Varsity High School Blogs » Picks

Week 1 picks

Ryan Aber — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 21:11:47 +0000

It’s that time again. Scott and I are back for another year of picks, Jason Kersey decided to stick around after making the move to cover OU and we’ve added Ed Godfrey and Jacob Unruh to the picks bunch. Here’s the way we see it breaking down:

RYAN ABER
Tulsa Union 34, Jenks 28
Tulsa Washington 20, Douglass 14
Edmond Santa Fe 14, Midwest City 7
Clinton 28, Lawton MacArthur 21
Broken Arrow 24, Owasso 17
Tulsa East Central 21, Del City 13
Guthrie 35, Duncan 14
Tuttle 21, Plainview 10
Seminole 20, Lincoln Christian 14
Laverne 26, Shattuck 20
Lock of the week: Broken Arrow over Owasso. Coleman Key ignites things in his first game with his new team, against his new team, and Devon Thomas and Cameron Wrenn light things up offensively as well.

ED GODFREY
Tulsa Union 28, Jenks 21
Douglass 21, Tulsa Washington 20
Edmond Santa Fe 30, Midwest City 22
Lawton MacArthur, 33, Clinton 14
Owasso 17, Broken Arrow 14
Tulsa East Central 26, Del City 18
Guthrie 34, Duncan 21
Tuttle 28, Plainview 14
Seminole 19, Lincoln Christian 14
Shattuck 28, Laverne 26
Lock of the week: Edmond Santa Fe over Midwest City. The Wolves are eager to avenge
last year’s lone regular-season loss. Justice Hansen, the state’s best
quarterback, is a year older and has plenty of weapons around him. It
may take time for Midwest City to gel with a new coach.

JASON KERSEY
Tulsa Union 42, Jenks 37
Tulsa Washington 24, Douglass 16
Edmond Santa Fe 27, Midwest City 14
Lawton MacArthur 26, Clinton 21
Broken Arrow 35, Owasso 14
Tulsa East Central 21, Del City 10
Guthrie 35, Duncan 17
Tuttle 20, Plainview 6
Lincoln Christian 23, Seminole 14
Shattuck 28, Laverne 26
Lock of the week: Lawton MacArthur over Clinton. Great matchup, and I think the Red Tornadoes will play valiantly against the bigger school. But in the end, the Highlanders’ athletes will prove to be too much.

JACOB UNRUH
Tulsa Union 35, Jenks 24
Tulsa Washington 21, Douglass 20
Edmond Santa Fe 29, Midwest City 20
Lawton MacArthur 31, Clinton 24
Broken Arrow 38, Owasso 24
Tulsa East Central 24, Del City 21
Guthrie 31, Duncan 14
Tuttle 28, Plainview 20
Seminole 21, Lincoln Christian 15
Laverne 55, Shattuck 48
Lock of the week: Guthrie over Duncan. I always like what Duncan coach Jim Holloway does each season with his team, but Guthrie is just too much on offense. I think this game stays close initially before the Bluejays pull away.

SCOTT WRIGHT
Tulsa Union 37, Jenks 28
Tulsa Washington 22, Douglass 14
Edmond Santa Fe 31, Midwest City 27
Lawton MacArthur 27, Clinton 23
Broken Arrow 38, Owasso 21
Tulsa East Central 28, Del City 27
Guthrie 33, Duncan 21
Tuttle 28, Plainview 20
Seminole 31, Lincoln Christian 28
Laverne 52, Shattuck 48
Lock of the week: Broken Arrow over Owasso. I was incredibly close to picking BA as the 6A champ this preseason, but couldn’t quite pull the trigger. Still, I think they romp this week, even against a stout Owasso defense.

Picks: Second round of the playoffs

Ryan Aber — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 14:12:24 +0000

Ryan kept the three-game lead over Jason as both went 8-2 last week. Scott dropped two games, due to picking Yukon over Edmond Memorial and Ada over Duncan.

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

Overall:
Ryan: 80-31, 10-1
Jason: 77, 32, 8-3
Scott: 73-36, 9-2

Ryan
Jenks 28, Edmond Santa Fe 21
Midwest City 21, Owasso 17
Guthrie 34, Tulsa East Central 30
Lawton MacArthur 35, Tulsa Kelley 28
Sallisaw 28, McGuinness 26
Anadarko 35, Kingfisher 20
Seminole 28, Verdigris 7
Davis 26, Millwood 20
Woodland 21, Wynnewood 19
Timberlake 35, Temple 32
Lock of the week: Lawton MacArthur over Tulsa Kelley. Kelley’s defense is good but they haven’t faced an offense near as potent as Lawton MacArthur yet this season. Darius Graham and company pass the test to advance to the semifinals yet again.

