More 6A game times changed
Edmond North and Yukon had already made the decision to move their playoff game on Friday up to a 7 p.m. start.
Tuesday, at least two more Class 6A games were pushed up 30 minutes: Westmoore at Midwest City and Lawton Eisenhower at Edmond Santa Fe.
This isn’t a surprise as most 6A games on this side of the state start at 7 p.m. during the regular season.
Yukon looking to finish regular season strong
Running back Chance Leggett and the Yukon Millers hope to go into the postseason on a winning note with Friday's regular-season finale at Edmond Memorial.
Last year at this time, Yukon was heading into the final week of the regular season on a five-game winning streak. Just like this year.
The Millers were taking on an Edmond Memorial team playing to keep its postseason hopes alive. Just like this year.
And that’s where Yukon wants last year’s similarities to end. Memorial won at Yukon, and that hiccup in momentum carried over to the first round of the playoffs — a home loss to Edmond North.
“This is a big game on Friday, because we won’t want to limp into the playoffs like last year,” said senior Derek Deeds, who is among Class 6A’s top defensive backs with seven interceptions.
“We want to keep that momentum. It’s Memorial’s senior night and they have to win to have a chance at the playoffs, so we know we have to play our hardest.”
The Millers’ season has taken quite a turn since starting 1-3, with losses to Midwest City, Edmond Santa Fe and Stillwater — all teams ranked in the top 10, and potentially all district champions. The Millers have won five in a row, coming off a 70-point outing from the offense in a rout of Choctaw last week.
The Millers could finish either second or third in District 6A-1, the difference between a home playoff game or going on the road in the first round. In either case, the possible opponents for Yukon in the playoffs would be Lawton, Edmond North or Westmoore.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK
Yukon, Putnam City North battling QB injuries
The playoff race in District 6A-1 already looks to be a wild one, and now, a couple of the top contenders for postseason bids are facing quarterback injuries suffered in last week’s games.
Yukon was without senior Corben Jones in the second half of last Friday’s 42-14 loss to Midwest City after he suffered a concussion.
His availability for this week’s game at Norman North is uncertain, but Hayden Somerville was solid in his place. The sophomore completed six of 12 passes for 119 yards and two TDs with one interception.
Putnam City North could be without starter John Robert Simon for a couple of weeks, including this week’s game at No. 3 Midwest City, after he sprained his MCL in the 31-24 loss to Edmond Memorial. Starting safety Alex Clark will step in for Simon behind center.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK
Game preview: Midwest City at Yukon
Yukon is looking for its first win at the new Miller Stadium.
A year ago, Yukon started the season 8-1, and the only loss came at Midwest City, so you know the Millers have been looking forward to this game. If you’re going to win District 6A-1, you’re doing to have to beat the Bombers, so this is a big game for Yukon.
“We know they’re good, and we haven’t come through as a team the last couple weeks,” Yukon senior lineman Tyler Bush said. “We know that line play will be a key factor in the game, so we’ll have to be ready.”
Of course, Midwest City isn’t interested in giving up that district crown, and they have to believe Yukon is arguably the top challenger to the throne.
It’s only the first week of district play, but I’m expecting an all-out brawl between these two teams tonight in Yukon.
What to watch for: Midwest City
I’m excited to see the Bombers, because I haven’t seen them live since the first scrimmage of the preseason. And that night, I came away unimpressed. I knew the talent they had, and I knew coach Steve Huff would have them ready to go when the real games started — and he did.
I figured the Bombers would be the best of the west in 6A, and it looks that way so far. Keep an eye on RB James Flanders tonight. The last time I saw Yukon in action against Edmond Santa Fe, they had some difficulties tackling in space. If that is an issue tonight, Flanders will make them pay.
What to watch for: Yukon
With the 1-2 start, Yukon is reeling just a little bit, so the fresh start of district play is important. They could put all of that behind them with a win tonight, which would be the first one in the new house.
Yukon will need to get the run game going, because MWC has too much talent in the secondary to let them sit on the pass. You have to make them think you can run the ball.
There are a couple of Division I prospects in the MWC secondary, so seeing the battle between them and Yukon QB Corben Jones — a D-I prospect himself — will be a fun one to watch.
The Pick: Midwest City 27, Yukon 24. Though the 1-2 start has been frustrating for Yukon, I don’t take it as a sign that they’re significantly worse than last year’s team. They should be able to keep this one close, but the Bombers have just a little too much. Keep an eye on MWC linebacker Zeke Lewis. I think he could play a pivotal role in limiting Yukon’s run game.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK
Scott’s Weekend Rewind: PC North, Edmond Santa Fe, Douglass with big wins in Week 2
The opening of Yukon's new Miller Stadium was one of many events during a busy weekend of football.
