Fourth with loss.
Deer Creek: Third with win. Fourth with loss.

Doesn’t get much simpler than that, huh, Deer Creek fans? Where do you want to go, Ardmore or Lawton? With a win, the Antlers would be taking on Ardmore. A loss, a trip to Lawton to face MacArthur is on the docket.

We might know pretty early Friday where this team is heading. Because frankly, the first half has determined the fate of this Deer Creek team.

In its wins, it has looked really impressive. But in its two biggest district games (Carl Albert, Guthrie), Grant Gower’s boys have been outscored 65-0 in the first half.

Repeat that. 41-0 to Guthrie and 24-0 to the Titans. Captain Obvious says you cannot do that and win. Gower said the key to the Carl Albert game was field position. The Antlers put themselves in bad position by not being able to sustain drives and CA doing whatever it wanted to.

There is no doubt a certain mystique that comes with the Guthrie and Carl Albert jersey. And for a program that was 3A just a mere 10 years ago, maybe that was tough to conquer. Antlers will have to get over that feeling against another tradition-rich school, Ada.

It will culminate a long (successful?) week for senior QB Alex Christensen. He’s all excited because he’ll get to live in the Governor’s Mansion here shortly. His step-mother is Mary Fallin, for those that don’t know.

Look for a story on Deer Creek’s Colten Sander in Friday’s paper. I normally don’t get too emotional and just do my job. But it was tough to conduct this interview and keep a composed demeanor. Feel like I’ve watched this kid grow up.

So close. Deer Creek was dominant at the boys cross country regional. And at the state meet, the Antlers weren’t that far off but fell just short.

Deer Creek took second as Guthrie earned the team championship at the state meet. However, Taler Buck did earn the championship and was pretty impressive in doing so.

Buck beat out Guthrie’s Zack Cates by more than 12 seconds to claim the individual title. Deer Creek’s Jake Verdin and Kody Ewing also placed in the top 10.

The girls, paced by a sixth-place finish by Courtney Maichak, earned fourth.

Other contenders

Ry Huff, Memorial, Football: Looked a lot more comfortable with Kameron Doolittle back and accounted for two touchdowns in the Bulldogs win vs. Norman North.

Travis Townsend, North, Football: Forgettable first half erased by a great second half, throwing for 231 yards and a couple of scores in 17-10 win vs. Santa Fe.

Dale Jefferson, Santa Fe, Football: First time I’ve seen him in person, and he is dang good. A little small at WR but was the best one on the field.

Meredith Farley, North, Cross Country: Farley placed 10th individually in leading the girls to a fifth-place finish in the team race at the state meet.

Arya Bahreini and Alex Skinner, Santa Fe, Cross Country: Each placed in the top 10 to help pace the Wolves to finishing sixth.

Tara Lewis, Memorial, Cross Country: Lewis placed 11th while the Memorial girls were brilliant in earning second place.

Carl Albert (6-2) at Deer Creek (6-2)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Deer Creek Stadium

Carl Albert (L-BTWashington; W- Ardmore; W – Duncan; W – Western Heights; W – El Reno; W – Southeast; L – Guthrie; W – Ada)
Why the Titans can win: Because their character and heart were tested last week, and they passed with flying colors. This is a team bred for November, and they’re ready to make that final push. Deer Creek has not seen a rushing attack like this one.

Deer Creek (W – Piedmont; L – Shawnee; W – Tecumseh; L – Guthrie; W – Southeast; W – El Reno; W – Western Heights; W – Noble)
Why the Antlers can win: Because the last four weeks have given Deer Creek the chance to find out exactly what is their best recipe for success. Namely a power running game, sprinkled in with some timely passing and a defense that flocks to the ball.

Quote:

Coach Gary Rose does a great job with his program, and he’s built something there that we’re trying to duplicate here at Deer Creek.” – coach Grant Gower

Key matchup: Deer Creek QBs vs. Death Squad. I just like saying Death Squad. No, seriously, how will Alex Christensen and Joel Blumenthal hold up against the best defense they’ve seen in a month? And if the Antlers need a big throw, is it Christensen or Blumenthal who gets the call?

The pick: Carl Albert 29, Deer Creek 19. Sounding like a coach here, but turnovers are going to be extremely important in deciding this one. I like the CA rushing attack to ice this sucker in the fourth quarter.

Boneman’s Carl Albert prediction record: 7-1.
Boneman’s Deer Creek prediction record: 8-0.

There’s the good and the bad about playing so many road games early in the season. If your team isn’t a cohesive unit, it could derail the hopes of a promising year.

But if it is a tight unit? Look out in the final two weeks. The Deer Creek team definitely falls under the latter and now the Antlers have a huge opportunity to make the type of statement they’ve been waiting for.

With the 43-0 win at Noble behind them, Grant Gower’s boys close out the season with two of the bigger challenges of the season. However, both of them will occur at Antler Stadium.

Deer Creek closes the season at home against Carl Albert and Ada.

When we found a schedule a year-and-a-half-ago, we knew this was going to be pretty exciting and put us exactly where we’d want to be.” – Gower

Deer Creek has been rolling since the 41-7 loss to the Bluejays. The offense is routinely amassing 350-400 total yards per game. The defense has been exceptional, especially last week.

And what a way to perhaps start another good rivalry with Carl Albert. The Titans were sensational against Ada, not suffering a hangover at all from the Guthrie game.

