All-City Athletic Conference football honors
Here are the All-City Athletic Conference postseason honors for football, as chosen by the coaches:
All-City Athletic Conference Football Team
Coach of the Year – Michael Branch, Southeast
Player of the Year – Marcus Caddell, Douglass; Brandon Swindall, Millwood
Defensive Player of the Year – Devante McKinney, Douglass; Davion Pierson, Millwood
Offensive Player of the Year – Aliston Cobb, Douglass; Kevonte Richardson, Millwood
Special Teams Player of the Year – Josh Turner, Millwood; Carlos Hudson, Star Spencer
Defensive Lineman of the Year – Clifford Lawrence, Millwood
Tri-Linebacker of the Year – Erik King, Douglass; Larry Seals, Millwood; Denzelle Johnson, John Marshall
Defensive Back of the Year – Jay Gogue, Southeast; Brison Currin, Centennial
Offensive Lineman of the Year – Ravi Riley, Douglass
Offensive Back of the Year – Kody Shields, John Marshall
Receiver of the Year – Tyrone Jones, Centennial; Michael Cole, Millwood
All-City Athletic Conference 1st Team Defense
Defensive Line – Dejon Brison, John Marshall; Shawn Hudson, Southeast; Tyrele Pendleton, Centennial; Markus Jackson, Southeast
Linebackers – Ian Robinson, Douglass; Tre Jones, Northwest; Allen Starks, Millwood; Tavin Deloney, Southeast
Defensive Backs – Donnell Ward, Douglass; Stevo Henderson, Star Spencer; Robert Bui, Northeast
Punter – Irving Roa, John Marshall
All-City Athletic Conference 1st Team Offense
Quarterback – Shon Bridges, Douglass
Running Backs – Ontinneil Zavala, Capitol Hill; Anthony Frazier, Southeast
Receivers – Johnny Do, Capitol Hill, Aljone Stringer, Centennial
Offensive Line – Michael Blackmon, Douglass; Kody Stamm, John Marshall; Spencer Davis, Centennial; Ramon Miller, Star Spencer; Kyvonta Smith, Douglass
Place Kicker – Tony Zamarripa, Northwest Classen
Honorable Mention
Capitol Hill – Deantre Williams, Brandon Johnson, Zack Dixon
Centennial – Charles Sebree, Chad Hester
Douglass – Jason Holloway
Millwood – Michael Ervin, Shevin Patton,
Northeast – Alvin Scott, Josh Ray, Justin Moore
Northwest Classen – Larry Mathis, Berkeley Lopez, Tarig Ismil
Southeast – Jovan Ramos, Nelson Williams, Jose Cardoza
Star Spencer – Marcus Singleton, Lashan Penny
District 5A-1 awards…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
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
OKC playoff prognosis
A lot can happen in the last two weeks, but here’s a look at where some of the OKC teams stand in their playoff races:
Looking good
Douglass (6-2, 5-0)
Remaining games: vs. Glenpool, vs. Cleveland
Prognosis: Win this week and it’s all over. Douglass will sew up the 4A-2 title with a win against Glenpool on Friday. That would put them against the No. 4 from 4A-1, where Woodward and McGuinness are currently tied.
Millwood (8-0, 4-0)
Remaining games: at Northeast, at Lexington
Prognosis: One more win is all it will take to assure the Falcons of a district title and a playoff opener against the No. 4 seed from 2A-1 (right now it would be OCS or Tonkawa). Of course, that’s not what they’re chasing. Their goals are focused in December.
Barely hanging on
Northwest Classen (1-7, 1-4)
Remaining games: at Durant, at Lawton MacArthur
Prognosis: Must win out and get some help. The Knights are sitting in seventh one game behind a three-way tie for the fourth spot.
Northeast (2-6, 1-3)
Remaining games: vs. Millwood, at Jones
Prognosis: The good news is the Vikings could win twice and potentially get in. The bad news is they have to play the two best teams in the district the final two weeks.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Carl Albert vs. Southeast Capsule…
By Robert Przybylo and Scott Wright
BPrzybylo@opubco.com; SWright@opubco.com
Carl Albert (4-1) vs. Southeast (3-2)
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: Speegle Stadium
Carl Albert (L – BTWashington, W – Ardmore, W – Duncan, W – Western Heights, W – El Reno)
Why the Titans can win: Because as is the norm with a Gary Rose-coached club, this team is rounding into form at the right time. The lines are dominating play. The defense is creating turnovers. And the passing game came alive in a rout of El Reno last week.
