The Oklahoma City Area Baseball Coaches Association will play its annual all-star game at 6 p.m. Thursday at Palmer Field at Dolese Park.

An all-star team made up from these two rosters will play a Tulsa-area all-star team in a doubleheader at noon Saturday at Bishop McGuinness. OCS’ Ken McQueen and Tecumseh’s Chad Trahan will coach the Oklahoma City team.

NORTH
Starters
Pitchers: Brock Stuber, Piedmont; Parker Rigler, Edmond Memorial; Kyle Stephens, Edmond North
Catchers: Mike Hale, Putnam City North; Jon Denney, Yukon
First baseman: Cody Daylor, Edmond North
Second baseman: Daniel Costello, Edmond Santa Fe
Third baseman: Bryan Dutton, Guthrie
Shortstop: Dalen Edgar, Piedmont
Outfielders: Landon Eason, Yukon; Jack Hale, Edmond Memorial; Cole Lindley, Deer Creek
Utility: Austin Brooks, OCS
Desgnated hitter: Jacob Jerome, Edmond Santa Fe

Reserves: Chiante’ McKee, Star Spencer; Bradley Fitch, Bishop McGuinness; Reed Brooks, Putnam City; Jonathan Sergent, Classen

Coaches: Ken McQueen, OCS; Kory Williams, Piedmont

SOUTH
Starters
Pitchers: Alexander Svetgoff, Westmoore; Gage Trahan, Tecumseh; Nick Ward, Southmoore
Catchers: Lane Paul, Tuttle; Cameron Knight, Westmoore
First baseman: Dylan Mauk, Blanchard
Second baseman: Daniel Herron, Norman North
Third baseman: DJ Gasso, Norman North
Shortstop: Tre Edwards, Southmoore
Outfielders: Chevin Noone, Carl Albert; Hunter Heath, Bethel; Quade Nelson, Blanchard
Utility: Damion Orr, Midwest City
Designated hitter: Joel Davis, Midwest City

Reserves: Cooper Owens, Putnam City West; Colin Webb, Moore; Matt Foster, Norman; Casey Bowlan, Shawnee; Jovanny Hernandez, U.S. Grant; Zack Howry, Capitol Hill; Landon Vodka, Mustang.

Coaches: Chad Trahan, Tecumseh; Travis Owen, Tuttle

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.

Coach of the Year: Tony Henry, Millwood
Coach’s Special Recognition: Mark Ryan, Centennial
Player of the Year: Cayman Bundage, Douglass
Defensive Player of the Year: Jas’Sen Stoner, Douglass
Offensive Player of the Year: Dametric Sanders, Millwood
Co-Special Teams Players of the Year: Quincy Rideau, Star Spencer; Juan Campos, Northwest Classen
Defensive Lineman of the Year: Bobby Wilkes, Millwood
Co-Linebackers of the Year: Marc Robinson, Millwood; Gumaro Murphy, Southeast
Defensive Back of the Year: O’Sha Clark, Douglass
Co-Offensive Linemen of the Year: Devin Dobbins, Millwood; Dale Burch, Star Spencer
Offensive Back of the Year: Luis Leyva, Capitol Hill
Receiver of the Year: Kameron Bryant, John Marshall

First Team Defense
Defensive Line: Christian Nicholson, U.S. Grant; Kevin Williams, John Marshall; Codie Nolan, Northwest Classen; Genaro Monter, Southeast; Justin Woody, Northeast
Linebackers: Derrick Ward, Star Spencer; Andrew Bailey, Douglass; Malcolm Scales, Millwood; Francis Taylor, Capitol Hill
Defensive Backs: TyLiq Braziell, Southeast; Brandon Morse, Capitol Hill; Derrick Young, U.S. Grant; Chris Compton, Douglass
Punter: Carlos Morales, U.S. Grant

