OKC Player of the Week: Kevonte Richardson, Millwood
Millwood's Kevonte Richardson is this week's OKC Player of the Week
Kevonte Richardson, Millwood
Richardson, a junior, turned in the best game of his career with the Falcons, throwing for a career-high 265 yards and four touchdown in Millwood’s 40-6 win over Star Spencer.
Richardson has shown flashes of stardom since taking over for Gerald Jones as a freshman. Now, he seems ready to fully become the star on Millwood’s offense.
If Richardson can continue to be as successful throwing the ball as he was in the opener, the Falcons will be in an excellent position to win yet another state title.
Others of note
Devin Edwards, Northwest
Edwards ran back a fumble 73 yards in Northwest’s 39-19 loss to John Marshall.
Kevin Forbes, Douglass
Forbes ran for a touchdown, returned an interception for a score and ran in a two-point conversion in Douglass’ 54-0 win over Capitol Hill.
Emilio Gatewood, Millwood
Gatewood had 132 yards and two touchdowns and 12 carries, including a 53-yarder.
Brendon Jordan, John Marshall
Jordan ran for a touchdown, threw for two and kicked three extra points in the Bears’ 39-19 win over Northwest.
Darren Rideau, Star Spencer
Rideau ran for 131 yards in the Bobcats loss to Millwood.
Antyoun Smith, Douglass
Smith threw for two touchdowns and ran for another in the Trojans’ 54-0 win over Capitol Hill.
Brandon Swindall and Josh Turner, Millwood
The receivers are Richardson’s favorite targets in the Falcons big opening-week win.
Mid-Del Player of the Week: Chazten Gonzalez, Del City
Chazten Gonzalez, Del City
Gonzalez threw for 230 yards and three touchdowns, and rushed for 33 as the Eagles beat rival Midwest City 27-15 at home.
Chris McAlister gets much of the attention in Del City’s offense but Gonzalez is one of the underrated quarterbacks of 6A. He wound up having an excellent season last year and the Eagles figure to be potent once again with Gonzalez and his two top receivers back.
If those three can stay healthy — and barring any other major catastrophe — Del City should be in an excellent position to end a long playoff drought.
Others of note
Quintrell Boykins, Del City
Boykins returned an interception 56 yards for a touchdown in Del City’s win over Midwest City.
Donovan Dan and Chris McAlister, Del City
It’s hard to recognize Gonzalez without acknowledging these two. All of Gonzalez’s passing went to these two receivers.
Kenton Whittington, Carl Albert
Whittington had 15 carries for 91 yards in Carl Albert’s loss to Tulsa Washington.
OKC alumni report, Sept. 6
Former Southeast standout Gerald McCoy
Here’s a look at how All-City Athletic Conference alumni did in this weekend’s college football action. Know someone I left off, let me know with a comment here or an e-mail to raber@opubco.com.
Douglass
Da’Sor Horton, So., RB, NEO: Horton had 23 carries for 57 yards in NEO’s 19-14 win over Arkansas Baptist.
David Smith, Jr., LB, Langston: Smith had five tackles in Langston’s 31-6 win over Lincoln.
John Marshall
Nate Cotton, Jr., DB, SNU: Cotton had 10 tackles (7 solo), 1 for loss, a forced fumble and a pass breakup in SNU’s 42-28 win over St. Mary.
Clarence McDonald, So., K, Langston: McDonald had five punts for a 41-yard average (Long of 52) in Langston’s 31-6 win over Lincoln.
Millwood
Adryan Adams, Sr., DB, North Texas: Adams had four tackles and a pass break up in North Texas’ 20-10 win over Ball State.
Gerald Jones, Jr., WR, Tennessee: Jones missed Tennessee’s 63-7 win over Western Kentucky after suffering a high ankle sprain.