Southeast (W – US Grant, W – Star Spencer, W – Capitol Hill, L – Ada, L – Deer Creek)
Why the Spartans can win: After two bad losses, Southeast wants to show they’re better than they’ve looked. I’d look for Michael Branch to have the Spartan D flying to the ball this week. Running back Jay Gogue is among the best in the state in yards per carry at 12.6.
Boneman’s key matchup: CA passing game vs. Southeast secondary. This, again, is probably a game that the Titans can win on the ground and be just fine. But with the MEGA showdown with Guthrie looming, you want your offense to be clicking on all cylinders.
Scott’s key matchup: CA offense vs. Southeast defense. The Spartan defense is in bad need of a turnaround after two rough weeks in which they gave up 110 total points.
Boneman’s pick: Carl Albert 52, Southeast 9. Titans aren’t overlooking Michael Branch’s boys heading into battle with Bluejays. Look for a big night from Kenton Whittington.
Scott’s pick: Carl Albert 44, Southeast 21. The Spartan defense has been knocked back on its heels the last two weeks and the Titan offense is heading upward. Hard to pull off an upset with those two trends in play.
Boneman’s CA prediction record: 5-0.
Southeast at Deer Creek Capsule…
By Robert Przybylo and Scott Wright
BPrzybylo@opubco.com; SWright@opubco.com
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.
Game preview: Ada at Southeast
Ada (1-2) at Southeast (3-0)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: C.B. Speegle Stadium
Last week: Ada got its first win, 63-6 over US Grant. Southeast stayed unbeaten with a 31-6 win over Capitol Hill.
Why Ada could win: Southeast hasn’t faced a team that can run the ball the way Ada can, led by Nathan Blakely at 289 yards through three games. Yes, Ada has lost twice, but those losses were to a pair of top 10 teams, Ardmore and McAlester. So the 1-2 record shouldn’t suggest that this team is a slouch.
Why SE could win: This team is playing with as much confidence as they’ve had in these players’ careers. Jay Gogue keeps the offense moving with his rushing ability, and the defense has been solid from the start. This team is looking to make some noise in this district, and this would be a good opportunity to get people to take notice.
Key matchup: Southeast defensive front vs. Ada run game. Ada doesn’t like to throw the ball much, so if Southeast can slow the rushing attack, it forces the Cougars into a type of game they don’t want to play. But if Ada moves the ball on the ground, it falls right into their game plan.
The pick: Ada 34, Southeast 27. I’m not completely counting Southeast out of this one, but I think Ada will have too much size and depth for the Spartans.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
OKC: Previewing district play
Sometimes I just abandon all creative instincts and copy what Boneman does. This is one of those times.
So let’s take a look at what some of the OKC schools face as we get ready for the start of district play:
Millwood (3-0)
It’s going to be a while before the Falcons face a team as good as what they’ve seen the last two weeks in Douglass and McGuinness. Those are two of the best teams in 4A, and none of the competition in 2A-2 is going to exceed that.
Jones (Week 6) and Lexington (Week 10) are a couple of big games to look ahead to, but with easiejr competition, the key for the Falcons will be making sure not to let their guard down. They’ve got the talent to win every game they play. It’s just a matter of staying focused.
Week 4: The new seven-team districts in most of A-3A have led to some scheduling craziness. Millwood closes out the preseason portion of its schedule at Alva Friday night, then opens 2A-2 play at home against Luther the following week.
Douglass (1-2)
After finally getting into the win column, the Trojans are heading into district play on a high note. And in terms of west-side districts, 4A-2 is much more favorable than 4A-1, which has teams like McGuinness, Elgin, Elk City, Cache and Woodward. The Week 9 meeting with Glenpool (the two teams are 4 and 5 in the rankings this week) could be for the district title.
Though Douglass won last week, there was some difficulty, with coach Willis Alexander sending his starting QB, Shon Bridges, and RB, Aliston Cobb, to the bench at one point. But I’d expect Alexander to get everything sorted out.
Week 4: The Trojans open district play with a visit from Tecumseh, which lost 35-13 to Deer Creek last week. The Antlers hit some big plays with the run, so look for Douglass to try the same thing.
Star Spencer (0-3)
I paid a visit to Star Spencer practice on Monday, and there’s some sense of relief in the arrival of district play. After battling through a difficult preseason, the Bobcats are ready for a fresh start.
And district action gets off to a fast start, too. Friday’s game at home against Chandler pits the two teams who were viewed as the preseason favorites in 3A-4. Perkins is a team that has looked good in the first three weeks, and the Bobcats go there in Week 6.
Star gets its break from district action in Week 9 with a game against Victory Christian.
Week 4: As I said, it starts with Chandler this week. No one in the district is currently ranked in the 3A top 10, and these two teams would like to change that.
Southeast (3-0)
Michael Branch has his team off to a great start, but as we’ve discussed before, the Spartans are in possibly the toughest district around. Two top-three teams await in Guthrie and Carl Albert, as well as No. 7 Deer Creek. The move of Jay Gogue to running back seems to have inspired the running game, and the defense has been solid all year.
I won’t be surprised to see this team step up and upset someone at some point during the season.
Week 4: The district action begins with Ada coming to Southeast this Friday. This could be a more important game than it seems right now. These two teams could be battling for the final playoff spot in this district if things go well for Southeast.
John Marshall (2-1)
As expected, the Bears have been strong on defense so far this year. Even in their loss to Cache, they still only gave up 15 points. They’re stuck in a challenging district, with Heritage Hall, Kingfisher, Bethany, Newcastle and Centennial. So with opponents like that, a good defense will come in handy.
The question will be whether the young offense can come along and put up enough points to win some big games.
Week 4: The Bears open with Bethany Thursday night at Taft Stadium. It should be a good test for the JM defense. Bethany brings a balanced offensive attack with QB Ryley Claborn and RB Devin Campbell.
Centennial (2-1)
No sense in waiting around, and that’s the case for Centennial, which opens district play with one of the hottest teams in the state, No. 3 Heritage Hall.
It’s a tough district, and there are a couple of key games waiting in next few weeks, with games against Newcastle and John Marshall. Both of those games will go a long way toward separating the middle of the district. The Bison are one of the teams who got stuck with Week 10 as its district off week. They’ll close out the season against 2A Hennessey.
Week 4: The opener against Heritage Hall on Friday night will be a big test for the Bison defense, which struggled to slow down Anadarko — certainly no shame in losing to a team like the Warriors, but like Anadarko, Heritage Hall has a strong running game that few have been able to slow down.
Other OKC teams
US Grant opens district play Thursday night with the suddenly scary Putnam City Pirates, who are 3-0 and routed Choctaw last week… Capitol Hill begins district action against one of 5A’s best teams, Duncan, on Thursday… Northeast, also in 2A-2 with Millwood, will try to build on last week’s success in its district opener against a Lexington team that has earned its spot in the top 10… Altus visits Northwest Classen on Friday night for the 5A-2 opener.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
OKC Player of the Week: Millwood defense
You could throw a dart at the Millwood roster and probably hit someone who made a significant play in the Falcons’ 48-41 win over McGuinness last Friday.
And though the numbers might not appear to make sense, I’m going with the Millwood defense as the Oklahoma City Players of the Week. Yes, the Falcon D gave up 41 points and 362 yards, but less than 100 of those yards came in the second half when Millwood needed their defense the most.
And the defense got takeaways on McGuinness’ first two possessions of the game — including the interception Clifford Lawrence took back 73 yards for a touchdown — to help the Falcons build a 20-0 lead.
Kevonte Richardson’s 200 passing yards and 144 rushing yards — including a 92-yard TD run — were ultra-impressive. Smae for Mike Cole’s three catches for three TDs. Brandon Swindall had multiple important catches and Shevin Patton averaged more than 10 yards per carry at running back.
And Millwood needed all of those contributions, but the top award goes to the defense, guys like Lawrence, Larry Seals, Josh Turner and Davion Pierson.
Seals was all over the place all night long, despite playing with a huge cast on one hand. Pierson battled dehydration throughout the night, but came up with two huge plays on McGuinness’ final offensive series, making a tackle in the backfield and sniffing out a screen pass to make another stop at the line of scrimmage.
That play came right before Swindall’s interception that sealed the victory.
Other contenders
Marcus Caddell and Diontay Washington, Douglass: Washington rushed for 60 yards on 10 carries, including two early TDs, and Caddell made the game’s biggest play, a 38-yard interception return for a score.
Jay Gogue, Southeast: Gogue led the Spartans to a third straight win, knocking off Capitol Hill. Gogue rushed for 165 yards and five TDs.
Brison Currin, Centennial: Coach Mark Ryan praised his quarterback for managing the offense well as the Bison head into Week 4 with a 2-1 record.
Aron Gaines and Migual Potts, Northeast: Each player had two TDs, with Gaines pulling in scoring receptions of 12 and 30 yards, and Potts rushing for scores of 48 and 54 yards as the Vikings defeated Riverside 38-6.
Send nominations for OKC Player of the Week to Scott Wright at swright@opubco.com
Game preview: Southeast at Capitol Hill
Southeast (2-0) at Capitol Hill (1-1)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: CB Speegle Stadium
Last week: Southeast knocked off Star Spencer 27-14. Capitol Hill edged rival US Grant 13-12.
Why Southeast could win: The Spartans are riding a wave of motivation after the 2-0 start, and Jay Gogue is a big reason why. The QB/RB/DB has been making plays all over the field, no matter what position he plays. He had a 59-yard TD run that sparked last week’s victory, and the defense was even better, allowing only 48 total yards.
Why Capitol Hill could win: QB Derrick Jefferson is the key to a solid backfield with pass-run capabilities. He has some weapons at receiver as well. The Southeast offense seems to be in a good flow, so it will probably take more than 13 points to win this week. Still, the Redskins have the talent to move the ball and score some points.
Quote: “Our defensive line played well last week and that gave our linebackers opportunities to make plays. We’ll need to do that again this week, because Capitol Hill has some good athletes and the quarterback throws the ball well.” – Southeast coach Michael Branch
Key matchup: Southeast run game vs. Capitol Hill run-stoppers. The Redskin defense had trouble slowing down US Grant’s run game last week and will need to step up in that area to take down another southside rival. Gogue’s position swapping in the backfield is an effort to get more out of the run game, and Gogue is the team’s best option there. Whichever spot he’s playing, he’s dangerous with his feet and the ‘Skins will have to keep tabs on him.
The pick: Southeast 30, Capitol Hill 20. The district schedule is going to be extremely tough for Southeast, but this is a team that has shown it is ready for the challenge. Making the playoffs will be a chore, but the Spartans are definitely moving in the right direction this year.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
OKC Player of the Week: Millwood trio of Richardson, Swindall and Turner
Trying to say one player was the key to Saturday’s Soul Bowl, that one player defined that game, would be like asking Bill Gates which dollar he earned was worth the most.
It was hard enough narrowing the field down to three guys, and that’s why Millwood quarterback Kevonte Richardson and receivers/defensive backs Brandon Swindall and Josh Turner must share the honor of Oklahoma City Player of the week.
Richardson threw for nearly 400 yards and four touchdowns while rushing for 40 more yards and a score. Turner had five catches for 117 yards, including grabs of 32 and 27 yards on the final drive, the latter accounting for the game-winning touchdown. And Swindall had five receptions for 161 yards and three scores, with his shortest catch of the day going for 19 yards. Oh, and he had the game-saving tackle at the 1-yard line on the final play of the 36-31 victory.
So, yeah, they were kind of a big deal on Saturday.
A few other Millwood players who earned recognition Saturday: Nose guard Stanford Rice, linebacker Larry Seals and receiver Dametric Sanders, who had a 79-yard TD catch.
And Douglass had their share of playmakers, too. RB Aliston Cobb had 202 rushing yards and three TDs, and Diontay Washington running behind a powerful offensive line all day. DeVante McKinney was stirring up trouble at defensive end. Erik King and the linebackers were running to the ball well. QB Shon Bridges made his share of plays, though he wishes he could’ve picked up one more yard on that last play. And Marcus Caddell who made several plays, including a 90-yard kickoff return TD that kept the Trojans in the game in the third quarter.
Other POW contenders
Jay Gogue, QB/RB, and Micah Hunter, QB, Southeast football: The Spartans are 2-0 with Gogue leading the way. He has played quarterback and running back this season as coach Michael Branch looks for the best way to utilize his dangerous runner. Hunter threw a TD pass in Thursday’sd 27-14 win over Star Spencer, helping keep the Spartans from becoming one-dimensional.
Christian Gorham and Terry Arnold, Northwest Classen football: Gorham threw five touchdown passes, hitting Arnold for three of them, on his way to a 279-yard performance on just 12-of-19 passing. Arnold pulled in scoring catches of 15, 23 and 21 yards, and also returned a kickoff 86 yards for a score as Northwest edged Northeast 40-34.
Trevyone Willis and Michael Thomas, Northeast football: Thomas threw a touchdown pass to Willis and caught another himself in the tough loss to NW Classen. Willis had the 22-yard TD catch and rushed for TDs of 20 and 37 yards.
Nico Durham and Tyrone Jones, Centennial football: Durham and Jones combined for all three Bison touchdowns in Friday’s loss to Anadarko.
GaVonte Bonds, US Grant football: Bonds rushed for 116 yards on 14 carries against Capitol Hill.
Irving Roa, John Marshall cross country: Roa won the John Marshall meet at Lake Hefner last Thursday, finishing the 4,800-meter course in 16:55.
– To nominate an OKC athlete for Player of the Week, e-mail Scott Wright at swright@opubco.com