First Team Offense
Quarterback: Christian Gorham, Northwest Classen; Michael Thomas, Northeast
Running Backs: Cory Hooks, U.S. Grant
Receivers: Trevon Willis, Northeast; Marvin Kerbo, Northwest Classen; Deonte Childs, Douglass
Offensive Line: Diamonte McClellan, Douglass; Charles Hayes, Star Spencer; Jacob Tavarez, U.S. Grant; Harvey Hightower, Millwood; Michael Holder, Southeast; David Johnson, John Marshall
Place Kicker: Antonio Cueto, Southeast

Honorable Mention
Capitol Hill: Maleke Dixon, Jerrad Fomin
Douglass: Davon Barber
Millwood: Marquise Kemp
Northeast: Savon Peevy, Demarkus Long
Northwest Classen: Marcus Ervin
Southeast: Nolan Payne, Michael McAnelly, Dominique Schweitzer, Nicholas Chamberlain
Star Spencer: Quintrae Kendrick
U.S. Grant: Eric Benevue, Javier Tarrazas

District 6A-2 All-District
Awards
Coach of the Year: Lance Manning, Edmond Santa Fe
Player of the Year: Casey Curtis, Putnam City
Co-Offensive Player of the Year: Trevor Thompson, Westmoore
Co-Offensive Player of the Year: Jarion Tudman, Edmond North
Co-Defensive Player of the Year: Josh Crouch, Edmond Santa Fe
Co-Defensive Player of the Year: Kyle Factor, Westmoore
Linebacker of the Year: Brendon Pitzer, Edmond North
Co-Defensive Back of the Year: Conner Bays, Edmond Santa Fe
Co-Defensive Back of the Year: Archie Ocloolee, Westmoore
Defensive Lineman of the Year: Patrick Diaz, Lawton
Offensive Back of the Year: Jesse Mathews, Edmond North
Co-Offensive Lineman of the Year: Brandon Dewitt, Lawton
Co-Offensive Lineman of the Year: Cole Parsons, Edmond North
Co-Wide Receiver of the Year: Austin Bowling, Westmoore
Co-Wide Receiver of the Year: Tre Kelly, Edmond Santa Fe
Special Teams Player of the Year: Michael Ryan, Mustang

All-District team
Del City: Stephon Herd, WR; Josh McNaughton, DL; Jerel Jeten, DB; Larry Long, DB.

Edmond North: Jarion Tudman, RB; Jared Benway, RB; Cole Parsons, OL; Troy Davis, TE; Jesse Mathews, QB; Russell Sivard, DL; James Duncan, DL; Christian Contreass, DB; Regan Land, LB; Bryndan Pitzer, LB; Christian Peterson, DB.

Edmond Santa Fe: Tre Kelly, WR; Taylor Ashcraft, LB; Chris Carter, DL; Conner Bays, DB; Josh Crouch, DL; Zach Birts, DB; Michael Onuoha, DL; Brandon Roberts, OL; Chad Reitz, OL; Ryan Frazier, LB; Matt Freeman, K; Allston Hadley, OL.

Lawton: Brandon Bartlett, DeMarious Littles, Freddie Taito, Vincent Thomas, Corey Pilgrum, Adam Castro, Jacquan Beck, Dometreas Pyfer, Jordan Gouge.

Mustang: Arron Smith, OL; Derek Garvin, WR; A.J. Ashman, RB; Michael Ryan, K.

Putnam City: Casey Curtis, RB; Rontez Smith, TE; Anthony Hogg, DB; Damion Brown, DL; Elie Rushing, LB; Derrick Rovers, DL; Conner Nichols, TE; Jeff Tanner, DL.

U.S. Grant: Christian Nicholson, DE; Jacob Tavares, OL; Cory Hooks, RB; Derrick Young, DB.

Westmoore: Kyle Factor, DL; Trevor Thompson, QB; Austin Bowling, WR; Archie Ocloolee,. DB; Dalton Craig, WR; Preston Higgins, DL; Blake Martin, DB; Corey Lassiter, OL.