I can already tell this is going to be a long week. Since Sept. 1, I haven’t gone more than two days without covering a high school football game. Friday can’t get here soon enough.
And after the three games I covered this weekend, it’s going to be hard for the next 13 weeks of football to live up to the standard.
On Thursday night, I watched Putnam City North knock off Mustang in double-overtime when sophomore kicker Richard Gallegos booted through a 17-yard field goal to clinch it. Friday brought the debut of Yukon’s new stadium, and a late rally by Edmond Santa Fe to spoil the opener at the Millers’ new home. Then we had the usual amount of drama on Saturday afternoon at the Soul Bowl.
Here’s a look back at what we learned about the teams in those three contests, starting with the double-OT thriller at PC Stadium.
Video: Yukon players talk about Jamie Thompson’s impact
I had the pleasure of writing a feature story on new Yukon assistant coach Jamie Thompson for Friday’s paper, which you can find here. In addition, here’s a video of a couple Yukon players talking about Thompson’s impact on the team.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK
Video: Yukon’s Corben Jones excited by receivers’ play, ready for next week
At least over the last few years, Canadian County Bedlam has rarely left the fans feeling shorted in intensity and excitement. Friday was no different, with Yukon going into Mustang and coming away with a 44-31 win.
Now, the Millers move to next week when they will open their new stadium, and you can bet everyone will be juiced for that as Edmond Santa Fe visits.
Mustang heads to Putnam City North, where a pair of teams coming off rivalry losses will try to avoid an 0-2 start.
Here are a few random observations that didn’t make it into my game story from Yukon’s win:
-I probably didn’t talk up the Yukon defense enough in the game story. Considering that they were starting eight new guys, and had some schematic changes — three-man front — that really impacted the game, defensive coordinator Steve Chard and his boys probably deserved a little more credit. I don’t say that to take anything away from the receivers. They made big play after big play, often in situations when the Millers had to have them.
-The Yukon run game didn’t necessarily show a lot, but it didn’t have to, either. The passing attack was so smooth, it didn’t matter what the committee of running backs produced. Still, you see some talent there, though I still don’t think there’s going to be one guy who gets the bulk of the work over the season. Interestingly, sophomore Austin Roberts scored a 6-yard touchdown on his first carry. Doesn’t mean anything regarding the RB battle, but it’s a pretty cool memory.
-Brandon Taylor’s shoulder looked fine, and his feet were working, too. He did a great job of moving around to avoid pressure, rolling out and scrambling when needed to keep plays alive. He’s always seemed more comfortable standing in and unloading the ball just before the hit comes, but on Friday, he moved well around the pocket and outside of it.
-Travis Mitchell could be the Broncos’ big breakout star this year. He’s a very athletic receiver with good hands and good ball skills from what I’ve seen. He had an impressive 76-yard catch that set up a late TD when the Broncos tried to rally.
-Defensively, the Broncos were missing a couple of guys, but two guys seemed to keep showing up a lot — Tucker Calmus and Cory Irwins. Calmus is ideal for the middle linebacker spot, and Irwins was flying around making plays from the outside linebacker position. Jared Chance at defensive tackle was solid again as well.
I’ll see both of these teams again next week, so I’m curious to see how they each progress. Yukon has to find a way to keep the momentum going and not fall off, while Mustang must keep moving forward. They seemed to get more and more comfortable as the game went on, and they need to build on that.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK
Game preview: Yukon at Mustang
Quarterback Corben Jones will lead Yukon into hostile territory against rival Mustang Friday night.
A year ago at this time, when Yukon hosted Mustang in one of the final games at the old Miller Pride Stadium, an overflow crowd surrounded the field and brought a playoff atmosphere to a Week 1 ballgame.
I expect a similar feeling tonight at Bronco Stadium — the first game against Yukon since the new bleachers were built last year. A Mustang administrator said they expect around 13,000 fans for Canadian County Bedlam tonight, and I don’t doubt it. It’s a huge game between two schools that continue to grow in size and football prowess.
What to watch for: Mustang
Keep an eye on the offensive line. That group will be the biggest key to Mustang’s success, not only against Yukon, but all season. If they can protect QB Brandon Taylor, the Mustang offense will move up and down the field the way it has been accustomed to the last few years. But if Taylor spends too much time on the seat of his pants, it could be a long night for Bronco followers.