The passing game hasn’t accounted for many yards, but Alex Christensen and Joel Blumenthal have been able to find the end zone the last couple of weeks. Wide receiver Hunter Dinkines has scored a touchdown in the last two games.

The matchup is Friday at 7:30.

In a game against Noble that Deer Creek was supposed to win, it was senior linebacker Isaiah Byrd who set the tone early.

Byrd had a 40-yard interception return for a touchdown that led to the 43-0 victory and has the Antlers ready for this week’s mega-showdown with Carl Albert.

I remember when Byrd burst onto the scene as a sophomore. He’s been a solid, consistent player the last three years and has been healthy again after being banged up as a junior.

The Antlers haven’t just won four consecutive games since the Guthrie loss but have won in dominating fashion in all four contests.

Other contenders

DonQuay Hammons, North: Hammons had a long touchdown reception early, but the Huskies couldn’t keep it up in a loss to Lawton.

Cord Moore, Santa Fe: The Wolves are going running back-by-committee, and Moore was the one to punch it in the end zone against Del City.

Ry Huff, Memorial: Huff picked up his game in the second half through the air after scoring twice on the ground in the first half of the loss to the Bombers.

Joel Blumenthal, Deer Creek: The sophomore threw two touchdown passes as the Antlers have been able to find success through the air the last couple of weeks.

Taler Buck, Deer Creek, Cross Country: Wow, DC went 1-2-3-4-8 at the 5A regional in Norman. So yea, this goes to Buck, but it could go to that whole team.

Meredith Farley, North, Cross Country: In an absolute battle with Westmoore, Farley and her sixth-place finish helped the Huskies to a regional victory.

Tara Lewis, Memorial, Cross Country: A favorite this weekend? Lewis placed fourth as the Bulldogs placed fourth at regionals.

Arya Bahreini, Santa Fe, Cross Country: Wolves placed third at the 6A regional with Bahreini leading the charge in fifth.

Two games left. Where do the Huskies, Bulldogs, Wolves and Antlers stand?

Edmond North (3-5, 2-3)
Games remaining: vs. Santa Fe, at US Grant
Prognosis: Pretty good in terms of the Huskies closing out strong. Gonna need some help, especially if it comes to a head-to-head with Putnam City.

Feels like this Huskies team should be better than 3-5, but it’s where they’re at right now. I’ll be there Friday for the Edlam battle.

Edmond Memorial (5-3, 2-3)
Games remaining: vs. Norman North, at Yukon
Prognosis: Win both games and everything takes care of itself. It could get really dicey because you could conceivably have Memorial, Norman North, Putnam North and Choctaw all at 3-4. Oy, gonna hate doing that district scenario.

Intrigued to see how the Bulldogs come out Thursday against the T’Wolves and more interested to see if Kameron Doolittle will be back out there at quarterback.

Edmond Santa Fe (1-7, 1-4)
Games remaining: at Edmond North, vs. Putnam City
Prognosis: Not good. Santa Fe’s defense has been a formidable group despite the record. Battled Lawton for three quarters. In it the entire way with Del City. Westmoore was a battle.

Quarterback Ty Hensley is finding his groove while the Wolves have a lot of running backs to pick up the slack for the injured Phillip Sumpter.

Deer Creek (6-2, 4-1)
Games remaining: vs. Carl Albert, vs. Ada
Prognosis: Gonna learn a lot about this team in the final two weeks. When the Antlers have faced teams they’re supposed to win, they’ve taken care of business.

These next two games are there for the taking. Win out and host a first-round game. Lose out and be in a most unenviable position. We shall see.

Deer Creek (5-2) at Noble (1-5)
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: Noble HS

Deer Creek (W – Piedmont; L- Shawnee; W – Tecumseh; L – Guthrie; W – Southeast; W – El Reno; W – WHeights)
Why the Antlers can win: Because the last three weeks have been just what this team and the doctor ordered. The running game has been phenomenal and the defense has been the unsung heroes in the three-game winning streak.

Quote:

We can’t look ahead. It’s not Carl Albert week. This is Noble week, and this is who we’re concentrating on.” – coach Grant Gower

Noble
Why the Bears can win: Because Noble is coming off not only its first win of the year but easily its best performance of the season in a win against Southeast. The Bears are young, but their confidence should be high.

Key matchup: Deer Creek passing game vs. Noble defense. I’ma beat you into the ground with it. The Antlers need to get a good passing game going heading into showdowns with CA and Ada. Alex Christensen threw a TD pass to Hunter Dinkines last week, which is a start. Gotta have balance to win the close ones.

The pick: Deer Creek 52, Noble 13. Don’t know how much the passing game will be used by the Antlers, but this won’t be a trap game and DC will take care of its business.

Boneman’s Deer Creek prediction record: 7-0.

We’re going to find out a lot more about Grant Gower’s Deer Creek club in the final two weeks against Carl Albert and Ada. However, one thing you can say is this team is definitely taking care of business against the teams that it is supposed to.

After the loss to Guthrie, the Antlers were 2-2 but faced with what looked like winnable games. But looks can be deceiving. However, DCreek has put it together in wins against Southeast, El Reno and Western Heights, most notably the offensive line.

The line is doing a phenomenal job in opening up the holes for Alex Christensen, Joel Blumenthal, Michael Coleman and anybody else Gower is throwing out there.

Gower wasn’t biting on one of my observations. I asked if the way Guthrie handled a good Carl Albert team made him feel a little bit better about his team and the way it performed against the Jays.