Douglass junior Stephen Clark and the two-time defending Class 4A state champion Trojans will be in action at the All-City Preview tournament, which begins on Tuesday night.

The All-City Preview, the preseason basketball tournament featuring the Oklahoma City Public Schools and Millwood, begins Tuesday evening at Northwest Classen and Capitol Hill. The tournaments will be concluded on Thursday with championship and third-place games, as well as loser’s bracket competition.

Each site will host seven games on Tuesday, between both boys and girls teams. All 11 schools from the All-City Athletic Conference will participate, including a pair defending champions, the Douglass and Centennial boys teams.

Here is the schedule for Tuesday’s games:
Girls
At Capitol Hill
5 p.m.: Star Spencer vs. Centennial
6 p.m.: Classen SAS vs. Capitol Hill
7 p.m.: Northeast vs. Star/Centennial winner
8 p.m.: Douglass vs. Classen/Capitol Hill winner
At Northwest Classen
5:30 p.m.: US Grant vs. John Marshall
6:30 p.m.: Northwest Classen vs. Southeast
7:30 p.m.: Millwood vs. US Grant/John Marshall winner

Boys
At Northwest Classen
5 p.m.: Southeast vs. US Grant
6 p.m.: Millwood vs. John Marshall
7 p.m.: Northwest Classen vs. Southeast/US Grant winner
8 p.m.: Centennial vs. Millwood/John Marshall winner
At Capitol Hill
5:30 p.m.: Star Spencer vs. Classen SAS
6:30 p.m.: Capitol Hill vs. Northeast
7:30 p.m.: Douglass vs. Star/Classen winner

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

“It’s been different,” Nicholson said. “We’re working hard. Long hours. But we’ve got a ways to go. We’ve got to take the steps to get there, and we’ll get there eventually, but it’s a long road ahead. I’m seeing some positive stuff. The one thing Grant has is people with heart. We might lose a lot or get stomped down, but when we come back, we come back with heart.”

Nicholson also says the Grant players are hoping to get the fans more excited about the program this season.

“We’re excited about this year. We’re going to try to cheer the fans on and get them motivated,” he said. “They’ll maybe get to see some wins, and if not wins, some close games. We can get there, though. We can win some games. I believe that.”

NOTE: Read more of my interview with Christian Nicholson in Friday’s edition of The Oklahoman, which will include area-specific special sections for each of the metro area’s circulation zones, providing information on all of the city’s high school football teams. Our statewide season preview will be in Sunday’s Oklahoman.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Follow me on Twitter @ScottWrightOK

The Wes Welker Foundation’s board of directors have approved $29,000 in grant money to four Oklahoma City-area schools, the organization announced Monday.
The grants were awarded to Star Spencer’s volleyball and athletic department, U.S. Grant’s football program, Putnam City West’s football and athletic department and Crooked Oak’s athletic department.

The foundation, founded by former Heritage Hall and current New England Patriots standout Wes Welker, was founded five years ago with the aim of helping underprivileged kids.

The foundation awards grants twice a year to schools and organizations in the Oklahoma City area. It also provides free sports camps for at-risk youth and a coach and leadership development program.

The foundation has given more than $192,000 in grant money in the past four years.

U.S. Grant is a two-time recipient.

Other organizations that have received the grants in the past have included Life Change Academy, Astec Charter School, Douglass High School, Memorial Park Boys and Girls Club and Western Village Academy.