Jason
Edmond Santa Fe 31, Jenks 23
Midwest City 31, Owasso 28
Guthrie 27, Tulsa East Central 17
Lawton MacArthur 38, Tulsa Kelley 24
McGuinness 28, Sallisaw 27
Anadarko 28, Kingfisher 21
Seminole 37, Verdigris 24
Davis 24, Millwood 14
Woodland 38, Wynnewood 34
Temple 35, Timberlake 31
Lock of the week: Anadarko over Kingfisher. This will be Anadarko’s first real test of the season, and I think they pass it. Sheldon Wilson won’t be able to run wild like he has all year, but he’ll still be too much for the Yellowjackets.

Scott
Edmond Santa Fe 28, Jenks 24
Midwest City 37, Owasso 31
Guthrie 28, Tulsa East Central 21
Lawton MacArthur 35, Tulsa Kelley 21
McGuinness 17, Sallisaw 14
Kingfisher 24, Anadarko 21
Seminole 30, Verdigris 20
Davis 31, Millwood 28
Woodland 28, Wynnewood 22
Timberlake 38, Temple 34
Lock of the week: Midwest City over Owasso. The Bombers are on a crash course with the title game, and their secondary is better than any Owasso has seen this year.

Picks: First round of the playoffs

Ryan Aber — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 18:23:02 +0000

Ryan stayed in first place with another strong week despite missing on Tulsa Central, Ada and Bridge Creek. Jason was the only one to miss on his lock, losing out on Westmoore-Lawton.

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

Overall:
Ryan: 72-29, 9-1
Jason: 69-32, 7-3
Scott: 67-34, 8-2

Ryan
Midwest City 35, Westmoore 21
Owasso 21, Norman 17
Edmond North 21, Yukon 19
Tulsa East Central 32, Tulsa Washington 20
Tulsa Kelley 28, Coweta 14
Duncan 14, Ada 7
Glenpool 35, Piedmont 27
Harrah 21, McGuinness 20
Sequoyah Tahlequah 28, Berryhill 27
Lawton 21, Norman North 14
Lock of the week: Tulsa East Central over Tulsa Washington. East Central won the regular-season matchup at they’ll win again here as their defense slows down the Hornets while their offense continues to roll.

Jason
Midwest City 31, Westmoore 24
Owasso 21, Norman 14
Edmond North 27, Yukon 14
Tulsa East Central 23, Tulsa Washington 14
Coweta 27, Tulsa Kelley 21
Duncan 24, Ada 14
Glenpool 31, Piedmont 17
McGuinness 17, Harrah 13
Sequoyah Tahlequah 35, Berryhill 24
Lawton 31, Norman North 17
Lock of the week: Edmond North over Yukon. Yes, Yukon is fired up because of the way last year’s game ended. But that won’t be enough to make up for the Huskies’ talent. Edmond North wins and moves to a showdown at Tulsa Union.

Scott
Midwest City 35, Westmoore 21
Owasso 28, Norman 17
Yukon 21, Edmond North 20
Tulsa East Central 35, Tulsa Washington 24
Tulsa Kelley 28, Coweta 24 Ada 28, Duncan 24
Glenpool 33, Piedmont 27
Harrah 21, McGuinness 17
Sequoyah Tahlequah 38, Berryhill 28
Lawton 28, Norman North 21
Lock of the Week: Owasso over Norman. Norman RB Donovan Roberts is a game-changer. If he’s able to play, it’s hard to imagine that he’ll be at full speed after the ankle injury he suffered last week. And the Tigers need him to be effective to keep the offense balanced. Without that X-factor, Owasso should put this one away.

Picks: Week 10

Ryan Aber — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 17:16:45 +0000

With a chance to all but put the regular-season title away, Ryan flubbed it last week, going 6-4. Picking Edmond North and Wynnewood turned out to be the difference as both Scott and Jason came out on the right ride of those picks and pulled two games closer.

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.