Prentice Muse, Sr., DB, UCO: Muse had an interception and five tackles in UCO’s 24-7 win over West Texas A&M
Northeast
Kenyad Blair, So., WR, NEO: Blair had 7 catches for 60 yards in NEO’s 19-14 win over Arkansas Baptist.
Ishmael Underdown, So., DB, Missouri Southern: Underdown had a tackle in Mo. Southern’s 17-15 loss to Harding on Aug. 29.
Antjuan Walker, So., DB, Langston: Walker had a tackle in Langston’s 31-6 win over Lincoln.
George West, Sr., WR, Notre Dame: West missed Notre Dame’s 35-0 win over Nevada with an injury.
Southeast
Gerald McCoy, Jr., DT, OU: McCoy had five tackles — four for loss — and three quarterback hurries in the Sooners’ 14-13 loss to BYU.
Star Spencer
Terry Hardeman, Sr., LB, UCO: Hardeman had a team-leading 10 tackles (7 solo), three for loss, a sack and a pass breakup in UCO’s 24-7 win over West Texas A&M.
Mid-Del Alumni report, Sept. 6
Former Carl Albert standout David Oku scored twice Saturday.
Here’s a breakdown on how former Mid-Del athletes did this weekend at the college level. Know someone I left out who played? Let me know. I couldn’t find complete stats for NEO.
Carl Albert
Morgan Christy, Fr., DB, SNU: Christy had five tackles, a pass breakup and a fumble recovery in SNU’s 42-28 win over St. Mary.
Charles Hightower, Jr., LB, UCO: Hightower played but had no stats in UCO’s 24-7 win over West Texas A&M.
Daytawion Lowe, Fr., DB, OSU: Lowe had two tackles in the Cowboys 24-10 win over Georgia.
David Oku, Fr., RB, Tennessee: Oku got his college career off to a big start with two late touchdowns in Tennessee’s 63-7 win over Western Kentucky. Oku finished with 42 yards on 8 carries, with a long of 16.
David Vaughn, Jr., S, Carl Albert: Vaughn had five tackles in the Gorillas’ 41-13 win over Chadron State.
Midwest City
Antonio Brown, Fr., DB, Missouri State: Brown had an interception in the Bears’ 48-10 loss to Arkansas.
Kevin Gaddis, Fr., CB, Rice: Gaddis played but had no stats in the Owls’ 44-24 loss to UAB.
Brandon Love, Sr., OL, NSU: Love started on the offensive line in NSU’s 6-0 loss to Tarleton State.
John Flanders, So., DB, Tulsa: Flanders had a tackle in Tulsa’s 37-13 win over Tulane.
LaRon Moore, Jr., DB, Texas Tech: Moore had three tackles and started at CB in Texas Tech’s 38-13 win over North Dakota.
Jamad Williams, Jr., RB, Tulsa: Williams had 12 carries for 34 yards in Tulsa’s 37-13 win over Tulane.
SMQ: Carl Albert-Tulsa Washington
Not hard to sum this one up: Size and speed vs. Just speed.
Tulsa Washington has a lethal combination of football’s two most prized tools and used them to near perfection Friday night at Carl Albert. Tulsa Washington dominated the line of scrimmage and had the two best players on the field in Eric Bennett and Calvin Barnett. After week one, I’ve got to see Eric Bennett is the early front-runner for player of the year. I know, it’s early, but if Bennett would’ve stayed healthy last season, there’s a pretty good chance he would’ve won the award as a junior. It’s no coincidence that Tulsa Washington didn’t lose last year with him behind center. Bennett isn’t the most highly prized recruit in the state but he is the best high school player.
There’s no real secret to why Carl Albert lost: Bennett, the size of the Hornets line and four interceptions killed any chance of the Titans winning.