First Team:
Dorrian Williams – Douglass, Stephen Clark- Douglass, Ramond Jenkins- Douglass, Romond Jenkins- Douglass, Tre Jordan- Southeast

Second Team:
Jamil Donovan- Northwest Classen, Marcus Johnson- Centennial, Marquis Buxton-Hill- Douglass, Nico Meadows- Capitol Hill, Dre’ Triplett- Millwood,

Third Team:
Korihon Jackson- Northeast, Dominique Manuel- Douglass, Craig Hackney- Centennial, DeSean Carolina- Centennial, DeMontrey Mitchell- John Marshall

Honorable Mention:
Capitol Hill-  Josh Thompson, Aaron Brown, Darrin Tucker
Classen- Cameron McClure, Anthony Bolar
Douglass- Darris Mitchell, DeAngelo Clark
U.S. Grant- Anthony Hartfield, G’vonte Bonds
John Marshall- Talmadge Lawrence, Tyler Harrison
Centennial- Darius Lacey, Austin Garner
Northeast- Eric Peabody, Gabe Houston,
NW Classen- Paco Jones, Anthony Hardrick
Southeast- William Brewer, Travis Morris, Jay Gogue
Star Spencer- Gary Ford, Symon Smith

Edmond North (4-5, 3-3) at US Grant (0-9)
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: Speegle Stadium (I’ll be there)

North (L- Southmoore; W – Choctaw; L- Memorial; W – Del City; L – Mustang; L – Putnam City; W – Westmoore; L- Lawton; W – Santa Fe)
Why the Huskies can win: Need to get healthy in this one. Been banged up the last month, and it has shown at times. This should be a really big night for Ryan Hammons if Troy Davis and Jarion Tudman are still a little banged up.

US Grant
Why the Generals can win: Coach Matt Miller is doing it the right way, but it is going to take some time. I don’t get a sense that he is going to abandon this program anytime soon, though.

The pick: North 49, US Grant 6. Huskies just have to come out of here healthy. A win and a Westmoore loss would make North third place with a trip to Yukon.

Boneman’s North prediction record: 6-3.

US Grant (0-8) at Del City (3-5)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Kalsu Stadium

US Grant
Why the Generals can win: It won’t be easy, obviously, but you gotta love the spirit that coach Matt Miller has. He wants to do things the right way, but it won’t happen overnight.

Del City (L- MWC; W – NNorth; L – Norman; L – EdNorth; W – Putnam City; L – Westmoore; L – Lawton; W – Santa Fe)
Why the Eagles can win: Because even though it was only a four-point win, last week’s victory said a lot about the character of this team. Every time Santa Fe scored, Del City responded in a big way, like the good teams are supposed to do.

Key matchup: Del City defense vs. US Grant offense. The defense has taken its lumps, but it’s really starting to turn the corner lately.

The pick: Del City 55, US Grant 9. Good win for the Eagles to set the stage up for a senior night showdown against Mustang.

Boneman’s Del City prediction record: 3-5.

Santa Fe (0-6) at US Grant (0-6)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Speegle Stadium

Santa Fe (L – Memorial; L – Yukon; L – MWC; L – Westmoore; L- Lawton; L – Mustang)
Why the Wolves can win: Because the defense really hasn’t played that bad, especially the secondary. Jeremy Moore and Trevan Smith and company have made a lot of big plays. And if they get those same opportunities against Grant, it might be points they’re putting up.

US Grant
Why the Generals can win: Two winless teams, both are frustrated at this point in the season. So mental focus will be key on Friday night. And in that department, caoch Matt Miller thinks his team is getting things together. The Generals have some talent at RB, and they’ll need to get those guys going.

Boneman’s key matchup: Santa Fe running game against Grant front seven. This should be a night where Ty Hensley and Ryan Frazier see a lot of holes they’re not used to seeing. The key will be simply to read them correctly and hit them hard.

Scott’s key matchup: US Grant vs. Santa Fe’s size. If Grant is going to pull this off, they will have to win at the point of attack. If they get pushed off the ball. Santa Fe isn’t a huge team, but they’re bigger than the Generals.

Boneman’s pick: Santa Fe 38, US Grant 6. Wolves get in the W column with an inspired performance that hopefully gets things rolling the right direction for the remainder of the season.

Scott’s pick: Santa Fe 31, Grant 8. US Grant’s victories aren’t necessarily showing up on the scoreboard this season, but in much smaller areas.