Picks: Week 8

Ryan Aber — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 18:43:26 +0000

Ryan had a big week last week, picking up three games on Jason and four on Scott after picking Kingfisher, Hennessey, Lawton Eisenhower and Weatherford correctly. All three of us missed out on Stillwater’s win over Owasso and Tulsa Kelley’s over Tulsa Washington.

Last week:
Ryan: 8-2, 1-0
Jason: 5-5, 1-0
Scott: 4-6, 1-0

Overall:
Ryan: 52-19, 6-1
Jason: 49-22, 5-2
Scott: 46-25, 6-1

Ryan:
Wagoner 21, Catoosa 18
Douglass 20, Harrah 17
Deer Creek-Lamont 26, Timberlake 20
Pryor 20, Coweta 17
Weatherford 21, Tuttle 14
Broken Arrow 40, Norman 14
Lawton 21, Edmond North 20
Sallisaw 21, Hilldale 14
McGuinness 28, Piedmont 21
Putnam City 35, Westmoore 24
Lock of the week: Deer Creek-Lamont over Timberlake. DC-Lamont will finally get pushed but they come out on top in a possible state championship game preview.

Jason
Wagoner 31, Catoosa 21
Douglass 28, Harrah 21
Deer Creek-Lamont 42, Timberlake 30
Coweta 21, Pryor 14
Tuttle 17, Weatherford 10
Broken Arrow 42, Norman 28
Edmond North 24, Lawton 14
Hilldale 24, Sallisaw 20
McGuinness 31, Piedmont 28
Westmoore 27, Putnam City21
Lock of the week: Westmoore over Putnam City. The Pirates have faced one really strong defense all year, Edmond North, and were shut down offensively. Westmoore’s defense has shown itself to be tough all season, and I think they can keep Casey Curtis in check and come away with the win.

Scott
Wagoner 23, Catoosa 20
Douglass 21, Harrah 14
Deer Creek-Lamont 48, Timberlake 33
Pryor 20, Coweta 17
Tuttle 27, Weatherford 21
Broken Arrow 38, Norman 28
Edmond North 24, Lawton 21
Hilldale 28, Sallisaw 27
McGuinness 21, Piedmont 17
Putnam City 30, Westmoore 24
Lock of the Week: Wagoner over Catoosa. This should be one heck of a ballgame, but I think Wagoner has the leadership, the experience and the talent to get back to the title game this year, maybe win it all. Guys like Kevin Peterson and Jeremy Applegate, among others, have been around long enough to help keep the team composed in a big game — and this is a huge one.

Picks: Week 7

Ryan Aber — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 17:00:04 +0000

So somehow last week, Jason and I wound up picking 11 games since I apparently can’t count to 10. In the interest of padding the win total, we’ll let that stand and give Scott credit for the extra game (Wynnewood over Rush Springs, which Jason and I picked correctly). Scott needed the help after picking Putnam North and Putnam City to come out with wins. Everybody went with Tulsa Union and Lincoln Christian, leading to losses.

Last week
Ryan: 7-4, 1-0
Scott: 5-6, 1-0
Jason: 7-4, 1-0

Overall
Ryan: 44-17, 5-1
Jason: 44-17, 4-2
Scott: 42-19, 5-1

Ryan
Guthrie 21, Carl Albert 17
Kingfisher 14, Bethany 10
Owasso 41, Stillwater 35
Tulsa Washington 17, Tulsa Kelley 14
Metro Chr. 28, Seq. Tahlequah 21
Hennessey 22, Oklahoma Chr. 14
Lawton MacArthur 40, Duncan 20
Weatherford 13, Blanchard 8
Lawton Eisenhower 28, Edmond Memorial 22
McGuinness 28, Elgin 13
Lock of the week: Hennessey over OCS. Hennessey took some lumps in the non-district schedule but is still among the top teams in 2A. Tonight is their chance to prove that against a solid OCS team.

Jason
Guthrie 24, Carl Albert 16
Bethany 21, Kingfisher 17
Owasso 38, Stillwater 35
Tulsa Washington 24, Tulsa Kelley 17
Metro Christian 24, Seq. Tahlequah 10
Oklahoma Christian 24, Hennessey 23
Lawton Eisenhower 21, Edmond Memorial 13
Lawton MacArthur 31, Duncan 13
Bishop McGuinness 35, Elgin 14
Blanchard 16, Weatherford 9
Lock of the Week: Guthrie over Carl Albert. Both teams are fantastic, and both teams are legitimate Class 5A contenders. But at this point in the season, Guthrie’s defense is just too good for Carl Albert’s still-developing offense.