Carl Albert is going to have to find some offensive balance in order to be successful. The Titans completed just two more passes to their own receivers as they did to the other side. Like Gary Rose told me as practices started, Carl Albert could line up and run the ball 100 percent of the time and probably have a pretty good record and a decent playoff run. To win titles, though, Carl Albert needs some balance. It’ll be interesting to see how that evolves: Were the Titans passing problems a symptom of Tulsa Washington’s big linemen getting in Realmuto’s face and forcing him to make poor decisions or were they a sign of a larger problem? I’m going with the former. There’s no doubt Carl Albert needs to get its receivers/DBs in better condition to be able to play on both sides of the ball more consistenly. They’ll have time to do that and get into a better flow, though, as the season goes on. Carl Albert will face no other team like Tulsa Washington this season.
The bright spots for Carl Albert last night also came on the offense. J.T. Realmuto had an outstanding night running the ball, with 137 yards on 20 carries. He had runs for 48 and 33 yards. Junior Kenton Whittington had a breakout game at running back. He’d been in David Oku’s shadows before this season and likely would’ve been a fullback if it wasn’t for the season-ending injury to sophomore tailback Tyre LeBlanc very early in practice. Whittington had 91 yards on 15 carries.
“He’s a stud,” Rose said of Whittington. “If he’s not the hardest worker on the team, he’s one of them.”
One thing to watch for Carl Albert over the next days and weeks, though, is the health of center Anthony Frazier. Frazier suffered a shoulder injury early in Friday’s game but stayed in and toughed it out. Frazier is a critical piece of the Titans offensive line and losing him for any length of time could deal a serious blow to Carl Albert’s hopes.
A look at the rankings: Class B-C
Class B
1. Garber (1)#1-0
2. Laverne (2)#1-0
3. Canton (3)#1-0
4. Davenport (4)#1-0
5. Weleetka (5)#1-0
6. Porter (7)#1-0
7. Depew (6)#1-0
8. Fox (8)#1-0
9. Alex (9)#1-0
10. Geary (10)#1-0
Not a lot of action going on here with Porter’s win over Depew dealing the only loss to a top-10 team. I decided just to flip flop the teams since the game was just a six-point win and the teams were obviously close to evenly matched. Watts, Copan and Ryan are waiting for a team or two to lose to jump up into the top 10.
Class C
1. Shattuck (1)#1-0
2. Timberlake (2)#1-0
3. Seiling (4)#1-0
4. Temple (3)#0-1
5. Buffalo (5)#0-1
6. Covington-Douglas (6)#0-1
7. Thackerville (7)#0-1
8. Deer Creek-Lamont (8)#1-0
9. Corn Bible (9)#1-0
10. Waynoka (10)#1-0
I hate, Hate, HATE doing Class C rankings early in the season. Because many of the top teams are playing top 10-15 Class B teams during non-district and the results can skew things. So I’m pretty much holding status quo here despite some lopsided losses. I did flop Seiling, which beat Sharon-Mutual big, with Temple, which lost to Ryan. I think Buffalo, Covington-Douglas and Thackerville will all be top 8-10 teams this season, but we need to start seeing them prove it next week. Maud and Boise City are hanging out just outside the top 10.
At look at the rankings: Class 6A-A
Eight-man will have to wait another day as my eyes are about to slam shut but here’s Class 6A-A with a short explanation with each class.
Class 6A
1. Tulsa Union (1)#1-0
2. Jenks (2)#1-0
3. Broken Arrow (4)#0-1
4. Owasso (5)#1-0
5. Del City (11)#1-0
6. Southmoore (6)#1-0
7. Edmond North (10)#1-0
8. Mustang (9)#1-0
9. Muskogee (8)#0-1
10. Norman North (13)#1-0
Rankings review
I take a little different approach when formulating rankings. I don’t drop teams every time when they lose. Never understood why a No. 10 team who lost to a No. 1 team had to drop. That’s why you’ll see Broken Arrow moved up a notch in 6A despite losing to Tulsa Union. The Tigers lost in a close game and couldn’t see jumping Owasso (who’s without its regular starting QB) or Southmoore (who struggled to run the ball in its opening win) over Broken Arrow. I struggled with how to order the bottom part of the rankings. Del City’s win was huge so I jumped them ahead of winners Southmoore, Edmond North and Mustang. There were flaws with each of those team’s wins (although I don’t hold North’s against them as much as the other two, since it was a rivalry game). We’ll see some more shaking out in the next couple weeks with some big matchups. Midwest City might still be a top 10 team by the time it’s all said and done. Along with the Bombers, Putnam North and Lawton are bubbling right outside the top 10.