Gower said he’s not looking back at that game and that he is really happy with the group of guys he has this year. He loves how close this team is.

I was trying to get him to bite with the logic that you know what? Losing to Guthrie isn’t a bad thing this year as A LOT of teams are going to lose to Rafe Watkins’ boys.

Antlers got one more game where they have to take care of business with Noble this week, and then the battle for positioning should commence against the Titans and Cougars.

They had the target on their backs all season. They had to deal with Micha Hancock missing time for the Youth Olympics. And Mattie Burleson missing matches because of an OSSAA rule about traveling teams.

But frankly, none of that mattered last weekend in Shawnee and Oklahoma Baptist for the Edmond Memorial volleyball team. The Bulldogs were almost beyond dominant in winning another state championship.

How good were they? They didn’t drop a game in the state tournament. They were never pressed to play beyond 25 points in a game though Santa Fe gave ‘em a good 25-23 game in the final.

It’s one thing to be expected to be the best all season, and it’s totally another to be able to go out there every single night and bring it. And that’s what they did all season.

For Scott Wright’s coverage of the championship, here ya go.

Other contenders

Edmond Santa Fe football: Wolves picked up first win of season with 61-0 win vs. US Grant. A colleague told me Ty Hensley played well. Santa Fe fans, help a Boneman out. Any stats you got from Friday sure would be appreciated.

Troy Davis and Travis Townsend, North, Football: In the first must-win game of the season, each accounted for three touchdowns in the 38-15 victory against Westmoore. Defense also forced six turnovers.

Deer Creek offensive line: Once again, the Antlers were able to spread out the wealth with its rushing attack. Alex Christensen, Joel Blumenthal, Luke Bradshaw and co., another solid outing in win against Western Heights.

North softball: Just ran into a hot hitting team in Jenks. With only one senior that saw significant playing time, this team should be back contending for the state championship last year.

Santa Fe volleyball: Just one of dem years, you know? Alex Hodges and the rest of the girls probably win against the rest of 6A – just not this Memorial squad.

Taler Buck, Deer Creek, Cross Country: Buck dominated at the Suburban Conference meet and then helped the Antlers to an eighth-place finish at the event in Fayetteville.

Alex Shook, Memorial, Cross Country: Shook led the charge for the Bulldogs who placed 15th at the same Fayetteville event.

Meredith Farley, North, Cross Country: Farley placed second at the Metro Conference meet and the Huskies couldn’t be touched in the team race.

Western Heights (1-5) at Deer Creek (4-2)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Antler Stadium, DC

Western Heights (L – Harrah, L – Tulsa Central, L – Piedmont, L – Carl Albert, W – Noble, L – Ada)
Why the Jets can win: Don’t let the record fool you. The Jets are battle-tested. They’ve played a tough schedule and they showed they can move the ball in the 47-6 win over Noble. RB Darius Young is a weapon as a runner and receiver, where he’s averaging better than 11 yards per catch. And WR Juwan Cubit is big-time dangerous. He qualified for state in the 100 meters last spring and has 24 catches for 360 yards and six TDs.

Deer Creek (W – Piedmont; L – Shawnee; W – Tecumseh; L – Guthrie; W – Southeast; W – El Reno)
Why the Antlers can win: Because the offense has adjusted to life without Colten Sander. And frankly, the defense has been solid all season save for one half against Guthrie. This is a team that is extremely tight-knit and has a couple of weeks to get on the same page before Carl Albert and Ada.

Quote:

The one thing I love about our defense right now is they’re all flying to the ball. We’re playing Antler football right now.” coach Grant Gower

Scott’s key matchup: DC run game vs. WH run-stoppers. The Jets have to get guys in running lanes and clog it up for the Antlers if they want to have a chance. But stopping that run game won’t be easy. See below. 

Boneman’s key matchup: Deer Creek passing game vs. Western Heights defense. There is no doubt in my mind that the Antlers could simply run up and down all day in this one. However, to beat CA and/or Ada, gonna need a balance. This is a good game to try to get Joel Blumenthal/Alex Christensen rolling through the air.

Scott’s pick: Deer Creek 31, Western Heights 14. Deer Creek’s depth and size is too much for the Jets.

Boneman’s pick: Deer Creek 45, Western Heights 10. Another solid effort by the Antlers in earning their third consecutive victory.

Boneman’s DCreek prediction record: 6-0.

It will be a special night Friday when Western Heights comes to Deer Creek. The Class 3A state championship team of 2000 is coming back and will be honored.

Wow, can you believe the Antlers were 3A a mere 10 years ago? I’ve talked with coach Grant Gower and athletic director Bob Diefenderfer, and I’m in firm agreement that by 2020 (if not sooner) this will be a 6A school.

Anyway, that 2000 club was led by Paul Smith and coached by his father, Ron. The quarterback ended up as the state’s all-time leading passer before being passed by Atoka’s L.T. Pfaff earlier this year.

Smith went on to Tulsa and was one of several Division I talents on that team, including Clint Coe (Oklahoma State), Tyler Tidwell (Navy) and Adam Bates (Miami, Fla.).

From 1999-2001, the Antlers went 33-7.

Need some help, Antler fans. Since I won’t be there, if anyone wants to send me pictures Friday night, I’d love to post them here on the blog.

***

I will no longer be taking any calls regarding the Joel Blumenthal-Alex Christensen situation. Some of it has gotten downright nasty, and I don’t appreciate getting calls at 6:30 a.m. on this situation. In fact, I don’t even know how most people are getting my cell number.