Boneman’s Santa Fe prediction record: 5-1.

Westmoore Jaguars (2-2) at U.S. Grant (0-4)
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: U.S. Grant

Westmoore (2-2)
Why the Jaguars can win: It’s true. Westmoore has gone old school. The Jaguars love to pound the ball and play defense. The thing is…they do both pretty well. Aside from a Week 2 game against Southmoore, Westmoore has given up an average of less than 10 points per game. They shut out Edmond Santa Fe last week.

U.S. Grant (0-4)
Why the Generals can win: The new coaching staff put in an offense that was more complex than what any of these kids had run before, so they knew it would take some time to get everybody on the same page. But it will take a defensive performance from the Generals to get it done this week, because Westmoore’s defense is strong, so you can’t expect big points.

Justin’s key matchup: U.S. Grant running game vs. Westmoore front seven. Sure, it’s a tough matchup for U.S. Grant, but if the Generals are going to break through at all, it’s going to have to be here. The only problem is the Westmoore defensive front has gotten better every week.

Scott’s key matchup: In the trenches. Grant just doesn’t have the size a team like Westmoore can utilize, so they’ve got to find a way to neutralize that element of Westmoore’s game. If they let the Jags overpower them at the line of scrimmage on both sides, they can’t expect to pull off the upset.

Justin’s pick: Westmoore 24, U.S. Grant 0. Westmoore picks up its second-straight shutout, but more importantly gains a little bit of confidence in its passing attack.

Scott’s pick: Westmoore 34, Grant 14. The Generals have some playmakers in the backfield who I think will find a way to produce some points, but not enough to win.

Last week: Grant suffered a 63-6 setback to Ada. Putnam City finished off its non-district schedule with a third straight win, 42-22 over Choctaw.

Why US Grant could win: Under Matt Miller, this team is looking for an opportunity to make a statement. The Generals have a stout running game, led by GaVonte Bonds, and QB Ryan Ward is a dual-threat guy who is running a new offense that is more complex than what Grant ran last season. So there’s a learning curve, and the Generals will continue getting better every week.

Why PC could win: This Pirate team is on a mission out of the gate this season. They’ve only gotten better each week, with the offense putting up big numbers the last two games. The defense allowed seven points over the first two games, and didn’t give up big points against Choctaw until the game was in hand.

Key matchup: PC run game vs. Grant defensive front. As Choctaw learned last week, if you can’t stop Casey Curtis and Desmond Tilly, it’ll be hard to beat the Pirates. Curtis went for 200 and Tilly for 100 against the Yellowjackets and it was a one-sided contest.

The pick: PC 42, Grant 24. Grant is an improving team, but the Pirates are playing with too much confidence and too much momentum right now.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com

So let’s take a look at what some of the OKC schools face as we get ready for the start of district play:

Millwood (3-0)

It’s going to be a while before the Falcons face a team as good as what they’ve seen the last two weeks in Douglass and McGuinness. Those are two of the best teams in 4A, and none of the competition in 2A-2 is going to exceed that.

Jones (Week 6) and Lexington (Week 10) are a couple of big games to look ahead to, but with easiejr competition, the key for the Falcons will be making sure not to let their guard down. They’ve got the talent to win every game they play. It’s just a matter of staying focused.

Week 4: The new seven-team districts in most of A-3A have led to some scheduling craziness. Millwood closes out the preseason portion of its schedule at Alva Friday night, then opens 2A-2 play at home against Luther the following week.

Douglass (1-2)

After finally getting into the win column, the Trojans are heading into district play on a high note. And in terms of west-side districts, 4A-2 is much more favorable than 4A-1, which has teams like McGuinness, Elgin, Elk City, Cache and Woodward. The Week 9 meeting with Glenpool (the two teams are 4 and 5 in the rankings this week) could be for the district title.

Though Douglass won last week, there was some difficulty, with coach Willis Alexander sending his starting QB, Shon Bridges, and RB, Aliston Cobb, to the bench at one point. But I’d expect Alexander to get everything sorted out.

