According to sources, Edmond North’s Jeremy Dombek is expected to be named the new football caoch at Mustang, pending board approval Monday night. Photo by Chris Landsberger, The Oklahoman

Edmond North’s Jeremy Dombek will leave to become the new head football coach at Mustang High School, pending the approval of the Mustang school board at its meeting Monday night, sources have told The Oklahoman.

The Mustang school board is scheduled to meet at 6 p.m. Monday.

Dombek will replace Ty Prestidge, who resigned on May 3 to take an offensive coordinator position with longtime friend Todd Dilbeck at Choctaw.

Dombek was expected to address his team at Edmond North Monday morning, according to sources. Pending board approval, Dombek would be able to begin working with his new team at Mustang Tuesday.

Mustang missed the playoffs in 2012, despite a 6-4 record. It was the second straight year the Broncos fell short of the postseason.

Edmond North has reached the second round of the Class 6A playoffs each of the last three seasons under Dombek, and missed the playoffs only once since he took over in 2007.

The move leaves the Huskies scrambling now. Dombek is likely to take some of his assistant coaches to Mustang, so Edmond North could have multiple coaching spots to fill as spring practice begins. Monday is the first day that Class 6A football teams can hold football practices.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Darwin Franklin, the son of Millwood’s Hall of Fame boys basketball coach Varryl Franklin, was hired to lead the football team, a move that became official Monday night.

“As a former student at Millwood, we welcome him and think he will be a great addition to our staff,” Griffin said. “It will be a joy to have him and his father working together.”

Darwin Franklin is currently on staff at Centennial High School, where he served as a football assistant in the fall. Varryl Franklin has been Millwood’s basketball coach since 1978, leading the team to 12 of its state-record 15 championships.

Franklin replaces Tony Henry, who stepped down last month after he and his wife accepted teaching jobs on an oil base in Saudi Arabia.

“I’m not giving up coaching, I’m just taking a break,” Henry said. “I enjoyed my time at Millwood and I wish them the best.

“My wife and I are excited for this opportunity. The benefits are great. Our three kids will get the chance to travel and see the world, so they’re excited, too.”

Henry will be working for Saudi Aramco, teaching the children of the oil company’s employees.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

On Friday, Dilbeck took one more step down that path, hiring Mustang head coach Ty Prestidge — previously Dilbeck’s assistant with the Broncos — as his offensive coordinator at Choctaw, pending school board approval.

“It’s still board-pending, but when I came back to Oklahoma, I knew there was one piece I wanted to get back with us,” Dilbeck said. “Ty and I have worked at three places together before. He hired me at Plainview and Westmoore, and now I’ve hired him at Mustang and Choctaw.”

Dilbeck spent the last seven years out of state, with one year as an assistant at Rice University and six as the head coach at Alma (Ark.) High School.

Prestidge, who had served as Choctaw’s head coach for one season before joining Dilbeck at Mustang, informed his team Friday afternoon that he would not return. He will coordinate the Choctaw offense, just like he did under Dilbeck at Mustang when the team reached the 2005 state championship game.

“I feel like he’s the best quarterback coach and coordinator in the state of Oklahoma,” Dilbeck said. “He understands how to teach quarterbacks and he relates to kids really well.”

Mustang likely won’t be able to get a new head coach in place in time for spring practice, which can begin May 13. But as the largest school on the west side of the state in a district that is putting lots of money into schools and athletic facilities, Mustang athletic director Chuck Bailey is likely to have a long list of applicants.

“Ty informed me (Friday morning) that he was resigning his position,” Bailey said. “We appreciate what Ty did, and we look forward to the process of replacing him here at Mustang.”

Edmond Memorial assistant coach Dan Kurtenbach was named the head coach at Weatherford earlier this week.

Kurtenbach has been an assistant coach for the Bulldogs for the last four seasons. He was the head coach at Casady in 2007 and 2008. Before that, he held assistant coaching jobs at Broken Arrow, Shawnee and Midwest City.

Kurtenbach replaces Mickey Seifried, who took the job as the technology director of Weatherford Public Schools.

Seifried went 30-26 in five seasons as the head coach at Weatherford, including a 12-1 season in 2009. The Eagles went 7-5 in 2012.

Before becoming the head coach, Seifried spent eight seasons as an assistant at the school.

Dilbeck has coached at multiple programs in the state, including Tahlequah and Mustang. He was one of the first high school coaches in the state to implement and succeed with a multiple-receiver, spread offense that gained popularity in the mid-2000s.

He coached Mustang to the Class 6A state championship game in 2005, losing 33-7 to Tulsa Union. He left after that season to join Todd Graham’s coaching staff at Rice University for one year, then went to Alma (Ark.) High School for six years.

With funding from a bond issue a few years ago, and the pending split of Class 6A football teams, it seems like an ideal time to take over a program like Choctaw, which will be in Division II of the new 6A starting in 2014.

“They’ve redone some schools and facilities at Choctaw, and you can tell it’s a community that’s excited about what’s going on,” Dilbeck said. “It reminds me a lot of Mustang when we got there, except Choctaw’s facilities are better than what we had at Mustang back then.

“Timing can be great sometimes, and I just think this is an awesome opportunity.”

After the death of his father last November, Dilbeck decided he wanted to return to Oklahoma to be closer to family.

“All of our children are back in Oklahoma, and after the playoffs ended here, I decided it was time to look at getting back to Oklahoma, so that’s what I pursued,” he said. “I think this is a great opportunity at a school with administrators, faculty and a community that’s really supportive.”

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Okarche’s Rae Grellner will play the national anthem before Friday night’s Thunder game.

Rae Grellner has been a big hit at the Big House the last two years, not just with her basketball skills.

The Okarche basketball player has twice played the national anthem on the violin before an Okarche game at the State Fair Arena — a huge hit with the crowd each time.

And now she’ll get to play an even bigger stage. Grellner adn her violin will be center stage for the national anthem at Friday night’s Oklahoma City Thunder game vs. Orlando at 7 p.m. at Chesapeake Arena.

Here’s our story from earlier this month, when Grellner played the anthem right before helping Okarche win a state title.

On Wednesday, the OSSAA board of directors approved the ballots that will be sent to the schools for the vote. Though the actual ballots are far more lengthy, and full of legal language, here’s a basic breakdown of the two plans. There is not an option on the ballot to keep 6A football as it is.

Plan I

1. Class 6A will include the 32 largest football playing schools according to ADM.

2. Class 6A will be divided into two divisions.

3. Division I will consist of the largest 16 football playing schools.

4. Division II will consist of the next largest 16 football playing schools.

5. Each division will consist of two eight-team districts.

6. The top four finishers from each district will advance to the playoffs.

7. The playoffs will consist of eight schools from each division.

8. One champion will be determined from each division.

Plan II

1. Class 6A will include the 32 largest football playing schools according to ADM.

2. Class 6A will consist of four eight-team districts.

3. Each school is to play the other schools in the assigned district.

4. Each district will be divided into two divisions, four schools from Division I and four schools from Division II.

5. Division I schools will come from the largest 16 football playing schools according to ADM.

6. Division II schools will come from the next largest 16 football playing schools according to ADM.

7. The top two finishers in each district division will advance to the playoffs (Only games within a team’s district division will count for playoff advancement.).

8. The playoffs will consist of a total of eight schools from Division I and eight schools from Division II.

9. One champion will be determined from each division.

Midwest City and Okemah won state powerlifting state titles last weekend at the Oklahoma Football Coaches Association’s state powerlifting meet at McLoud High School.

McAlester’s Caden Pratt earned the large class’ lightweight squatter, lightweight deadlifter and lightweight overall lifter titles. Wetumka’s Derrick Moore also earned a trio of individual honors in the small class, taking the heavyweight squatter, heavyweight bencher and overall heavyweight lifter titles.

The title was Midwest City’s sixth consecutive in the large-school class. The Bombers finished with 65 points, 22 more than second-place Blanchard. Morris, Prague and McAlester rounded out the top five.

In the small-school class, Okemah edge Mangum 68-66. Holdenville, Kiefer and Sharon-Mutual took the next three spots.

In the large school class, Pratt was joined by Westmoore’s Josh Morgan (heavyweight squatter, heavyweight overall lifter), Blanchard’s Braden Stringer (lightweight bencher), Bridge Creek’s Brett Morris (heavyweight bencher) and Durant’s Jacob Barnhart (heavyweight deadlifter)

The other outstanding lifters in the small school were Empire’s Stephen Price (lightweight squatter), Hartshorne’s Dallas Herring (lightweight bencher), Mangum’s Michael Gilmore (lightweight deadlifter) and Haskell’s Britt Williams (lightweight overall lifter).

Individual winners
Large school
123: Shane Delso, Morris
132: Caden Pratt, McAlester
145: Grant Neugin, Sequoyah-Tahlequah
157: Felix Depona, Edmond Santa Fe
168: Braden Stringer, Blanchard
181: Jesse Gregory, Tuttle
198: Jacob Barhart, Durant
220: Chase Mercer, Noble
242: Josh Morgan, Westmoore
275: Brett Morris, Bridge Creek
Heavyweight: Dalton Gillispie, Prague

Small school
123: Song Cha, Wyandotte
132: Samson Montalbo, Mangum
145: Zach McKimmy, Caddo
157: Michael Gilmore, Mangum
168: Carlos Herrera, Hollis
181: Britt Williams, Haskell
198: Derrick Moore, Wetumka
220: John Jones, Chouteau
242: Comanche Beaver, Okemah
275: John Custar, Sharon-Mutual
Heavyweight: Colton Pickett, Holdenville

First-year Texas Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury extended an offer to the 5-foot-9, 165-pound Batson, who was No. 24 on The Oklahoman’s Super 30 list ranking the 2014 class of football recruits.

The offer came less than two weeks after one of Kingsbury’s mentors — former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach, now at Washington State — offered Batson a scholarship as well.

Batson is also gaining interest from Texas A&M, which has invited him to campus this weekend. Oklahoma State, California and Ohio are among the other programs actively recruiting Batson.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Tulsa and Texas State both came in with offers for the 6-foot-6, 290-pound tackle, and interest continues to grow from other schools as well. He has an upcoming visit to Baylor scheduled as well.

In case you missed it, here’s the first Super 30 list for the class of 2014.

Meanwhile, his Miller teammate, defensive end Andre Dowuoana-Hammond, 6-2, 235, continues to draw interest from a variety of Division I programs. He and Bowling were both invited to junior day at Oklahoma State last month.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

This rendering from MA+ Architecture, which is handling the renovation projects at Taft and Speegle stadiums, shows a view from the outside of Taft Stadium after the renovations are completed. The project is slated to begin in May.

On Tuesday night, the Oklahoma City community will get the chance to learn about the details and see the final design of the nearly $9.7 million renovation to historic Taft Stadium that will begin in May.

The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Northwest Classen High School auditorium, located at 2801 NW 27th St. in Oklahoma City.

The meeting is open to students, parents and other community members who wish to learn about the project, which is being paid for by a 2007 district-wide bond issue and other Oklahoma City Public Schools funds.

Taft Stadium, built in 1934, currently hosts football games for Northwest Classen and John Marshall football games, as well as those for multiple OKCPS middle schools. In the past, it hosted everything from All-State games to stock-car races.

The meeting is being coordinated by MA+ Architecture, the firm handling the renovation, as well as the MAPS trust project office. Money from the 2007 bond issue is being managed by MAPS.

OKC’s Speegle Stadium is undergoing a similar renovation, and John Marshall is in the process of building a new stadium on its campus, meaning OKCPS will greatly improve the quality of its stadiums for football, soccer and track in the next year.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Woods, who has worked as an assistant at Star Spencer and Millwood over the last five seasons, is replacing Bruce Troxell, who stepped down after six years.

Woods, a former Millwood player, had a standout career at Oklahoma State. He was picked in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft and spent parts of four seasons in the NFL and CFL before ending his professional career in 2008.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Washington State extended an offer on Wednesday, which was initially reported by Rivals.com.

Washington State’s only interaction with Batson, 5-foot-9, 165 pounds, was viewing his game tape, which Millwood coaches sent to Cougars coach Mike Leach.

“They like me as a receiver,” Batson said. “A lot of the schools I’m hearing from see me as a receiver, but some are looking at me as an athlete.”

Batson did a little bit of everything for the Falcons last season. He was among the state’s leaders with nine interceptions as a cornerback, and had 598 receiving yards on just 26 catches, for an average of 23.0 yards per catch. He also rushed 26 times for 347 yards, over 13 yards per carry, and spent time at quarterback, completing 8 of 12 passes for 76 yards and two TDs.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Chancellor, 6-foot-3, 165 pounds, will head to Oklahoma as a preferred walk-on, McGuinness coach Justin Jones said Wednesday.

Chancellor turned down an opportunity at Ohio, which was offering a scholarship starting in January 2014. And he was being recruited by a variety of other schools, including some in the Ivy League.

Oklahoma State was also pursuing him, and came close to offering him after receiver Fred Ross of Tyler, Texas, flipped his commitment the night before signing day.

A long-time OU fan, Chancellor settled on the Sooners. An Oklahoman All-State selection, he finished the year with 1,397 yards and 21 touchdowns on 61 catches in helping the Irish to the Class 5A semifinals.

He made a big splash in Week 5 when he had 359 receiving yards and four touchdowns on six catches in a 42-32 win over Carl Albert, all while wearing a half-cast to protect his broken left hand.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

The offseason momentum of the 2014 quarterback class kept going Wednesday when Norman North’s David Cornwell and Edmond Santa Fe’s Justice Hansen each picked up new scholarship offers.

Oklahoma State and Miami extended offers to Cornwell, who reported the offers on Twitter. He already had offers from Auburn, Indiana, Tulsa and Washington State.

Hansen added Auburn to his list, which already included Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Missouri, Arkansas and Arizona State.

Cornwell, who played at Jones last year, is applying for a waiver from the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association. Cornwell’s eligibility clock began with the start of the 2009 season, though he didn’t play varsity football until last year and did not play at all in 2011 as he took a mission trip to Africa.

Cornwell is the fifth in-state player offered by OSU for 2014. He threw for 2,742 yards and 27 touchdowns for Jones last year and ran for 755 yards and six scores.

Hansen threw for 3,079 yards with 36 touchdowns, while rushing for 733 yards and 14 TDs.

Zack Smith, who spent the last nine years as an assistant coach at Del City, is the new football coach at Chandler.

“I appreciate the opportunity,” Smith said. “I think it’s a good move for me right now in my career. It’s definitely going to be a change of pace though.”

Smith succeeds Scott Myers in the position.

Myers died in November at age 45 after a two-year battle with cancer.

The Lions were 5-5 last season, nearly making the playoffs in District 3A-2.

“I’m really excited to keep going on with what Scott put forward and keep this program moving in the right direction,” Smith said. “I’ve been up there a lot in the last few weeks, trying to build relationships with the players and their parents. The kids we have coming back really liked coach Myers and hopefully I can build on the good things he was doing here.”

He helped coach the Eagles defense. Del City went 9-2 this season, winning District 5A-1.

Prior to his time at Del City, Smith spent a year at Pottsboro, Texas, after finishing his playing career at Southeastern Oklahoma State.

Smith is originally from Boyd, Texas.

Joel Blumenthal didn’t want to spend any time later in life wondering “what if.”

The Deer Creek quarterback, still holding out hope for a Division I offer, weighed his options and decided Thursday night to commit to Butler Community College in El Dorado, Kan.

Blumenthal decided the juco route gave him the best opportunity to continue chasing his dreams–playing Division I football and beyond.

“I was really just thinking about what I wanted to do–go juco, Division II or walk-on somewhere,” Blumenthal said. “I wanted to play Division I and Butler gives me the best chance.

The Grizzlies have had success moving quarterbacks to Division I.

Zach Mettenberger signed with LSU following the 2010 season at Butler and started for the Tigers this season. Billy Cosh, Butler’s quarterback last season, is committed to Houston.

“They know exactly what I’m thinking,” Blumenthal said. “They know I want to play at the next level.”

Blumenthal threw for 2,456 yards and 32 touchdowns with just three interceptions as a senior, helping the Antlers to a district title and the second round of the Class 5A playoffs.

He also ran for 643 yards and nine touchdowns.

“That’s exactly what they want,” Blumenthal said of Butler’s coaches. “They want an athletic passer that can run or keep the play alive when it’s needed. That’s exactly what I want to do.”

Butler’s coaches visited Blumenthal at home Sunday and he decided to commit Thursday night after a phone conversation with the coaches.

The only thing that could change Blumenthal’s decision would be a late Division I offer.
TCU and New Mexico expressed strong interest but went in different directions. Blumenthal has been in contact recently with Arkansas State.

Jeffreys, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound linebacker, finished the season with 185 tackles in 13 games, helping the Irish reach the Class 5A semifinals. He also had six quarterback sacks and an interception, earning a spot on The Oklahoman’s Big All-City first team.

Known as the Military College of South Carolina, The Citadel is located in Charleston, S.C., and plays in the FCS, formerly known as Division I-AA.

Bradshaw, a linebacker, committed to the Bison program last week, while Holland made his decision official on Sunday.

Bradshaw led the Class 5A champion Titans with 132 tackles, and added three sacks as Carl Albert bounced back from a 1-5 start to win state.

Holland anchored the offensive line that was crucial in opening the run game for All-State quarterback Steven Thompson.

Holland chose OBU, which will play its first season of football in more than 70 years this fall, over multiple offers from Division I and II programs.

“It just felt like the right place for me,” said Holland, 6-foot-2, 270 pounds. “All the coaches really welcomed me in and made me feel at home there. I wanted to be a part of the new tradition of OBU football.”

Edmond Santa Fe quarterback Justice Hansen is one of the top prospects in the state for the 2014 class.

Hansen’s recruiting profile continues to skyrocket as he recently picked up his third Division I offer when Arizona State joined the mix, according to Santa Fe coach Lance Manning. Hansen already had offers from Missouri and Arkansas.

Hansen also recently was invited to play in the 2014 Under Armour All-American Game in Florida.

As a junior, Hansen threw for 3,079 yards and 36 touchdowns with nine interceptions. He also ran for 773 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Tulsa East Central wide receiver/defensive back Stanvon Taylor was named to the MaxPreps All-American team.

Taylor, an Oklahoma commit, earned the honors at defensive back. He had 34 tackles and four interceptions on defense, though most teams avoided going his way. On offense, Taylor had 61 catches for 1,035 yards and 15 touchdowns and rushed for two more touchdowns.

Taylor was The Oklahoman‘s All-State Defensive Player of the Year this season and played in the Offense-Defense All-American Bowl earlier this month.

He helped his team to the Class 5A championship game before falling to Carl Albert.

Also, Vian offensive lineman Rob Boyd was named to the MaxPreps Small Schools All-American team.

Boyd (6-foot-4, 285 pounds) is committed to Tulsa.

Boyd was a dominant force on the Vian offensive line that helped the Wolverines become the second highest-scoring offense in state history. Boyd was an Oklahoman first-team All-Stater this season and also played in the Offense-Defense All-American Bowl.

Also, Victory Christian quarterback Keats Calhoun was named to the MaxPreps Freshman All-American second team.

Here’s the rest of the team:
First-team offense
Second-team offense
Second-team defense
Medium School First-team offense
Medium School First-team defense
Medium School Second-team offense
Medium School Second-team defense
Small School First-team defense
Small School Second-team offense
Small School Second-team defense

A proposal developed by the rules committee of the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association was voted down by the board of directors in December and sent back to the committee for further discussion.