Both are great kids, and I enjoy talking with both of them. I have no agenda about who plays or doesn’t play. But I no longer want to do deal with people telling me I should be telling Gower what to do.

Ye Edmond football gods do not like running backs this season. With Edmond Memorial senior Cale Olbert tearing his ACL and MCL in last week’s win, every single Edmond team has had its top running back go down.

Memorial: Cale Olbert
Olbert is the heart and soul of the Bulldogs club. Everything you could want in a workhorse back. Following the game, coach Justin Merideth exclaimed, “this one’s for you, Cale!” This one hurt me a little more because I actually witnessed it happening and knew it as soon as he threw his helmet down.

Who’s picking up the slack? Looks like Gavin Fouts is going to get a big chunk of the carries. Chase Thackerson had some opportunities, too. But really the Memorial running attack is going to get a boost with the return of quarterback Kameron Doolittle.

North: Jared Benway
It was so long ago that you might not remember. However, Benway was injured in an intersquad scrimmage in August and will miss the rest of this season.

Who’s picking up the slack? Jarion Tudman has come in and become THE man for the Huskies. It will be fun to see Tudman and Benway next season.

Santa Fe: Phillip Sumpter
The Wolves don’t have that much depth to begin with, but the loss of Sumpter added to the problems. Sumpter is out the rest of the season with an ankle injury.

Who’s picking up the slack? Ryan Frazier, Trevan Smith and Ty Hensley are all taking their cracks at it. Frazier should become a bigger factor this season.

Deer Creek: Colten Sander
Poor kid couldn’t catch a break in his final two seasons. Sander tore his ACL in the third game of the season. He’s been the team’s biggest cheerleader since and was even named Homecoming King.

Who’s picking up the slack? Brennan Miyake is getting a lot more carries, but much like Memorial, the load will be on the legs of the man-beast quarterback/running back Alex Christensen.

All four talented runners and good kids are out for the season. Just one of dem things, I guess.

Ooh this was a tough one. But in the end, his numbers were too good to be overlooked. So Deer Creek’s Alex Christensen gets the Edmond Player of the Week, just edging out the Memorial defense.

In talking with coach Grant Gower, he had no idea Christensen had THAT many carries. Christensen ended up with 38 carries for 246 yards and four touchdowns in a big road win against El Reno.

Gower said El Reno was unable to stop his big QB so he didn’t go away from it. I’ve compared Christensen as a beast before, and well, that might work for this week.

Good bounce back the last two weeks by the Antlers following the loss at Guthrie.

Other contenders

Memorial defense: Aw heck, the whole team in the second half. Playing inspired because of the loss of Cale Olbert, teams turned a 7-7 game at halftime time to a 47-7 win against Choctaw. Jeff Balkenbush and Ry Huff were part of the charge leading the way.

Jesse Mathews, North, Football: Once upon a time he was a contender for the QB job, but Mathews has made a nice transition and had a 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Putnam City.

Jeremy Moore, Santa Fe, Football: Wolves dropped their sixth consecutive game, but Moore did pick off two passes in the loss to Mustang.

North softball: Here we go. This is what they’ve been waiting for. Rick Nordyke’s girls are ranked No. 1 heading into this week’s state tournament.

Memorial, North, Santa Fe volleyball: Gotta think the Bulldogs are heavy favorites, but Shawnee will be Edmond east this weekend for the 6A volleyball tournament with all three teams.

Alex Shook and Tara Lewis, Memorial, Cross Country: Lewis was second and Shook was fourth at the pre-state run at Mitch Park.

Arya Bahreini and Alex Skinner, Santa Fe, Cross Country: Bahreini was third and Skinner was fifth as Wolves placed fifth at the pre-state run.

Deer Creek (3-2) vs. El Reno (2-3)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: El Reno

Deer Creek (W – Piedmont, L – Shawnee, W – Tecumseh, L – Guthrie, W – Southeast)
Why the Antlers can win: Because all of last year’s injuries gave coach Grant Gower time to adapt to any issues this year. He’s done a great job of filling in the gaps with Colten Sander out. New kids are stepping up and Gower is pushing all the right buttons.

Quote:

I’ve seen a lot of positives in the last six quarters. The guys have really come together since halftime of the Guthrie game.” – coach Grant Gower

El Reno
Why the Indians can win: Because can’t underestimate the home field advantage. Tom Cobble’s kids are gradually getting things back on course. Not good enough to beat teams like Carl Albert and Guthrie, but these are wins that would bring great confidence to a club.

Key matchup: Deer Creek running game vs. El Reno defense. It doesn’t get much more simple than that. Alex Christensen, Michael Coleman and Brennan Miyake are going to test the Indians defense. El Reno stops ‘em, it wins. If it doesn’t, Antlers earn big road win.

The pick: Deer Creek 30, El Reno 20. Antlers offense is feeling good after a 69-point outing and continues the ride. Running game is too much for El Reno to handle.

Deer Creek coach Grant Gower has talked about all the weapons his team has on offense, and now it’s starting to help the team out of a tough spot.

The Antlers suffered a big blow when Colten Sander was injured for the season in Week 3. It was expected that Alex Christensen would continue to be a big part of the running attack, but Gower has found a couple of other runners, too.

Sophomore Brennan Miyake and Michael Coleman played a huge role in the Antlers’ 69-13 win against Southeast on Friday.