Week 4: The Trojans open district play with a visit from Tecumseh, which lost 35-13 to Deer Creek last week. The Antlers hit some big plays with the run, so look for Douglass to try the same thing.

Star Spencer (0-3)

I paid a visit to Star Spencer practice on Monday, and there’s some sense of relief in the arrival of district play. After battling through a difficult preseason, the Bobcats are ready for a fresh start.

And district action gets off to a fast start, too. Friday’s game at home against Chandler pits the two teams who were viewed as the preseason favorites in 3A-4. Perkins is a team that has looked good in the first three weeks, and the Bobcats go there in Week 6.

Star gets its break from district action in Week 9 with a game against Victory Christian.

Week 4: As I said, it starts with Chandler this week. No one in the district is currently ranked in the 3A top 10, and these two teams would like to change that.

Southeast (3-0)

Michael Branch has his team off to a great start, but as we’ve discussed before, the Spartans are in possibly the toughest district around. Two top-three teams await in Guthrie and Carl Albert, as well as No. 7 Deer Creek. The move of Jay Gogue to running back seems to have inspired the running game, and the defense has been solid all year.

I won’t be surprised to see this team step up and upset someone at some point during the season.

Week 4: The district action begins with Ada coming to Southeast this Friday. This could be a more important game than it seems right now. These two teams could be battling for the final playoff spot in this district if things go well for Southeast.

John Marshall (2-1)

As expected, the Bears have been strong on defense so far this year. Even in their loss to Cache, they still only gave up 15 points. They’re stuck in a challenging district, with Heritage Hall, Kingfisher, Bethany, Newcastle and Centennial. So with opponents like that, a good defense will come in handy.

The question will be whether the young offense can come along and put up enough points to win some big games.

Week 4: The Bears open with Bethany Thursday night at Taft Stadium. It should be a good test for the JM defense. Bethany brings a balanced offensive attack with QB Ryley Claborn and RB Devin Campbell.

Centennial (2-1)

No sense in waiting around, and that’s the case for Centennial, which opens district play with one of the hottest teams in the state, No. 3 Heritage Hall.

It’s a tough district, and there are a couple of key games waiting in next few weeks, with games against Newcastle and John Marshall. Both of those games will go a long way toward separating the middle of the district. The Bison are one of the teams who got stuck with Week 10 as its district off week. They’ll close out the season against 2A Hennessey.

Week 4: The opener against Heritage Hall on Friday night will be a big test for the Bison defense, which struggled to slow down Anadarko — certainly no shame in losing to a team like the Warriors, but like Anadarko, Heritage Hall has a strong running game that few have been able to slow down.

Other OKC teams

US Grant opens district play Thursday night with the suddenly scary Putnam City Pirates, who are 3-0 and routed Choctaw last week… Capitol Hill begins district action against one of 5A’s best teams, Duncan, on Thursday… Northeast, also in 2A-2 with Millwood, will try to build on last week’s success in its district opener against a Lexington team that has earned its spot in the top 10… Altus visits Northwest Classen on Friday night for the 5A-2 opener.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com

It was hard enough narrowing the field down to three guys, and that’s why Millwood quarterback Kevonte Richardson and receivers/defensive backs Brandon Swindall and Josh Turner must share the honor of Oklahoma City Player of the week.

Richardson threw for nearly 400 yards and four touchdowns while rushing for 40 more yards and a score. Turner had five catches for 117 yards, including grabs of 32 and 27 yards on the final drive, the latter accounting for the game-winning touchdown. And Swindall had five receptions for 161 yards and three scores, with his shortest catch of the day going for 19 yards. Oh, and he had the game-saving tackle at the 1-yard line on the final play of the 36-31 victory.

So, yeah, they were kind of a big deal on Saturday.

A few other Millwood players who earned recognition Saturday: Nose guard Stanford Rice, linebacker Larry Seals and receiver Dametric Sanders, who had a 79-yard TD catch.