However, a large group of 6A coaches and administrators decided be proactive in developing their own proposal to take to the OSSAA, rather than sitting back to see what happened.

One of the most popular ideas being discussed at the Oklahoma Football Coaches Association clinic Friday and Saturday in Oklahoma City was modeled after Texas’ postseason format, which splits its largest class into two playoff brackets based on enrollment.

The idea would keep Class 6A as the largest 32 schools, and four teams from each district would qualify for the playoffs.

But instead of having one 16-team playoff, the postseason would be split into two divisions. The largest two playoff teams from each district would be put in Division 1 and the smallest in Division 2, making for two eight-team playoff brackets.

Coaches had also been discussing the same idea involving an increase of teams in Class 6A, up to 48 or even 64. And other ideas will be entertained as well.

The OSSAA board of directors meets Wednesday.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Coach of the Year: Jeff Myers, Kingfisher

MVP: Grant Newton, Kingfisher

Offensive Back of the Year: Kazhir Cooper, Bethel

Offensive Lineman of the Year: Mitch Henderson, Kingfisher

Tight End of the Year: Brandon Rakestraw, Newcastle

Receiver of the Year: Chedon Shockley, Heritage Hall

H-Back of the Year: Jake Blair, Kingfisher

Kicker of the Year: Jonathon Avila, Kingfisher

Co-Defensive Players of the Year: Trent Saunders, Heritage Hall; Justin Coryell, Newcastle

Lineman of the Year: Colt Lack, Kingfisher

Defensive End of the Year: Cole Cameron, Kingfisher

Linebacker of the Year: Tyler Shepherd, Kingfisher

Defensive Back of the Year: Thomas Scott, Bethel

Return Specialist of the Year: Jared Hendrix, Kingfisher

Special Recognition: J.T. Ketch, Bethel

District Coach of the Year: Joe Medina, Cascia Hall

Player of the Year: Jake Gandara, Ft. Gibson; Abrm McQuarters, Cascia Hall

Offensive Player of the Year: Ben Oberste, Sallisaw; Colton Keith, Muldrow

Defensive Player of the Year: Tate Swab, Cascia Hall

Special Teams Player of the Year: Hunter Neal, Broken Bow; Jay Werner, Broken Bow

All-District Offense

Quarterback: Dawson Floyd, Muldrow

Running Back: Jerry Crudup, Broken Bow; Broc Smith, Cascia Hall; Jerrell Hawk, Stillwell

Receiver: Tad Jackson, Muldrow; Ledger Newman, Broken Bow

Tight End: Ned Adair, Ft. Gibson; Colter Cunningham, Broken Bow

Offensive Linemen: Brett Asher, Cascia Hall; Derrick Johnson, Sallisaw; Trevor Shankle, Poteau; Dalton Julian, Broken Bow; Ryan Nigh, Cascia Hall

All-District Defense

Defensive Back: Steven Harris, Broken Bow; Austin Catron, Stillwell

Inside Linebacker: Devin Herriman, Sallisaw; Charles Cook, Cascia Hall; Kelly Anderson, Broken Bow

Outside Linebacker: Logan Coatney, Muldrow

Interior Defensive Linemen: Andrew Berstel, Ft. Gibson; Will Payne, Cascia Hall

Defensive End: Parker A’Neal, Cascia Hall; Brian West, Muldrow

All-District Special Teams:

Kicker: Dillan Treat, Muldrow

Kick Returner: Ernie McKee, Cascia Hall

All-District Meritorious

Turner Chesbro, Cascia Hall; Kyle Coatney, Muldrow; Lane Johnson, Stillwell

All-District Team

Broken Bow: Zack Wallis

Cascia Hall: Paul Davis, Noah Harris, Colton-Horton Chavez, Dominic Kenneally, McLean Maybrey, Ted Martin, Conner Nelson, Philipp Piplets

Ft. Gibson: Seth Taylor, Jake Farmer, Stoney Tipton

Muldrow: Zac Moore, T.J. Cleland, Alden Butler, Colton Hill, Greg Silva, Issac Vest

Poteau: Blake Johnson, Tyler Tustin, Dylan Gregory, Michael Reynolds, Derek Francis, Zack Hall, Logan Hildebrand, Troy Barnett, Devin Thompson

Tulsa Rogers: LaQurious Taft, A.J. Lewis

Sallisaw: John Sanders, Ethan Gladd, Tyler Morris, Derrick Johnson, Preston Lynch, J.J. Hamilton, Heath Carr, Sean Dodson, Caleb Cluck, Matt Dunlap, Drew Fullbright, Jasper Geier

Stillwell: Jalen Scraper, Brandon Vann, Jack Hudgins, Jacoda Williams

Players of the Year: Wyatt Robson, Ada; Christopher High, Douglass

Offensive Player of the Year: Easton Pingleton, Ada

Defensive Player of the Year: Terry Harris, Douglass

Special Teams Player of the Year: Dakota Jordan, McLoud

Receivers of the Year: John Stout, Ada; Tanner Rickey, Tecumseh; Zaylon Mahtaeene, McLoud

Offensive Linemen of the Year: Brad Wolf, Tecumseh; Cade Stanford, Ada; Rodrigo Saldago, Santa Fe South

Quarterback of the Year: Colton Owen, Tecumseh

Offensive Back of the Year: Mason Girdley, Ada; Chavez Wyatt, Douglass; Julian Tramble, Tecumseh

Tight End of the Year: Kyle Abbott, McLoud

Defensive Ends of the Year: Cody Johnson, Ada; Brandon Givens, McLoud; Jordan Colvin, Tecumseh

Defensive Tackles of the Year: Curtis Hurst, Harrah; Lee Frazier, Douglass

Inside Linebacker of the Year: Nathan Clark, McLoud; Dalton Thompson, Ada

Outside Linebacker of the Year: D’Angelo Dunn, Ada; Gage Trahan, Tecumseh

Safety of the Year: Clayton Adams, McLoud

Cornerback of the Year: Anthony Williams, Douglass

Kicker of the Year: Lorenzo Zuniga, Douglass

Special Recognition: Jake Welt, Harrah; Kyle Price, Glenpool

Coach of the Year: Eric Cardin, McLoud

All-District Team

Ada: Andrew Leach, Dakota Blackwell, Bradley Read, Ryan Billy, Ryan Covington, Jordan Bailey.

Douglass: Glenn Banks, Angelo Jones, Dior Smiley, Trevon Threatt

Glenpool: Patrick O’Toole, Cade Bridge, Jacob Ramos, Andre Seymore, D.J. Womack, Zachary Manley, Sterling Ford, Garrett McGowen, Lincoln Brown, Chris Alverson.

Harrah: Austin Jennings, Caleb Freeman, Seth Fields, Britian Hill, Jesse Crawford.

Mannford: Cale Smith, Seth Garner, Kyle Kacklemeyer.

McLoud: Jason Barnett, Tyler York, Austin Carroll, Dylan Higgins.

Santa Fe South: Angel Madrano, Veto Lopez.

Tecumseh: Michael Anthony, Josh Pope, Ryan Smothermon, Nick Causey.

MVP: Bryan Dutton, Guthrie

Co-Offensive Players of the Year: Cody Chancellor, McGuinness; Joel Blumenthal, Deer Creek

Co-Defensive Players of the Year: Nick Jeffreys, McGuinness; Austin Loomis, Deer Creek

Co-Iron Man of the Year: Danny Krenger, McGuinness; Caleb Toney, Carl Albert

Lineman of the Year: David Love, McGuinness

First Team Offense

RB: Brennan Miyake, Deer Creek; Garrett Asher, Carl Albert; Lorenzo Alexander, Northwest Classen.

WR: Bryan Williams, Carl Albert; Jared Rayburn, Deer Creek

TE: Richard Brothers, Guthrie

OL: Evan Plagg, Guthrie; Cory McCalister, Carl Albert; Brandon Wackerly, Deer Creek; Caleb Holland, Carl Albert; Carlos Torres, El Reno.

Second Team Offense

QB: Will Harjo, McGuinness.

RB: Donnie Everheart, El Reno.

WR: Jarvis Moore, Guthrie; Kale Jackson, Deer Creek; Cody Reihs, Guthrie.

TE: Isaiah Beverly, Northwest Classen; Josh Robinson, El Reno.

OL: Sam Marino, McGuinness; Terrance Lowery, Northwest Classen; Jack Dyer, El Reno; Tyler Gilland, Deer Creek.

First Team Defense

DL: Tyler Follis, Deer Creek; Kyler Walker, Carl Albert.

LB: Kooper Ruminer, Deer Creek; Vincent Norris, Guthrie; Vincent Norris, Guthrie; Chad Draper, Deer Creek; Beau Bradshaw; Carl Albert.

DB: J.T. McFadden, Guthrie; Ottugo Ananaba, Deer Creek; Austin Hopfer, McGuinness; Bradley Fritch, McGuinness, Chevin Noone, Carl Albert; Corbin Richardson, Northwest Classen.

Second Team Defense

DL: Cameron Murphy, El Reno; Arthur Rico, Guymon.

LB: Brady Lobue, Deer Creek; Terrance Bias, Northwest Classen; Hunter Freeman, El Reno; Alex Skelton, McGuinness.

DB: Colby Martin, Guymon; Blake Owens, El Reno.

Special Teams

Kicker: Erik Verdoza, Northwest Classen.

Punter: Austin Smotherman, Deer Creek.

Coach of the Year: Nick Warehime, Del City

Player of the Year: Corey Lawrence, Del City

Co-Defensive Players of the Year: Derek McKnight, Duncan; Jacob Lamb, Del City

Co-Offensive Players of the Year: Darius Graham, Lawton MacArthur; Diquon Woodhouse, Altus

Co-Defensive Linemen of the Year: Jacoby Brown, Chickasha; Elijah Clay, Ardmore

Offensive lineman of the Year: Jake Warehime, Del City

Co-Defensive Backs of the Year: Markice McCane, Del City; Jeff Surrell, Ardmore

Offensive Back of the Year: John McBride, Del City

Co-Linebackers of the Year: Jake Smith, Lawton MacArthur; Cedric Jamison, Altus

Tight End of the Year: Tavon Cramer, Southeast

Co-Receivers of the Year: Shaq Oliver, Chickasha; Miguel Rosario, Lawton MacArthur

Special Teams Players of the Year: Michael Perez, Altus; Jack Braught, Duncan

All-District Defense

Ends: Derek Block, Lawton MacArthur; Terry Love, Del City; Davonte’ Owens, Capitol Hill

Tackles: Caleb Longest, Duncan; Bobby Martinez, Altus; Cameron McGill, Duncan

Linebackers: Ray Douglass, Southeast; Patrick Carnes, Altus; Cody Merrill, Duncan; Gabe De Luna, Del City

Defensive Backs: Deshawn Young, Chickasha; Adrian Gaines, Lawton MacArthur; Anthony Burris, Lawton MacArthur; Bryson Parker, Del City; Shawn Epps, Del City; Dylan Becks, Capitol Hill; Ryan Haley, Duncan

Specialty: Davy’aun Thomas, Lawton MacArthur; Ryan Mosley, Chickasha

All-District Offense

Quarterbacks: Ricky McCarty, Lawton MacArthur; Micah Hunter, Southeast

Running Backs: Zachary Guess, Southeast; Brantley Ford, Altus

Receivers: Ricardo DeLuna, Southeast; Keilan Torres, Altus; Andrew Peercy, Duncan; Nico Maldonado, Altus

Linemen: Bryan Bradburry, Duncan; Steven Smith, Southeast; Braxton Whatley, Ardmore; Eduardo Carrasco, Capitol Hill; DeShawn Craft, Del City; Dylan Williams, Del City; Darrius Hart, Del City

Punter: Hunter Hixon, Lawton MacArthur

Kicker: David Ureste, Del City

If you have other All-District teams, please email them to raber@opubco.com and swright@opubco.com.

Coach of the Year: Lance Manning, Edmond Santa Fe

MVP: Phillip Sumpter, Edmond Santa Fe

Co-Offensive Players of the Year: Tre Edwards, Southmoore; Zach Long, Norman

Co-Offensive Linemen of the Year: Ryne Yost, Lawton; Zac Uhles, Norman

Running Back of the Year: Karltrell Henderson, Southmoore

Wide Receiver of the Year: Trevan Smith, Edmond Santa Fe

Defensive Player of the Year: Terrance Bonner, Southmoore

Defensive Lineman of the Year: Ben Scott, Lawton

Linebacker of the Year: Blake Dean, Norman

Defensive Back of the Year: Nick Ward, Southmoore

All-District Team Members

Choctaw: Cote Barber, WR; J.R. Coughran, FB; Jacob Cox, DL; Brandon Golden, DL; Scott Collison, DL; Caleb Brinlee, TE.

Edmond Memorial: Sam Kreutzer, S; Evan Helker, P; Tyron Lawson, DB; Jacob Jordan, DL; Lucas Gerdes, OL.

Edmond Santa Fe: Phillip Sumpter, LB; Trevan Smith, WR; Khari Harding, DB; Alvin Bazley, DL; Dale Jefferson, WR; Cornelius Fugett, WR; Carlos Washington, LB; Eric Davis, DB; Sam Jacobsen, LB; Dhaniel Bly, DB; Calvin Harkless, WR; Jason Ihekona, DL.

Lawton: Ben Scott, DL; Curtez Zachary, S; George Ankamah, S; Ryne Yost, OL; Travis Murt, OL; Will Hight, K; Tevin Foster, DB; Dajuan Wojciechowski, RB.

Mustang: Steven Fruit, DB; Jace Eplin, DB; Tucker Calmus, DE; Javon Gray, DL; Jared Chance, DL; Travis Mitchell, WR; Dakota Warrington, WR; Hunter Baskett, OL.

Norman: Zach Long, QB; Imond Robinson, RB; A’erion Hines, RB; Zach Uhles, OL; Blake Dean, LB; Patrick Murray, OL; Ayo Oyesanya, DL; Blake Hull, OL; Boston Lewis, DB; Tywon James, LB; Michael Beard, OLB.

Putnam City West: Ben Holley, OL; Adolfo Dearcos, OL; Keontre Bryant, FB; Michael Martinez, DL; Derian Frazier, DE.

Southmoore: Jackson Stallings, TE; Tre Edwards, QB; Nick Ward, DB; Johnathan Martin, WR; Terrance Bonner, LB; Karltrell Henderson, RB; Cody Earp, LB; Jake Spradling, OL; Tyler Painter, DB.

If you have other All-District teams, please send them to raber@opubco.com and swright@opubco.com.

Coach of the Year: Wade Standley, Norman North

MVP: Jordan Evans, Norman North

Offensive Player of the Year: Peyton Gavras, Norman North

Offensive Lineman of the Year: Carlos Freeman, Midwest City

Running Back of the Year: A.J. West, Yukon

Co-Quarterbacks of the Year: John Robert Simon, P.C. North, Luke Hoskins, Edmond North

Co-Wide Receivers of the Year: Jake Higgibotham, Norman North, Codey Sanchez, Yukon

Co-Defensive Players of the Year: Brock Byford, Edmond North, Jaxon Uhles, Norman North

Co-Defensive Linemen of the Year: Evan Coles, Norman North, Kelly Wortham, Yukon

Linebacker of the Year: Beau Proctor, Norman North

Co-Defensive Backs of the Year: Cornell Neal, Midwest City, D.J. Hicks, Norman North

Special Teams Player of the Year: Derek Harris, Moore

Co-Kickers of the Year: Trevor Hunt, Moore, Redford Jones, Norman North

Team selections

Edmond North: Jackson Silver, TE; Sam Delzell, LB; Curtis Woods, DB; Dante Sanders, DB; Sam Brown, LB; Heath Newland, OL; Caleb Prough, OL; Brandon Garrett, OL; John Tygert, OL; Robert Secrest, WR; Jerech Page, ATH.

Lawton Eisenhower: Aaron Williams, OL; R.J. Newton, DB; Ricky Alexander; Dennis Pletcher, OL; Darius Squire, LB; Darius Brown, LB.

Midwest City: Cornell Neal, WR; Qualan Johnson, RB; Carlos Freeman, OL; Victor Sanders, DL; Zac Brannon, WR; Tyler Fuller, DB; Meli Brewer, LB.

Moore: Colin Webb, QB; Adelaja Grayson, DL; Ryan Diaz, OL; Keoni Walter, DB; Ethan Birdwell, OL; Corban Lawrence, WR; Tate Alvarez, LB.

Norman North: Bryan Payne, RB; Channing Meyer, WR; Keaton Haney, DB; D.J. Gasso, S; Zeke Burns, DL; Preston Couch, OL; Jack Davis, OL; Lavonte Doxey, LB; Justin Martin, DL; Corbin Cleveland, WR

Putnam City North: Tae Moore, RB; Roosevelt Turner, DB; Ruben Hunter , LB; Eric Sadler, DE; Matt Custard, OL; Larry Butler, WR; Ryan Hall, DL; Christian Glocke, OL.

U.S. Grant: Bobby Postoak, LB; Raul Moralez, OL.

Yukon: Brandon Andraszek, WR; Zane Nave, DB; Tyler Treadway, WR; Diego Duarte, LB; Blake Biggs, LB; Matt Bennett, DE; Chance Leggett, DB; Brooks McEntire, WR; Jacob Warr, DT; Jedidiah Hall, K.

Please send other All-District teams to raber@opubco.com and swright@opubco.com.

Ringling’s 6-foot-6, 215-pound Jackson Dillon is verbally committed to Memphis, but other programs, like Oklahoma State, continue to pursue him.

Oklahoma State’s 2013 recruiting class lost a defensive end on Wednesday, when Ogbonnia Okoronkwo flipped his commitment to Oklahoma, which could be painful for the Cowboys.

Defensive end is a position where they were already working hard, hoping to build depth for next season.

While the Cowboys are likely to try to add from the junior-college ranks most immediately, Okoronkwo’s departure could also boost the Cowboys’ interest in a local prospect, Jackson Dillon from Class A Ringling, a Memphis commit.

OSU and Tulsa have stayed in contact with the 6-foot-6, 215-pound senior, who plays running back and outside linebacker for Ringling, but projects as a defensive end at the next level.

Dillon wouldn’t solve the depth issue for 2013, and he doesn’t have an OSU offer yet, but he’s an intriguing project because of his speed, athletic ability and long frame.

Dillon was at Boone Pickens Stadium Saturday playing in the Class A state championship game, where Ringling defeated Wynnewood 39-12. He rushed for 133 yards and two touchdowns, and had a 22-yard reception.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Three incredible performances that led to state championships are up for consideration on the fan poll, which is live at NewsOK.com/Varsity.

Voting ends at 4 p.m. Wednesday and the results of the poll will appear in Thursday’s Oklahoman.

Here are the candidates:

Austin Brooks, Oklahoma Christian: Threw for 387 yards and five touchdowns, recovering from three early interceptions to lead OCS to its first state title in its sixth finals appearance, 44-41 over second-ranked Davis.

Jackson Dillon, Ringling: The 6-foot-6, 210-pound senior had 155 total yards, including 133 rushing and two touchdowns, while also causing havoc from his outside linebacker position in a 39-12 win over No. 1 Wynnewood.

Braden Stringer, Blanchard: The running back needed only nine carries to produce 101 yards — better than 11 yards per carry — and two touchdowns, including a 57-yarder that sealed the 28-21 win over No. 1 Kingfisher.