“Those are two guys that we know we can rely on,” Gower said. “Brennan has played well all season, and Michael is a tough runner.”

Christensen, Miyake and Coleman all had two rushing touchdowns. The Antlers rushed for 498 yards against the Spartans.

The task at hand for Gower is keeping his runners fresh as Christensen, Miyake and Coleman all see significant time on defense.

***

And like I said in Monday’s blog, Shawn McLaws had a nice game, too. McLaws caught a touchdown pass from sophomore Joel Blumenthal and also had a return touchdown.

This game against El Reno should be a good test of where we can rank the Antlers. The Indians are a little down, and Deer Creek has to win this game if it wants to be considered among the top clubs in 5A.

And though he’s out, Sander is still a big part of this team and school. Sander was named Homecoming King on Friday night.

Well, tried to not do it, but we have our first repeat winner of the year. Just a little too tough to not give Edmond Memorial’s Cale Olbert another honor as the Edmond Player of the Week.

In a game the Bulldogs had to have in district play, Olbert was a beast. He rushed for more than 200 yards and three touchdowns in leading Memorial to a 21-6 win against Moore.

It’s a mental test more than anything else as the Bulldogs are trying to survive without their captain (Kameron Doolittle) at 100 percent.

Olbert doesn’t mind having to carry the load. He’s got some real nice help with that defense, too. The defense hasn’t let this team down yet.

Other contenders

Travis Townsend, North, Football: It was a long night for the Huskies in a loss to Mustang, but Townsend was able to throw for four touchdown passes.

Alex Christensen, Michael Coleman, Shawn McLaws and Brennan Miyake, Deer Creek, Football: All four had two touchdowns for the Antlers in a 69-13 blowout win vs. Southeast.

Trevan Smith, Santa Fe, Football: Smith continues to be a bright spot for the Wolves, who have been shutout three times this season.

Taler Buck, Deer Creek, Cross Country: Add another honor to an incredible season, winning the individual title at Holland Hall against great teams from the Tulsa area.

Tara Lewis and Alex Shook, Memorial, Cross Country: No shock here as Lewis and Shook continued their stellar seasons at Mustang on Thursday.

Meredith Farley, North, Cross Country: Farley was team’s best finisher as Huskies won the team competition at Mustang.

Arya Bahreini, Santa Fe, Cross Country: Bahreini helped the Wolves to a fourth-place finish and placed third individually.

Jordan Dixon, North, Softball: Dixon is one big reason why the Huskies are ranked No. 1 and should punch their ticket to state this week.

Southeast (3-1, 0-1) at Deer Creek (2-2, 0-1)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Antlers Stadium

Southeast (W – US Grant 39-6, W – Star Spencer 27-14, W – Capitol Hill 31-6, L – Ada 41-0)
Why the Spartans can win: This is a team that believes it belongs in the playoff race. They still have some depth issues and most of their key players are going both ways. But the defense is strong and the offense has guys who can make plays.

Deer Creek (W – Piedmont 35-14, L – Shawnee 33-26, W – Tecumseh 35-14, L – Guthrie 41-7)
Why the Antlers can win: Because they’ve made the necessary adjustments to playing without Colten Sander. They woke up in the second half of the loss against the Bluejays. And if they’re going to have hopes for a playoff berth, this is as close to a must-win as you’ll see.

Quote:

The second half we saw a lot of good things and started to play the way we can. We need to build off of that, and we’re going to be OK.” – coach Grant Gower

Scott’s key matchup: Southeast RB Jay Gogue vs. Deer Creek linebackers. Led by Isaiah Byrd, the Antlers are athletic enough to chase Gogue down. Getting the run game going will be key, because that’s what makes the Spartans go. Gogue is a dangerous player, but if the Antlers are able to bottle him up, it’ll be tough for Southeast to control the ball.

Boneman’s key matchup: Deer Creek’s mental state. The team was shaken by a car accident involving Kyndal Bosch, Carson Lundeen and Brandon Johnson after the Guthrie game. Nobody was seriously injured for the Antlers and Gower said he hopes the team can rally around the three boys.

Scott’s pick: Deer Creek 21, Southeast 13. The Spartan defense will keep them in it, but I don’t know if the offense will be able to get enough going for the upset.

Boneman’s pick: Deer Creek 27, Southeast 10. Might take a little while, but eventually Alex Christensen will start to wear you down. And look for Michael Coleman and Isaiah Byrd to come up big on defense.

Boneman’s DC prediction record: 4-0.

The best of the best in the state (and some out of state clubs) for cross country were in Stillwater this weekend for the OSU Cowboy Jamboree.

And while Bishop McGuinness earned the 4A-5A boys title, nobody could touch Deer Creek’s Taler Buck in the individual competition.

Buck won the event by a staggering 18 seconds. And his time would have been good enough to place him fourth in the 6A competition, giving him Edmond Player of the Week honors.

The Antlers have one of the deepest squads in 5A and placed second to the Irish. Blaine Powell was 11th and Kody Ewing took 16th.

Other contenders

Jarion Tudman, North, Football: Welcome to Oklahoma, Tudman. The transfer from Amarillo came alive for 212 yards and 3 TDs in a win against Del City.

Ry Huff, Memorial, Football: Might see even more time this week and showed glimpses of what he can do with a touchdown in a 17-7 loss.

Abby Taliaferro, North, Softball: Taliaferro has been one of the best hitters for Rick Nordyke’s club all season and has done it in the biggest games.