Class 5A Rankings
1. Tulsa Washington (1)#1-0
2. Carl Albert (2)#0-1
3. El Reno (5)#1-0
4. Lawton MacArthur (6)#1-0
5. Bixby (4)#0-1
6. Guthrie (3)#0-1
7. Tulsa East Central (7)#1-0
8. Shawnee (8)#1-0
9. Duncan (11)#1-0
10. Ada (12)#1-0
It was tough at the top of 5A with Nos. 2, 3, 4, 9 and 10 all losing. In the end, I decided to keep Carl Albert at No. 2 because I can’t see jumping El Reno or Lawton MacArthur up over the Titans right now. And El Reno win next week would give serious consideration to a jump. Lawton Mac’s win was certainly impressive and the Highlanders could also be moving up with continued wins. I just think Tulsa Washington is heads and shoulders above everyone else in the class right now. It’s hard to judge just where Bixby and Guthrie are right now but we’ll find out soon enough. I don’t drop teams just because tey lost but Guthrie’s offense worries me and Bixby got hammered so I wasn’t hesitant of dropping them behind El Reno and Lawton Mac. Tulsa Kelley and Deer Creek are just outside the top 10, as is Ardmore and Coweta.
Class 4A
1. Glenpool (1)#1-0
2. Broken Bow (2)#1-0
3. Sallisaw (3)#1-0
4. Douglass (5)#1-0
5. McGuinness (6)#1-0
6. Grove (7)#1-0
7. Wagoner (8)#1-0
8. Weatherford (9)#1-0
9. Star Spencer (4)#0-1
10. Collinsville (10)#1-0
With just one team in the top 10 losing, the only real question here is how far does Star Spencer fall with its big loss to Millwood. The answer winds up being to No. 9 from No. 4. No. 1 Glenpool’s win wasn’t overly dominant but the Warriors are still No. 1. The others ahead of Star Spencer all had big wins, either in blowout fashion or in McGuinness’ and Weatherford’s cases, wins over highly regarded opponents. Poteau and McLoud are hanging around just outside the rankings.
Class 3A
1. Cascia Hall (1)#1-0
2. Tuttle (3)#1-0
3. Sequoyah-Claremore (4)#1-0
4. Clinton (2)#0-1
5. Purcell (5)#1-0
6. Madill (7)#1-0
7. Checotah (6)#1-0
8. Bethany (7)#1-0
9. Metro Christian (9)#1-0
10. Blanchard (10)#1-0
Another relatively stable class, with Clinton the only top 10 team with a loss. Figured they’need to go fall under at least Tuttle and Seq.-Claremore. Elgin and Newcastle ate just outside the top 10.
Class 2A
1. Lincoln Christian (2)#1-0
2. Millwood (3)#1-0
3. Kingfisher (5)#1-0
4. Davis (6)#1-0
5. Sequoyah-Tahlequah (7)#1-0
6. Heritage Hall (1)#0-1
7. Vian (9)#1-0
8. Chandler (4)#0-1
9. Lexington (13)#1-0
10. Sulphur (8)#0-1
Another class with some interesting dilemmas. How far does Heritage Hall drop? What about Chandler? Who fills out the bottom of the top 10? The answers: To 6th because their defense performed well yet they clearly have a ton of work to do on offense. Chandler drops four spots to eighth. Chandler should be significantly better by the end of the year but thhe Lions have to grow up quick. Sulphur stays in the top 10 in large part due to the rash of losses at the bottom and just outside the top 10.