Oklahoma Christian School coach Derek Turner not only was impressed with his club in Friday night’s 55-32 Class 2A semifinal win over Frederick, he also was impressed with the support his team received.

Saints fans gave their football team a big sendoff Friday afternoon from the Edmond school and kept showing their enthusiasm all the way to Weatherford.

“We left and they had a procession of people for us all the way out to the bus through the campus. We went though every building,” Turner said.

“When we drove out, they had people at intersections from Oklahoma City all the way out here (Weatherford). About every 10 miles or so there would be fans on overpasses on I-40 with signs, holding them up and cheering for us.

“When we got off the highway there were probably 25 or 30 people with banners. And then they all came and had a giant cookout. Half of these people were (in Weatherford) at 3:30 (Friday) afternoon.”

Saints fans are planning a similar escort for the team Saturday on the drive to Stillwater for OCS’ state championship game against Davis.

“I-35 is a little too dangerous to do it, so they are going to do it on (SH) 51,” Turner said.

Douglass running back Chris High is the second Oklahoma running back to verbally commit to Navy this week.

Navy found the future of its backfield in Oklahoma this week.

Douglass running back Chris High joined Altus’ Diquon Woodhouse in verbally committing to the Naval Academy, according to Douglass coach Willis Alexander.

High, 6-foot-1, 190 pounds, rushed for 1,722 yards and 15 touchdowns while splitting carries to preserve himself for defense. He carried the ball 132 times, averaging 13.0 yards per attempt. He also had 75 tackles and eight sacks as an outside linebacker for the Trojans.

High also had an offer from Morgan State in Baltimore, where teammate Terry Harris is committed.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

The 3A game between Kingfisher and Blanchard will kick off at 7:30 p.m. Friday from Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater. It will air on Cox channel 3 and 703, which are only available to the state’s Cox Communications customers. The 3A game will also stream live online. The OSSAA will release the web address to the public once it is available.

Saturday’s doubleheader will be available to anyone who receives Fox Sports Oklahoma. Ringling faces Wynnewood in the Class A game at 1 p.m. and Davis takes on Oklahoma Christian in the 2A final at 7:30 p.m., both in Stillwater.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Does the Class 7A proposal impact the Jenks/Union football dominance?

The topic of a potential Class 7A in football will be discussed again by the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association Board of Directors on Wednesday.

The Board agenda includes an item for discussion “and possible action regarding the recommendations from the Constitution and Rules Review Committee.”

That committee made its recommendations on Class 7A among a variety of topics it sought to improve in the OSSAA constitution.

The recommendation made by the committee to the Board would divide the current 32 schools of Class 6A into two 16-team classes for football only.

The goal of the committee was to best address the fact that Jenks and Tulsa Union have won every Class 6A state championship since 1996.

“We want to see if this is a viable option to level the playing field a little more,” Yukon Superintendent Bill Denton said in November. Denton headed the committee and also serves on the Board.

The Board will discuss the issue, with the option to table it for further discussion, amend the plan, and potentially send it to the 32 Class 6A schools for a vote to approve it.

The earliest the new classes could be in place would be the 2014 football season, because the districts are already set for 2013.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Edmond Santa Fe safety Phillip Sumpter verbally committed to Memphis on Monday, becoming the third Oklahoma player to commit to the Tigers of head coach Justin Fuente.

Edmond Santa Fe running back/defensive back Phillip Sumpter announced on Twitter that he verbally committed to Memphis on Monday.

Sumpter is the third state player, along with Sequoyah-Tahlequah quarterback Brayden Scott and Ringling linebacker Jackson Dillon, to commit to the Tigers, who are coached by Oklahoma native Justin Fuente.

Sumpter is targeted as a safety in the Memphis system, though he played both sides of the ball for Santa Fe. He averaged 6.3 yards on 45 rushing attempts with 287 yards and four touchdowns. Defensively, he had 123 tackles, four sacks and an interception.

The 3A title game will kick off the weekend at 7:30 p.m. Friday in Stillwater before Saturday’s double-header.

The Class A final between Wynnewood and Ringling will kick off at 1 p.m. Saturday at Boone Pickens Stadium, with the 2A title game set for 7:30 p.m. Saturday between Oklahoma Christian and Davis.

The list for the NewsOK Varsity Football Performance of the Week is impressive, and fans can vote now at the poll below.

Voting ends at 4 p.m. Tuesday and the results of the poll will appear in Wednesday’s Oklahoman.

Here are the candidates:

Blake Barnes, OCS: Had seven receptions for 211 yards and two TDs, along with a critical interception to put OCS in its first-ever 11-man championship game.

Trey’Vonne Barr’e, Jenks: Rushed for most of his 292 yards and three touchdowns in the first half as Jenks took control on its way to the 6A title.

Blanchard defense: Seven QB sacks and no offensive touchdowns allowed to Jones to reach the finals for the first time since 1979.

Davis defense: Shut down what was the top scoring offense in state history in a 22-0 semifinal win over Vian.

Jackson Dillon, Ringling: The Memphis commit rushed for 109 yards and two TDs in a 35-21 semifinal win over Texhoma.

Trey Knowles, Wynnewood: Rushed for 175 yards and three TDs to rally past Cashion and into the Class A finals.

Grant Newton, Kingfisher: Rushed for 154 of his 181 yards in the second half, including a clinching 73-yard TD to earn a spot in the finals.

Tucker Rolf, Laverne: Rushed for 157 yards and two crucial TDs as Laverne won Class B 50-19 over Pond Creek-Hunter.

Marquiz Simpkins, Clinton: Rushed fro 119 yards and two TDs, including the game-clincher to give Clinton the title.

Steven Thompson, Carl Albert: Rushed for 186 yards with all three Titan TDs, and picked off two passes in the title win.

Josh Torres, Tipton: Rushed for 120 yards and two TDs in a 30-12 win over Forgan in the Class C title game.

Fox Sports released a statement during the second half of Friday’s game, relaying information from DirecTV, which cited a “bandwidth issue” as the reason the broadcast was dropped.

“DirecTV informed us yesterday (Thursday) they wouldn’t be able to carry Friday’s game due to bandwidth issues,” the Fox statement said. “We regret their decision to drop the telecast and the inconvenience it caused their customers to miss the game. DirecTV has assured us they will carry Saturday’s OSSAA championship games on channel 680.”

The 4A and 5A games will air at 12:30 and 7:30 p.m., respectively, on the following Fox Sports Oklahoma Plus channels as well: AT&T U-verse 757 (1757 HD); Cox Communications-Oklahoma City/Tulsa 68 (715 HD); DirecTV 680 (680-1 HD); Dish 446; Fidelity Cablevision-Lawton 33; Pioneer Digital TV 113; Suddenlink-Stillwater/Cushing/Drumright 75; Suddenlink-Enid 73; Suddenlink-Muskogee 33; Suddenlink-Pauls Valley 2; Suddenlink-Perry 53; Suddenlink-Seminole 29; Tahlequah Cable TV 55.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Norman North and Jenks meet for the Class 6A title game at 7:30 p.m. Friday, while Clinton and Anadarko play in the 4A finals at 12:30 p.m. Saturday and the 5A title game between Carl Albert and Tulsa East Central at 7:30 Saturday night.

Al Jerkens (play-by-play), Rod Thompson (analyst) and Steve Marshall (sideline reporter) will call Friday’s 6A championship. Marshall will serve as play-by-play announcer for Saturday’s doubleheader with Thompson as analyst.

Fox Sports Oklahoma will televise an OSSAA Championship Spotlight special recapping Saturday’s Class B final between Laverne and Pond Creek-Hunter, and the Class C final between Forgan and Tipton from Southwestern in Weatherford. Dates and times for the highlight show will be announced later.

Here are the Fox Sports Oklahoma Plus channel numbers across the state: AT&T U-verse 757 (1757 HD); Cox Communications-Oklahoma City/Tulsa 68 (715 HD); DirecTV 680 (680-1 HD); Dish 451 (Friday), TBA (Saturday); Fidelity Cablevision-Lawton 33; Pioneer Digital TV 113; Suddenlink-Stillwater/Cushing/Drumright 75; Suddenlink-Enid 73; Suddenlink-Muskogee 33; Suddenlink-Pauls Valley 2; Suddenlink-Perry 53; Suddenlink-Seminole 29; Tahlequah Cable TV 55

The backup QB threw for 331 yards and five touchdowns in a 42-0 win over Commerce.

Including online and phone voting, Cotten received just 70 more votes than Anadarko running back R.J. Sink.

Here are the final results:
Blake Cotton, Frederick: 1,045 votes
R.J. Sink, Anadarko: 975 votes
Steven Thompson, Carl Albert: 524 votes
Jackson Dillon, Ringling: 423 votes
Doc Harvey, Seminole: 385 votes
Peyton Gavras, Norman North: 140 votes
Brock Lamle, Blanchard: 126 votes
Deaundre’ Carr, Davis: 114 votes
Ty Reasnor, Cashion: 109 votes
Stanvon Taylor, Tulsa East Central: 15 votes
Total: 3,856 votes

The original blog post and online voting results are below.

———————————–

This week, the NewsOK Varsity Football Player of the Week fan poll goes statewide.

And this week, we’ll give 10 players a shot at the honor.

The fan poll is live, so you can vote now by clicking your choice below. Voting ends at 4 p.m. Wednesday and the results of the poll will appear in Thursday’s Oklahoman.

Here are the candidates:

Deaundre’ Carr, Davis: Rushed for 191 yards and two TDs on 17 carries as Davis knocked off Adair in the 2A quarterfinals.

Blake Cotten, Frederick: The backup QB threw for 331 yards and five TDs in a 2A quarterfinal win.

Jackson Dillon, Ringling: Rushed for 155 yards on 18 carries and added 66 receiving yards on two grabs with three TDs to knock off defending Class A champ Wayne.

Peyton Gavras, Norman North: Threw for 395 yards and five TDs to get the Timberwolves into the Class 6A title game.

Doc Harvey, Seminole: Rushed for two TDs, threw for two more and added a pair of two-point conversions in a 34-28 semifinal win over Metro Christian.

Brock Lamle, Blanchard: Guided the Lions to the 3A semifinals for the first time since 1979 with 226 yards passing and three total TDs.

Ty Reasnor, Cashion: Passed for 297 yards and two TDs to get the Wildcats into the Class A semifinals.

R.J. Sink, Anadarko: Powered his way to three touchdowns as the Warriors knocked off defending 4A champion Wagoner.

Stanvon Taylor, Tulsa East Central: The Oklahoma commit scored three TDs, including a game-clinching 57-yard run to put the Cardinals in the 5A finals.

Steven Thompson, Carl Albert: The two-time defending winner of this poll rushed for 200 yards and threw for 108 with five total TDs, and picked off a game-clinching pass in the Titans’ semifinal win over McGuinness.

Friday night in Tulsa, Norman North made school history by earning its first-ever state championship game berth.

The Timberwolves also carry a burden greater than their own in the game. They carry the flag for all West-side teams. No West-side team has won the state title since Midwest City did it in 1995. That was also the last time a team other than Jenks or Union won the title.

Norman North is the first West-side team to make the 6A championship game since 2005 (Enid made it in 2006 but the Plainsmen are considered, at least by the OSSAA, to be East). Here’s a look at the other West-side teams that have made the title game during the streak and how the title games turned out:

2005: Tulsa Union 33, Mustang 7 at Owen Field, Norman
2003: Jenks 17, Edmond Santa Fe 10 at Owen Field, Norman
2001: Jenks 38, Putnam North 28 at Lewis Field, Stillwater
1997: Jenks 56, Yukon 8 at Lewis Field, Stillwater
1996: Jenks 28, Midwest City 17 at Lewis Field, Stillwater

A trio of state football teams in Class 4A and below are ranked in the top 25 nationally in  MaxPreps’ small school national rankings.

Class 3A No. 2 Seminole (11-0) is the highest-ranked, coming in at No. 16. No. 1 Kingfisher (12-0) is No. 24.

Both of those teams could meet in the semifinals if they win this week. Kingfisher hosts Stigler on Friday while Seminole hosts Metro Christian.

Also coming in ranked is Class 4A No. 3 Anadarko (12-0). The Warriors play No. 1 Wagoner on Friday at Langston.

Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) University is No. 1 in the rankings.

Thompson rushed for 220 yards and four touchdowns, and threw for 131 yards on just three completions as the Titans advanced to the 5A semifinals.

Here are the final results, after adding in the phone voting, which was a new feature added this week. The poll at the bottom shows online voting only:

Steven Thompson, Carl Albert: 436 votes
Jacob Lewis, McGuinness: 338 votes
Jordan Evans, Norman North: 190 votes
Landon Nault, Kingfisher: 150 votes
Levi Hill, Hennessey: 131 votes
Total: 1,243 votes

That means Clark likely won’t be able to sign during the early period, which concludes next Wednesday for basketball players.

Clark, the state’s top recruit, is considering Oklahoma State, Baylor and UCLA, with Missouri still on the fringe as well.

“I just want to make sure I make the best decision for me and my family,” Clark said. “Every time we talk about it, everyone hasn’t been on the same page, so I haven’t made a decision yet. Until the family and everybody’s cool with it, I’ll be uncommitted until then.”

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

The spread offense might be — for lack of a better term — spreading throughout the state, but it hasn’t reached Davis yet, where coach Jody Weber’s Wolves are still running the wishbone to perfection.

So as Millwood prepares for its second-round Class 2A playoff game at Davis Friday night, its players are talking about assignments and toughness, two key components to containing the ‘bone.

“We’ve been playing a lot of teams that have been passing a lot, but I like this kind of game,” Millwood junior linebacker Larry Lambeth said. “I like games that are physical. We’ve just got to have everyone do their one job, stay on their assignment, so the man behind you can do his job.

“If you get greedy, that’s when they beat you.”

Millwood went to Davis in last year’s second round as well, coming away with a 20-7 win. While that game provided good experience for the young Falcons, they know they can’t expect this year to be easier.

“We know since we won last year, they’ll be twice as hungry and twice as eager to beat us,” junior defensive back Cameron Batson said. “So we’ve got to be twice as hungry and twice as eager also. But if we prepare like we should, I think we can go out and do it.”

The toughness aspect is a quality the Falcons especially want to show. Regarded as a fast defense, they want everyone to know they can play physical football, too.

“We’ve got to show that we can play with them, and that they won’t be more physical than us,” junior defensive back Alfonso McMillan said. “We know we’re probably the underdogs going into this game, but we’ll show up.”

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

The schools received permission from the OSSAA to move up kickoff times to keep in line with their start times throughout the year.

Edmond Santa Fe will host Tulsa Union at Central Oklahoma’s Wantland Stadium, while Broken Arrow will visit Norman North at Harve Collins Field.

The Class 6A teams in the Oklahoma City area have chosen to kick off all home games at 7 p.m. over the last two seasons, and teams in the Oklahoma City Public Schools system have recently adopted the idea, which is becoming more popular.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Douglass running back Chris High received a scholarship offer from Navy last week.

A bright spot in an otherwise frustrating week that saw his team’s season end, Douglass running back Chris High received his first scholarship offer from an FBS program.

Navy extended an offer last Thursday to the 6-foot-1, 185-pound running back, who surpassed the 1,600-yard mark in Friday’s 14-7 loss to Weatherford.

High averaged better than 12 yards per carry for the season, and was among the Trojans’ leading tacklers at linebacker, with more than 70 stops.

High’s first offer was from Morgan State, an FCS school in Baltimore. Teammate Terry Harris verbally committed to Morgan State last month.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Here are a few players from the Oklahoma City area who helped keep their teams alive in the postseason, and fans can vote to decide which one had the top performance of the week in the NewsOK Varsity Player of the Week fan poll.

Pick one of the five selections from the poll, or write in your own candidate in the comments section of the blog, where you can tell us why your choice deserves Player of the Week honors.

Voting ends at 4 p.m. Tuesday and the results of the poll will appear in Wednesday’s Oklahoman. The Oklahoman’s staff choice will be the subject of a feature story in Tuesday’s newspaper.

Here are the candidates:

David Cornwell, Jones: Avenging the Longhorns’ season-opening loss, Cornwell threw three touchdown passes and rushed for two more in a 48-12 rout of Perkins.

Jordan Evans, Norman North: The speedy 6-foot-3 senior is dangerous at linebacker, but he showed his skills with the ball, too, rushing for 81 yards and a touchdown, and returning a kickoff 84 yards for a score in a 21-6 win over Southmoore.

J.T. McFadden, Guthrie: Had a 22-yard touchdown run and two TD receptions, including a 52-yarder in the fourth quarter that essentially clinched Guthrie’s 31-13 win at Lawton MacArthur.

Connor McGinnis, Heritage Hall: The Chargers’ sophomore QB is solid in the pocket, and he showed his legs Friday, rushing for 155 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-13 win over Pauls Valley.

Steven Thompson, Carl Albert: The quarterback carried 38 times for 189 yards and all four Titan touchdowns in a 28-21 upset of Del City.

The class would be made up of the 16 largest schools in the state, while the next 16 would make up Class 6A.

Each class would have two eight-team districts, and 12 teams would make the playoffs, with the district champions and runners-up getting first-round byes.

Now, the proposal hasn’t even made it through the OSSAA Board of Directors yet, though it could come up for a vote at their December meeting.

After that, it would go to a vote of the 32 schools currently in 6A. If it gets that far, you’d assume the proposal would pass. The teams in the bottom 16, and some of those who are close to the line, would certainly be in favor of the idea that would greatly increase their chances of competing for a state championship.

If it passes, it would be instituted for the 2014-15 seasons when districts are redrawn. The rules for dividing Class 5A and below would not be impacted by the proposal.

Here are the current average attendance numbers, which are used to determine classifications. These numbers are recalculated after every school year, so these aren’t the same numbers that would be used to determine Class 6A and 7A. Those numbers would come out next July. But just for fun, here’s how the classes would break down, with attendance included.

Class 7A
1. Broken Arrow 4586.21
2. Union 4237.14
3. Jenks 3077.47
4. Owasso 2628.00
5. Mustang 2473.48
6. Edmond North 2445.33
7. Moore 2153.00
8. Yukon 2130.61
9. Norman North 2068.55
10. Edmond Memorial 2048.00
11. Westmoore 1982.00
12. Edmond Santa Fe 1973.00
13. Southmoore 1955.00
14. Putnam City North 1953.16
15. Putnam City 1731.95
16. Norman 1728.94

Class 6A
17. Lawton 1722.00
18. Bartlesville 1700.59
19. Enid 1678.19
20. Sand Springs 1549.63
21. Muskogee 1540.85
22. Ponca City 1477.64
23. Choctaw 1472.53
24. Putnam City West 1464.31
25. Midwest City 1443.35
26. Stillwater 1440.81
27. U.S. Grant 1415.04
28. Sapulpa 1392.89
29. Tulsa Hale 1358.70
30. Lawton Eisenhower 1339.00
31. Bixby 1335.39
32. Tulsa Washington 1287.39

Throughout the day Wednesday, as my Twitter account never stopped buzzing with people offering comments and questions about this idea, I became more and more fascinated by the discussion. I’m still torn about the idea, but I love the discussion.

So jump in and share your thoughts. What positives and negatives do you see in the proposal? What would you have done differently? Or should anything be done at all?