Alex Hodges, Santa Fe, Volleyball: If it wasn’t for Memorial, we’d be talking about Hodges and the Wolves who are ranked No. 2 in 6A.

Taylor Melchert, Deer Creek, Cross Country: The girls placed sixth at the Jamboree with Melchert leading the way earning 36th.

Arya Bahreini, Santa Fe, Cross Country: His stellar season continued in Stillwater, too, placing fourth as the Wolves earned 10th.

Alex Shook, Memorial, Cross Country: Six was the magic number as Shook earned it individually and the team did the same at the Jamboree.

Deer Creek (2-1) at Guthrie (2-1)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Jelsma Stadium, Guthrie

Deer Creek (W – Piedmont 35-14, L – Shawnee 33-26, W – Tecumseh 35-13)
Why the Antlers can win: Because a single piece lost in their puzzle won’t make them crumble this year. This team has more depth. The loss of Colten Sander is big, but not like it was last year. Alex Christensen will continue to play a huge role, and I look for Brennan Miyake to become a name DC fans get quite accustomed to.

Quote:

Is there a better way to start district? These are the type of games you want to play. It’s a typical Guthrie team, and we have a our work cut out for us.” – coach Grant Gower

Guthrie
Why the Bluejays can win: Because they’re angry about the loss at Enid. It’s a game they let slip away. Quarterback Bryan Dutton is emerging as a top signal-caller. Kentrell Brothers is still doing his thing. And defensively, Landry Chappell is going to shadow Christensen all night long.

Key matchup: Guthrie running game vs. Antlers front seven. Deer Creek isn’t the only the team with a lost RB. Guthrie’s Alphonso Wilcots is expected to miss this game and that’s huge. Wilcots has come up with big plays this season. His absence in the second half played a role in last week’s game.

The pick: Guthrie 37, Deer Creek 28. I like both defenses, but I’m seeing a shootout of some sorts for some reason in this one. Brothers’ size should give him a lot of chances in the passing game to put up some pretty big numbers.

Boneman’s Deer Creek prediction record: 3-0.

Wanna know what stood out from Week 3? Look no further than teams like Deer Creek, Carl Albert and Lawton. Last week was the week of the torn ACL.

Deer Creek has lost RB Colten Sander for the season. The same rings true for the Titans with QB Dillan Dansby. And Lawton will have to make a run without top QB prospect Cody Miller.

Deer Creek (2-1)
Last year this would have been a death blow to the team. This year? Eh, not so much. Spoken to coach Grant Gower at length about this. He’s sad and feels for Sander because Colten did so much to get himself back into top shape after last year’s injuries.

With Sander out, I think you’re going to see a lot more of Alex Christensen burrowing his way through tacklers. He is a beast. Also, sophomore Brennan Miyake is going to play a bigger role in the offense.

The Antlers offense is all about packages. Gower said the staff spent all weekend making tweaks after finding out about what happened to Sander.

Gonna find out real early how those tweaks will work as Antlers are at Guthrie on Friday.

Carl Albert (2-1)
The emergence of Dansby was incredible in the last two weeks. I was shortchanging the offense the last two weeks in my predictions. Dansby made so much progress in the first three weeks that all the sudden 42 points at Duncan didn’t seem that crazy.

Coach Gary Rose is very confident that Taylor Hawkins is going to be just fine. The problem, of course, was that Hawkins was playing baseball all summer. Hawkins has been a big part of the defensive success, but now must make the transition to defense.

The defense is incredible. Led by Quincy Johnson and Dwight Dobbins, this is an elite group. The offense will be able to have at least one week for a trial process.

That offensive line is a great group, and the Titans could lean on Kenton Whittington and Darvonta Knight and be just fine. However, think it’s important that Hawkins have some success against Western Heights.

Lawton (3-0)
I will update this later in the week as coach Randy Breeze said right now it is a competition between Brandon Bartlett and Kyle Fultz.

Miller tore his ACL and meniscus in the third quarter of a win against Altus. This is a huge blow and will definitely make me re-evaluate the Wolverines No. 3 ranking.

Lawton still has offensive firepower in Tyrequek Zimmerman and RB Deaquan Wojciechowski. And the defense, led by Carter Grigg and Richard Sheridan, is a solid bunch.

Bartlett and Fultz are going to be thrown right into the fire with a showdown against Mustang. With the Broncos offensive weapons like Brandon Taylor and David Glidden, Lawton is going to need points to win this one. We shall see.

District openers didn’t need any added storylines, but these are three teams that will have to adjust in a hurry.

This might be the first time a Player of the Week honor is going to someone who didn’t score a touchdown. Yes, it’s true that Edmond Memorial RB Cale Olbert did not punch it in Friday in the win against rival Edmond North.

But you know what? He did just about everything else. With Kameron Doolittle hobbled, Olbert was the workhorse time and time again and has earned the Edmond honor.

Olbert is going to have to play a big role if the Bulldogs are going to continue their hot start. He adds a perfect blend to the offensive game. And we know how good that defense is.

Other contenders

Grant Bohuslavicky, Memorial, Football: Scored a touchdown and made big catches all night in the win against North.

Travis Townsend, North, Football: For three quarters, deadly accurate. Made good decisions all night long against Memorial.

Ty Hensley, Santa Fe, Football: Hensley scored the Wolves’ touchdown in a 41-6 loss at Midwest City.