And Douglass had their share of playmakers, too. RB Aliston Cobb had 202 rushing yards and three TDs, and Diontay Washington running behind a powerful offensive line all day. DeVante McKinney was stirring up trouble at defensive end. Erik King and the linebackers were running to the ball well. QB Shon Bridges made his share of plays, though he wishes he could’ve picked up one more yard on that last play. And Marcus Caddell who made several plays, including a 90-yard kickoff return TD that kept the Trojans in the game in the third quarter.

Other POW contenders

Jay Gogue, QB/RB, and Micah Hunter, QB, Southeast football: The Spartans are 2-0 with Gogue leading the way. He has played quarterback and running back this season as coach Michael Branch looks for the best way to utilize his dangerous runner.  Hunter threw a TD pass in Thursday’sd 27-14 win over Star Spencer, helping keep the Spartans from becoming one-dimensional.

Christian Gorham and Terry Arnold, Northwest Classen football: Gorham threw five touchdown passes, hitting Arnold for three of them, on his way to a 279-yard performance on just 12-of-19 passing. Arnold pulled in scoring catches of 15, 23 and 21 yards, and also returned a kickoff 86 yards for a score as Northwest edged Northeast 40-34.

Trevyone Willis and Michael Thomas, Northeast football: Thomas threw a touchdown pass to Willis and caught another himself in the tough loss to NW Classen. Willis had the 22-yard TD catch and rushed for TDs of 20 and 37 yards.

Nico Durham and Tyrone Jones, Centennial football: Durham and Jones combined for all three Bison touchdowns in Friday’s loss to Anadarko.

GaVonte Bonds, US Grant football: Bonds rushed for 116 yards on 14 carries against Capitol Hill.

Irving Roa, John Marshall cross country: Roa won the John Marshall meet at Lake Hefner last Thursday, finishing the 4,800-meter course in 16:55.

– To nominate an OKC athlete for Player of the Week, e-mail Scott Wright at swright@opubco.com

The senior had 156 yards and two touchdowns on just eight carries, and barely touched the field in the second half of a 42-0 win over Star Spencer Friday night.

Former Millwood running back Emilio Gatewood, now at Norman North, said Patton was the team’s most dangerous player with the ball in his hands, even last year, when Gatewood was busy rushing for more than 2,000 yards at Millwood as a junior.

Other contenders

Douglass defense and RB Aliston Cobb, football: It was the defense that truly gave Douglass a chance to win on Thursday, holding McGuinness to 150 yards in the 9-7 loss. And Cobb anchored a strong backfield that had 160 yards on 36 carries in all.

Davion Smith, John Marshall football: The freshman quarterback stepped into his first varsity football game and accounted for two TDs, one passing and one rushing (a 30-yarder) as the Bears topped Northwest Classen 27-9.

Clifford Lawrence and Brandon Swindall, Millwood football: Aside from his solid play at receiver, Swindall had a 75-yard interception return for a touchdown. Lawrence had three sacks in the win over Star.

Edgar Velasco, US Grant cross country: Velasco finished seventh, just more than a minute off the winning pace Friday at Edmond Santa Fe.

– To nominate an OKC player of the week in any of the fall sports, e-mail Scott Wright at swright@opubco.com.

Why US Grant could win: There’s a lot of excitement around the Generals with their new, young, energetic head coach, Matt Miller, and there’s some blossoming talent on the team. If Miller can put the pieces together on defense to give the new offense time to find its rhythm, this team has a chance to win a few.

Why Southeast could win: Since the spring, coach Michael Branch has been focused on building back Spartan football on fundamentals, and it seemed to show through last week with their performance at the All-City Preview, especially on defense. The offense has a good run-pass balance and quarterback Jay Gogue is a playmaker.