Scott
Guthrie 21, Carl Albert 20
Bethany 35, Kingfisher 31
Owasso 45, Stillwater 42
Tulsa Washington 21, Tulsa Kelley 14
Sequoyah-Tahlequah 35, Metro Christian 28
Hennessey 30, Oklahoma Christian 21
Lawton MacArthur 48, Duncan 31
Blanchard 14, Weatherford 12
Edmond Memorial 20, Lawton Eisenhower 17
McGuinness 28, Elgin 21
Lock of the Week: Lawton MacArthur over Duncan. Ever since watching the Highlanders in the preseason scrimmage at Mustang, I’ve had a strong feeling that these guys could win it all in 5A. I needed to see some results in the regular season first to support my gut feeling, and they’ve done that — even while battling some nagging injuries. There are a lot of factors left to be determined regarding the gold ball, but I definitely think Mac wins this week.

Picks: Week 6

Ryan Aber — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 22:26:40 +0000

Ryan lost a game to Jason and Scott last week with his pick of Commerce over Colcord. Everybody missed Broken Bow and Hilldale, but Ryan locked Broken Bow to lose his first lock of the week.

Last week
Jason: 8-2, 1-0
Scott: 8-2, 1-0
Ryan: 7-3, 0-1

Overall
Ryan: 37-13, 4-1
Scott: 37-13, 4-1
Jason: 37-13, 3-2

Ryan
Cascia Hall 14, Berryhill 7
Millwood 28, Jones 26
Norman North 28, Putnam North 24
Edmond North 35, Putnam City 34
Tulsa Union 38, Owasso 16
Tulsa East Central 27, Tulsa Central 20
Lincoln Chr. 28, Vian 26
Comanche 26, Washington 20
Elk City 20, McGuinness 17
McAlester 38, Tulsa Kelley 20
Wynnewood 28, Rush Springs 14
Lock of the week: Wynnewood over Rush Springs. As things keep progressing in this district, I’m more and more convinced that the Wynnewood-Wayne matchup will determine the district champion.

Scott
Cascia Hall 21, Berryhill 14
Millwood 38, Jones 34
Putnam City North 24, Norman North 21
Putnam City 52, Edmond North 48
Tulsa Union 31, Owasso 21
Tulsa East Central 27, Tulsa Central 24
Lincoln Christian 35, Vian 31
Comanche 27, Washington 24
Elk City 28, McGuinness 27
McAlester 24, Tulsa Kelley 14
Lock of the Week: Cascia Hall over Berryhill. Cascia looks like a team on a mission, still stinging from last year’s loss to Bethany in the playoffs. I think they move to 6-0 this week.

Jason
Cascia Hall 21, Berryhill 10
Millwood 31, Jones 24
Norman North 23, Putnam North 17
Edmond North 42, Putnam City 35
Tulsa Union 42, Owasso 24
Tulsa East Central 35, Tulsa Central 21
Lincoln Chr. 31, Vian 28
Washington 20, Comanche 17
Bishop McGuinness 23, Elk City 20
McAlester 35, Tulsa Kelley 17
Wynnewood 24, Rush Springs 21
Lock of the week: Norman North over Putnam City North. Both of these proud programs are struggling this season, but I like the Timberwolves because of their running game. Norman North running back Bryan Payne has been good this season, and the Panthers’ run defense has been an Achilles’ heel.

Picks: Week 5

Ryan Aber — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 17:00:15 +0000

Jason had the best call of the week, locking Edmond Santa Fe over Westmoore in a game the Wolves won with a late comeback. Scott slipped back a spot on Jason and Ryan after picking Thackerville to beat Ryan (Ryan won 56-7). Through four weeks, Ryan stands one game up on both Scott and Jason and a game up on Scott in locks of the week.

Last week
Ryan: 8-2
Jason: 8-2
Scott: 7-3

Overall
Ryan: 30-10, 4-0
Scott: 29-11, 3-1
Jason: 29-11, 2-2

Ryan
DC-Lamont 35, Coyle 12
Wynnewood 20, Elmore City 7
Timberlake 36, Covington-Douglas 24
Tulsa East Central 27, Coweta 14
Seminole 24, Stigler 20
Broken Bow 24, Hilldale 14
Lawton 28, Edmond Santa Fe 14
Fox 32, Paoli 24
Commerce 21, Colcord 14
Clinton 34, Piedmont 14
Lock of the week: Broken Bow over Hilldale. Broken Bow is one of the toughest places to play on the road and Hilldale isn’t quite ready to go win a game like this on the road against one of the best teams in 4A.