Michael Coleman, Deer Creek, Football: Defense caused seven turnovers against Tecumseh and Coleman had an INT return for a touchdown.

Maddie Martin, Santa Fe, Softball: Wolves don’t have the numbers they’ve had in the past, but Martin is proving to be a stellar player.

Mattie Burleson, Memorial, Volleyball: You tend to forget how great she is with Micha Hancock also on the team, but Burleson is incredible at the net.

Tara Lewis and Alex Shook, Memorial, Cross Country: Surprise, surprise. Shook was second and Lewis fifth at the Edmond Dog Pack event at Mitch Park.

Hannah Helker and Anna Kimsey, North, Cross Country: In a good battle, Helker and Kimsey helped Huskies to win against Westmoore and rest of field at Edmond Dog Pack run.

Taler Buck and Courtney Maichak, Deer Creek, Cross Country: Girls won the smaller school competition and Buck was fourth in boys event at Edmond Dog Pack run.

Arya Bahreini and Alex Skinner, Santa Fe, Cross Country: Bahreini was third and Skinner seventh at the Edmond Dog Pack run.

Now that we’ve reached district play, back to doing the weekly recaps I did at this point last year. Let’s start with the Edmond boys.

Memorial (3-0)
The Bulldogs won their second straight Edmond city championship. In the non-Edmond game, Memorial was able to shut down a potent Stillwater passing attack.

The healthy of Kameron Doolittle is the biggest concern right now. He should be OK going forward, but it will definitely be something worth watching for the rest of the way.

This defense is just as stout as last year’s group. Connor Myers and Jared Chambers are killin’ it on the line. And I’ve been impressed with the play of Jeff Balkenbush and Grant Bohuslavicky.

And they still have that ace in the hold with kicker Will Conant.

Week 4: vs. Putnam City North (1-2), Friday

North (1-2)
Two losses, neither one that raises a big cause for concern. Huskies have some really good pieces in place to make a run.

The story, to me, has been the emergence of RBs Jarion Tudman and Troy Davis. The two transfers have added another dimension to this team.

Travis Townsend has so many WRs to choose from that it’s just going to be way too tough to contain all of them.

Defense is coming around. So many new faces but anchored by Ryan Adams, like what I’m seeing.

Week 4: vs. Del City (1-2) on Thursday (I’ll be there).

Santa Fe (0-3)
All of the Wolves’ losses are against teams ranked from 5-9 in 6A. Been a lot of growing pains for this team though I remain adamant the future is incredibly bright.

Ty Hensley has a promising future ahead of him at quarterback. Trevan Smith is going to be one dynamic talent. And when wide receiver Tre Kelley returns, look out for those receivers.

I’ma tellin’ ya now, Santa Fe fans, do not give up on this team. But Friday is crucial, have to win against the Jaguars.

Week 4: at Westmoore (1-2) on Friday.

Deer Creek (2-1)
The good news is this team is definitely a top-10 5A team. The bad news is they’re going to have to make that run without the services of senior leader Colten Sander once again.

Sander was injured in a the win against Tecumseh and just can’t catch a break. But this year there are a lot more weapons that Grant Gower’s boys should be OK.

Alex Christensen and Joel Blumenthal bring two very different skill sets to the quarterback position, but they’re both getting the job done. And I really like Michael Coleman to start tearin’ it up on defense.

Week 4: at Guthrie (2-1) on Friday.

Tecumseh (1-1) at Deer Creek (1-1)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Deer Creek (new field)

Tecumseh
Why the Savages can win: It will be a tough task for Greg George’s boys, but a special talent like Kyle Fowler can make anything possible. Lost to rival Seminole last week so you know they want to get back out there and show what they can do.

Deer Creek (W – Piedmont 35-14, L – Shawnee 33-26)
Why the Antlers can win: Because they’re finally at home. They have a new field (beautiful) and are clicking offensively. It’s been a good mix of Alex Christensen and Joel Blumenthal at quarterback. Key with this team (and a lot of others) is staying healthy.

Quote:

This is exciting. We can’t wait to play on this field for the first time. It’s incredible. It shows you how far the school and program have come.” – coach Grant Gower

Key matchup: Fowler against the Antlers defense. I don’t think Deer Creek is going to have too tough a time finding ways to score against the Savages. However, Deer Creek cannot allow another huge night from an opposing QB like it did vs. Brayle Brown.

The pick: Deer Creek 30, Tecumseh 14. Gower loves to talk about it, and he’s right – this team just has too many weapons to be contained. Bigger teams might wear ‘em down, but it shouldn’t happen Friday.

Boneman’s Deer Creek prediction record: 2-0.

Volleyball fanatics are probably saying ‘it’s about time.’ And hey, you’re probably right. But now that I’ve had the opportunity to watch Micha Hancock of Memorial play the game, I get it.

Like I said last week, I was amazed by her skills. The Tuesday wins in the Edmond Triangular would have been enough for her to earn the Edmond Player of the Week.

However, when you add in the fact the Bulldogs swept the field at the 2nd annual Heather Harkness Invitational over the weekend, that clinches it.

Memorial is easily the best team in 6A and would only get a legit argument from Bishop Kelley in terms of being the best in the state. Should be a fun rest of the season for the girls.

Other contenders

Kameron Doolittle, Memorial, Football: Only added two rushing scores and two passing touchdowns to his long list of accomplishments in a win vs. Stillwater.