My personal proposal would have been similar to the Texas playoff system. I’d combine the current 5A and 6A classes, making a 64-team class with eight districts of eight teams each. The top four from each district make the playoffs, but the playoffs are split into Division I, made up of the 16 largest schools to qualify for the playoffs, and Division II, made up of the smallest 16 to qualify.

Any other good ideas out there?

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Currently, OSSAA rules require a school to withdraw from the association in all sports, but Sinor and Balenseifen will propose to amend that rule.

Sinor and Balenseifen had worked with Tulsa athletic director Gil Cloud on a larger proposal to reclassify teams in a manner to better level the playing field, taking into account winning percentage over a number of years and percentage of students on free and reduced lunch at public schools.

The focus of the presentation has narrowed to the independence issue, for example, allowing a football team to become independent without forcing the rest of the school’s athletic teams to leave the OSSAA.

“We feel that would be best for everybody,” Sinor said. “We’re proposing a change in the wording of the rule that essentially says if a school wants to become independent in one sport, it has to become independent in all sports for two years.

“This is a safety thing for our kids, and it’s about giving them a chance to be successful. It’s about doing what’s right for the kids.”

The proposal calls for the rule change to be applied statewide, not just to select teams.

It is possible that the Board could call for a vote on the proposal, or they could take it under advisement to be considered at a later date.

The game will kick off at 7:30 p.m. Friday night.

Madill, a program known for churning out top-notch running backs in recent years, has scored 40 points or more in seven games this season.

But on the other hand, Star Spencer held seven of 10 opponents to 17 points or fewer, a list that includes No. 1 Kingfisher and Heritage Hall.

Anchored by four-year starting linebacker Kenneth Davis, the Bobcats will need their stout defense to keep the game within reach as they try to win in their first playoff appearance since winning the 2009 4A state championship.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Mike Nunley, the Edmond district athletic director, said Edmond North will host its game on Thursday night, and Edmond Santa Fe would play on Friday.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Douglass senior Terry Harris has verbally committed to Morgan State University, an FCS program in Baltimore.

Douglass defensive back Terry Harris verbally committed to Morgan State, an FCS program in Baltimore. Harris received an offer from the school about a month ago and gave his commitment Wednesday.

Harris, a 5-foot-9, 170-pound safety, has long been a soft-spoken leader for the Trojans, playing a key role in the secondary when the Trojans won the Class 4A state title in 2010.

A three-year starter for the Trojans, he currently has 49 tackles and two interceptions, and also plays fullback.

Douglass running back/linebacker Chris High has also been offered by Morgan State.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Norman North sophomore defensive lineman Stelen Covel, the son of country music star Toby Keith, was one of four state players selected for the 2013 Eastbay Youth All-American Bowl.

The fifth-annual game will be played Jan. 6 at the Alamodome in San Antonio.

The other players selected were Heritage Hall’s Luther Harris, a lineman, and running back/linebacker Terrell Love Jr. and Jenks defensive back Austin Quillen. All three are freshmen.

Love is the son of former U.S. Grant and Star Spencer coach Terrell Love.

The four will play for the USA Under-15 team against a team from Canada. The team is coached by former Oklahoma assistant David White.

The four will be presented with their jerseys Saturday at Keith’s restaurant in Bricktown during halftime of the Oklahoma-Iowa State game.

After Elgin beat Piedmont 38-35 last week, Piedmont was seemingly eliminated from playoff contention.

Now, the Wildcats have a second chance, after Elgin was forced to forfeit the game.

The forfeit is due to a violation of the Oklahoma Secondary Association’s Rule 5, which governs amateurism.

Piedmont not needs a win over Weatherford, in all likelihood, to make the playoffs. The Wildcats could be left out with a win and a Woodward win, though that would require the Boomers to beat Clinton and gain at least nine district points on Piedmont.

Elgin is expected to ask for the athlete to be reinstated at the Nov. 7 meeting of the OSSAA’s Board of Directors. The school is also expected to propose self-imposed sanctions.

In that same session, Sequoyah-Tahlequah is expected to appeal the an OSSAA ruling on 12 of its players and coach Brent Scott.

The players won a temporary restraining order granting them temporary eligibility in last week’s game against Hilldale and this week’s game against Lincoln Christian ahead of the hearing. Scott was not covered by the restraining order and missed last week’s game and will not coach this week.

Since losing its first two games, Douglass has slowly regained momentum during its seven-game win streak, anchored by the run game of Chris High and Chavez Wyatt, who each went over 100 yards last week.

The intriguing matchup Friday will be Douglass’ ability to limit the passing attack of quarterback Wyatt Robson, Ada’s all-time leading passer.

Robson has thrown for 1,559 yards with 22 touchdowns and three interceptions this year, while completing 69.0 percent of his passes.

Douglass will count on defensive end Deondre Clark, who recorded his 20th sack of the year last week, and a secondary anchored by Anthony Williams with seven interceptions.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Pick one of the five selections from the poll below, or write in your own candidate in the comments section, where you can tell us why your choice deserves Player of the Week honors.

The Oklahoman staff will make its selection for the Player of the Week for a feature story to appear in Tuesday’s paper, but fan voting will continue until 4 p.m. Tuesday, and the results of the poll will appear in Wednesday’s Oklahoman.

Here are the candidates

Frankie Edwards, Mustang: Passed for 227 yards and three touchdowns, and rushed for 111 yards and two TDs to preserve Mustang’s playoff chances in a 37-34 win over Lawton.

Michael Farmer, Edmond North: Rushed for five touchdowns, including runs of 51 and 93 yards, in a 49-14 win over Midwest City to clinch a home-field playoff berth.

Danny Krenger, McGuinness: Krenger did a little of everything, catching touchdown passes of 25 and 83 yards, and intercepting a pass as the Irish upset No. 1 Guthrie.

Preston Walker, Crescent: Crescent bounced back from its first loss of the season with a 47-13 win over Watonga behind five TD passes and one rushing score from Walker.

Jimmy Wood, Noble: Rushed for 146 yards with two touchdowns and was a threat as a receiver as well, as Noble rallied to beat Durant and keep its playoff hopes alive.

New England Patriots receiver Wes Welker will be in OKC for the opening of Welker Fields at Jefferson Middle School on Nov. 3.

Wes Welker will be in Oklahoma City early next month for the opening of Welker Fields at Jefferson Middle School.

The Wes Welker Foundation, along with the Fields and Futures organization, worked to rebuild the football, soccer and softball fields at Jefferson and contributed $24,000 to provide all the necessary equipment for the fields.

Welker, the Heritage Hall product now playing in the NFL for the New England Patriots, will make the trip to Oklahoma City on the Patriots’ bye week to attend a community event to celebrate the opening of Welker Fields on Saturday, Nov. 3 at 11 a.m. The event will include games, a raffle and food, and Welker will speak to the crowd at 12:30 p.m.

With 54 catches for 688 yards, Welker is currently leading the NFL in receiving yards.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Yukon receiver Codey Sanchez and the Millers are one win away from sealing up their fourth straight playoff appearance.

Yukon coach Todd Wilson has always desired to build the Millers into a regular playoff team. Heading into Friday’s home game against U.S. Grant, Yukon needs just one win to lock up a postseason berth for the fourth straight year under Wilson — a significant achievement for the program.

Yukon went to the playoffs three straight years from 1996-98, including a state runner-up finish in 1997. But the team hasn’t been to four straight postseasons in more than 40 years, the last such stretch coming under coach Rene Huckaba in 1966-69.

The Millers are coming off last week’s win over Midwest City, the team’s first defeat of the Bombers since 1997.

After starting 1-5, Yukon has revived its season with a balanced offensive attack. Running back A.J. West has rushed for 1,112 yards and 11 touchdowns on 150 carries, and quarterback Hayden Somerville is nearing the 2,000-yard passing mark. Receiver Codey Sanchez has been one of the top receivers in the state this season with 944 yards and 10 TDs on the season with an average of 17.5 yards per catch.

The Millers host U.S. Grant this week, and close the regular season at Putnam City North, which could be a battle for the third seed in District 6A-3.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Here are five of the best from Week 8, and fans can vote on who deserves the Oklahoma City-area Player of the Week honor here on our weekly fan poll.

Pick one of the five selections from the poll below, or write in your own candidate in the comments section, where you can tell us why your choice deserves Player of the Week honors.

Voting ends at 4 p.m. Tuesday and the results of the poll will appear in Wednesday’s Oklahoman.

Here are the candidates:

Bryan Dutton, Guthrie: Threw two touchdown passes and ran for three scores, including the game-winning 10-yard score in overtime of a 42-35 defeat of Deer Creek.

Colton Ebers, Wellston: Scored all three touchdowns as Wellston rallied from a 14-0 deficit for a 21-14 win, snapping a 21-game losing streak.

Chris High, Douglass: Only carried the ball nine times, but accounted for 198 yards and four touchdowns in Douglass’ 41-17 win over McLoud.

Ty Reasnor, Cashion: Was 15-of-26 passing for 287 yards and four TDs, throwing a 31-yard, game-winning TD to defeat previously unbeaten Crescent.

Julian Tramble, Tecumseh: Rushed 26 times for 302 yards and three touchdowns in an upset over Glenpool that kept Tecumseh’s playoff hopes alive.

So in the cloud of what was a wild finish in a 42-35 Guthrie overtime win over Deer Creek at home, there was plenty I couldn’t fit into my game story. So here’s some additional notes and other tidbits.

The last drive in regulation
I have to say it wasn’t until after I’d talked to several people, including some after I’d written and filed my story that I figured out what officials had ruled on a first down play with less than a minute left that appeared to have sealed the game for Deer Creek.

On the play, Guthrie quarterback Bryan Dutton was hit just as he was making a throw, the ball squirted loose and the Antlers recovered. A flag after the play appeared to be going against Deer Creek, though it would’ve made little difference as Guthrie had no timeouts. After some discussion, though, and none or little explanation to the coaches, the ball was placed a yard behind where it was before the play and first down replayed. The spot is what confused me initially because I thought surely they’d ruled Dutton was down or Guthrie had recovered and marked the penalty from where the play ended.

Instead, it was ruled an inadvertent whistle and the play was redone, albeit with a shaky spot. I was standing on the sidelines, less than 15 yards away from where Dutton was hit and never heard a whistle. Neither radio crew heard a whistle through their mics. Had the play stood, though, I thought it should clearly be Deer Creek’s ball.

The aftermath
While that whistle clearly had an affect on how the game ended, it’s not like Guthrie was served up the game after that.

After that play, Guthrie still had to scored from the 20, which it did four plays later, after a pass interference penalty in the end zone gave the Bluejays another first down (I thought the penalty was a borderline one. I wasn’t shocked to see the flag thrown but wouldn’t have been stunned had it not been called either). Then they had to make the point-after to tie it. Then they had to score in overtime, which they did on the first play. Then they had to stop Deer Creek, which they did by forcing a fumble on the second play of the Antlers’ possession.

I had an e-mailer suggest earlier today that I shouldn’t have written positively about Dutton’s performance in light of that call and how it affected things. That’s absolutely ridiculous. Dutton didn’t have his best game but he found a way to help his team win given the circumstances laid before him. He’s a gritty ballplayer who came through when the game was on the line.

The other inadvertent whistle
The whistle to extend Guthrie’s final drive of regulation wasn’t the only inadvertent whistle in the game.

On the final play before half, just after Deer Creek had scored to go ahead 21-7, Guthrie was bitten by the whistle as well. The Bluejays returner dropped the ball, bent over at his waist to pick it up, then eventually took off running. He was brought down at the 5, well ofter time had expired, however a horse collar tackle to end the play would’ve given Guthrie one untimed down from inside the 3.

Deer Creek eventually kicked again and stopped Guthrie well short.

Joel Blumenthal
Deer Creek quarterback Joel Blumenthal had a fantastic game, throwing for 256 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran for more than 70 yards.

I’d say Blumenthal was probably the best player on the field on either side.

He did suffer some cramps a couple of times that limited his mobility in the second half.

Taking points off the board
With 1:34 left in the fourth, Deer Creek’s Dillon Noble drilled a 36-yard field goal that appeared to have put the Antlers ahead 31-28.

But a penalty on the play gave Deer Creek a choice. The Antlers chose to take the points off the board and take the ball, first and goal, from the 9. It appeared to have paid off a play later on Alec James’ 9-yard touchdown run.

“I wouldn’t have had the guts to take the points off the board,” Guthrie coach Rafe Watkins said.

Some have suggested the Antlers, especially given Guthrie’s timeout situation, should’ve taken a couple of knees, set the ball in the middle of the field and kicked another field goal as time expired where the worst case scenario sends the game to overtime.

It’s hard to argue with that, but hindsight is 20/20. Guthrie hadn’t moved the ball quickly down the field much in their previous scores (with the exception of a 76-yard touchdown pass early in the second half.

Deer Creek had to feel good about making the Bluejays drive more than 75 yards in 1:22. It just didn’t work out for them.

Going forward
This district race is face from over. Both teams still have to play undefeated Bishop McGuinness. With Guthrie beating Carl Albert by four and earning one district point for last night’s win, if McGuinness beats Guthrie and loses to Deer Creek, things get really complicated.

Wand will try to defend his victory in the fan poll, which is waiting for your votes.

Pick one of the five selections from the poll below, or write in your own candidate in the comments section, where you can tell us why your choice deserves Player of the Week honors.

Voting ends at 4 p.m. Tuesday and the results of the poll will appear in Wednesday’s Oklahoman.

Here are the candidates:

Peyton Gavras, Norman North: Threw for 379 yards and five touchdowns, three of which came in the fourth quarter of the Timberwolves’ 49-27 upset of previously unbeaten Edmond North.

Justice Hansen, Edmond Santa Fe: The junior starred in the Wolves 68-28 rout of Lawton with 104 rushing yards and three touchdowns, while throwing for 286 yards and four TDs.

A’erion Hines, Norman: Hines needed only 12 carries to pile up 183 yards and four touchdowns to spark Norman to a 41-28 upset of Southmoore.

T’Quan Wallace, Casady: Threw for 428 yards on 31-of-41 passing with four touchdowns, three in the second half as Casady rallied from 20 points down for a 42-34 win over Dallas Cistercian.

Warren Wand, Edmond Memorial: The sophomore rushed for 360 yards on 25 carries, scoring five touchdowns, including two in the fourth quarter as the Bulldogs pulled away from Choctaw, 56-35.

Douglass junior defensive end Deondre Clark will attend both the Oklahoma-Texas and Baylor-TCU games Saturday as part of a busy recruiting weekend. His older brother, Stephen, will be with him at Baylor as part of his basketball recruiting trip.

Douglass brothers Stephen and Deondre Clark will team up for a day full of recruiting trips on Saturday.

Deondre, a highly recruited 6-foot-3, 235-pound junior defensive end, will begin the day with the Oklahoma-Texas game at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas along with several other Sooners recruits. OU was one of the first programs to offer Deondre Clark, whose offer list has reached double-digits now, including Oklahoma State, LSU, Missouri and Texas Tech.

Stephen and Deondre will both head to Waco, Texas, to visit Baylor for its football game against TCU at 6 p.m.

Deondre Clark doesn’t have a Baylor offer yet, but could be closing in on one.

“They said they’re close, so maybe when I’m down there,” Deondre said. “It’s gonna be a fun day. I’m looking forward to the OU-Texas game. I’ve never been in an atmosphere like that.”

The Baylor trip is the second of four scheduled official visits for Stephen Clark, a 5-foot-11, 175-pound point guard who is the state’s top senior basketball prospect.

Stephen Clark visited UCLA last weekend, and will make trips to OSU and Florida State later this month. He also attended OSU’s game against Texas on Sept. 29. He plans to make a college decision in time to sign during the November signing period.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

The fan poll is live online at NewsOK.com/Varsity for fans to cast their votes.

Pick one of the five selections from the poll, or write in your own candidate in the comments section of the blog, where you can tell us why your choice deserves Player of the Week honors.

Voting ends at 4 p.m. Tuesday and the results of the poll will appear in Wednesday’s Oklahoman.

Here are the candidates:

Jacob Blair, Christian Heritage: Blair caught three touchdown passes, all in the second half, as CHA rallied for a 34-20 win over Dibble.

Luke Frankfurt, OCS: Caught three passes for 96 yards, including a 42-yard game-winning touchdown, and intercepted a pass on Millwood’s final drive to seal OCS’ 22-18 upset.

Tae Moore, Putnam City North: Moore finished with 217 total yards and five TDs, but rushed for 161 yards and four scores in the first eight minutes of a 63-27 rout of Midwest City.

Warren Wand, Edmond Memorial: Wand rushed for three touchdowns to key one of the bigger surprises of the week, the Bulldogs’ 41-13 whipping of Mustang.

Colin Webb, Moore: Threw a 40-yard touchdown pass and rushed for two more scores to vault the Lions to a 38-30 win over Lawton Eisenhower.

All right, so here’s the weekly rankings explanation/discussion. Class 6A was once again the toughest, although there were plenty of other interesting choices along the way.

CLASS 6A
1. Tulsa Union (3)#4-2
2. Jenks (5)#4-2
3. Broken Arrow (4)#3-3
4. Edmond North (2)#6-0
5. Owasso (6)#3-2
6. Edmond Santa Fe (7)#5-1
7. Sand Springs (9)#6-0
8. Southmoore (10)#5-1
9. Lawton (1)#5-1
10. Norman North (NR)#5-1

This is one I had to deconstruct completely yet again after the weekend’s results that included Southmoore’s win over Lawton, Putnam City’s win over Westmoore and Edmond North escaping against a now 1-5 Yukon team. I thought it would happen a few weeks ago and it has–Union is the best team in 6A again. The Redskins loss to Owasso looks like the bump in the road that it was last year as Union rolled to another title. Sand Springs gets a big test this week when it plays Union. Play the Redskins tight–even in a loss–and the Sandites move up next week. A win in that game and I’ll vault Sand Springs to No. 1.

CLASS 5A
1. Guthrie (1)#6-0
2. Tulsa East Central (2)#2-4
3. Deer Creek (3)#6-0
4. Bishop McGuinness (4)#6-0
5. Tulsa Kelley (5)#4-2
6. Claremore (6)#5-1
7. Coweta (7)#4-2
8. Del City (8)#4-2
9. Lawton MacArthur (9)#4-2
10. Tulsa Memorial (10)#6-0
*Tulsa East Central forfeited four wins.

This one wasn’t too difficult was Claremore’s 20-19 loss to Tulsa East Central was the only loss in the top 10. Claremore stays above Coweta and Del City because their game against East Central was closer. Claremore-Coweta, though, will get sorted out soon enough as the teams face off Oct. 26.

CLASS 4A
1. Wagoner (1)#5-1
2. Cascia Hall (3)#6-0
3. Anadarko (6)#6-0
4. Ada (4)#6-0
5. Clinton (2)#4-2
6. Douglass (5)#4-2
7. Sallisaw (7)#4-2
8. Fort Gibson (8)#6-0
9. Cleveland (9)#6-0
10. Catoosa (NR)#3-3

Anadarko’s big performance deserved to be noticed, and the Warriors move up three places to No. 3, ahead of Ada, Clinton and Douglass. The only other shuffle came in the final spot as Catoosa slips in ahead of Broken Bow and Poteau. Catoosa beat a ranked opponent (Tulsa McLain) and a few weeks ago nearly knocked off Fort Gibson. That puts Catoosa in even against teams with better records.