Quote: “We’ve just got to get a little more consistent. But I think we’re improving. We’re tackling a whole lot better than we did last year, so I’m happy about that.” – Branch

Key matchup: Grant passing game vs. Southeast secondary. The Generals are transitioning to more of a passing offense, but running the ball still looks to be the team’s strength. So if they can find some success throwing the ball, it could open up the run game even more. But throwing won’t be easy, especially with safeties Gogue and Nelson Williams — two of Southeast’s top defenders — patrolling the back end.

The pick: Southeast 27, Grant 21. I think Grant will win some games this year, but I also have seen a lot of improvement from Southeast over last year’s team. If the Spartans weren’t stuck in perhaps the state’s toughest district, they’d be a playoff contender. But getting to the top four in 5A-1 is a steep hill to climb.

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com

There’s a lot of talent in the ACAC, and some good potential matchups all the way through. Here’s the schedule:

Thursday’s games
At Douglass
Game 1, 6 p.m.: US Grant vs. Northeast
Game 2, 6:45 p.m.: Millwood vs. Centennial
Game 3, 7:30 p.m.: Douglass vs. Grant/Northeast winner

At Taft
Game 4, 6 p.m.: Northwest Classen vs. Capitol Hill
Game 5, 6:45 p.m.: John Marshall vs. Southeast
Game 6, 7:30 p.m.: Star Spencer vs. Northwest/Capitol Hill winner

Friday’s games
Championship bracket at Douglass
Game 7, 6 p.m.: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6
Game 8, 6:45 p.m.: Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 3
Game 9, 7:30 p.m.: Loser Game 7 vs. Loser Game 8 (Third-place game)
Game 10, 8:15 p.m.: Championship game, Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8

Consolation bracket at Taft
Game 11, 5 p.m.: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2
Game 12, 5:45 p.m.: Loser Game 4 vs. Loser Game 5
Game 13, 6:30 p.m.: Loser Game 3 vs. Winner Game 11
Game 14, 7:15 p.m.: Loser Game 6 vs. Winner Game 12
Game 15, 8 p.m.: Consolation championship, Winner Game 13 vs. Winner Game 14

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com

It’s a lot of shotgun with three-wide and tight end/H-back sets to open the field for what could be a dangerous run game. Quarterback Ryan Ward isn’t the biggest guy around, but he manages the offense well, makes good throws, and though he didn’t run much in practice, he looks like he’s quick enough to take off and pick up some yardage.

The Generals have three running talented backs that will get their chances either carrying the ball or catching it out of the backfield, with GaVonte Bonds, Leandre Bailey and Derrick Young.

And though the offense will throw the ball more than last year, the running backs know they’re vital to the system.

“We’ve got a lot of talent at running back,” Bailey said. “I like the offense. It’ s good, but it’s hard to learn all the different plays. It’s a lot different than last year.

“I feel good about this team. We’re gonna do some damage”

Alex Levescy, Christian Nicholson and Kyle McClanahan anchor an offensive line that might not be big by Jenks and Union standards, but has some good size.

Levescy, a 6-foot-4, 260-pound left tackle, is getting some D-II and lower D-I recruiting attention. And Nicholson, a 6-foot-2, 245-pounder who is only a junior, has shown up on a few teams’ radars as well, especially on the defensive side of the ball, where he had eight sacks last year.

McClanahan is a senior and the team’s vocal leader at center.

“I try to be the loudest one out there,” he said. “I think it’s fun.

“As long as everybody comes to practice and works hard, we’re moving in the right direction. And what I’ve seen since coach Miller came here, everybody wants to work hard and do what he says.”

The district won’t be easy with Lawton, Mustang, Edmond North, Del City, Edmond Santa Fe, Putnam City and Westmoore, but the Generals are focused on putting a few Ws on the board.

“We have a lot of great coaches. We’ve changed a lot,” Nicholson said. “It’s turning for the better. We’re hoping to get a couple wins, maybe get to the playoffs in the next three years. This team could go pretty far. There’s a lot of potential in this school.”

– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com