Class A
1. Okeene (1)#1-0
2. Tonkawa (2)#1-0
3. Morrison (3)#1-0
4. Ringling (4)#0-0
5. Hennessey (6)#1-0
6. OCS (7)#1-0
7. Woodland (5)#0-1
8. Stroud (9)#1-0
9. Hominy (8)#0-1
10. Commerce (12)#1-0
I dropped Woodland down two spots after its 31-6 loss to No. 1 Okeene. Woodland’s going to be pretty good by season’s end but needs some ore consistency. Stroud and Hominy switch spots after Stroud beats Chandler and Cleveland beats Hominy.
Carl Albert-Tulsa Washington game blog
Up in the press box at Jim Harris Stadium in Midwest City for Carl Albert-Tulsa Washington.
Wonderfully cool, breezy night for football. I’m just glad both teams have numbers that contrast after last night’s difficulty with Southmoore’s road whites. I’ll update this post with game action as I can. You can also follow me on Twitter (@ryaber).
And Carl Albert’s band strikes up “Hail To The Victors” First time I’ve heard that song this season. Not sure what BTW’s fight song is. Probably “On Wisconsin.” Seems like every other high school in Oklahoma is “On Wisconsin” for some reason.
Carl Albert cheerleaders are releasing orange (and red and silver) baloons to honor cheerleader who died in car accident near end of last season.
Should have a solid game called tonight as David Gore, who runs the official’s association, is wearing the white hat.
BTW will receive after CA wins toss.
FIRST QUARTER
BTW drive starts on the 16. BTW goes 3 and out. CA ball at the 48. Carl Albert also goes 3 and out. BTW ball at the 37 after a 7-yard punt. Eric Bennett runs 62 yards for a TD on the first play.
TULSA WASHINGTON 7, CARL ALBERT 0 8:36
J.T. Realmuto answers with a pretty good run of his own, 33 yards to give the Titans the ball around the BTW 30. Dante Barnett intercepts Realmuto’s pass to end the threat.
Another interception by Barnett gives BTW the ball at the 3. Bennett carries in on first play.
TULSA WASHINNGTON 14, CARL ALBERT 0 1:20 remaining
SECOND QUARTER
BTW gets big punt return, more good field position. Dante Barnett 21-yard TD catch. HUGE night for him already.
TULSA WASHINGTON 21, CARL ALBERT 0 11:01 remaining.
Just to recap Barnett’s night: 2 interceptions, 1 setting up a TD, and a TD catch.
J.T. Realmuto breaks off a 48-yard gain to give the Titans first and goal. Tre Porter gets the ball to the one on the next play but the Hornets defense comes up big before Realmuto hits Austen Roselius for a 3-yard TD on fourth down. PAT fails after bad snap.
TULSA WASHINGTON 21, CARL ALBERT 6 7:03 remaining.
Big chance for CA to get back in the game, hold BTW and get the ball back with just under 4 left. Chance goes by the board as CA goes 3 and out. But punt is fumbled and CA has new life.
Tough night for Realmuto through the air. Gets intercepted for the third time, this time at the BTW 1 to end the threat. We’re at halftime.
Quick stat updates: Realmuto 15 carries for 124 yards on the grouns but has thrown three interceptions.
For Tulsa Washington, Eric Bennett has 5 carries for 89 yards.
THIRD QUARTER
Eric Bennett breaks off a 53-yard TD to give him 9-170 and 3 TDs (and another through the air). PAT fails.
TULSA WASHINGTON 27, CARL ALBERT 6 7:29 remaining
J.T. Realmuto picked off again. This time by Tulsa Washington’s Tyler Lockett.
Third quarter ends with the same score. Eric Bennett out of the game at least temporarily with what looks like cramps.
Fourth quarter
Carl Albert turns the ball over on downs.