CLASS 3A
1. Kingfisher (1)#6-0
2. Tuttle (2)#6-0
3. Berryhill (3)#6-0
4. Seminole (4)#5-0
5. Blanchard (5)#6-0
6. Metro Christian (6)#5-1
7. Victory Christian (7)#6-0
8. Sequoyah-Tahlequah (8)#5-1
9. Verdigris (9)#5-1
10. Cushing (10)#5-1

Nice and easy yet again: Everyone wins.

CLASS 2A
1. Vian (2)#6-0
2. Davis (3)#6-0
3. Frederick (4)#6-0
4. OCS (7)#5-1
5. Millwood (1)#5-1
6. Hennessey (5)#4-2
7. Stroud (6)#5-1
8. Adair (9)#6-0
9. Lindsay (8)#4-2
10. Commerce (10)#5-1

The big mover on the positive side was OCS, who knocked off top-ranked Millwood. The Saints’ only loss so far is to Class 3A Jones. Millwood drops to No. 5, just behind OCS. I also flipped Adair and Lindsay after taking in the totality of their seasons to this point.

CLASS A
1. Wynnewood (1)#5-0
2. Wayne (2)#6-0
3. Thomas (3)#6-0
4. Ringling (4)#4-1
5. Texhoma (5)#5-0
6. Fairview (NR)#6-0
7. Cashion (6)#6-0
8. Crescent (7)#6-0
9. Kiefer (8)#6-0
10. Morrison (9)#5-1

None of the teams in the top 10 lost but I promised a reader I’d break down and reassess this class so I did. What I found, for the most part, is that I liked where I had teams. I feel comfortable in Ringling where they are with their one loss (to Davis) and Morrison with theirs (to Alva). I was OK leaving off Empire, Savanna, Talihina, Warner and Summit Christian even with undefeated records. But going over the rankings and results of the first six weeks, I couldn’t ignore what Fairview has done. Friday, they beat Hooker 71-18. So far, they’ve outscored opponents 303-56. Fairview played three opponents that other top 10 teams had played this year and the matchups were favorable for Fairview. It beat Pioneer 63-8 while Cashion beat Pioneer 52-20. It beat Okeene 49-6 while Cashion won 27-20 and Thomas won 26-6. And finally, it beat Hooker 71-18 on Friday, while Hollis won 45-21. I don’t always matchup scores like that because there are a number of factors that could skew things, but when you’re looking at that many games, I couldn’t ignore it. So Farview goes in at No. 10 while Hollis is the unlucky team to slip.

CLASS B
1. Laverne (1)#6-0
2. Wetumka (2)#6-0
3. Pond Creek-Hunter (3)#6-0
4. Fox (6)#6-0
5. Dewar (4)#5-1
6. Garber (5)#5-1
7. Davenport (7)#4-2
8. Rejoice Christian (8)#5-1
9. Covington-Douglas (9)#4-2
10. Alex (10)#5-1

Garber and Dewar both got beat, but they got beat by teams ranked above them. Fox leap-frogged the pair but everything else remains constant.

CLASS C
1. Tipton (1)#6-0
2. Cherokee (2)#6-0
3. Forgan (3)#5-0
4. Ryan (4)#6-0
5. Sharon-Mutual (5)#5-1
6. Thackerville (7)#4-1
7. Webbers Falls (8)#4-1
8. Maud (9)#4-1
9. Balko (10)#5-1
10. Temple (NR)#3-3

Things were just fine until Wesleyan Christian beat No. 6 Deer Creek-Lamont. The next four just move up one spot, but the No. 10 position gave me a bit of heartburn. Deer Creek-Lamont? It just lost to Wesleyan Christian by 22. Wesleyan Christian? It lost to Bluejacket by 36 just last week. Bluejacket? It lost to Deer Creek-Lamont by 16 a couple weeks ago. So welcome to the rankings Temple. Temple has three losses but they came to Class B No. 4 Fox, Class C No. 1 Tipton and No. 4 Ryan (30-20, Tipton’s closest game all season by 10 points).

That one ended 27-0 after a strong defensive performance from the Huskies, and ironically, the game was some of the first meaningful varsity action for then-sophomore quarterback Hayden Somerville of Yukon, who filled in after All-Stater Corben Jones was injured.

Second-ranked Edmond North is out to show itself as one of the best teams on the west side of the state, with strength on both sides of the ball. The offense has scored at least 34 points in all but one game, and the defense has allowed less than 14 in all but one as the Huskies compiled their 5-0 record.

Three Points

1. Triple-speed. Yukon has faced some good running teams this year, but not one like Edmond North. The Huskies have three backs — Ezel McIntee, Marque Depp and Michael Farmer — each with at least 344 yards, four touchdowns and an average of seven yards per carry. Containing the Huskies’ run game will be critical for the Millers. Yukon can answer with a solid run game of its own, though it’s more of a one-man show. A.J. West has been a pleasant surprise after sitting out of football for the last couple years. He has rushed for 662 yards and five scores so far.

2. Miller Air. West’s run game will be important to keeping the passing attack open for Somerville, one of only a handful of 6A quarterbacks to pass for more than 1,000 yards to this point. He has completed 57 percent of his passes for 1,182 yards with 13 TDs and six interceptions. He has developed a strong connection with WR Codey Sanchez, who has caught more than one-third of Somerville’s completions, with 37 grabs for 446 yards and six TDs.

3. Future focus. Regardless of what happens to Yukon tonight, the Millers have to keep a positive focus on the future. A loss tonight puts them at 1-5 on the season, but if you take all the 1-5 teams after this week, and rate their percentages of getting to the playoffs, Yukon would probably top the list. The schedule gets significantly easier from here out, and not only could they get in, but they could earn the No. 3 seed. Of course, a win tonight puts them in the running for the No. 2 seed and a home playoff berth for the third straight year. Don’t count that out.

The Pick

Edmond North 28, Yukon 21. I think the Huskies go old-school to win this one. Defense and running game. Those two areas look to be a little stronger than what Yukon has to offer. They’ll be able to limit Yukon’s possessions and avoid too many big plays.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Cashion’s Cayden Cochran ran for 70 yards and two touchdowns and threw for 173 yards and a score in Valdosta State’s 58-10 win over Edward Waters.

Early in the second quarter, Cochran broke off a 59-yard run.

—
Ohio kept its hopes of being a BCS buster alive with a 37-34 win over UMass at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.

Former Norman North standout Beau Blankenship ran for a career-high 269 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the win. Both of Blankenship’s touchdowns came in the fourth quarter. The first tied the game while the second put Ohio ahead by 10.

Blankenship tied a school records with 43 carries and his 269 yards is the third-highest in school history.

After missing last week’s game, Norman North’s Tyler Tettleton threw for 229 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Tettleton has not thrown an interception in 156 attempts dating back to last year.

Guthrie’s Donte’ Foster had four catches for 55 yards.

—
Sam Houston State didn’t need huge numbers out of Midwest City product Timothy Flanders in a 50-6 win over Texas Southern.

Flanders had 10 carries for 49 yards and caught two passes for six yards in the win.

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Millwood’s Josh Turner had seven tackles, four solo, in Texas’ 41-36 win over Oklahoma State.

Tulsa Central’s Demarco Cobbs had three tackles for the Longhorns, getting the start at SLB.

—
Carl Albert’s Christian Smith had two tackles and a pass breakup and Jenks’ Orion Jones had a tackle for a loss in Toledo’s 37-17 win over Western Michigan.

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Lawton’s Cornelius Douglas had  two interceptions and three tackles as Texas Tech’s surprising defense helped the Red Raiders to a 24-13 win over Iowa State.

Douglas returned his second interception 40 yards to the Iowa State 9 with the Red Raiders up by one. Two plays later, Texas Tech extended the lead.

Carl Albert’s Tre’ Porter had four tackles and a pass breakup

Owasso’s Jacques Washington led Iowa State with 12 tackles and had an interception.

—
Millwood’s Davion Pierson, making the start at defensive tackle, had three tackles in TCU’s 24-16 win over SMU.

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Former Jenks quarterback Sawyer Kollmorgen threw for 213 yards and a pair of touchdowns in Northern Iowa’s 33-21 loss to North Dakota State.

Del City’s Tim Clark had a pair of tackles.

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Carl Albert’s Joe Stoner had three tackles and a 47-yard fumble return as New Mexico nearly pulled off an upset of Boise State before falling 32-29.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Stoner picked up the fumble and returned it to the Boise State 1. Two plays later, New Mexico scored to pull to within three. The fumble recovery was Stoner’s seventh of his career.

—
Lawton’s Tyrequek Zimmerman had eight tackles, Oregon State’s 38-35 win over Arizona.

Tulsa Washington’s Michael Doctor added two tackles.

Douglass’ Cayman Bundage had a tackle for Arizona.

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Lincoln Christian’s Roman Wilson had a 44-yard touchdown reception early in the fourth quarter of Princeton’s 33-6 win over Columbia.

Wilson had three catches for 73 yards.

Tulsa Kelley’s Mark Hayes had a six-yard reception.

Edmond Santa Fe’s Brian Mills had two tackles.

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Muskogee’s Vernon Scott ran for 26 yards in Missouri State’s 17-7 loss to South Dakota State.

Edmond Santa Fe’s Tre Kelley had a five-yard reception.

Norman North’s Nick Canavan had five tackles while Star Spencer’s Jason Fitch added four. Tulsa Union’s Howard Scarborough had three and a fumble recovery.

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Sequoyah-Tahlequah’s Nathan Stanley threw for 187 yards and a touchdown in Southeastern Louisiana’s 31-21 win over Lamar.

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Glenpool’s Codey Zickefoose led Arkansas Tech with seven tackles in the Wonder Boys’ 41-20 win over Northwestern Oklahoma State.

Zickefoose also had a forced fumble and a quarterback hurry.

Claremore’s Greg Dicks also had one tackle, while Glenpool’s Tim Van Orsdol started on the offensive line.

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Edmond Santa Fe’s Randy Ponder had three tackles, one for a loss, in Missouri’s 21-16 win over Central Florida.

Guthrie’s Kentrell Brothers had a special teams tackle as well.

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Owasso’s Nick Rosa had an 11-yard touchdown reception for Drake in its 35-7 win over Campbell.

Rosa had seven catches for 92 yards to lead Drake in receiving.

Edmond North’s Cam Bohnert had a pair of punts for a 32.5-yard average.

Holland Hall’s Seth Hedman had four tackles.

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Ponca City’s Brent Wilson had eight carries for 20 yards and threw for 42 yards on four completions in Emporia State’s 37-26 win over Lincoln (Missouri).

Muskogee’s Shjuan Richardson had seven catches for 66 yards and Ponca City’s Adam Schlitz had two catches for 36 yards. Richardson also had a pair of kickoff returns.

Midwest City’s Kevin Gaddis returned a kick 27 yards.

McGuinness’ Chris Poston had five tackles. Del City’s Jeff Richards had an interception, a pass breakup and a quarterback hurry. Luther’s Justin Wilson had one tackle.

Norman North’s Lance Uhles and Collinsville’s Trey Rodgers started on the offensive line for Emporia State.

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Bartlesville’s Kirby Schoenthaler had a pair of catches for 14 yards and Muskogee’s Victor Williams had an eight-yard reception in Dartmouth’s 28-21 loss to Penn.

Schoenthaler also returned three kicks for 72 yards.

Verdigris’ Cohle Fowler started on the offensive line for Dartmouth.

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Norman North’s Beau Traber had eight tackles in Bucknell’s 15-10 loss to Cornell.

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Metro Christian’s Rylan Hess had five tackles in Colorado School of Mines’ 54-28 loss to Western New Mexico.

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Tulsa Union’s Terrell Williams had six tackles and Muskogee’s Robert Thomas had one in Arkansas’ 58-10 loss to Texas A&M.

Broken Arrow’s Alvin Bailey started on the offensive line for the Razorbacks.

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Carl Albert’s David Oku ran for 79 yards and  had three catches for 27 yards in Arkansas State’s 26-13 loss to Western Kentucky.

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McGuinness’ Kris Parham ran for 36 yards and had four catches for 25 yards in Weber State’s 37-13 loss to UC-Davis.

Parham also returned four kickoffs for 76 yards.

Edmond Memorial’s Anthony Morales led Weber State with 11 tackles, including one for a loss. Edmond Santa Fe’s Willie Okwuonu had eight tackles, Edmond Memorial’s David James added four, Edmond Memorial’s Connor Myers had three. Edmond Santa Fe’s Trevor Pletcher had two tackles and a quarterback hurry.

Jenks’ Devin Pugh had a pair of tackles and an interception and Putnam City’s Robbie Diamond had one tackle.

Putnam North’s Josh Booker had one carry. Edmond Santa Fe’s Alex Land started at right guard for Weber State.

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Midwest City’s Ricky Reeves had three tackles and a pair of pass breakups in South Dakota’s 34-31 loss to Illinois State.

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Broken Arrow’s Rowdy Harper started on the offensive line in Houston’s 35-14 win over Rice.

Houston had 608 yards of total offense.

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Marlow’s Colt McCauley started on the offensive line in Southeast Missouri State’s 31-16 win over Jacksonville State.

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Bixby’s Michael Nelson started at wide receiver but had no catches in Missouri Southern’s 35-10 loss to Central Missouri.

Pick one of the five selections from the poll below, or write in your own candidate in the comments section, where you can tell us why your choice deserves Player of the Week honors.

Voting ends at 4 p.m. Tuesday and the results of the poll will appear in Wednesday’s Oklahoman.

So vote, discuss and debate the best performances from Week 5 of the football season around the OKC area.

Here are the candidates:

Cody Chancellor, WR, Bishop McGuinness: Had 359 yards and four touchdowns on six — yes, six — receptions in McGuinness’ 42-32 win over Carl Albert, while playing with a cast protecting his broken left hand.

Tazden Jevons, RB, Dibble: Scored four times, including a 98-yarder, to lift Dibble to its fourth straight win, a 48-15 win over Northeast Thursday night.

Corey Lawrence, WR, Del City: Working double-duty as running back and receiver, Lawrence had 118 rushing yards, 89 receiving yards and three total touchdowns in a win over Ardmore.

London Potts, QB, Millwood: Potts was nearly perfect through the air, going 17-of-19 for 249 yards and four touchdowns in a crucial 48-13 district win over Christian Heritage.

Phillip Sumpter, RB, Edmond Santa Fe: Scored three touchdowns, including the game-winner in overtime against Mustang Friday. Also set up a TD with a fumble recovery from his linebacker position.

PC North defensive back Alex Clark, left, and the rest of the Panther defense will have to stick on its assignments to contain Moore's offense.

I love Thursday night football, especially since there usually isn’t any Tuesday or Wednesday night football. Tonight, we’re back on the field, and that’s a good thing.

I especially love meaningful Thursday night football, and that’s what we’ve got at Putnam City Stadium at 7 tonight.

Putnam City North hosts Moore in a game that is big for both teams, and Point No. 1 will tell you why:

Three Points

1. Season momentum. These two teams have had some rough spots in the first four games, but both could benefit greatly from a win tonight simply because of the need for a good boost going forward. Moore got its first win of the season last week, and has another potential win at home against Lawton Eisenhower next week. If they could snag a win tonight, it should give them some serious good vibes heading into the Ike game, and they could turn this into a three-game win streak with Yukon waiting in Week 7. Then you’re talking about playoff potential. PC North looks like it has the talent to be in the postseason mix already, but its schedule sets up a little differently. They need a win tonight to go into next week’s game at Midwest City with a good mindset. Then the Panthers have a stretch of games late in the season to pick up some more wins and stay in the playoff battle.

2. Assignment football. Moore’s flexbone look is a unique offense to prepare for, and stopping it comes down to patience, structure and tackling more than quickness or athletic ability. PC North faced Edmond North’s stout run game last week, and contained it for a while. Moore poses a different challenge, especially with quarterback Colin Webb’s versatility in the offense. The Panthers have a lot of speed in their defensive back seven, and those guys just have to make sure to stick to their jobs.

3. The Trick Truck. PC North knocked Edmond North on its heels early last week with a couple of big-strike trick plays right out of the gate. If coach Bob Wilson and his staff see the Lions unprepared for something similar, don’t be surprised to see them look for a trick to get some early momentum. My personal favorite is the Annexation of Puerto Rico.

The Pick

PC North 31, Moore 21: This will be a tight one, but I think the Panthers are a little ahead of the Lions right now. Moore coach Todd Watters definitely has the program heading in the right direction, but the Panthers have a strong senior class motivated to get back to the playoffs after missing out the last two years.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Celina, one of Texas’ most storied football programs, will face Perryton at Yukon’s old high school stadium at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

Celina is about 30 miles east of Denton, Texas, in the north-central part of the state, while Perryton is in the northern tip of the Texas panhandle. Meeting in Yukon will be more than a three-hour drive for each team, rather than a nearly seven-hour drive for one school.

Celina administrators contacted Yukon athletic director David Fisher, who spent seven years coaching football in Texas, to see about the possibility of playing the game there.

“I joked with our fans that they better follow our team out to Norman North for a tough game,” Fisher said. “But for the casual football fan interested in seeing a couple of pretty good 3A Texas teams, they can do it in Yukon.”

This year’s game was scheduled for Celina, and the teams are supposed to play at Perryton next year. Fisher said it’s possible they would return to Yukon once again.

For fans interested in seeing a big-time college prospect, Celina’s Jake Raulerson, 6-foot-5, 265 pounds, is committed to Texas, having received offers from Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.

Celina has won eight state championships and once won 68 straight games. The team was featured in the documentary “The Power, Passion and Glory.” Portions of Kenny Chesney’s “Boys of Fall” music video were shot at the school as well.

One-third of Ohio’s Oklahoma connection missed the Bobcats’ game against Norfolk State on Saturday.

Former Norman North quarterback Tyler Tettleton, who had thrown for 781 yards and seven touchdowns without an interception in Ohio’s first three games, was held out with an undisclosed injury.

USA Today reported that Tettleton’s injury was to his abdomen.

With Derrius Vick in Tettleton’s place, though, the Bobcats didn’t skip a beat.

Norman North product Beau Blankenship ran for a touchdown and caught a touchdown pass in Ohio’s 44-10 win over Norfolk State. Blankenship ran for 109 yards, topping 100 yards for the fourth consecutive game.

Guthrie’s Donte’ Foster caught five passes, tying a career high, for 69 yards and two touchdowns, including Ohio’s first less than three minutes into the game. Blankenship’s 24-yard touchdown catch came just three minutes later.

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Carl Albert’s David Oku ran for 92 yards and a pair of touchdowns in Arkansas State’s 56-0 win over Alcorn State. Oku also had a five-yard reception.

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Sequoyah-Tahlequah’s Nathan Stanley hit freshman tight end Taylor Jenkins for a three-yard touchdown pass with 2:39 left to give Southeastern Louisiana a 25-24 upset win over FCS No. 17 McNeese State.

Stanley, a transfer from Ole Miss, was 21 of 35 with 247 yards passing. Stanley also rushed for 29 yards and a touchdown and had a 42-yard punt.

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Millwood’s Davion Pierson, a redshirt freshman, had two tackles and a fumble recovery in TCU’s 27-7 win over Virginia.

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Tulsa Washington’s Michael Doctor had a team-high nine tackles–eight solo–in Oregon State’s 27-20 upset of then-No. 19 UCLA.

Doctor, starting at weakside linebacker, had one tackle for a loss.

Lawton’s Tyrequek Zimmerman, who started at strong safety, added four solo tackles in the upset.