Defensively, Mustang has some experience, and the secondary must avoid mistakes. Keeping the Millers’ unproven run game in check will be a big help.
What to watch for: Yukon
This is purely speculation on my part, but I wonder if QB Corben Jones will go back to running more, like he did as a sophomore? Last year, he was able to get rid of the ball quickly to one of his deep, talented receiving corps. He has a lot of new guys at receiver this year, and a new running back as well. So I’m curious to see just how often he tucks it and takes off.
One area to keep an eye on will be Yukon’s cornerbacks. Both are new starters, and there’s no tougher first test than Mustang. Even though the Broncos are sending out a new crop of receivers, the offense and the routes are tough to keep up with, and Taylor can pick a secondary apart if given the time.
The Pick: Yukon 30, Mustang 20. This will be my third straight year covering Canadian County Bedlam, and I haven’t seen a bad one yet. Don’t expect to see one tonight, either. I think either of these teams could be ready to make a run at their respective district titles, and winning this game would be an early boost of confidence to help get that done.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK
Several stars on display at Southmoore, Yukon, Putnam City scrimmage
It was a fun night at Putnam City Stadium Friday watching the Southmoore/Yukon/Putnam City scrimmage. One of the better, more polished scrimmages I’ve seen in a while. I’ll have plenty of coverage in Saturday’s paper, but here are a few quick items that really stuck out to me.
-PC linebacker/running back Desmond Tilly hurt his left knee in the final few minutes of the game. Pirate folks don’t seem to think it’s serious, but it will likely require an MRI once the swelling goes down. The Pirates don’t have a ton of depth, so losing Tilly for any significant amount of time would be bad. He was flying around making plays at outside linebacker and is a great complement to MLB Elie Rushing. Tilly was also running the ball hard backing up Casey Curtis. With Curtis and Tilly each playing both sides of the ball, you need them both at RB to help keep the other fresh.
-Yukon fans might have noticed that Derek Deeds was icing his shoulder at the end of the night. He told me afterward that it was nothing more than a muscle spasm and he’d be fine. Just like Tilly, Deeds is a guy Yukon wouldn’t want to lose. They’re so young at receiver that his presence there is valuable. And he’s an anchor on the back end of the defense as well.
-In other injury news, Southmoore RB Andrew Long sat out Friday’s action, but only as a precaution, coach Chris Jensen said. Essentially, the SaberCats know what they’re going to get from Long, so there was no need to risk getting him hurt.
-On a sidenote to that, Friday was my first chance to see Karltrell Henderson. The junior had a couple big games at the end of last season to climb up over the 1,000-yard mark. He’s a beast of a runner. Punishes people and has decent moves to go along with it. It’ll be fun to watch those two guys share a backfield this year.
-I know Southmoore QB Tre Edwards has some doubters simply because of his height — probably 5-10 if you count the mohawk — but the kid is a confident player who throws the ball well. He can run the offense, move in the pocket and find the open man. He might not make D-I coaches drool, but he’s going to win a lot of games at Southmoore.
-Speaking of short guys, Yukon is running out some little dudes at receiver this year as they try to replace four of their top five from last season. But QB Corben Jones was excited with their performance Friday, especially when protection broke down. They were making good decisions in situations the team hasn’t worked on yet in practice, and Jones was happy to see that.
-The Millers are auditioning about four different players at running back, and might use multiple guys throughout the season. It was tough to tell a lot Friday, because Yukon only had a couple of regular starters available on the offensive line. The replacements held their own, but with their regular starting five, Yukon will have one of the better O-lines around, and that will certainly make life easier for the RBs.
-Lastly, I was impressed in my first chance to see PC quarterback Devin White in live action. Seeing him at practice last week, he certainly looks the part of a good high school quarterback at about 6-1 and probably 195 pounds. On Friday, he showed that he has a good, accurate arm, and he moves really well. Combine that with Curtis — who had some crazy good runs Friday — and the Pirates should be in good shape offensively. They are using a lot of new guys on the O-line, but they seemed to hold up well.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Video roundup: Yukon’s Derek Deeds, Mustang’s Brandon Taylor and Putnam City’s Casey Curtis
In case you missed any of my video interviews from my visits to football practices in the West Metro this week, here they are, all in one place for your viewing convenience. Yukon WR/DB Derek Deeds talks about the new stadium. Mustang QB Brandon Taylor discusses his relationship with the Broncos’ new receivers. And Putnam City RB/DB Casey Curtis talks up the Pirate defense:
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