Writing my story but here’s the box:
TULSA WASHINGTON 27, CARL ALBERT 6
Tulsa Washington#14#7#6#0# — #27
Carl Albert#0#6#0#0# — #6
Tulsa Washington — Eric Bennett 62 run (Dylan Seibert run)
Tulsa Washington — Bennett 3 run (Seibert kick)
Tulsa Washington — Dante Barnett 21 pass from Bennett (Seibert kick)
Carl Albert — Austen Roselius 3 pass from J.T. Realmuto (Pass failed)
Tulsa Washington — Bennett 53 run (Kick failed)
GAME IN FIGURES
Tulsa Washington##Carl Albert
9#First downs#14
27-170 #Rushing a-yds#45-268
46#Passing yds#35
5-10-0#Passing C-A-I#6-20-4
4-1#Fumble no.-lost#1-0
10-54 #Penalty no.-yds#4-20
1-0#Team records#0-1
Capsule: Millwood at Star Spencer
Millwood at Star Spencer
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Twidwell Stadium, Spencer
Millwood
Why the Falcons can win: Well, for one, Star Spencer is likely to be without one of its top playmakers in RB Terrence Olds. Not that Millwood needs much help with stars all around, including Trayvon Henry, Kevonte Richardson, Emilio Gatewood and Josh Turner.
Star Spencer
Why the Bobcats can win: Darrell Hall does about the most sound coaching around and there’s no doubt he’ll have his team ready to start the season in a big way. Star Spencer won the All-City Preview lastw eek, so no reason they can’t win here.
Key matchup: Millwood WR Josh Turner vs. Star Spencer’s Darren Rideau. If these two, probably two of the top five best all-around athletes in the city-area, match up, it could be explosive. Turner looked phenomenal at times during the preview and Rideau certainly has the accolades (and the bloodlines) that put him right up there.
The pick: Star Spencer 22, Millwood 20. I went back and forth on this one. Without Olds, I gave serious consideration to picking Millwood. Wouldn’t be stunned whatever the outcome tonight. But I think Star’s going to be better, at least at this point in the season. If this game were played later, I might feel differently, but so many of Millwood’s big-time players are still gaining the experience. Star Spencer is a team that will challenge for a 4A title. Millwood has a chance to challenge in 2A. I’ve just got to give the Bobcats the edge this week, if nothing else because of home-field.
Capsule: Tulsa Washington at Carl Albert
Tulsa Washington at Carl Albert
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Jim Harris Stadium, Midwest City
Tulsa Washington
Why the Hornets can win: Why can’t they? Tulsa Washington beat Carl Albert twice last year and returns two of their three best players in QB/DB Eric Bennett and lineman Calvin Barnett. BTW is much bigger than Carl Albert on both sides of the line, which could leads to all kinds of room for the speedy Bennett to run.
Carl Albert
Why the Titans can win: Last year, Carl Albert experimented with a pass-first offense in this game, going away from the tried-and-true, hand it to No. 23 (David Oku). Oku’s gone now but Carl Albert has had time to grow its quarterback (and receivers) into the kind of players it needs to be successful through the air. If J.T. Realmuto and his talented group of receivers can start clicking tonight, the Titans could get the season started in a big way.
Quote: “They might be bigger than us, but there’s no way they’re going to outwork us,” Carl Albert DL James Davis.
Key matchup: Bennett vs. the Carl Albert LBs. If Carl Albert can contain Bennett and force Tulsa Washington to use a conventional running game and force Bennett to stay in the pocket when a pass is called, that would go a long way toward ending the Hornets winning ways against Carl Albert.
The pick: Tulsa Washington 27, Carl Albert 21. I made this pick earlier in the week and I’m sticking with it. Tulsa Washington just has too many weapons for the Titans. Carl Albert’s running game, long the domain of Oku, is also a big question mark. Carl Albert will be good, probably No. 2 in the state good, but there’s no indication Tulsa Washington has slipped from its position as No. 1 in 5A.