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Midwest City’s Timothy Flanders kept up his big production for Sam Houston State against Central Arkansas.

Flanders ran for  125 yards and a pair of touchdowns and had one reception in the Bearkats’ 24-20 loss in Conway, Ark.

The 100-yard game was Flanders’ 17th of his career at Sam Houston State. He also moved to No. 5 in Southland Conference history in career rushing touchdowns with 39. The conference record is 52.

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Owasso’s Nick Rosa caught a 16-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter to put Drake ahead for good in its 28-25 win over Morehead State. Rosa finished with two catches for 22 yards and an eight-yard kick return.

Edmond North’s Cam Bohnert had three punts for a 34-yard average, including one inside the 20.

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Carl Albert’s Christian Smith had four tackles, including a sack, and Jenks’ Orion Jones had three tackles in Toledo’s 38-28 win over Coastal Carolina.

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Muskogee’s Shjuan Richardson had an 11-yard touchdown catch with less than four minutes left to help seal Emporia State’s 30-20 win over Northeastern State. Richardson had three catches for 53 yards and a 23-yard kick return in the win.

Ponca City’s Adam Schlitz had a three-yard reception, Midwest City’s Kevin Gaddis had 44 return yards and Del City’s Jeff Richards had a 23-yard kick return.

McGuinness’ Chris Poston had eight tackles, Alva’s Derek Lohmann, Gaddis and Richards had five each and Luther’s Justin Wilson had two as the Hornets improved to 4-0.

Piedmont’s Jordan McAdoo, Norman North’s Lance Uhles and Collinsville’s Trey Rodgers started on the offensive line, which helped Emporia State post 452 yards of total offense.

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A week after being part of Pittsburgh’s upset over Virginia Tech, the Panthers rolled to a 55-10 win over Gardner-Webb.

Tulsa Washington’s Isaac Bennett scored Pitt’s final two touchdowns in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter. Bennett ran for 52 yards.

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This one has been covered a bit but Tulsa Washington’s Tyler Lockett had four catches for 37 yards and Jenks’ Tramaine Thompson had three catches for 49 yards in Kansas State’s 24-19 upset at Oklahoma.

Thompson had a third-down reception for a first down on each of Kansas State’s final two drives.

Thompson and Lockett each had one rushing attempt as well as a kickoff return each.

Tulsa Washington’s Dante Barnett had one tackle, while fellow Hornet Keenan Taylor started on the offensive line.

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Carl Albert’s Joe Stoner had four tackles in New Mexico’s 27-14 win over rival New Mexico State. Stoner also recovered a fumble and had a pass break up. The recovery was the sixth of Stoner’s career.

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Glenpool’s Israel Maselera returned a punt for a touchdown to start Pittsburg State’s 59-17 win over Lincoln.

Sand Springs’ Darrack Harger ran for 12 yards and threw for 34 yards.

Sand Springs’ Tyler Smith started at left guard.

Defensively, Tulsa East Central’s Dino Teague had five tackles, Tulsa Washington’s Aries Herrion and Catoosa’s Joe Uzzel had two each. Sand Springs’ Matt Anderson and Maselera had one tackle.

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Tulsa Kelley’s Mark Hayes had a 10-yard touchdown reception but Princeton fell 21-20 to Georgetown. The catch was Hayes’ only reception.

Lincoln Christian’s Roman Wilson had two catches for a team-high 62 yards.

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Heritage Hall’s Turner Petersen scored on a 30-yard run in the first quarter of Rice’s eventual 54-51 loss to Marshall in double overtime.

Petersen had 16 carries for 76 yards on the ground and caught a pair of passes for 20 yards.

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McGuinness’ Kris Parham is a running back but his biggest play in Weber State’s 32-26 loss to Eastern Washington was a pass.

Parham threw a 33-yard completion in the second quarter. He finished with 31 yards rushing on three carries and had a pair of kick returns. Putnam North’s Josh Booker had a single four-yard carry.

Edmond Santa Fe’s Trevor Pletcher caught a late two-point conversion pass.

Defensively, Edmond Memorial’s Anthony Morales led the Wildcats with 16 tackles, three for loss. Another former Bulldogs standout, David James, added six tackles, as did Jenks’ Devin Pugh. Pletcher also had three tackles.

Putnam City’s Robbie Diamond, Edmond Memorial’s Connor Myers and Edmond Santa Fe’s Alex Land had a tackle each.

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Lawton’s Sonny Puletasi had a pair of tackles, including a sack for 11 yards, in Wyoming’s 40-37 overtime win over Idaho.

Puletasi’s sack came in the closing seconds of the first half and he both forced and recovered a fumble on the play.

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Midwest City’s Ricky Reeves had a tackle in South Dakota’s 38-7 loss to Northwestern.

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Edmond Santa Fe’s Randy Ponder had seven tackles in Missouri’s 31-10 loss to South Carolina.

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Verdigris’ Cohle Fowler started on the offensive line for Dartmouth in its 13-10 win over Holy Cross. Bartlesville’s Kirby Schoenthaler had one two-yard reception in the win.

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Tulsa Union’s Terrell Williams had 12 tackles, one for a loss, in Arkansas’ 35-26 loss to Rutgers.

Muskogee’s Robert Thomas added four tackles and Tulsa Washington’s Eric Bennett three.

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Glenpool’s Codey Zickefoose had five tackles in Arkansas Tech’s 31-24 loss to Ouachita Baptist. Glenpool’s Tim Van Orsdol started on the offensive line for the Wonder Boys.

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Tonkawa’s Jake Love and Tulsa Washington’s John Williams had two tackles each in Kansas’ 30-23 loss to Northern Illinois. Owasso’s Gavin Howard started on the offensive line.

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Muskogee’s Vernon Scott had 14 yards rushing and a reception in Missouri State’s 14-6 loss to Southern Illinois.

Norman North’s Nick Canavan had five tackles and Tulsa Union’s Howard Scarborough had four in the loss.

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Norman North’s Beau Traber had four tackles–assisting on a sack–in Bucknell’s 20-14 loss to Lafayette.

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Idabel’s Kevin Rucker had a tackle in Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s 24-21 win over Alabama State.

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Metro Christian’s Rylan Hess had three tackles and a pass breakup in Colorado School of Mines’ 42-37 loss to New Mexico Highlands.

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Marlow’s Colt McCauley started on the offensive line for Southeast Missouri State in its 41-38 overtime win over Tennessee Tech.

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Mustang’s Kyle Webster had two pass attempts with no completions and had 16 yards rushing in Missouri Southern’s 16-13 loss to Southwest Baptist. Bixby’s Michael Nelson had one carry for a seven-yard loss.

Rhodes was selected as an offensive lineman and Chance a defensive lineman. The players were selected for the game from a combine in Arlington, Texas, earlier this year.

The game will be played at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Raymond James Stadium.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Friday night’s 41-3 win over Newcastle was more of the same, with the running back duo of Morgan Neal and Jesse Gregory helping to produce 260 rush yards on just 31 carries and three touchdowns between them.

While the Tigers aren’t passing a lot, they’re making it count when they do.

“We’ve had a high completion percentage and a high ratio of touchdowns when we throw,” coach Phil Koons said. “We know people are gonna crowd the line of scrimmage on us, so we’ve got to be effective when we throw the ball.”

Defensively, the Tigers have been getting good leadership from players like Dawson Bassett, Jon-Michael Hollarn and Tanner Brannon.

Despite the easy work the Tigers have made of their schedule through four weeks, Koons isn’t going to let his players relax.

“I’m a little bit of a perfectionist,” he said with a laugh. “I’m not satisfied with winning a few games early in the year. I want us to win all of them. Class 3A is as competitive a class as there is, so we know there will be some good teams there at the end. We want to be one of them.”

The Millers showed the offensive firepower that has made them a playoff team the last three years, with quarterback Hayden Somerville completing 28 of 33 passes for 340 yards and five touchdowns.

He found senior wideout Codey Sanchez 12 times for 186 yards and three scores.

“We had a tough non-district schedule and we felt we should’ve won a couple of those games,” Sanchez said. “We’ve been talking about how district wins are what get you to the playoffs. We’re trying to get there and we think we can do it. This was a good game to start district and I think it gave us some momentum.”

The Millers face a couple of tough road tests next, with games at Norman North and Edmond North in the next two weeks.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Pick one of the five selections from the poll below, or write in your own candidate in the comments section, where you can tell us why your choice deserves Player of the Week honors.

Voting ends at 4 p.m. Tuesday and the results of the poll will appear in Wednesday’s Oklahoman.

Here are the candidates:

Brandon Carlton, RB, Bridge Creek: Carlton powered Bridge Creek to 428 total rushing yards and scored four touchdowns, including a pair of fourth-quarter scores to seal the 41-35 win over Mount St. Mary.

Colton Hamel, WR, Destiny Christian: Snagged four touchdown passes as Destiny Christian racked up 418 passing yards and 712 total in a 50-42 win over Corn Bible.

Justice Hansen, QB, Edmond Santa Fe: Passed for 272 yards, rushed for 103 and accounted for seven total TDs — five passing and two rushing — in the Wolves’ 53-37 win over Southmoore.

Zach Long, QB, Norman: Long rushed for 159 yards and three touchdowns on 13 carries and threw a 28-yard touchdown pass as Norman piled up 511 total yards in a 56-35 win over Mustang.

Jon McBride, QB, Del City: Rushed for two touchdowns and threw two scoring passes as the Eagles shocked third-ranked Lawton MacArthur 41-18.

Can Norman running back Imond Robinson keep the Tiger offense moving again this week?

It’s hard to talk about the importance of a particular district game when neither team has played one yet, and there’s a ton of time to make up for early miscues. But I think six weeks from now, Mustang and Norman will look back at tonight’s game and see just how important it was in their postseason pursuits.

I haven’t seen Norman since the Week 1 opener against Norman North, and it appears they’ve continued to improve since that tough loss. Mustang has obviously been sharp in winning its first three games to move into the top 10.

Three Points

1. Road ‘D’. Mustang’s worst defensive performance of the year came in its only road game, giving up 28 points at Yukon. In two home games since, the Broncos essentially gave up no points when it mattered. Stillwater got on the board in the second half last week, but the game was well in hand by then. Can the Mustang defense keep it up outside Bronco Stadium?

2. Ground pounding. Running the ball will be important for both teams tonight, but for different reasons. Norman is most successful when it runs the ball well. Mustang needs to run the ball to keep the passing game open for Frankie Edwards — and he’ll do a lot of the running himself, too. Norman RB Imond Robinson was big against Yukon last week, and the Tigers will need a consistent run game to win tonight.

3. Frankie containment. I’m not ready to say Edwards is the best QB Mustang has had in the last 10 years since they’ve gone to the spread and started scoring like crazy. But as far as dual-threat guys go, only Kyle Webster has matched the skills we’ve seen from Edwards so far. If he has a big night tonight like he did against Stillwater last week, mark down ‘W’ No. 4 for the Broncos.

The Pick

Mustang 35, Norman 31: If you thought I’d pick against Mustang again this week, you haven’t been paying attention. They’ve burned me twice in a row, so I’m on board now. The score isn’t an indictment on Mustang’s defense, but I think Norman is the best offense they’ve seen so far. And I think this game will get into a bit of a shootout, because both teams have big-play threats.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Millwood quarterback London Potts threw three touchdown passes in the Falcons' 40-12 win over Prime Prep last Friday. Prime Prep is looking for more opportunities to play Oklahoma teams this season.

Deion Sanders said he contacted former Oklahoma and Dallas Cowboys coach Barry Switzer to help him find opponents for his new Dallas-area high school team, Prime Prep Academy, which is how he was able to line up last week’s game at Millwood.

Now, Sanders is looking for more.

With his team unable to compete in district play in Texas, Sanders is welcoming to the idea of returning to Oklahoma for more games this season.

Prime Prep is not allowed to play games against teams that are part of the University Interscholastic League, Texas’ version of the OSSAA. So they’re in need outside opponents.

In addition to Millwood, which won 40-12 Friday, Prime Prep has played two Texas teams that are part of a private-school league outside the UIL. Sanders said that based on student population, Prime Prep qualified for Class 2A in Texas, though they opted to be in a 3A district.

“We’re willing to come back,” Sanders said. “I think the whole month of October is open.

“We’re not stacking the deck, you can see that. We’re 0-3. We’re just trying to get these guys games to allow them to do what they’re gifted to do.

“Anybody, if you’re out there, please give our babies a game. We just want these kids to play and have a good time.”

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Putnam City (2-1) is one of Class 6A’s top rushing teams through three games, averaging 359.7 yards per game coming off a 46-21 win at Choctaw Friday. Leading the charge is senior quarterback Devin White and junior running back Javone Knox, the younger brother of last year’s Pirate star Casey Curtis.

Behind an offensive line that has been on point recently, White and Knox are averaging better than 10 yards per carry. Knox has 433 yards and nine touchdowns on 47 carries, while White has added 354 yards and four touchdowns on 30 attempts.

White hasn’t needed to throw much in the Pirates’ last two blowout wins, but for the year, he’s 15-of-34 for 192 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Placed in an east-side district for the first time in recent history, the Pirates head into district play at Sapulpa Friday.

“I thought it would be a game we’d have to play extremely well to win,” Roof said. “It was one of those nights when everything went our way. Washington is better than the score indicates.”

Roof was particularly happy with the defense against Washington’s option offense.

“Against the option, you’ve got to be disciplined and stay on your assignment,” he said. “I was really proud of the way they played — definitely much better than the last couple weeks. And we tackled better, too.”

Sophomore quarterback Kyle Duke rushed for 101 yards and completed seven of 11 passes for 150 yards. Junior running back Dorien Jackson stepped in after starter Tino Vann rolled his ankle early in the game.

“Dorien jumped right in there,” Roof said. “I was really proud of the way he stepped up.”

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

The struggles and triumphs of area public schools have been a frequent topic in The Oklahoman through the years. Here are a few of those stories: (Note: Some of the coaches, athletes administrators featured have moved on since the stories were originally written.)

Northwest Classen off to hot start

Sept. 2012  —  None of the players on this year’s team was alive the last time Northwest Classen was 2-0. That was 20 years ago, when the Knights opened with wins over Northeast and U.S. Grant before losing to Capitol Hill.

State Rep. Richard Morrissette brings in Joe Washington to motivate Capitol Hill football team

Oct. 2011  —  After watching Capitol Hill’s 52-0 loss to Ardmore on Oct. 13, Oklahoma State Rep. Richard Morrissette decided he’d had enough. He arranged for the team to tour the state capitol building on Thursday and got Oklahoma legend Joe Washington to speak to the players.
Putnam City West food pantry strives to help high school students battling hunger

Sept. 2011  —  Then-Putnam City West football coach John Jensen, along with fellow coaches, established a small pantry for athletes after noticing a problem of hunger and injuries among players.

U.S. Grant faces an uphill climb in Class 6A

Aug. 2011  —  U.S. Grant is the only Oklahoma City Public School (or Tulsa Public School) in Class 6A. A school with all the challenges of the inner city – large dropout rates, often lack of parental involvement, minimal community support – faces one well-established football program after another. Lawton High. Mustang. Edmond North. Westmoore. Putnam City.

High school coaches know instilling pride is key to turning around a program

Aug. 2011  —  Several of the city area’s struggling football programs have new coaches this season, with new enthusiasm for turning their team around. But most of them seem to know that coaching isn’t among their primary tasks in building a winning football team at places such as Western Heights, Northeast, Northwest Classen, Capitol Hill or U.S. Grant.

Star Spencer’s championship game win over Douglass a night of hoping and believing

Dec. 2009  —  Star Spencer beat Douglass 34-21 in the Class 4A state championship game Saturday night, giving Oklahoma City Public Schools its first football title in 14 years. In a class with perennial powers Weatherford, Bishop McGuinness and Glenpool, the gold trophy is going home with one of the forgottens. One of the schools with inferior facilities and little hope.

The Pride of OKC: Douglass and Star Spencer will meet in a state title game

Dec. 2009  —  In both the Douglass and Spencer communities, people are excited. Not only are the teams playing for the state title, but they’re playing against each other — which is the first time in state football playoff history that two Oklahoma City Public Schools’ teams have met in a championship game. Now, for the first time since John Marshall won the 1995 Class 5A title, the Oklahoma City Public Schools is guaranteed of having a state football champion.

The Future of Athletics for OKCPS

Aug. 2009  —  District athletic director Phil Ingersoll has a plan to make OKC schools more competitive in football.

Home disadvantage for OKCPS teams

Aug. 2009  —  As a football player in the Oklahoma City Public Schools, Ken Berry doesn’t envy the things that other teams have. That might surprise those outside the inner-city schools, but the district has increased its commitment to football and upgraded uniforms, equipment, even facilities in recent years. The locker room that Berry and his teammates use is only a couple years old, thanks to MAPS for Kids, while the No. 22 jersey that the standout linebacker will wear on Friday nights is only a year old. Berry wants for nothing. Except wins.

Coaches at Oklahoma City Public Schools face big hurdles

Aug. 2009  —  Terrell Love admits it won’t be an easy job. The new football coach at U.S. Grant understands the challenges that lie ahead if he’s to help turn the Generals around.

Pick one of the five selections from the poll below, or write in your own candidate in the comments section, where you can tell us why your choice deserves Player of the Week honors.

Voting ends at 4 p.m. Tuesday and the results of the poll will appear in Wednesday’s Oklahoman.

So cast your vote, discuss and debate the best performance from Week Three:

Randal Case, WR, Jones: Caught a pair of 22-yard TD passes from QB David Cornwell, rushed for a score and picked up a blocked field goal to run in for a score as Jones nipped OCS 26-25.

Frankie Edwards, QB, Mustang: Threw for 203 yards and three touchdowns, and rushed for another 152 yards to lift the Broncos to a 36-14 romp over upstart Stillwater.

John Jacobs, QB, Shawnee: Surpassed the 200-yard mark both rushing and passing, also throwing four TD passes to Theo Berryas the Wolves came back to beat Ponca City for coach Billy Brown’s 150th career victory.

Austin Loomis, LB, Deer Creek: By this point, many players would be happy to have 30 tackles for the season. Loomis had that many Thursday night in the Antlers’ win over Edmond Memorial.

Trevor Moore, K, Edmond North: With four field goals, including a long of 42 yards, and two extra points, Moore outscored Edmond Santa Fe himself in the Huskies’ Edlam upset.

A look at how Oklahoma high school alums fared in out-of-state college action over the weekend:

A week before Kansas State comes to Norman, a couple of former Oklahoma high school stars turned in big performances in the WIldcats’ 35-21 win over North Texas on Saturday night.

The Mean Green took a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter when former Tulsa Washington standout Tyler Lockett returned the kick 96 yards to tie the game up.

The next two Kansas State touchdowns were scored by former Jenks standout Tramaine Thompson–one from 38 yards out and the other from 21.

Thompson finished with five catches for 102 yards. Lockett added another 23-yard kick return and a six-yard catch.

Tulsa Washington’s Keenan Taylor started on the offensive line for Kansas State. Dante Barnett (Tulsa Washington), Andre McDonald (Choctaw) and Zach Trujillo (Deer Creek) played but didn’t record any stats in the win.

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This is becoming a weekly staple but once again the Oklahoma connection paid off for Ohio. Norman North’s Tyler Tettleton threw for 200 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 35 yards, former Timberwolves standout Beau Blankenship ran for 102 yards and Guthrie’s Donte’ Foster had three catches for 30 yards in the Bobcats’ 27-24 come-from-behind win over Marshall.