Phillip Sumpter, Santa Fe, Football: Get ready to see this name a lot. He did everything but score in proving to be the future at RB for the Wolves.

DonQuay Hammons, North, Football: A 99-yard touchdown reception will get you here every time. Says he ready for the Edlam battle with Memorial.

Alex Christensen, Deer Creek, Football: Tough loss for the Antlers at Shawnee, but Christensen was able to find the end zone twice.

Alex Hodges, Santa Fe, Volleyball: The best player on the second-ranked Wolves team impressed me with her abilities and leadership.

Santa Fe softball: Biggest winner of the week with the OSSAA eliminating the game limit rule, allowing the Wolves to have a JV team for the rest of the year.

Taler Buck, Deer Creek, Cross Country: Won the boys competition at Deer Creek this weekend as Antlers had the top five runners.

Arya Bahreini and Shannon Ray, Santa Fe, Cross Country: The top finishers for boys and girls at the OK Runner Classic event in Norman.

P.J. Osburn and Hannah Helker, North, Cross Country: The top finishers for boys and girls at the OK Runner Classic event in Norman.

Tara Lewis, Memorial, Cross Country: Placed fourth at the OK Runner Classic event in Norman.

Have more nominations? Send ‘em this way.

Deer Creek (1-0) at Shawnee (0-1)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Jim Thorpe Stadium

Deer Creek (W – Piedmont 35-14)
Why the Antlers can win: Because this is a bruising team. Whether it’s Alex Christensen or Colten Sander, there is some strong power in this running game. And if you get caught up with that, then sophomore Joel Blumenthal can surprise you with his arm.

Quote:

That was a great start to the season, but this is a big one. These are the type of games that we have to win.” – Sander

Shawnee
Why the Wolves can win: Because they’re finally home. It’s a different feel starting the season with a home game that is at Tecumseh. Bartlesville showed the Wolves what 6A is all about. They’re licking their wounds and should be ready for some revenge against Deer Creek.

Key matchup: Shawnee passing game vs. Deer Creek secondary. It’s a step up for the Antlers defense to face a talented quarterback like Brayle Brown. The Antlers have solid DBs such as Shawn McLaws and stopping WR Leon Davis is going to be the biggest task.

The pick: Shawnee 25, Deer Creek 17. This game could sneakily become one of the better games of the week that we haven’t talked about. I like for Jeremy Barrientos to make some plays for Shawnee in this one.

Going to keep this one kinda short because you can read much more on Colten Sander in Tuesday’s paper. However, Sander deserves special mention for being the Edmond Player of the Week.

Sander was sensational in a win against Piedmont, rushing for 231 yards and three scores. Wildcats hung in there early, but Sander and the rest of the team carried the day in the second half.

Sander was banged up all last season with a concussion and foot injuries but appears to be back on the right track now.

Other contenders

Kameron Doolittle, Memorial, Football: There wasn’t much scoring in a 14-0 win against Santa Fe, but Doolittle provided a big spark with a 65-yard TD run.

Troy Davis, North, Football: Showed great versatility catching and running the ball and scored a touchdown in a 40-19 loss to Southmoore.

Ty Hensley, Santa Fe, Football: Hensley is the future for the Wolves, which should be incredibly bright. However, Week 1 was not kind to ESF.

Alex Christensen, Deer Creek, Football: Caught a couple of passes from Joel Blumenthal and also rushed for two touchdowns.

Madison Nordyke, North, Softball: The Huskies are on a roll right now, and Nordyke is a big reason why. She pitched beautifully in an Edlam win against Memorial.

Micha Hancock, Memorial, Volleyball: Back after claiming silver at the Youth Olympics, Hancock and the rest of the girls pulled out a fun five-game battle with Bishop Kelley.

Alex Shook and Tara Lewis, Memorial, Cross Country: Shook won the 5K run at Santa Fe and helped lead the Bulldogs to a team title. Lewis placed third.

Arya Bahreini, Santa Fe, Cross Country: Bahreini placed second as the Wolves finished fourth.

Hannah Helker, North, Cross Country: Helker led the Huskies’ charge with a fourth-place finish. The team placed second.

Have any more? Send ‘em this way.

Deer Creek at Piedmont
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Piedmont HS

Deer Creek
Why the Antlers can win: Simple answer – they’re healthy. Longer answer- they’re healthy and have improved from last year. I was counting on players like Colten Sander and Hunter Dinkines to play a big role, but where did Brennan Miyake come from? When players like that start stepping up, you know the future is going to be bright.

Quote:

You know what? We’re actually even more encouraged because of how we performed in scrimmages. We’re ready just like everyone else to finally do it for real.” – coach Grant Gower

Piedmont
Why the Wildcats can win: Because Rob Green is in the midst of turning this sucker around. The loss of Keith Vick really hurts this team, but the offense has a ton of starters coming back and the team is and needed to be more than just Vick.

Key matchup: Piedmont running game vs. Deer Creek LBs. Like what DC’s Isaiah Byrd and Michael Coleman bring to the table. Piedmont’s Taylor Ashcraft had a strong sophomore season at RB and should be ready to do even more this year.

The pick: Deer Creek 23, Piedmont 13. Antlers are still finding their groove with Alex Christensen and Joel Blumenthal at QB and this should be a good test for both to get acclimated to what it’s like again. It depends on the offensive package for who will start between Christensen and Blumenthal. Christensen said he’s not really hung up on the term ‘starter’ and just wants to play.