Jason
DC-Lamont 35, Coyle 27
Wynnewood 31, Elmore City 21
Timberlake 52, Covington-Douglas 45
Tulsa East Central 42, Coweta 24
Seminole 41, Stigler 28
Broken Bow 35, Hilldale 27
Lawton 24, Edmond Santa Fe 21
Fox 45, Paoli 38
Colcord 24, Commerce 17
Clinton 35, Piedmont 20
Lock of the Week: DC-Lamont over Coyle. Coyle has made significant strides this season and will, in all likelihood, earn the first playoff berth in school history this year. But the defending Class C champion Eagles will be too much for the Bluejackets this week.

Scott
DC-Lamont 42, Coyle 35
Wynnewood 28, Elmore City 21
Timberlake 44, Covington-Douglas 36
Tulsa East Central 34, Coweta 24
Seminole 38, Stigler 27
Broken Bow 35, Hilldale 28
Lawton 28, Edmond Santa Fe 24
Paoli 42, Fox 38
Colcord 28, Commerce 21
Clinton 34, Piedmont 31
Lock of the week: Seminole over Stigler. Mike Snyder is in his 40th season on the Seminole coaching staff and his 32nd as the head coach. And he’s still going strong. Led by QB Garrett Clark, the Chieftains are talented enough to make a deep run in the 3A playoffs this season, and I think they’ll keep rolling this week.

Week 3 Picks

Ryan Aber — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 14:04:10 +0000

Scott picked up a game on both Jason and me last week while all three of us were corrects on our locks of the week. Here are our overall records and picks for this week:

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

Overall
Ryan: 14-6, 2-0
Jason: 13-7, 1-1
Scott: 13-7, 1-1

Ryan
Midwest City 21, Edmond Santa Fe 14
Jenks 28, Owasso 7
McAlester 35, Ardmore 14
Tulsa East Central 35, Tulsa Washington 10
McGuinness 21, Millwood 13
Heritage Hall 42, Davis 17
Bethany 28, Washington 13
Kingfisher 14, Hennessey 12
Ryan 22, Coyle 18
Tipton 33, Thackerville 22

Lock of the week: Kingfisher over Hennessey
This is a tough one for me because there was a lot I was impressed with last week when I watched Hennessey play Jones. But Kingfisher has the depth to wear down Hennessey a bit by the end of the game and the athleticism to not let Ivan Moreno and Levi Hill wear their defense down. The Eagles will be better for having played this game once district play begins but Kingfisher gets it done.

Jason
Edmond Santa Fe 21, Midwest City 20
Jenks 45, Owasso 24
McAlester 27, Ardmore 14
Tulsa East Central 24, Tulsa Washington 14
Bishop McGuinness 28, Millwood 17
Heritage Hall 35, Davis 10
Bethany 31, Washington 17
Kingfisher 24, Hennessey 21
Coyle 30, Ryan 27
Tipton 35, Thackerville 30

Lock of the week: Bishop McGuinness over Millwood
The Falcons have a tough power running game that will be tough for future opponents to slow down, but not the Irish. McGuinness’ defense — especially with their outstanding linebacking core of Brandon Nguyen, Danny Krenger and Nick Jeffries. Last season, Millwood won a shootout 48-41, but expect a more low-scoring game this time. Bishop McGuinness 28, Millwood 17

Scott
Midwest City 28, Edmond Santa Fe 24
Jenks 35, Owasso 24
McAlester 35, Ardmore 21
Tulsa East Central 30, Tulsa Washington 21
McGuinness 21, Millwood 20
Heritage Hall 41, Davis 17
Bethany 38, Washington 28
Kingfisher 21, Hennessey 20
Coyle 30, Ryan 27
Tipton 28, Thackerville 27

Lock of the week: McAlester over Ardmore.
Sitting in a press box in El Reno two years ago during the Class 5A semifinals, I began to take note of a talented McAlester team. Then I noticed the amount of young players on the roster, and I realized this was a team that would only keep getting better. Now we’re seeing it come to fruition, and I think this week will be another sign of things to come for the Buffs.