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Former Tulsa Washington standout Isaac Bennett had two rushes for eight yards and two catches for 14 yards in Pittsburgh’s 35-17 upset of Virginia Tech.

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Not much positive came out of Arkansas’ 52-0 blowout at the hands of Alabama.
Former McGuinness standout kicker Cameron Bryan came up with a nice play on special teams, sprinting down and downing a punt inside the 5 in the first half.

Bryan handled kickoff duties in eight games for Arkansas in 2009 but after Zach Hocker continued to solidify himself in the kicker roll just prior to the season, Brayn asked to be given a chance to play on kick coverage.

You can read more about him here: http://newsok.com/mcguinness-product-cameron-bryan-joins-arkansas-kickoff-coverage-team/article/3707537

Tulsa Washington’s Eric Bennett had six tackles, Tulsa Union’s Terrell Williams had one and Muskogee’s Robert Thomas had a pair of quarterback hurries.

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Former Tulsa Central standout Demarco Cobbs had four tackles and Millwood’s Josh Turner had three tackles in Texas’ 66-31 win at Ole Miss. Cobbs got the start at strongside linebacker.

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Former Carl Albert star David Oku ran for 44 yards and had 11 yards receiving in Arkansas State’s 42-13 loss to Nebraska.

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Carl Albert’s Christian Smith had three tackles and Jenks’ Orion Jones had one in Toledo’s 27-15 win over Bowling Green.

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Metro Christian’s Rylan Hess had four tackles in Colorado School of Mines’ 42-19 win over Black Hills State. Hess also had a blocked pass.

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NCAA Division II No. 1 Pittsburg State beat Southwest Baptist 52-9 on Saturday with the help of a few Oklahomans.
Catoosa’s Joe Uzzel had three tackles and Israel Maselera and Dino Teague (Tulsa East Central) had two tackles. Teague had a sack. Darrack Harger (Sand Springs) was 2-for 3 with 18 yards passing and rushed for -6 yards.
Uzzel started at defensive end, while Collinsville’s Chance Riley started at tight end and Sand Springs’ Tyler Smith at left guard.

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Former Millwood star Davion Pierson continues to impress at Texas Christian. Pierson started and had five tackles–1.5 for loss (0.5 sacks)–in TCU’s 20-6 win over Kansas.
Tulsa Washington’s John Williams had three tackles for Kansas. Owasso’s Gavin Howard started on the offensive line for the Jayhawks.

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Timothy Flanders, a former Midwest City star, scored a touchdown late in the first half as Sam Houston State built a lead on Baylor. But the Bears came back to win 48-23. Flanders ran for 84 yards and had another 56 yards receiving in the loss. Former Norman North standout K.J. Williams played for SHSU as well.

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Lawton Sonny Puletasi usually starts for Wyoming at defensive end but made a mark on the other side Saturday, catching a two-point conversion pass in the second quarter of the Cowboys’ game against Cal Poly. It wasn’t enough, though, as Wyoming fell 24-22. Puletasi had three tackles, while Tulsa Washington’s T.J. Smith saw time for Wyoming as well.

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Cayman Bundage, a freshman out of Douglass, didn’t start but saw playing time in Arizona’s 56-0 blowout of South Carolina State. Owasso’s Trent Spurgeon played for the Wildcats as well.

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Brandon Swindall, a Millwood product, played for Utah State as the Aggies nearly pulled off a second consecutive upset, before falling to Wisconsin 16-14.

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McGuinness’ Kris Parham ran for 23 yards and Putnam North’s Josh Booker ran for 9 in Weber State’s 35-21 loss to McNeese State. Parham also had 72 kickoff return yards on three chances. Edmond Santa Fe’s Willie Okwuonu led Weber State with nine tackles–all solo–in the loss. Edmond Memorial’s Anthony Morales had 6.5 tackles, Edmond Memorial’s David James had three, Edmond Santa Fe’s Trevor Pletcher had two, and Putnam City’s Robbie Diamond, Jenks’ Devin Pugh and Edmond Memorial’s Connor Myers had one each.

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Bartlesville’s Kirby Schoenthaler had three catches for 27 yards in Dartmouth’s season-opening 35-7 win over Butler. Muskogee freshman Victor Williams had a carry for three yards and two catches for five yards. Tulsa Union’s Corbin Stall had a sack. Verdigris’ Cohle Fowler started on the offensive line.

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Former Muskogee standout Shjuan Richardson had seven catches for 100 yards and three touchdowns in Emporia State’s 42-14 win over UCO. Ponca City’s Adam Schlitz had four catches for 48 yards and Ponca City’s Brent Wilson had two runs for eight yards in the win.

McGuinness’ Chris Poston had three tackles and an interception, Alva’s Derek Lohmann and Midwest City’s Kevin Gaddis each had five tackles and a forced fumble, Del City’s Jeff Richards had five tackles and Luther’s Justin Wilson had a pair of tackles. Norman North’s Lance Uhles, Collinsville’s Trey Rodgers and Piedmont’s Jordan McAdoo all started on the offensive line as Emporia State racked up 538 yards of total offense. Northwest’s Andre Maupin and Broken Arrow’s Josh Moses also played.

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Lincoln Christian’s Roman Wilson caught a two-point conversion pass with about five minutes left to lift Princeton to within three but Princeton fell to Lehigh 17-14. Wilson had four catches for 40 yards to lead Princeton in receiving and added a 23-yard catch. Tulsa Kelley’s Mark Hayes started at tight end for Princeton while fellow Comet Michael Major saw action.

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Muskogee’s Vernon Scott ran for 46 yards and a touchdown, caught one pass and returned a kick in Missouri State’s 28-23 loss to Murray State. Norman North’s Nick Canavan had seven tackles and Tulsa Union’s Howard Scarborough added three in the loss. Jenks’ Ryan Boatright, Star Spencer’s Jason Fitch and Edmond Santa Fe’s Tre Kelley also saw time for Missouri State.

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Former Heritage Hall star Turner Petersen ran for 47 yards and had 13 yards receiving in the Owls’ 56-37 loss to Louisiana Tech.

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Carl Albert’s Joe Stoner had five tackles in New Mexico’s 49-14 loss to Texas Tech. Another former Titan, Tre’ Porter, played for Texas Tech but did not record any statistics.

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Norman North’s Beau Traber had six tackles in Bucknell’s 19-3 loss to Delaware.

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Owasso’s Jacques Washington had a pair of tackles in Iowa State’s 37-3 win over Western Illinois. Washington started at free safety. Jenks’ Bob Graham also saw time on the offensive line.

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Edmond Santa Fe’s Randy Ponder had five tackles in the Missouri’s 24-20 win over Arizona State. Edmond North’s Xavier Smith had one. Guthrie’s Kentrell Brothers also saw time.

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Owasso’s Nick Rosa scored on a seven-yard touchdown pass and finished with five catches for 60 yards in Drake’s 27-10 loss to Indiana State. Holland Hall’s Seth Hedman had five tackles.

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Bixby’s Michael Nelson had a nine-yard catch in Missouri Southern’s 21-14 win over Lincoln (Mo.). Norman North’s Riley Nolan also played in the win.

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Broken Arrow’s Rowdy Harper started on the offensive line for Houston in the Cougars’ 37-6 loss to UCLA. Norman’s Zach Johnson also saw time.

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Marlow’s Colt McCauley started at left guard for Southeast Missouri in its 35-14 loss to Southern Illinois.

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Glenpool’s Codey Zickefoose, who started at linebacker, had a tackle in Arkansas Tech’s 73-34 loss to Henderson State. Glenpool’s Tim VanOrsdol started at left tackle.

Know someone I missed? Let me know in the comments or with an e-mail.

I haven’t done this the first two weeks because the rankings have been a mess. It’s hard to tell how much a win means through the first couple of weeks of the season. But here it is for this week. Disagree? Think I’m nuts for putting a team too high or too low in your mind? Let me know. The only thing I ask is for a reason why your team should be higher or another team should be lower.

I’ve never been one to conform to the way some rankings change. If a team in the class loses to No. 1 and No. 2, they could still very well be No. 3.

CLASS 6A
1. Tulsa Union (1)#2-1
2. Broken Arrow (2)#1-2
3. Jenks (3)#1-2
4. Lawton (5)#3-0
5. Edmond North (7)#3-0
6. Owasso (6)#0-2
7. Southmoore (10)#3-0
8. Edmond Santa Fe (4)#2-1
9. Mustang (NR)#3-0
10. Westmoore (NR)#2-1

Stillwater and Norman North fall out after losses this week, replaced by newcomer Mustang, who throttled Stillwater and Westmoore, who dropped out last week after losing to Southmoore. Lawton moves up one spot after Edmond North beat Edmond Santa Fe, while North moves up two spots to No. 5. Owasso is 0-2 officially but should be 1-2 after they were handling Muskogee 28-0 before the game was called in Week 2. The Rams are still one of the best teams in the state but had a difficult non-district schedule. Same goes for Broken Arrow and Jenks.

CLASS 5A
1. Guthrie (1)#3-0
2. Tulsa East Central (2)#3-0
3. Lawton MacArthur (3)#2-1
4. Deer Creek (4)#3-0
5. Bishop McGuinness (6)#3-0
6. Tulsa Kelley (NR)#1-2
7. Coweta (5)#2-1
8. Carl Albert (9)#1-2
9. Claremore (NR)#3-0
10. Tulsa Memorial (NR)#3-0

The top four all remain the same. The only loss in the top 5 is Lawton MacArthur’s loss last week to Lawton, one of the top teams in 6A. McGuinness continues to impress in its first season in Class 5A, with a blowout win over Weatherford before it opens district play next week vs. El Reno. Carl Albert justified its continued ranking despite its record with a 31-10 win over previously No. 8 Duncan. Tulsa Kelley, who had losses to Class 6A Bartlesville and to McGuinness coming in, knocked off Coweta to move back into the rankings. Coweta stays in at No. 7, a spot ahead of Carl Albert. Claremore makes an appearance after knocking off McAlester in overtime, while Tulsa Memorial also slides in after its 3-0 start. McAlester, Duncan and Ardmore slide out though all three could find their way back into the top 10 soon.

CLASS 4A
1. Wagoner (1)#2-1
2. Clinton (2)#2-1
3. Cascia Hall (3)#3-0
4. Sallisaw (4)#2-1
5. Ada (5)#3-0
6. Douglass (6)#1-2
7. Anadarko (7)#3-0
8. Glenpool (9)#1-2
9. Fort Gibson (10)#3-0
10. Poteau (NR)#3-0

The top part here remains the same after the top seven all won this week. No. 8 Broken Bow fell to 3A Metro Christian, opening things up for a new entrant. Poteau takes the spot by virtue of its wins at Durant and at Van Buren, Ark., especially. The Pirates just edge Tulsa McLain, who got by Tulsa Central this week. Glenpool picked up its first win, starting to justify its continued ranking with a 27-7 win over Sperry. Glenpool had lost to Berryhill and Cascia Hall to start the season.

CLASS 3A
1. Kingfisher (1)#3-0
2. Tuttle (2)#3-0
3. Berryhill (3)#3-0
4. Seminole (4)#2-0
5. Sequoyah-Claremore (6)#2-1
6. Blanchard (9)#3-0
7. Metro Christian (8)#2-1
8. Victory Christian (NR)#3-0
9. Sequoyah-Tahlequah (5)#1-1
10. Verdigris (NR)#3-0

Easy at the top, tough on the bottom. The top four teams won and Sequoyah-Claremore sliding up past Sequoyah-Tahlequah was a no brainer. After that, though, things get complicated. Blanchard jumps Metro Christian for the overall strength of their resume to this point, having won three games pretty handily so far. Victory Christian moves into the rankings after their stunning come-from-behind win over Sequoyah-Tahlequah. The Indians fall four spots to No. 9, just behind Victory. Verdigris is the other newcomer, winning out over other candidates like Lincoln Christian (2-1), Plainview (2-1), Purcell (2-1), Jones (2-1) and others based on the way they’ve blown out each of their opponents thus far. Perkins dropped out after its loss to Verdigris.

CLASS 2A
1. Millwood (1)#3-0
2. Vian (2)#3-0
3. Davis (3)#3-0
4. Frederick (5)#3-0
5. Hennessey (4)#1-2
6. Stroud (7)#2-1
7. Lindsay (8)#2-1
8. OCS (6)#2-1
9. Adair (9)#3-0
10. Commerce (NR)#2-1

Let’s start at the bottom first. When I put together last week’s rankings, the score in front of me included Commerce getting hammered. Turned out, the score was reported backwards, and Commerce blew away its opponent. They did the same thing last night to yet another out-of-state opponent. They finally play an Oklahoma team this week when they take on Wyandotte. Hennessey’s loss to Kingfisher isn’t anything to be ashamed of as the Yellowjackets are No. 1 in 3A. They are passed, though, be Frederick, which has scored at least 55 points in each game and has outscored its opponents 194-34 through three games. Stroud and Lindsay move up one spot, jumping OCS. The Saints remain at No. 8 after falling to Jones by one point. Caney Valley, Coalgate, Haskell, Hinton are undefeated and just outside the top 10.

CLASS A
1. Wynnewood (1)#3-0
2. Wayne (2)#3-0
3. Thomas (3)#3-0
4. Texhoma (5)#2-0
5. Cashion (6)#3-0
6. Crescent (7)#3-0
7. Morrison (8)#2-1
8. Minco (9)#2-1
9. Hollis (10)#3-0
10. Kiefer (NR)#3-0

Ringling’s going to be all right but after starting 0-2 with a bye week, it had to fall out of the rankings. There’s simply too many solid teams in Class A not to. Texhoma, Cashion, Crescent, Morrison, Minco and Hollis each move up a spot after wins. The newcomer is Kiefer, which has three shutouts to start the season, winning by a combined 104-0. Talihina, Okeene and Ringling are just outside the top 10.

CLASS B
1. Laverne (1)#3-0
2. Wetumka (3)#3-0
3. Pond Creek-Hunter (4)#3-0
4. Dewar (5)#3-0
5. Garber (6)#3-0
6. Fox (8)#3-0
7. Davenport (2)#2-1
8. Rejoice Christian (NR)#2-1
9. Covington-Douglas (7)#1-2
10. Alex (10)#2-1

The question here was how far Davenport fell after losing to Wetumka. Dropped them below the other undefeated ranked teams. Through about keeping them ahead of Fox but the Foxes have a more impressive resume to this point. Rejoice Christian moves in for the first time after a big win over Coyle. Rejoice Christian’s lone loss came to No. 4 Dewar by just 10 points. Rejoice also beat Coyle by a larger margin than Covington-Douglas did earlier, earning them the No. 8 spot. Ringwood could move into the rankings soon after pushing Pond Creek-Hunter.

CLASS C
1. Tipton (1)#3-0
2. Cherokee (3)#3-0
3. Forgan (4)#3-0
4. Ryan (5)#3-0
5. Sharon-Mutual (6)#2-1
6. Deer Creek-Lamont (7)#2-1
7. Webbers Falls (8)#3-0
8. Shattuck (2)#1-2
9. Thackerville (9)#1-1
10. Maud (NR)#3-0

The biggest heartburn here came in the last spot, where it came down to 1-2 Timberlake and 3-0 Maud. Maud has been impressive, but giving up 50 points to Bowlegs in its opener was a bit concerning. But Maud earns the spot after Timberlake fell to Deer Creek-Lamont. Timberlake has a chance to move back in but a pair of blowout losses in its first two opened things up for Maud. Shattuck falls to No. 8 after losing to Forgan. Not much shifting here outside of those teams.

Seminole’s Mike Snyder became the third football coach in state history to win 300 games with the Chieftains’ win over McLoud on Friday.

Snyder has some work to go to catch up to No. 1, though.

The National Federation of State High School Associations record book is incomplete. The book lists Bruce Hendrickson as winning 301 games in his career at Commerce, Texhoma, Okeene, Seiling and Wynnewood.

Hendrickson continued his career at Cordell and Wewoka, finishing with a state-record 351 victories.

Hendrickson coached against both Snyder and Joe Tunnell, who won 322 games.

“It’s a great milestone for Mike,” Hendrickson said. “Both of those guys are class acts.”

For inclusion in the NFHS record book, an application must be made to the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association, which forwards the information to the NFHS after endorsing it.

Sanders brings his 0-2 team to town coming off a 48-30 loss to Bishop Dunne. Millwood, on the other hand, has knocked off two of its top rivals, Star Spencer and Douglass, to start the season.

Three Points

1. Who is Winning? In case you missed it, Sanders said his team’s mascot is Winning, for what that’s worth. But regardless, it had to be tough for Millwood to scout these guys much. With only two games behind them, Prime Prep is a significant unknown at this point. Millwood’s ability to react to the unexpected will be a major determining factor in the game.

2. Larry or no Larry? The Falcons’ top linebacker and power running back, Larry Lambeth, hasn’t played since injuring his foot in the first game of the season. He could return tonight, or coach Tony Henry could hold him out another week or two. Millwood has another non-district game next week, so it’s most important to have Lambeth healthy for all six district games and beyond. That said, Lambeth’s strong running style would be a big benefit if the weather gets nasty tonight.

3. To the air. Millwood had plenty of success throwing the ball against Douglass last week, but if the weather turns wet, that could be an issue. Still, if QB London Potts can be on point with his shorter throws, his receivers have the ability to turn those into big plays. The key is not giving the ball away, which Potts was very good about last week.

The Pick

Millwood 35, Prime Prep 28: This is really a blind stab in the dark. It’s impossible to know what to expect from Prime Prep, but I’ve seen Millwood up close, and they know how to win.

Things weren’t quite as easy for the group last week as everyone lost at least two games.

Scott Wright: 18-2 (2-0)
Jacob Unruh: 17-3 (2-0)
Ryan Aber: 16-4 (1-1)
Jason Kersey: 15-5 (1-0)

And now for this week’s picks:

SCOTT WRIGHT
Tulsa Union 17, Broken Arrow 14
Edmond Santa Fe 42, Edmond North 31
Jenks 30, Owasso 24
Tulsa East Central 21, Tulsa Washington 14
Duncan 20, Carl Albert 16
Kingfisher 48, Hennessey 28
Christian Heritage 22, Lincoln Christian 17
Norman North 23, Westmoore 20
Shattuck 55, Forgan 49
Stillwater 38, Mustang 35

Lock of the Week: Tulsa East Central over Tulsa Washington. Having seen Booker T. up close in Week 1, I know how talented this team is, but I think East Central puts too many defensive weapons on the field for the Hornets this week.

JACOB UNRUH
Tulsa Union 21, Broken Arrow 18
Edmond Santa Fe 27, Edmond North 14
Jenks 35, Owasso 21
Tulsa East Central 21, Tulsa Washington 20
Carl Albert 24, Duncan 17
Kingfisher 31, Hennessey 21
Christian Heritage 35, Lincoln Christian 28
Norman North 21, Westmoore 17
Shattuck 48, Forgan 42
Stillwater 24, Mustang 21

Lock of the week: Tulsa Union over Broken Arrow. I know Broken Arrow nearly pulled off the upset in last year’s Class 6A title game. The Tigers could even do that Friday night, but I am going with Tulsa Union in a nail-biter. Broken Arrow is without top running back Devon Thomas indefinitely, which is a concern against Tulsa Union.

RYAN ABER
Tulsa Union 28, Broken Arrow 24
Edmond Santa Fe 28, Edmond North 14
Jenks 34, Owasso 7
Tulsa East Central 14, Tulsa Washington 7
Carl Albert 21, Duncan 14
Kingfisher 34, Hennessey 14
Chr. Heritage 27, Lincoln Christian 22
Norman North 24, Westmoore 21
Shattuck 38, Forgan 30
Stillwater 21, Mustang 14

JASON KERSEY
Tulsa Union 34, Broken Arrow 31
Edmond Santa Fe 27, Edmond North 23
Jenks 39, Owasso 20
Tulsa East Central 28, Tulsa Washington 21
Carl Albert 24, Duncan 20
Kingfisher 31, Hennessey 17
Lincoln Christian 34, Christian Heritage 24
Norman North 21, Westmoore 20
Shattuck 35, Forgan 31
Stillwater 20, Mustang 14

Lock of the week: Kingfisher over Hennessey. Jeff Myers’ bunch is hot
right now – with Landon Nault running wild – and Hennessey is struggling
in its first season in the post-Shannon Watford era.

That’s the question everyone wants to know, right after they ask how Stillwater got so good. Let’s discuss.

Three Points

1. Keeping it up. Is Stillwater for real, or is this just a super-hot start before they come back to earth? Considering the expectations for the Pioneers before the season, their blowout win over McAlester and upset of Midwest City have been a couple of the season’s biggest shockers so far, especially considering the amount of firepower this team lost from last year’s squad. But Tucker Barnard has proven that he’s a good coach. Remember, Stillwater went 8-3 under Barnard last year with all the same kids who went 1-9 without him the year before. So it seems fair to assume Stillwater is better than most of us expected, but just how good are they? That’s still unanswered.

2. Deeeee-Fense. Stillwater’s playing pretty darn well on that side of the ball, holding McAlester and Midwest City to 18 points apiece. And Mustang is coming off a shutout of Putnam City North, so the Broncos ain’t too shabby over there either. But both teams have shown they’re capable of posting big offensive numbers, too. So it’s likely to come down to big defensive plays. Whoever makes the most should win.

3.  Weather or not. Trying to predict Friday night’s weather is like… well, it’s like trying to be a weatherman in Oklahoma any other day (except July, when you only have to guess how many degrees over 100 the temperature will be). Friday night should be cold, it might be wet, and there’ll probably be a little wind. Just how much of each of the three we get will impact the game, and take some of the finesse out of both offenses. Adjusting to the conditions will be an instant advantage.

The Pick

Stillwater 38, Mustang 35: Maybe I’m getting sucked into going with the trendy pick here, but I have a feeling Stillwater is for real. I’m not saying the Pioneers are ready to knock off Union and take the district title, but they could get the No. 2 spot in that district and host a playoff game. Mustang is a playoff team, too, but their district is a little deeper at the top.

NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, the co-coach of the football team at the Dallas-area school he created, Prime Prep Academy, will bring his squad to Millwood for a game at 7 p.m. Friday.

Prime Prep has come under scrutiny over its eligibility to play in games governed by the UIL, Texas’ version of the OSSAA. The school enrolled players from outside its proper boundaries who would not be considered eligible in the first year of the school’s existence, according to reports.

That’s why Prime Prep scheduled Millwood, which originally had a bye this week. Prime Prep had to find opponents outside the UIL, since it could not compete in district play. It opened with a 50-6 loss to Dallas Parish Episcopal on Aug. 31.

Here’s some reading on Prime Prep, in case you’re curious:

Some coaches and players had a run-in with a TV reporter.

The school pulls out of varsity district games in some sports. 

Deion says the team’s nickname is “Winning”

Opposing coach talks to Prime Prep players after beating them 50-6 

Regardless of the circumstances, the Falcons are excited to play in a game that is drawing significant attention in Oklahoma and Texas.

“It’s gonna be a big game,” Millwood junior Quincy Dotson said. “People are gonna be paying attention to it. We’re gonna try our best to be ready for it.”

Millwood coach Tony Henry doesn’t know if he’ll have one of his best players in running back/linebacker Larry Lambeth, who suffered a foot injury in the season opener against Star Spencer.

At the latest, Lambeth hopes to be back for the start of district play in Week 5. The Falcons’ final non-district game is Sept. 21.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

A look back at the weekend in college football involving Oklahoma athletes playing out of state:

Former Carl Albert and Tennessee running back David Oku found a new home at Arkansas State just before fall practices began. Once former Auburn standout Michael Dyer was denied a request for immediate eligibility, Oku immediately shot to the top of the Red Wolves’ depth chart.

Saturday in a 33-28 win over Justin Fuente-coached Memphis, Oku ran for 130 yards and a touchdowns–the game-winner.

Oku also had an 8-yard reception while former Oklahoma signee Josh Jarboe had 101 yards receiving for Gus Malzahn’s team.

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Former Midwest City standout Timothy Flanders became Sam Houston State’s career rushing leader, running for 120 yards and a touchdown in a 54-7 win over Incarnate Word. Flanders now has 2,709 yards for the Bearkats. He also extended his school record for rushing touchdowns to 37. Both of Flanders’ touchdowns came in the first quarter.

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Once again, Oklahoma high school products dominated a win by Ohio, this one a 51-24 win over New Mexico in the Bobcats’ home opener after they beat Penn State a week earlier.

Norman North grad Beau Blankenship rushed for 168 yards and two touchdowns, fellow Timberwolves product Tyler Tettleton threw for 257 yards and two touchdowns and Guthrie’s Donte’ Foster had a team-high five catches for 57 yards and a score.

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A pair of former state standouts played big parts in Oregon State’s 10-7 upset over Wisconsin. Lawton’s Tyrequek Zimmerman had seven tackles, tied for a team high, while Tulsa Washington’s Michael Doctor had three tackles in the win. Both started on defense, Doctor at linebacker and Zimmerman at strong safety. Another Lawton product, Jabral Johnson, saw action for the Beavers.

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Former Tulsa Central star Demarco Cobbs had five tackles and former Millwood standout Josh Turner had two in Texas’ 45-0 win over New Mexico. Carl Albert’s Joe Stoner had three tackles for New Mexico.

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Millwood product Brandon Swindall had a pair of catches for 16 yards in Utah State’s 27-20 win over rival Utah. Another former Falcons standout, Cameron Sanders, had a tackle in the win.

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Tulsa Washington’s Tyler Lockett continues to emerge as a star for Kansas State. Lockett had three catches for 59 yards in the WIldcats’ 52-13 win over Miami. He also had two rushes for 14 yards and returned two kicks for 54 yards. Deer Creek’s Zach Trujillo had a 58-yard catch late in the blowout while Jenks’ Tramaine Thompson had three catches for 57 yards and a 12-yard punt return. Choctaw’s Andre McDonald and Tulsa Washington’s Dante Barnett also saw time.

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Former Millwood standout Davion Pierson started at defensive tackle and had a tackle for a loss in TCU’s 56-0 win over Grambling State. Del City’s Jamelle Naff also saw action for the Horned Frogs. Both are redshirt freshmen.

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Owasso’s Jacques Washington, starting at free safety for Iowa State, had six tackles and a 26-yard interception return in the Cyclones’ 9-6 win over Iowa. Jenks’ Bob Graham also saw time for Iowa State.

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Former Heritage Hall standout Turner Petersen ran for 41 yards and a touchdown in the Owls’ 25-24 win over Kansas. Petersen also had a 14-yard reception. Owasso’s Gavin Howard started on the offensive line for Kansas, while Tonkawa’s Jake Love and Tulsa Washington’s John Williams also saw action.

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Carl Albert product Christian Smith had five tackles, including two for a loss (one sack) in Toledo’s 34-31 win over Wyoming. Jenks’ Orion Jones also saw action for Toledo. Lawton’s Sonny Puletasi started at defensive end for the Cowboys while Tulsa Washington’s T.J. Smith saw action.

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Missouri didn’t have much luck in its SEC opener, losing 41-20 to Georgia but Edmond Santa Fe product Randy Ponder had four tackles. Edmond North’s Xavier Smith and Guthrie’s Kentrell Brothers also saw action.

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Houston lost again, this time 56-49 to Louisiana Tech but Broken Arrow’s Rowdy Harper started on the Cougars’ offensive line that produced 693 yards of total offense.

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Weber State didn’t do much scoring in its 45-13 loss at BYU but both touchdowns came courtesy of Oklahoma products. Putnam City North’s Josh Booker and McGuinness’ Kris Parham each found the end zone on 1-yard runs. Booker finished with 64 yards rushing, while Parham had 15. Booker also had 17 yards receiving while Parham added a 9-yard catch. Parham also had 5 kick returns for 93 yards, including one for 34 yards. On defense, Edmond Santa Fe’s Willie Okwuonu had eight tackles, Jenks’ Devin Pugh had five, Putnam City’s Robbie Diamond had five, Edmond Memorial’s David James had three, Edmond Memorial’s Anthony Morales had two, Edmond Memorial’s Connor Myers had one and Edmond Santa Fe’s Trevor Pletcher had a pass breakup. Edmond Santa Fe’s Alex Land also started on Weber State’s offensive line.

Wind snapped power lines near Speegle Stadium on Friday, so the game had to be moved back one night.

The Generals (1-1) used a strong rushing attack that included Lawrence Pullen racking up 131 yards on 18 carries, with Wesley Sanchez adding 78 yards rushing along with a 37-yard reception.

Sanchez also intercepted two passes, and Kimako Thompson picked off one, returning it for a touchdown. Charles Clawson helped the cause with a pair of quarterback sacks.

U.S. Grant will go for its second straight win at Centennial Friday. The Generals’ last multiple-win season came when they went 4-6 in 2003, their last season in Class 5A.

More of a dual-threat QB than the Bronchos have had the last few years, Duke showed all of his skills to pile up 401 all-purpose yards in Friday’s 38-36 win over Pauls Valley.

He rushed 26 times for 167 yards and three touchdowns, while going 22-of-31 through the air for 234 yards and a touchdown. He added an interception and four tackles from his safety position on defense.

Bethany (1-1) goes on the road for the second straight week for Washington’s home opener on Friday. The Warriors (1-1) are coming off a 28-14 loss at Purcell.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Linebacker Cory Irwins, No. 28 on The Oklahoman’s Super 30 recruit rankings, has yet to play this season after aggravating a previous shoulder injury in the preseason.

Irwins, 6-foot-3, 220 pounds, said he’s hopeful to be cleared by doctors to return to action Monday, and be in the lineup Friday. The Broncos (2-0) host a surprisingly unbeaten Stillwater team coming off a big win over McAlester and an upset of Midwest City in the first two weeks.

Stillwater moved into the top 10 at No. 9 in this week’s Class 6A rankings.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Pick one of the five selections from the poll below, or write in your own candidate in the comments section, where you can tell us why your choice deserves Player of the Week honors. Voting ends at 4 p.m. Tuesday, and the results of the poll will appear in Wednesday’s Oklahoman.

So cast your vote, discuss and debate the best performance from Week Two:

Steffen Funkhouser, TE, Piedmont: Set a single-game school record for receiving yards with 235, pulling in three touchdowns among his 12 catches in a 29-26 win over Harrah.

Louden Johnson, RB, Wayne: Johnson found plenty of ways to score as Wayne avenged its only loss from a year ago, 46-12 over Minco. Johnson scored on a 93-yard fumble return and a 30-yard interception return to go with two rushing TDs.

Colton Lindsey, QB, Christian Heritage: Rushed for two TDs and threw for another, all in the fourth quarter or overtime of a 20-14 win over Mount St. Mary. Also picked off two passes, one in OT.

Alfonso McMillan, WR, Millwood: McMillan caught five passes for 150 yards, with each reception going for at least 23 yards, in the Falcons’ 18-7 Soul Bowl win over Douglass.

Davyn Thompson, RB, Stillwater: Accounted for nearly half of the Pioneers’ total offense with his 104 rushing yards and scored the game-winning touchdown in the week’s biggest upset, 21-18 over Midwest City.

“It’s a huge win,” Weathers said. “Our first district game, on the road. There was a lot going against us. But we played really well.”

Quarterback Ryan Weathers rushed for 136 yards to key the victory against a Woodland program that has been a perennial power in the 11-man ranks in recent years, going 29-1 the last two seasons. This is their first season in 8-man football.

Coyle (1-1) is already preparing for its Week 3 opponent.

“We’ve already distributed tape on Rejoice Christian,” Shane Weathers said. “This was just one win. It’s a huge win, but we’ve got a long ways to go.”

Three Points

1. Trojan blocking. Douglass’ young offensive line got all it could handle from Tulsa Washington last week, but Millwood won’t be able to bring that kind of size in the front seven. However, Millwood might have a little more speed up there, so it will be a different kind of task for the Trojans. They need to establish the run game and protect freshman QB Patrick McKaufman when he tries to throw. They were inconsistent in those areas last week, and it slowed the offense.

2. Falcons in the air. With London Potts at QB, Millwood has a better passing attack this year, to go with a lot of athletic ability at receiver. But the Douglass secondary is one of its strongest areas. If Potts can hit a few big passes early, it will open up the run game for a talented group of RBs.

3. Soul-mentum. The thing that regularly makes the Soul Bowl so great is that neither team can gain enough momentum to get a big lead and put the game away. The opponent always has an answer. If either team should find the strength to do it today, it would surprise me.

The Pick

Douglass 35, Millwood 34: Both teams have more balanced offenses than a year ago, when this was a slugfest of running backs. Look for big plays both on the ground and in the air from each side, and once again, a Soul Bowl Thriller.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Jacob Unruh: 10-0 (1-0)
Scott Wright 10-0 (1-0)
Ryan Aber: 9-1 (1-0)
Jason Kersey:9-1 (1-0)
Ed Godfrey: 7-3 (1-0)

JACOB UNRUH
Tulsa Union 24, Euless (Texas) Trinity 20
Douglass 21, Millwood 17
DeSoto (Texas) 21, Jenks 20
Lawton 35, Lawton MacArthur 31
Coweta 19, Carl Albert 14
Clinton 38, Heritage Hall 21
Sallisaw 21, Sequoyah-Claremore 17
Thomas 28, Okeene 21
Cascia Hall 35, Glenpool 21
Westmoore 27, Southmoore 24

Lock of the week: Lawton over Lawton MacArthur. I’ve always enjoyed this rivalry. Both teams are loaded with talent and anything can happen at Cameron Stadium. Both teams run the ball well, but I’ll give the edge to Lawton High’s experience and monster running back Ivan Thomas.

SCOTT WRIGHT
Euless (Texas) Trinity 35, Tulsa Union 28
Lawton 42, Lawton MacArthur 38
Coweta 19, Carl Albert 14
Clinton 34, Heritage Hall 24
Sallisaw 28, Sequoyah-Claremore 20
Thomas 44, Okeene 35
Glenpool 27, Cascia Hall 24
Douglass 35, Millwood 34
DeSoto 31, Jenks 21
Westmoore 21, Southmoore 20

Lock of the Week: Clinton over Heritage Hall. The Chargers are going to be solid this year, and really, really good a year from now. But this week, Clinton is the better team.

RYAN ABER
Tulsa Union 21, Euless (Texas) Trinity 20
Lawton 28, Lawton MacArthur 21
Coweta 21, Carl Albert 14
Clinton 20, Heritage Hall 17
Sallisaw 21, Sequoyah-Claremore 14
Thomas 28, Okeene 20
Cascia Hall 40, Glenpool 20
Douglass 28, Millwood 26
DeSoto (Texas) 21, Jenks 18
Westmoore 28, Southmoore 20

Lock of the week: Westmoore over Southmoore. Westmoore’s defense will slow Southmoore’s offense down just enough to come out with the squeaker. Both offenses are potent but the Jaguars D makes the difference.

JASON KERSEY
Euless (Texas) Trinity 38, Tulsa Union 24
Douglass 23, Millwood 17
DeSoto (Texas) 41, Jenks 28
Lawton MacArthur 27, Lawton 23
Cowea 32, Carl Albert 20
Clinton 34, Heritage Hall 20
Sequoyah-Claremore 27, Sallisaw 17
Thomas 35. Okeene 19
Cascia Hall 31, Glenpool 21
Westmoore 21, Southmoore 14

Lock of the week: Coweta over Carl Albert. Coweta, in its fifth year under coach Bubba Burcham, won at defending 4A champion Wagoner last week. Carl Albert appears to be down this year, but even so, Friday’s game at the perennial 5A power is a huge test. It’s a long, hard season for Burcham and the Tigers, but unlikely runs to championships aren’t uncommon in the former OU center’s family; his brother-in-law, Karl King, led Edmond North on a stunning march to the Class 6A baseball title last spring.

I’ll get to the three areas I think could be turning points in this one, as both teams look for a 2-0 start.

But first, a reminder that this game will be webcast live at www.NewsOK.com/Varsity in conjunction with ZPreps. If you can’t attend, or follow the webcast, I’ll be providing updates live from the press box on Twitter @ScottWrightOK.

Three Points

1. QB Showdown. PC North’s John Robert Simon got more starting experience last year, but Mustang’s Frankie Edwards got plenty of work, too. Both of them can run and throw. The one who does the best job of keeping his offense balanced will go a long way toward picking up the W.

2. Blocking the Broncos. When I picked Putnam City over PC North last week, one of the big reasons was that I thought the Panther O-line would have trouble, because there are so many new starters. But in racking up 42 points, PC North’s offense clearly showed me that it is in good shape all the way around. However, Mustang has a defensive front seven that is probably better than PC at this point. Lots of experience and talent in that group for the Broncos, so a lot will be asked of the PC North blockers once again.

3. Meet Mr. Mitchell. I wasn’t there to see the leaping catch Travis Mitchell made at Yukon last week, but it seems to be reaching legend status — almost like a fish story. Every time someone tells me about it, his vertical gets a little better. It might be up to about 14 feet by the time kickoff arrives tonight. But that’s not the point here. The point is that Dakota Warrington was injured last week and, according to his father’s Facebook post, could be out for an extended period of time. Warrington was the team’s most consistent receiver last year, so Mitchell, the team’s most athletically gifted wideout, will be asked to fill a bigger role. It could signal the start of a breakout year for him.

The Pick

PC North 35, Mustang 31: A little bit of this pick could be impacted by the fact that I got burned going against the Panthers last week. I really see this one as a toss-up, but this wouldn’t be much of a blog if it was called “Three Points and Evasively Abstaining From Making a Pick.” So I’ll go with the Panthers in a close one, while not being surprised by the outcome either way. I’m counting on an exciting ballgame here, if nothing else.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK

Northwest Classen running back Lorenzo Alexander rushed for 120 yards and two touchdowns in Week 1.

Second-year coach Lloyd Smith knows it’s a long process to turn around a Northwest Classen football program that hasn’t enjoyed prosperity in a few decades, but Smith’s work is starting to show some results.

The Knights won three games a year ago, which was a step in the right direction. This preseason, they took third place in the All-City Previews, and opened the regular season with an impressive 35-16 win over a talented John Marshall team last Thursday.

Now, the Knights turn their attention to Northeast, which fell to Tulsa McLain 58-12 in the opener.

With a sophomore at quarterback Northwest is keeping its focus on the ground game, attempting just five passes against the Bears.

Lorenzo Alexander rushed for 120 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries last week, while QB Jalen Harris added 46 yards and two scores on eight attempts.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK