2014 Prep Football Preview
Breakup of the big boys: Muskogee finds itself with a more common enemy as Class 6A splits in half ALSO: Special features, 19 area team breakdowns, staff predictions
Page 2 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Contents
TEAM PAGES
COVER STORY: Great enrollment divide in Class 6A leads to a division of competition. Page 5
New era at Muskogee, Page 6
Vian set for early showdown, Page 22
Hilldale reloads, Page 9
Ex-Rougher takes Porter reins, Page 27
Wagoner’s ’backers are key to defense,. p. 11
One final look back at 2013, Page 30
Father, son journey winds down at FTG, Page 16
Schedules, Page 23
Checotah’s got the beef, Page 19
VS.
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Prep Football Preview
Area rankings, Page 26
• Fun stuff with Q and As: Pages 15 and 18 Add to your enjoyment of the preseason preview by going online for media days press conferences with each team at http:// muskogee phoenix.com/sports
Muskogee, 6 Hilldale, 9 Wagoner, 11 Tahlequah, 12 Sequoyah, 13 Stigler, 14 Keys, 14 Fort Gibson, 16 Checotah, 19 Eufaula, 20 Haskell, 21 Vian, 22 Hulbert, 24 Gore, 24 Warner, 25 Porter, 27 Porum, 28 Midway, 29 Webbers Falls, 29 COVER PHOTO: Muskogee head coach Rafe Watkins and players Quintahj Cherry and Adonis Cole along with the rest of the Roughers are set to break through into a new form of Class 6A football as the biggest league in Oklahoma is split down the middle. MHS cheerleaders Kaytlynn Toney and Cecilia Rodriguez are also pictured. — Photo by Mandy Lundy
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 31
After the regular season:
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Special photo by John Hasler
Vian’s Eric Casey, the Phoenix’s Small School Offensive Player of the Year, catches a touchdown pass as the Wolverines marched to the Class 2A semifinals in 2013.
6A-2 Jenks (+105) Broken Arrow (+70) Westmoore (+16) Sapulpa (-1) Bixby (-13) Muskogee (-31) Tulsa Edison (-83) Putnam City (-63)
Dist All 7-0 10-0 6-1 8-2 5-2 8-2 3-4 6-4 3-4 6-4 3-4 3-7 1-6 4-6 0-7 2-8
PF 401 366 306 301 289 213 213 207
PA 123 174 181 229 289 382 325 278
Quinton (-14) Gore (-25) Canadian (-51) Haileyville (-90)
3-3 5-4 2-4 2-8 1-5 1-8 0-6 0-10
5A-4 Collinsville (+44) Pryor (+53) Claremore (+27) T. E Central (-20) Coweta (+1) Tulsa Central (-7) Tahlequah (-38) Grove (-60)
Dist 6-1 6-1 5-2 4-3 3-4 2-5 1-6 1-6
All 8-2 7-3 7-3 4-6 4-6 3-7 1-9 2-8
PF 321 299 332 269 269 180 235 221
PA 249 232 282 388 313 259 337 339
4A-3 Wagoner (+96) Oologah (+64) Catoosa (+57) Cleveland (+23) Tulsa McLain (-41) Miami (-55) Vinita (-52) Tulsa Webster (-92)
Dist All 7-0 10-0 6-1 7-3 5-2 7-3 4-3 5-5 3-4 5-5 2-5 3-7 1-6 2-8 0-7 0-10
PF 361 303 289 263 244 206 163 146
PA 176 195 179 280 230 337 231 419
4A-4 Poteau (+78) Cascia Hall (+68) Sallisaw (+62) Fort Gibson (+30) Stilwell (-37) Muldrow (-50) Tulsa Rogers (-80) Broken Bow (-71)
Dist 6-1 6-1 6-1 4-3 3-4 2-5 1-6 0-7
All 9-1 9-1 8-2 6-4 4-6 2-8 3-7 1-9
PF 400 342 361 324 123 155 205 151
PA 187 208 252 212 292 272 338 361
3A-7 Locust Grove (+65) Hilldale (+74) Lincoln Christ (+30) Jay (0) Sequoyah (-19) Keys (-68) Westville (-82)
Dist All 6-0 10-0 5-1 8-2 4-2 6-4 3-3 6-4 2-4 4-6 1-5 1-9 0-6 0-10
PF 499 467 379 260 273 136 122
PA 226 193 324 190 313 439 488
Class 4A First round Wagoner 28, Fort Gibson 7 Quarterfinal Wagoner 28, Woodward 21 Semifinal Anadarko 34, Wagoner 14
3A-8 Checotah (+83) Stigler (+79) Spiro (+51) Roland (-20) Eufaula (+4) Valliant (-57) Idabel (-74) Heavener (-66)
Dist 6-1 6-1 6-1 3-4 3-4 2-5 1-6 1-6
All 9-1 8-2 8-2 6-4 5-5 2-8 1-9 2-7
PF 382 387 293 271 236 105 154 111
PA 148 152 160 236 177 357 407 290
Class 3A First round Hilldale 32, Spiro 7 Checotah 37, Jay 13 Lincoln Christian 41, Stigler 21 Second final Hilldale 14, Metro Christian 12 Beggs 34, Checotah 28 Quarterfinals Seminole 43, Hilldale 28
2A-5 Meeker (+88) Okemah (+48) Stroud (+44) Haskell (0) Mounds (-44) Holdenville (-46) Wellston (-90)
Dist All 6-0 10-0 5-1 8-2 4-2 6-4 3-3 5-5 2-4 6-4 1-5 2-8 0-6 1-9
PF 394 332 222 241 212 186 91
PA 57 186 153 290 220 307 390
2A-6 Vian (+82) Hartshorne (+68) Panama (+16) Hugo (+7) Antlers (-30) Pocola (-53) Wilburton (-90)
Dist All 6-0 10-0 5-1 8-2 4-2 7-3 3-3 7-3 2-4 4-6 1-5 3-7 0-6 0-10
PF 401 423 291 391 235 284 193
PA 76 151 200 230 266 373 602
2A-8 Commerce (+97) Salina (+64) Colcord (+64) Kansas (+15) Wyandotte (-15) Hulbert (-63) Ketchum (-75) Quapaw (-87)
Dist All 7-0 10-0 6-1 8-2 5-2 7-3 4-3 6-4 3-4 5-5 1-6 1-9 1-6 3-7 1-6 1-9
PF 412 334 341 346 299 97 180 94
PA 129 124 100 225 240 366 357 456
A-6 Talihina (+90) Savanna (+52) Cent Sallisaw (+38)
Dist All 6-0 10-0 5-1 8-2 4-2 5-5
PF PA 472 108 370 114 272 249
180 157 118 81
220 337 316 488
A-8 Afton (+79) Summit Christ (+59) Warner (+37) Fairland (-4) Porter (-32) Liberty (-60) Foyil (-79)
Dist 6-0 5-1 4-2 3-3 2-4 1-5 0-6
All 9-1 9-1 6-4 4-5 3-7 1-9 1-9
PF 414 387 259 156 117 110 147
PA 101 153 189 238 281 381 333
B-4 Wetumka (+127) Keota (+82) Davenport (+81) Dewar (+44) Weleetka (+27) Strother (-26) Porum (-44) Cave Springs (-51) Gans (-108) Bowlegs (-132)
Dist All 9-0 10-0 7-2 8-2 7-2 8-2 7-2 7-3 5-4 5-5 4-5 5-5 3-6 4-6 2-7 3-7 1-8 2-8 0-9 0-10
PF 516 525 435 372 346 436 280 396 150 52
PA 196 260 131 258 340 398 376 442 442 543
C-4 Thackerville (+105) Arkoma (+59) Sasakwa (+21) SW Covenant (+12) Webbers Falls (-16) Maud (-1) Midway (-75) Bokoshe (-105)
Dist 7-0 5-2 5-2 4-3 3-4 3-4 1-6 0-7
PF 454 469 434 414 306 372 217 129
PA 82 295 339 289 277 286 539 457
All 9-0 7-3 7-3 6-4 4-5 5-5 1-9 1-8
Then the playoffs:
Class 2A First round Vian 40, Haskell 14 Second round Vian 41, Salina 20 Quarterfinals Vian 21, Hennessey 20 Semifinals Davis 56, Vian 39 Class 2A First round Keifer 52, Warner 0
Page 30 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
A fade to black..... one final look back
Above, Wagoner’s Lawrence Evitt, the MVP of the All-Phoenix team in 2013, rushes for yardage in his final high school game, a Class 4A semifinal loss to Anadarko.
Prep Football Preview
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Top, Chandler Puckett, the All-Phoenix team’s Large School Offensive Player of the Year, runs for yardage against Metro Christian in the second round of the Class 3A playoffs. Left, Muskogee’s Tramal Ivy, the Large School Defensive Player of the Year, embarks on a touchdown run against Bixby.
Phoenix file photos
Prep Football Preview
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Muskogee Phoenix
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Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 29
midway chargers Record in 2013: 1-9 Head coach: G. B. Myles (first year) Staff: Danny Rich, codefensive coordinator; Luke Broadbent, co-defensive coordinator;Heath Durrett, offensive coach Returning starters (5 offense, 4 defense): Clay Watts, FB/MLB, 6-0, 220, Sr.; Hunter Russell, G/DL, 5-10, 225, Sr.; Blake Nelson, TE/LB, 6-1, Myles 190, Sr.; Hayden Morgan, TE/NG, 6-3, 304, So.; Devon Barnes, TB/DB, 5-9, 165, So.; Corey Miller, QB/DB, 5-8, 150, So. Top newcomers: D. J. Nelson, OL/DL, 5-2, 200,
So. Change seems to be the only constant for the Midway Chargers. Competing in District C-4, the Chargers will start this season, as they have the last three, with a new head coach. This year, G. B. Myles takes over the reigns of a Charger program that finished last Watts year with a disappointing 1-9 record. However, the timing of the coaching change and higher expectations from Myles may help Midway reap benefits from this change. “I’ve changed coaches every four years that I’ve been here and I’ve kinda
gotten used to seeing a new coach,” said returning senior Clay Watts. “Last year we didn’t get to know our coach until the season started and that kinda hurt us.” With Myles’ arrival at Midway earlier in the summer, the Chargers have had longer to learn the coach’s offensive and defensive Barnes plans and an opportunity that they have been missing in recent years. “This is the first time we have a had summer pride program in a long time,” said Watts. “We’ve been hitting the weights really hard and I think we have gotten a lot stronger and faster and
everybody’s learning their roles.” The timing of Myles’ arrival has also helped solidify what Myles expects from his team. “He gives you a push,” said Watts. “The man just expects for you to get your job done and nothing less. Nothing but near perfection.”
Touchdown D Myles’ defensive unit will have to be near perfect as the coach is installing a new hyper defense. Myles expects more from his defense than some other coaches might. “Our number one goal of our defense is to score,” Myles said. “Most defenses try to get a stop or a turnover but I don’t think any play is complete in football
until you score, especially in the eight-man game. If we can score five or six times in the season on defense, it’s gonna help us out. “It can change momentum, it’s gonna change field position and it can change a season and that is what we are really focused on.” Anchoring the defense will be nose guard Hayden Morgan Morgan with Watts and Blake Nelson at linebackers, and Corey Miller and Devon Barnes as defensive backs. “He (coach) works us hard,” Morgan said. “I’ve been working on my stance and learning to do my job to stop the other team.”
Pistol set to fire Change has come to the offense as well but the expectations are not any lower. Taking over at quarterback this year is sophomore Corey Miller. Miller and the rest of the Chargers have been adjusting to a new offensive scheme that has become popular at all levels of football – the pistol formation. “It’s about as true a version of the pistol as you can have in the eight-man game,” said Myles. Watts and Barnes will both spend time in the backfield. Watts and his 220-pound frame could attack defenses as a bruiser, while the fleet feet of Barnes will help keep defenses off guard. — Jimmy Stinson, correspondent
webbers falls warriors Record in 2013: 4-5 Head coach: Steve Corn (second year, 4-5) Staff: Clint Gillman, defensive coordinator. Returning starters (6 offense, 5 defense): Darren Shanks, QB/LB, 6-0, 165, Jr.; Easton Eckhardt, FB/DT, 5-9, 170, Sr.; Dakota Reed, HB/WR, 5-9, 160, So.; Jayton Eckhardt, FB/TE/OLB, Corn 5-11, 175, So.; Bruce Yang, OL, 5-8, 185, So.; Hunter McNeely, OL/DT, 5-8, 250, Sr.; Taylor Stephens, DE/TE, 5-9, 185, Jr. Steve Corn enters his second season as the Warriors’ head man looking to return the team to the postseason and beyond. Coming off a 4-5 record in 2013, the Warriors return 11 starters, six on offense and five on defense, including four in the skill positions. Leading the way is Darren Shanks, a 6-foot, 165-pound junior who passed for 1,100 yards last season. Corn is confident Shanks will improve on that number. “He’s a player that’s going to get better and have better
numbers,” Corn said. “Last year, he played most of the season hurt with a slightly separated shoulder. He also had 700 yards rushing and that’s not being healthy. “So having him healthy and keeping him healthy, I’d like to see what we’re going to do.” Someone else to pay attention to is senior Colby Menie, a 5-7, 145 wide receiver/outside linebacker. Gillman “He’s not a big kid, but he’s a smart kid with a big learning curve,” Corn said. “You tell him to go do something and he’s going to do it. As a senior, number one he’s a great example for the other kids and number two it’s one less thing as a coach you have to worry about.” What has Corn excited more than anything is continuity. “This group has had a different coaching staff for each of the last two or three years until this year,” he said. “We’ve definitely grown in practice. It’s things like knowing who we are supposed to pick up on certain plays, where before it was a constant reminder."
One consistency that Corn would like to change is the Warriors’ sudden exits in postseason play. "District C-4 for many years was one of the worst districts in Class C,” he said. “That’s not the same anymore. Last year, I think our two top teams lost in the second round. Years before, it didn’t matter. “C-4 is not the same. With the addiEckhardt tion of Fox, who went 102 last year in Class B, you could definitely see someone from C-4 playing for a gold ball. Hopefully we can win the district and maybe that’ll be us."
Don’t forget defense While most people see eight-man football as purely offense, the performance of the defense can take a team a long way. Warriors’ defensive coordinator Chris Gillman knows that knowing your Xs and Os will pay dividends down the road. “You really have to maintain your discipline,” Gillman said. “One small mistake, one little misalignment can put six on the board for the
other team. Two or three mistakes and you’re down a significant amount. Knowing your position, knowing where you’re supposed to be and executing your assignment are critical.” Conditioning is also very critical “In small school eightman football, many times you don’t come off the field,” Corn said. “We can tell you ‘Do all this’ but you McNeely have to do even more. You have to take pride in it.”
Remaining the same Webbers Falls fullback/defensive tackle Easton Eckhardt is thrilled to see the same coaches looking back at him this season. The 5-9, 170 senior can concentrate on improving on what he learned last season to help the Warriors get better instead of adapting to a new system. "We know all the plays,” Eckhardt said. “Plus, we’ve gotten a little older and a little bigger." Being a senior, Eckhardt knows the responsibility that goes along with being an
upperclassmen. “That’s the job of the seniors – to step it up,” he said. “We have to show the underclassmen that you have to give it everything you have every day."
Moving along There are times a player will move from the position he’s known to a new spot in the lineup that benefits the team more than him. Hunter McNeely, a 5-8, 250 senior, will be one of those players for Webbers Falls in 2014, moving to center from guard. “When he steps to the line, he’s looking at the nose
guard or linebacker and reading from that,” Corn said. “Last year, Hunter was coming off a serious injury so he didn’t quite get the snaps we were expecting out of him. “Here’s the thing about Hunter. He’s very strong, very smart and he’s going to be a big-time player for us this year.” And what made McNeely more comfortable in the switch was coaching stability. “It means a lot to me,” McNeely said. “We actually have a coach that’s going to stay with us this year instead of going off to another school.” — Ronn Rowland
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Ross Continued from Page 27
“I’m trying to teach them that we need to be proud of where we are from,” said Ross as he alluded to the paint job and improvements made to the weight and locker facilities at Porter High. “Lancaster made improvements to the stuff we had and he taught us to take care of it. I am using that same idea. We don’t have the best stuff at Porter, but what we do have we are going to take care of.”
Porter Continued from Page 27 Ross knows the need of improvement in their defense is there, and plans to bring in an easy to learn defense that will get his team on the same page. “We are going to put a lot of emphasis on defense,” said Ross. “As a young team, defense has to come first.” Smith and Van Vors will be joined in the backfield by junior Bracey Kilgoreat strong safety, backing up Macheras and Benningfield at the linebacker positions. Sophomore John Isreal will use his 6-foot-2 frame to harass receivers this year at cornerback. He will be joined by senior Levi Snyder to complete a somewhat promising backfield.
With community support, Ross has obtained new uniforms and helmets and also an inflatable tunnel and flags for the team’s entrances this season. “I think he came in with a lot of energy. He’s come in and told us what he wants to do with the program and got us really excited,” said Porter quarterback Dean Van Vors. “He has been pushing hard for us to work hard and get in the weight room. You can see the excitement in the players and in the community. It is really starting to show.” “In our secondary we have strong points and weak points,” said Smith. “It just depends on what side of the field you are looking at. If you’re looking at the field side, we are a run style. If you’re looking at a boundary side we are more coverage. Each side varies. We have been working to stopping the run and also not let anything get over the top of us.”
High hopes Benningfield hopes the hard work pays off in his final year at Porter. “I wanna see some results this year. Every year of high school has lead up to this,” said Benningfield. “We have worked extremely hard and I feel we can make this a special year. This is our year.” — Patrick Kays, correspondent
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
Record last year: 4-6 Head coach: Kenny Hokit (14th year) Staff: Norman Powell, assistant. Returning starters (5 offensive, 5 defensive): Darren Bollman, RB/LB, 5-9, 185, Sr.; Jordan Doke, QB/OLB, 6-1, 145, Sr.; Tristan Mann, FB/CB, 6-1, 170, Jr.; Dakota Wright, WR/OLB, 510, 150, Sr.; Lane Fletcher, G/DE, 5-10, 185, Jr. Top newcomers: Ty Parsons, G, 6-2, 190, So.
Roughers embark in new era in split Class 6A By Mike Kays Phoenix Sports Editor
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Special photo by John Hasler
Darren Bollman will be the barometer for the Panthers’ success. centerpiece of the offense and the barometer for Porum’s success. “Running me through the middle with eight in the box, it works sometimes. But if we can spread it out a little more by getting some guys out of here and throw the ball, I think it’ll do more damage,” Bollman said.
Putmeincoach Jordan Doke stepped in late last year to fill in at quarterback due to disciplinary and injury issues that sidelined the first two on the depth chart. “We had a backup freshman who on like the second series of the game broke his arm,” Hokit said. “I was going to go with direct snaps to Darren, but Jordan came up to me on the sideline and said ‘Coach, I’ll play it.’” Recalls Doke: “I was supposed to be a backup in junior high but I never played or really practiced,” he said. “When we lost our backup, I knew the plays, we needed someone to step in and I did. I didn’t want to let my team down.” That freshman moved.
The original starter, Dakota Wright, is back in the lineup but Hokit will use him as a slot receiver. So the job is Doke’s. Nothing the matter with that, said Hokit. “Doke brings a calmness to us and his biggest asset is his ability to lead,” the coach said. “We’re good with him back there.” As far as improvement with an offseason under his belt? “Last year my passing accuracy was Doke horrible and I didn’t have a strong arm,” Doke said. “But I feel like my accuracy has increased quite a bit. I still don’t have the strongest arm but those short ones, like slot routes of 10 yards or so, I can throw well.” Tristan Mann, a junior fullback and three-year starter there, will also look to get some additional touches.
Guardup Ty Parsons is a 6-2, 190 sophomore guard who has the tools to step in and be productive. “His only draw-
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 5
Divided we stand, united we aren’t
porum panthers
Power football has been the theme of Kenny Hokit’s eight-man football offensive playbook. A lot of those power-I, double tight end pages will be scrapped this season, his 14th at Porum. The Panthers have back their 2,069-yard, 32-touchdown rusher in Darren Bollman, but the beef up front all graduated. A leaner line will result in a change. “When we had 260, 260 and 220 Hokit (pounders) across the front we could run right at you. We’re going to implement more misdirection, giving them better angles to block,” Hokit said. “It’s looking good. It’s going to be a slow process because they’ve run the same thing since seventh grade under me. The timBollman ing is just going to take a while on some of it but we’ve been working hard and staying late and it’s going about as well as I could expect. He’ll also diversify the attack away from Bollman. “He just wore down last year and we can’t just run him up the middle anymore. We’re going to limit his carries and use him as a decoy more,” Hokit said. “Since I’ve been here, our four skill guys are about as good as I’ve had. We’re going to utilize all of it.” Still, expect the 5-foot-9, 185-pound Bollman to be the
Prep Football Preview
back is the experience factor. He’s had a couple starts but I think he’ll develop into a good one,” Hokit said. The other guard, Lane Fletcher, moves there from center. “He’s come in in better shape than he’s ever been. It seems as if he’s ready to go,” Hokit said.
Adjusttotimes The 3-3 defense will get tweaked, Hokit said. “It’s been a gap control, pressure-type defense, but we’re going to have to adapt to the trend in 8-man where more teams are passing the ball,” Hokit Mann said. “We’ll try and run a cover 3 instead of a man so much on the corners. And again, our skill kid will be an asset to this on the defensive side of the ball too. “If we can overcome our lack of size, get good contribution from all our skill kids and stay healthy, I think we can have a good year.” — Mike Kays
he playing field in Class 6A, many will tell you, is now level. Some of those who say that will also say it took creating a varsity and a junior varsity level to do it. Welcome to the JV league, Muskogee — more commonly called Class 6A, Division II. The move that began almost two years ago came to fruition in February 2013 when the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association’s board of directors voted unanimously to split the 32-team class into two divisions according to enrollment, bringing an end to matchups involving Muskogee (1,504 students) with Broken Arrow (4,790) or Jenks (3,194). Gone also is Union (4,483), a team Muskogee last met in the 2008 semifinals in Tahlequah. Muskogee’s had just two preseason games since then, both losses. Thirteen other schools are still are stuck knowing the only way to a state championship is to get past the only two teams to win a 6A title since 1995. Muskogee will join Bartlesville, Bixby, Claremore, Ponca City, Sand Springs, Sapulpa and Tulsa Washington in 6AII-1. The other district, 6AII-2, is all west side with Choctaw, Enid, Lawton, Lawton Ike, Midwest City and Stillwater. U.S. Grant was granted independent status for the next two seasons in football, leaving 6AII-2 with seven teams and the whole of Division II with 15 teams. Fifteen teams, one state champion which in a playoff format like the one in Division I, will consist of three rounds of postseason play with a one-week break between the semifinals and finals. Fifteen JV league teams, as some say. Rafe Watkins laughs at the notion. (See DIVIDED, 7)
The new and divided Class 6A District 6AI-1 Edmond Memorial Broken Arrow Edmond Jenks Norman Putnam City Westmoore Yukon
District 6AI-2 Edmond North Moore Mustang Norman North Owasso Putnam City North Southmoore Union
District 6AII-1 Bartlesville Bixby Claremore Muskogee Ponca City Sapulpa Sand Springs Tulsa Washington
District 6AII-2 Choctaw Lawton Eisenhower Enid Lawton Midwest City Putnam City West Stillwater *U.S. Grant
* will play as an independent in 2014
Page 6 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
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Like Guthrie, like Muskogee? Watkins hopes blue-collar contrasts work on gridiron By Mike Kays
Phoenix Sports Editor
donis Cole was in a unique position when Muskogee went looking for its new head football coach last February. Cole’s father, Tracy Cole, was on the interview committee that would eventually lead to the selection of Rafe Watkins. Adonis recalls a few conversations about it between father and son at the dinner table about the topic. “He’s very present around the stadium and always at practice watching and had his own ideas,” Adonis said of his father. “But we did talk and he asked me what I thought. I told him I just wanted someone who had a run style. I really love that style.” So does Watkins, as evidenced by four Class 5A gold balls. “A lot of applicants liked that style, but coach Watkins had the best application for it,” Adonis said. Whether he meant application as in resume or how Watkins applies the run game wasn’t clear, but it is definitely interchangeable. MTXE — which stands for Mental Toughness, Extra Effort — is the slogan Watkins had at Guthrie. And yes, he is aware, extra doesn’t start with an X, it just includes it. “It looks tougher that way,” said quarterback Quintahj Cherry. That’s what they said in Guthrie too. And just like there, they’ve learned it here. “He’s the most demanding coach I’ve ever had in weights and conditioning,” said defen-
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Special photo by Von Castor
Rafe Watkins won four state championships as Guthrie’s head coach.
sive lineman Rogerick Kirby. Padded workouts were maximized in spring football. “Two springs ago, Mondays and Tuesdays were full pads and Wednesdays were shorts. This year it was full contact every day and everyone gets hit. Quarterbacks getting hit, receivers are getting hit and we got two running backs that could get hit too when we’re on defense.”
muskogee roughers Record in 2013: 3-7 Head coach: Rafe Watkins: (first year) Staff: David Heath, assistant head coach; Jason Medrano, offensive coordinator; Scott Sapulpa, defensive coordinator; Curt Denton, special teams; John Graham, strength coordinator; Darrien Reeves, defensive line; Anthony McNac, tight ends; Adam Pemberton, defensive backs; Don Mayes, defensive backs; Adam Hobbs, wide receivers; Parker Borovetz, offensive line. Returning starters (8 offense, 6 defense): Quintahj Cherry, QB, 5-10, 170, Jr.; Tyriq Beasley, RB, 5-2, 130, Jr.; Tavian Davis, WR/DB, 5-11, 165, Jr.; Bryson Bell, WR/DB, 5-5, 165, Sr.; Adonis Cole, OL, 6-3, 240, Sr.; Zane Rasmussen, OL, 6-0, 210, Jr.; Logan Stovall, C, 5-8, 215, Sr.; Jacolby Anderson, OL, 6-3, 285, Jr.; Rogerick Kirby, NG, 5-11, 300, Sr.; Darion McNac, DB, 5-9, 175, Sr.; Tracy Hughes, DE, 6-0, 185, Sr.; Joshua Medrano, DB, 5-11, 165, Jr. Top newcomers: Jacouri Freeman, RB, 5-11, 170, Sr.; Luke Leatherman, LB, 5-11, 150, Sr.; James Buckhanan, WR, 6-0, 170, Sr.; Noah Ashley, LB, 6-0, 195, Sr.; Cantrell Ashley, RB, 6-0, 190, Sr.; J.T. Stanford, TE, 5-10, 180, Sr.; Molijah Gilbert, RB, 5-9, 170, So.; Devon McCoy, DB, 5-11, 155, Jr.; Kamren Curl, DB, 5-11, 165, Jr.; Hunter Watkins, OL, 6-2, 240, Jr.; Christian Maier, DE, 6-4, 210, Jr.
Cherry didn’t mind it. He’d run the speed option and get hit. To say Quintahj Cherry has had to “I got exposed to that in seventh grade. It’s endure growing pains would be an simple, it’s comfortable. It’s about using my understatement. feet and not having to think so much and The junior quarterback was thrust that takes the best part of my ability and into two games as a starter his freshputs it out there to use,” Cherry said. The excitement isn’t limited to players. (See WATKINS, 8)
(See ROUGHERS, 8)
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 27
Familiar face facilitates Pirate pride By Patrick Kays
Phoenix Correspondent
ac Ross has always wanted to be a head coach for a high school football team. His search has sent him all over the country, and he finally found his first break near familiar grounds. Ross takes over this season the head coaching job at Porter, which is just a few miles from where he played high school football. “I graduated from Muskogee, so I know it would have felt good to be around where I used to be,” Ross said. “For my wife and I to be close to our families, I thought it would be a really good fit for us. I’m happy to be here.” The 2005 graduate of Muskogee attended Fort Gibson and lettered in baseball, basketball, and baseball his freshman and sophomore years before he transferred to Muskogee and became the quarterback for the Roughers. Ross led Muskogee to the first round of the Class 6A playoffs in both his junior and senior season. He compiled 1,500 passing yards, 800 rushing yards, and had 24 touchdowns in his senior year.
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Special photo by John Hasler
Porter head coach Zac Ross talks to his team in a practice break.
Ross continued his playing career through college, as he walked on at Oklahoma State. He redshirted his first year but made the active roster in 2006. After playing four games on special teams for the Cowboys, Ross
transferred to Harding University in Searcy, Ark., in 2007, where he would become the career leader in kickoff return yards with 1,455. After his playing career was over, he pursued a career in
coaching like his father, David Ross, who was head coach at Bacone College. But Zac preferred the high school route. “My dad was a coach for 28 years and it has just been something I have always wanted to
do,” said Zac Ross. “(College coaching) demands a lot more from being away from the house. That is why I chose to go after high school coaching to be able to spend more time with my family.” Zac’s career choice didn’t surprise his dad. “When I had my first head coaching job, he was about 3 years old, and he would just beg me to go to practice,” said David Ross. “After practices he would show me everything he had learned. He would come to me and show me his wide receiver stance. He always had an interest in the game.” After a season as a wide receivers coach at Southern Arkansas, Zac became the offensive coordinator at Mobile (Ala.) Christian High School. Ross moved to Texas shortly thereafter and became an assistant at San Angelo (Texas) Grape Creek. Ross has taken some valuable lessons he had learned while playing football at Muskogee under then head coach Ron Lancaster, and is teaching those lessons and characteristics to his new team at Porter. (See ROSS, 28)
porter pirates Record last year: 3-7 Head coach: Zac Ross (first year) Staff: Chris Sherwood, defensive coordinator; Dalton Worthington, running backs/linebackers/special teams coordinator. Returning starters (4 offense, 5 defense): Dean Van Vors, QB/FS, 59, 165, Jr.; Jordan Macheras, FB/LB, 5-11, 210, Jr.; Dylan Ross Woods, OL/DL, 511, 185, Sr.; Daniel Smith, WR/SS, 5-7, 170, Jr.; Jacob Benningfield, RB/LB, 6-1, 190, Sr. Top newcomers: Bracey Kilgore, WR/SS, 5-9, 160, Jr.; John Isreal, WR/CB, 6-2, 170, So.; Levi Snyder, WR/CB, 5-11, 185, Sr.; Jon Bailey, OL/DL, 6-0, 190.
Since leaving 8-man football in 2010, the Porter Pirates have not had a winning season, finishing 37 last year. First-year coach Zac Ross sees the need for playing experience, and is patient and confident that his team will improve and pick up his new system. “It’s a process to learn my stuff and learn how to play the game right. It’s going to take time Benningfield but the kids are buying in and are getting a lot better than when I first arrived,” he said. Ross’ changes have sparked interest in the community and his players, as Porter have a new season ahead of them. The community will see a new Pirate team decked out in new uniforms and helmets and also a tunnel for the
players to enter through. “Porter is a football town,” said Ross. “We have a lot of community support and we will use that to help us get back to those successful years Porter has had. But it’s going to take some work.”
Ground attack The run game is going to be a key point in Porter’s offensive attack. Ross has many run- Macheras ning threats to work with from junior quarterback Dean Van Vors, stocky junior fullback Jordan Macheras (5-11, 210), and senior running back Jacob Benningfield. Ross is introducing a spreadstyle, hurry-up offense that will feature misdirection runs and quick, short passes.
“We are going to be a fairly runoriented team. We are just going to run straight down the field, and hit them in the gaps and the isos,” said Benningfield. “We are going to hit them quick and get through into open field and hope to make a play.” Dylan Woods will return to the line for his final year and will try to open the holes for the running game. He will be joined by junior Smith Jon Bailey..
Passing fancy Van Vors will take the snaps for the Pirates this season and he will see much more improvement with the help of his new head coach. Ross was a quarterback for the Muskogee Roughers and played as a wide receiver at Harding University.
“Coach Ross has really helped me with my mechanics. He approaches to us individually and that has really helped me learn this new style. He is very helpful, he does all that he can to help us. He doesn’t quit,” said Van Vors. “Since he was a wide receiver, he has helped me learn their perspective which has helped me develop as a strong quarterback. It helps me make VanVors adjustments to make changes based off of how they play and how I play.” Daniel Smith will be a primary target for Van Vors.
Defense first (See PORTER, 28)
Page 26 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Warner Continued from Page 25 gram this summer and working extremely hard,” said Burdge. “They are all getting stronger, faster, and bigger. I think these young men have really matured in their approach to the game of football. They have a lot of hard work and determination.”
Signal caller’s back Bobby Ward returns at quarterback for the Eagles without the assistance of Clint Kite as a run option. Eric Wiggins will take over Kite’s responsibility at wingback. Wiggins will not be the only running threat as Jacob Crabtree will step into a running back position. Warner continues to put pieces together to situate their receiving core. No player has been specified, but Wiggins and Crabtree were options last year and could be this year. Ty Neighbors is a potenWiggins tial starting receiver as well, as he vies for a spot as cornerback. But Ward will have a huge option in their tight end, Mekko Washington. The talent they have will be utilized in Burdge’s new offensive style. “We are going to get into another tight end offense, get in the gun,” said Burdge. “We are going to use an Auburn-style offense to utilize the speed that we have.”
Leadership in D Wiggins, who is the team’s only senior returning starter, will be the Eagle in the sky at free safety. He is prepared to take on the leadership role this year. “I’m trying to take my leadership position and really just try and help my team in any way I can,” said Wiggins. “I have to be responsible for myself and my team by being an example, and help and encourage my teammates in whatever way I can.” Crabtree will see action again this season at cornerback. Neighbors is the newest addition to Warner’s squad, and Burdge calls him a potential starter. Neighbors, a freshman, and could see action with Crabtree at corner or Wiggins at safety. Burdge will be looking to add
Muskogee Phoenix
more depth to the Eagles secondary as practices roll around.
Speed to burn On the defensive side, the Eagles will feature some big threats with Washington and Zac Jones. Washington will be a hybrid linebacker/safety labeled as a star position, as Jones is a defensive end. Jones also could see action at strong tackle. Washington was third in the 400-meter dash at the Class 2A state finals last spring and a main cog in the 1,600 and 3,200 relay teams, both of which finJones ished eighth. “He’s a strong kid. He’s 160 pounds and squats 350. He’s fast and he’ll hit you like a 200-pounder,” said Burdge. “He makes good grades, he’s real smart and disciplined.” “We’ll put him on the opponent’s best receiver or position him where we think the ball is going,” Burdge said. Several players that face off on the line were state qualifiers on Warner’s track team. The speed it has on its line is something that can really help them this year. “The motivation level is a lot better than it was at this point last year,” said Jones. “We are getting a lot better, faster. We are workRowell ing hard. We should find some success this year if we just keep working hard.”
OL needs depth Kayden Hammans will be a key player for the Eagles as he returns to the offensive line and also inside linebacker. Hammans will work the trenches with Bryce Wyatt and Zac Rowell. The offensive line is another area that Burdge knows needs more depth. Hammans “We are going to continue working hard and finding those guys who will step up,” said Burdge. “They fight hard so I am sure we will get the problems we have situated by the time the season comes around.” — Patrick Kays, correspondent
Prep Football Preview
Predictions, Polls 6AII-1
The gist: Just 385 students separate the biggest from the smallest in this district. Welcome to the new 6A Lite. Washington has the playoff pedigree, Bixby has the experience returning and Muskogee the revival. The picks: 1. Tulsa Washington. 2. Bixby. 3. Muskogee. 4. Claremore. 5. Bartlesville. 6. Sand Springs. 7. Sapulpa. 8. Ponca City. Mark this game down: Starting with a week 1 visit to McAlester (Rafe Watkins and McAlester’s Bryan Pratt were two of the three finalists for the job that Watkins got, and the two met in last year’s 5A championship game when Watkins was at Guthrie), every week will be an adventure for the Roughers, but the final two road games (at Bixby Oct. 31, at Tulsa Washington Nov. 7) will determine their fate.
5A-4
The gist: Pryor has the momentum from a run to the 5A quarterfinals under ex-Rougher Jason Freeman and has most of its parts back. Kenny Evans, who was dismissed from NSU at the end of last season, tries to revive East Central. The picks: 1. Pryor. 2. Collinsville. 3. Coweta. 4. East Central. 5. Edison. 6. Tahlequah. 7. Grove. Mark this game down: Kenny Evans visits Gable Field Sept. 26 to take on Tahlequah on the same field he coached NSU on.
4A-3 The gist: A 4A-4 partner with Fort Gibson the past two years, Cascia comes joins Wagoner and the northern 4A-3 group. Cascia gets the early nod because it gets Wagoner at home. The picks: 1. Cascia Hall; 2. Wagoner. 3. Oologah. 4. Catoosa. 5. McLain. 6. Cleveland. 7. Miami. Circle the date: We’ve already mentioned it. Wagoner at Cascia, Oct. 3.District 4A-4
4A-4
The gist: Poteau’s breakout season had the Pirates in the Class 4A championship game in 2013 and has the momentum of several key starters returning. Metro, moving up from 4A, has a good chunk of a 3A team that was knocked off by Hilldale in the second round of the postseason. Central, traditionally loaded at the skill positions, drops from 5A. Sallisaw starts over with a new coach. The catalyst to unlocking a champion may rest with a Fort Gibson defense that seven starters back from a team that registered two shutouts last year, something they hadn’t done once since 2006. The picks: 1. Poteau;2. Fort Gibson; 3. Metro Christian; 4. Central; 5. Sallisaw; 6. Stilwell. 7. Broken Bow. 8. Muldrow. Circle the date: Fort Gibson draws Poteau on week 9, Oct. 31.
3A-6
The gist: Coached by former Gore mentor Lee Blankenship, Beggs’ backfield tandem is among seven returning starters offensively and among the best back tandem in 3A.
PHOENIX AREA SUPER 7 1. 2. 3. 4. 4. 6. 7.
Vian (8) 56 Fort Gibson 44 Wagoner 40 Muskogee 31 Checotah 28 Sequoyah 8 Hilldale 5 Others receiving votes: Haskell 4, Stigler, Eufaula, Gore, 2; Warner, Keys, 1. Those Demons won’t be running behind the likes of a Checotah tripletower offensive line that have just as few comparative peers. Victory Christian has a 5,000-yard career passer back and a tradition of success. And can a young Hilldale team repeat two-year run of last year’s large senior class that put together two quarterfinal runs? The picks: 1. Beggs; 2. Checotah; 3. Victory Christian; 4. Hilldale; 5. Tulsa Rogers; 6. Okmulgee; 7. Morris. Circle the date: Checotah at Hilldale Oct. 31 could settle a lot.
3A-7
The gist: Locust Grove and exMuskogee coach Matt Hennesy returns loaded in all areas after a 10-0 regular season and quarterfinal run. With plenty of experience and a full off-season of work behind them for the first time in two years, Sequoyah could mount a threat. Claremore Sequoyah has the pedigree. Keys, still young, could mount a challenge. The picks: 1. Locust Grove; 2. T. Sequoyah; 3. C. Sequoyah; 4. Inola; 5. Keys; 6. Jay; 7. Westville. Circle the date: Locust Grove at Sequoyah, Oct. 24.
2A-7 The gist: Two area teams are in prime position to sneak up on expected contenders; Haskell with youth and determination and Hulbert with a new approach and coach along with a solid group of returning starters. The picks: 1. Adair; 2. Colcord; 3. Kansas; 4. Salina; 5. Haskell; 6. Hulbert; 7. Chouteau. Circle the date: Hulbert at Haskell, Oct. 10. A loss in this one will be hard to overcome for playoff aspirations.
A-8 The gist: Talihina is a state contender; Warner-Gore will carry extra meaning now that they’re district rivals again. How many steps can new Porter coach Zac Ross take on the Pirates’ reclamation project in a district where everyone is a playoff contender? The picks: 1. Talihina; 2. Savanna; 3. Warner; 4.Gore; 5. C. Sallisaw; 6. Porter; 7. Quinton. Circle the date: Warner at Gore, Oct. 31. One, it’s a rivalry; two, bet on it having huge playoff ramifications.
B-4 The gist: A district with some of the league’s best running backs: Keota’s Seth Bryant and Porum’s Darren Bollman. We’ll go with Keota to win it all based on a more experienced line -- for second. Dewar welcomes back starters at every position. The picks: 1. Dewar; 2. Keota; 3. Weleetka; 4. Wetumka; 5. Porum; 6. Arkoma; 7. Haileyville; 8. Gans; 9. Caddo; 10. Canadian. Circle the date: Heck, any date involving the top six above is critical when you’re in a 10-team district with just one game to get it right before they start counting. How about a Class D, OSSAA?
The gist: Stigler has some injuries to overcome but the Panthers’ established tradition will have them in contention. After a four-game improvement in 2013 and with a nucleus returning, Eufaula may be on the verge of a memorable year. Spiro will bring their athleticism. Team to beat, though? Roland has Arkansas commit Austin Cantrell as the linchpin on offense. The picks: 1. Roland; 2. Eufaula; 3. Stigler; 4. Spiro; 5.Heavener; 6. Idabel; 7. Valliant. Circle the date: Eufaula hosts Stigler Oct. 16. If we’re accurate, this is for a home game in the first round of the playoffs.
2A-6
State champions:
The gist: Vian and Hartshorne were quarterfinalists a year ago. There’s nothing to indicate these two won’t be settling all the marbles on Oct. 10 at Hartshorne. The picks: 1. Vian; 2. Hartshorne; 3. Panama. 4. Wilburton; 5. Pocola; 6. Antlers; 7. Liberty. Circle the date: Do we have to say it a second time?
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 7
Pure football talk What’s your pre-game ritual? “Praying in my locker.” — Quintahj Cherry, Muskogee “I listen to the same songs in order before every game.” — Eric Stepp, Wagoner “Head-butt Will Carlile.” — Reese Davis, Tahlequah Favorite pre-game meal: “Subway. It’s the only restaurant in Vian.” — A.J. Rodriguez, Vian “Bananas.” — Wade Shanks, Gore “June’s boneless chicken, mashed potatoes and a salad with sweet tea.” — Clay Watts, Midway “Chicken Alfredo.” — Jake Woodson, Wagoner Best thing about practice “Special teams while we’re under the shade tree.” — Wyatt Gassaway, Hilldale “7 on 7.” — Kyle Sanders, Sequoyah “Water breaks.” — Justin Hooper, Sequoyah “Hanging out.” — Hunter McNeely, Webbers Falls “Being with my teammates.” — Luke Phillips, Keys “Getting hit.” — Jordan Doke, Porum
We’re not sure how it would taste, but mixing these guys’ favorites, how ‘bout a chicken and banana sub?
What would be the result of a uniform makeover on your team? “All camos with ‘Yee-Yee’ on the helmet.” — Bailey Puckett, Hilldale “Make them feel good.” — Dean VanVors, Porter “Three-D camo.” — Easton Eckhardt, Webbers Falls “All white.” — Cole Wilkie, Tahlequah “All black.” — Will Carlile, Tahlequah “Digital camo.” — Noah Batesole, Gore
C-4 The gist: Continuity at Webbers will boost the Warriors’ chances and enthusiasm of a new coach at Midway gives Charger fans hope of a return to the middle of last decade when postseason games were common at Council Hill. But westward expansion dropped one of the prime state contenders in this league. Fox is in the henhouse with an eye on the golden egg. The picks: 1. Fox; 2. Webbers Falls; 3. Thackerville; 4. Sasakwa; 5. Cave Springs; 6. Midway; 7. Bowlegs; 8. Bokoshe; 9. Paoli. Circle the date: Webbers gets one week before Fox arrives Sept. 12. A loss there and the rival game with Midway at home Oct. 16 carries greater weight.
3A-8
Prep Football Preview
Class 6AI- Union Class 6AII- Midwest City Class 5A: Carl Albert Class 4A: Anadarko Class 3A: Douglass Class 2A: Vian Class A: Talihina Class B: Laverne Class C: Fox
Divided Continued from Page 5
“It’s not what we as coaches came up with, but it’s what we’ve been given for now,” the new Muskogee High coach said. “I don’t know how it’s going to be viewed, but if we’re fortunate enough to win a state title, we’re going to celebrate it because it’s under the laws we were given.” Typically, the OSSAA and the Oklahoma Football Coaches Association work in tandem on class and district structuring. When it became apparent that the move to do something about
the discrepancy between the biggest three (Broken Arrow, Union and Jenks) and the rest of the state had the momentum needed for a change, the coaches in a meeting two years ago came up with a plan putting six teams from each of the fourteam districts in the postseason to be split into divisions according to size in enrollment. That wasn’t even one of the two final proposals sent to school administrators by the OSSAA. And the one adopted has a 3,000-student gap between Broken Arrow and Putnam City (1,700), which slipped below Enid in this summer’s average daily membership numbers but is stuck for now in the big-school divi-
sion. Of the big 16, only four are east teams — BA, Jenks, Union and Owasso. “It’s helped the bottom 16 and it’s hurt travel for those four and no one on the west side will care,” Watkins said. The Muskogee coach is on the competition committee for 6A and has a couple ideas of how this may work out in the end. “One, you can take all of 6A and the top 16 in 5A, giving you 48, then have six eightteam districts or eight six, then split into two divisions based on enrollment for playoff time,” Watkins said. “The 6A coaches would go for this. Another idea would be to put all of 5A with
the bottom 16 in 6A and split into enrollment divisions for the playoffs.” That would put Watkins in a group he’s just come out of, winning four 5A titles in Guthrie against the likes of Tulsa Washington, Carl Albert and McAlester. “The Carl Alberts, Guthries, Lawton Macs, McAlesters and East Centrals in their good years can compete with anybody in 6A but the big four,” Watkins said. Clearly, it’ll be a season of evaluation on everyone’s part. But for Muskogee, it represents an even playing field and a championship the Roughers would welcome, JV label or not. “I have friends at Jenks and
Union who play. I think I’m as good as them but there’s 120 on their sidelines to our 50,” said senior offensive lineman Adonis Cole. “To me, it’s not like the players chose this,” senior wide receiver/defensive back Bryson Bell said. “We just want to go compete and win.” “It’s bittersweet,” said senior defensive lineman Rogerick Kirby. “The younger guys, like freshmen and sophomores, are sitting around thinking ‘now we have a chance.’ Us older guys, we wanted another opportunity at those guys. But this is still an opportunity that at the end sits a gold ball. We’re going to go and try and get that.”
Page 8 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Continued from Page 6 man season due to injury. The opportunity became a meat grinder. His numbers weren’t abysmal - he was 19-of-36 for 287 yards, two touchdown passes and two interceptions. But the support staff wasWatkins n’t equipped to support a freshman signal-caller. Muskogee was outscored 116-20 in those games. Last year he put 10 games under his belt with greater production: 1,902 passing yards and three victories. But his best attribute his ability to run with the ball – hasn’t been as utilized, averaging just eight carries a game a year ago. Not anymore. Head coach Rafe Watkins scraped the pass-option for a smashmouth run game that incor-
porates the quarterback into run-pass off bootlegs and roll-outs with limited read responsibilities. “The last couple of years there was a lot of thinking and reading. This is simplified. Coach wants me to run first, pass second and use my feet,” Cherry said. “I haven’t been used to that but I like it.” Adds Watkins: “Our jobs are riding on 15- to Bell 18-year-olds enough. I don’t want to saddle them with a lot of audibles and stuff,” he said. “I want him to read the game off our option and not have to read the secondary. We should be able to recognize two-high or one-high safeties. That’s it. “Otherwise I want it to be reaction-based. With the bootleg and roll-out system, if there’s 10 yards to get even though your receiver may be open at 10 yards, we want to run it. Three things can happen on a pass
Muskogee Phoenix that are bad. You can throw a bad ball, drop a good pass or be intercepted.” The idea, anyway, is to run first, but Watkins’ teams didn’t get to four state championships without putting it in the air. James Buckhanan, Connor Cole, Tavian Davis and Bryson Bell head up a receiving corps that will mix in Rashaun Marshall and Jamari Davis. Bell understands the Cherry system a lot better than the first pattern he ran on a bootleg in the spring. “It’s low risk, more production,” he said.
Deep backfield Watkins’ strategy is supported by a deep backfield. Jacouri Freeman, a powertype back, looked impressive in the first preseason scrimmage. Cantrell Ashley is a mix between Freeman and 130-pound Tyriq Beasley, the fastest player on the
team but has battled ankle issues of late. Molijah Gilbert is another power back with size similar to Freeman. They’ll have an improved offensive line that has four of the five interior guys back. Logan Stovall is at center, Zane Rasmussen and Jacolby Anderson at the guards and Adonis Cole, perhaps with his size (6-foot-3, 240 pounds) the best of the group, at Cole one tackle, joined on the other side by Hunter Watkins, son of the head coach. The tight ends are J.T. Stanford and Joshua Medrano with Taylor Duncan also in the mix.
Where’s the sacks? The challenge to the Roughers’ odd-stack defense will be finding someone to take up the pressure created by Tramal Ivy, who as a senior posted a school-record 19 sacks
Prep Football Preview
playing both defensive end and at times, free safety. He played safety out of necessity due to Tavian Davis missing four games. With Davis back in the lineup, Muskogee went 3-3. Now, to find that pressure. It’s most likely to start with the play of nose tackle Rogerick Kirby (5-11, 300), a talent who when on all cylinders, has been compared to ex-Rougher Davis and exArkansas Razorback Robert Thomas. “Our success is dependent on the nose guard, the mac (middle line)backer and free safety. Those three have to dominate for this defense to work,” he said. “He’s an intricate part of that so if he doesn’t go hard every play, we’re not going to click,” said assistant head coach/co-defensive coordinator David Heath. Luke Leatherman is the mac backer with Davis back at safety. Tracy Hughes is
the leading returning tackler and will man an outside linebacker position with Noah Ashley at the other. Hughes had 80 total tackles, 47 solo, but on average, Davis had more, finishing with 46 solos over six games. “I don’t think of myself as a big-impact guy,” Davis said. “I just try to influence my team to play at the same level of energy as I play with.”
Still Soper Chase Soper will handle kicking and punting duties. It will be the sixth consecutive year a Soper has put a foot to the jobs. Preston Soper, Chase’s brother, handled duties for four years before going to Missouri as a preferred walk-on. —Mike Kays
Watkins Continued from Page 6
“When Ron (Lancaster) hired me, he told me Muskogee wasn’t known for skill kids, it was known for running the football,” said Jason Medrano, the cooffensive coordinator and offensive line coach. “And that got us to the semifinals three straight years, so it’s nice that we’re getting back to it. I don’t know if our receivers like it, but scoring touchdowns cures all ills.” With Watkins, it’s what happened after missing out on the Broken Arrow job as one of two finalists. Within weeks, he was checking himself out in green. He sees it as a blessing in disguise, a more proper fit. “The two communities, Guthrie and Muskogee, are similar in makeup. We were a blue-collar team there and that’s our approach here,” Watkins said. “And I think that’s important. Guthrie, Muskogee, Lawton, even Jenks for that matter, those are working communities. Our approach takes on the character of the community — hardworking, tough-nose people. It fits.”
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 25
warner eagles Record last year: 6-5 Coach: Mike Burdge (second season, 6-5) Staff: Jon Eddy, running backs/defensive backs/defensive coordinator; Paul Whitley, wide receivers/corner backs; Chuck Capps, quarterbacks/linebackers. Returning starters (8 offense, 7 defense): Zac Rowell, G, 6-1, 155, Jr.; Bryce Burdge Wyatt, C, 510, 205, Jr.; Kayden Hammons, G/LB, 5-10, 185, Jr.; Zac Jones, T/DE, 6-2, 175, Jr.; Jacob Crabtree, RB/CB, 6-1, 170, Jr.; Eric Wiggins, WB/FS, 5-8, 155, Jr.; Bobby Ward, QB, 5-10, 165, Jr.; Mekko Special photo by John Hasler Washington, TE/STAR, 62, 160, Jr. Warner quarterback Bobby Ward looks to elude an Afton defender last season. Top newcomers: Ward and the Eagles lost in the first round of the Class A playoffs. Ty Neighbors, DB, 6-2,
160, Fr. Warner is poised to make yet another run into the Class A playoffs this year. The Eagles return eight offensive and seven defensive starters from a team that fell to the Kiefer Trojans in the first round
last season. In his second year as Warner’s head coach, Mike Burdge knows experience will be a strength for them this season. “Our guys have really been getting into the pro(See WARNER, 26)
Page 24 —Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
hulbert riders Record in 2013: 1-9 Head coach: Rusty Harris (first year) Staff: Curtis Waltman, offensive coordinator; Mickey McGowan, line; Aaron Fowler, secondary/receivers. Returning starters (8 offense, 10 defense): Trey Feed, OL/CL, 5-7, 240, Sr.; Greg Landaverde, Harris OL/DL, 5-10, 220, Jr.; Bryson McGowan, OL/DL, 6-2, 240, Sr.; Michael Scott, WR/DB, 5-8, 145, Sr.; Levi Carson, WR/DB, 5-8, 160, Sr.; Justin Owens, QB, 5-8, 165, Sr.; Anthony Howard, RB, 5-8, 180, Jr.; Dylan Ellis, QB/TE/LB, 5-10, 230, Jr; Ethan Autry, LB/WR, 6-0, 175, Jr; Dakota Hooks, OL/DL, 6-0, 240, Sr.; Johnathan Hamby, DB/WR, 6-0, 170, Sr.; Gabe Medlin,
OL/DL, 6-0, 235, Sr. It’s been a busy summer for Rusty Harris. The former Muskogee High assistant coach took the principal’s position at Hulbert in early June and two weeks later became the third head football coach in the past three years for the Riders. “I didn’t go over there to be the footHooks ball coach. I went over there to be the principal, but because of some other issues, it just appeared,” said Harris, who got out of coaching the last three years to watch his son, Kyler, play at Northeastern State (Kyler, however, moved to Southern Virginia for his senior season to pursue football and ministry studies). “I kind of prayed things through and I felt like it was
what I was supposed to do. It’s fun to be back in coaching again with a different kind of classroom setting.” No intros necessary With eight returning starters on offense and 10 on defense, Harris hopes he can restore life to a program that has struggled in recent years. On offense, he wants to run at a faster pace McGowan which is just fine with returning quarterback Justin Owens. “We ran the power-I last year and we’re going to run more of a spread offense this year so it’s going to be a lot different. But I think it’s going to be easy to catch on to,” said Owens. Harris favors the spread offense because of the versatility it can offer. “We want to run the ball first,” said the new head coach. “If we can do that
well and with the improvements we should have in our line play, I think the spread opens up more options for us on offense.”
Here’s the beef Perhaps the strength of the offense for the Riders will be in the line where they return most of their starters including seniors Owen Bryson McGowan (62, 240), Dakota Hooks (6-0, 260), and Trey Feed (5-7, 240). The added year of experience and growth is a big plus for Hulbert, said McGowan. “The offensive line is a lot better than it was last year, I can already tell you that,” he said. “We’ve been in the weight room all summer after we fell off a little last year.” “We’ve all gotten a lot
stronger and faster,” added Hooks. “As long as we keep pushing and we do it right and we have mental toughness, we’re going to be really good.”
D his way The Riders will move to a 3-4 look on defense and strive to be much more aggressive in hopes of reducing the Scott 36-plus points given up per game last year. “Defen-sively, I am a huge 3-4 guy and the way we run the 3-4 is significantly different than most people, so that will take some adjusting for the guys,” said Harris. “I’m very encouraged with what I’ve seen so far on defense and I think we can be really, really good.”
More if needed The Riders have another
plus not often seen in the smaller schools in that they have some depth in the line that should help according to Harris. “We have some depth up front and, with the pace we want to play at on both sides of the ball, it will be nice to be able to roll as many as 10 guys in and out of the offensive and defensive lines,” he said. Also new for Hulbert this season will be a new district as they move from 2A-8 to 2A-7 where they will welcome Adair, Haskell and Chouteau to be joined by holder-overs Salina, Colcord and Kansas. So there’s an increased sense of optimism in Hulbert this year as best expressed by McGowan. “I think we can win the district,” he said. “We’re not expecting to lose and really expecting to win every time out.” — Nick Hampton, correspondent
gore pirates Record in 2013: 2-8 Head coach: Jimmy Whitlock (first year) Staff: Martin Lincoln, defensive coordinator; Chauncey Dana, line; Travis Cockerll, receivers/secondary. Returning starters: (9 on offense, 9 on defense): Wade Shanks, QB/DB, 5-11, 150, Sr.; CJ Lehnick, RB/DB, 6-0, 160, Sr.; Tanner Clay, RB/LB, 5-10, 170, Sr.; Noah Batesole, OL/DL, 511, 200, Sr.; BJ Knowlton,
OL/DL, 6-1, 250, Sr.; Zach Williams, OL/DL, 6-2, 300, Sr.; Blade Ferguson, OL/DL, 5-10, 225, So.; Owen James, OL/DL, 5-10, 230, So.; Colt Vogele, WR/DB, 5-9, 140, So Top newcomers: Trey Mattox, WR/DB, 6-0, 140, Fr.; Dakota Whitlock Hopkins,
OL/DL, 5-9, 170, Fr.; Lane Mc Daniels, OL/DL, 5-9, 170, Fr. After making the Class A playoffs for seven straight years, the Gore Pirates hit a bump in the road in 2013 as they fell to 2-8. Batesole Long-time Seminole assistant coach Jimmy Whitlock comes aboard as the new Pirate mentor this season with a ton of experienced players hoping to get things back on the playoff track. “We’ve got a senior-led team with nine starters back on both sides of the ball,’ said Whitlock. “We’ve got a quarterback (Wade Shanks) returning who’s a four-year starter, a running back in CJ Lehnick who’s a three-year starter, and Noah Batesole, BJ Knowlton, and Zach Williams, all seniors, anchoring the offensive line.” Coming from a high school that routinely had
over 100 kids turn out for football, Whitlock knows he’ll have to make some adjustments. “I know we won’t have the numbers I’m accustomed to, but I’ll be fine with the kids I know are coming out for football,” said Whitlock. “Our big concern will be Lehnick keeping everyone healthy, especially our skill people.”
Spreading it out With a new coach comes new strategies for offense and defense. The offense will switch to a multiple-set, spread attack emphasizing the run first and ball control. For Shanks and Lehnick, the offensive change is promising. “I think the new offense will be good because the speed we have will spread the defense and give us more options,” said Shanks.
“We ran some spread offense when I was a freshman and I like it a lot,” said Lehnick, who rushed for over 1,000 yards last season. “It spreads people out and opens more playaction passes and screens, and that will also help the running game.”
In-yourface D
Shanks
On defense, the Pirates will utilize the 3-4 with an emphasis on aggressiveness. “We’re going to have to get aggressive on the defensive side of the football,” said Whitlock. “We’d rather get beat with a big play than by somebody just driving it down our throats six yards a pop all the way down the field.” For the line, Batesole doesn’t see a big problem adjusting to the new plans for the guys in the trenches. “I don’t think the changes
will impact defense much. We’ve gotten used to it and I think we’ll do all right,” said Batesole.
Ship captains With experience comes the responsibility of leadership for this senior-laden team, and Lehnick knows what has to be done. “I think we’ll have to push the underclassmen harder than we were pushed when we were young,” said the Pirate running back. “We had the talent to go far in the past, but I don’t think we had the pressure to perform on us like we should have.”
Up first Gore opens the season on Thursday night at Panama. After two years off their schedules due to being in different districts, the Pirates will again lock horns with neighboring Warner as a District A-8 opponent in 2014. — Nick Hampton, correspondent
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 9
Reloading for another run?
hilldale hornets
Hilldale has been down this road before By Mike Kays Phoenix Sports Editor
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t’s a road Hilldale head coach Chad Kirkhart and company has been down before. Two seasons ago, a group of underclassmen took over the reins from 18 seniors and faced critics, both on paper and near school lockers, that hard times were ahead. What happened? Two straight Class 3A quarterfinal runs. Four starters, two going both ways, are all that’s left from that squad to see if there’s a way to an encore. And just like the group before them, they too have heard the critics. Matt Bargsten, one of the two two-way starters back at receiver and defensive back, said he’s heard people peg this team with anywhere from a 5-5 to a 3-7 season. He bristles at that thought of that happening. “I think we can shock some people,” Bargsten said. “We’ve been taught to
take football one game at a time and it’s worked out for us pretty good in the past. But as far as a new tradition, I don’t think we’ve established that in two years. It’s more like 10 years and we’re working toward that. We just expect to win. How many, we’ll address one game at a time.” Still, Kirkhart knows the challenge of matching the success of a similarly young team two seasons ago will be tough, just as it was to an extent then. One week into preseason practice, he gathered his team to talk about that. “I told them I don’t want them to look in the past, but I do want them to understand where we’ve been,” he said. “Two years ago we were in the same boat. Those guys played with a chip on their shoulder all year long. “And if that motivates us, let’s take that approach and have that mindset. We’ve got something to prove (See RELOAD, 10)
Special photo by John Hasler
Hilldale coach Chad Kirkhart with from left, Hunter Woods, Jaron Nail, Hunter Reheard and Matt Bargsten.
Record in 2013: 11-2, Class 3A quarterfinals. Head coach: Chad Kirkhart (fourth year, 37-12) Staff: Ryan Kirkhart Keenom, offensive coordinator, receivers and secondary; Phil McWilliams, offensive coordinator/offensive and defensive line; Eric Stout, linemen; Levi Walker, running backs/linebackers; Tim Stevens, lineBargsten backers/wide receivers. Returning starters (4 offense, 2 defense): Matt Bargsten, WR/DB, 6-1, 170. Sr.; Hunter Woods, Gassaway RB/DB, 5-9, 165, Sr.; Bailey Puckett, OL, 6-4, 275, Jr.; Wyatt Gassaway, OL, 63, 225, Jr. Newcomers: Devin Cochran, RB/ILB, 5-11, 190, Jr.; Isaac McWilliams, TE/OLB, 5-10, 205, Jr.; Xavier Milton, C, 6-0, 235, So.; Gunnar Drake, OL, 6-1, 310, Sr.; Grant Sikes, WR/FS, 6-1, 155, So.; Wyatt Wolfe, WR/ILB, 6-10, 190, (See HILLDALE, 10)
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Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
Hilldale Continued from Page 9 So.; Tanner Thomson, NG, 5-9, 210, So.; William Dominguez, DE, Hunter Reheard, DE, Fr.; Kobe Kuykendall, 5-7, 170, So.; Cole Kiser, CB, 5-11, 145, Jr.; Trae Davidson, S, 6-1, 170, So.; Levi East, G, 5-10, 245, So.; Jaron Nail, 6-1, 160, Fr.
As young as Hilldale is, it couldn’t get any younger than behind center. But 6-foot-1 freshman Jaron Nail has the height as well as some poise. His first time out he helped generate 51 points against Wilburton in a 7-on-7 tournament on a day he also led his team to a win over Wagoner. Still, 7-on-7 isn’t 11-on-11 and the lights of Friday night. At least Nail, whose brother Dakota was an offensive tackle last year, got to see the last two years up close as a ball boy while working earlier in the week as a middle school quarterback. “I usually adapt fast to things,” Nail said. “I just got to earn that trust. “I started off the summer Special photo by Von Castor carrying a notebook with the plays in it. I’m picking them Hilldale’s Hunter Woods runs for a touchdown in one of his 100-plus yard rushing games in 2013. up every practice, new plays every day and I’ll go through them all day long. I like going this route better than playing pared to handle my job and going to be the key for us “I’ll be the guy who JV. It’s better experience.”
Reload
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every week we step out there because — and it doesn’t matter to us — but nobody out there thinks wer’e going to be very good.” But pressure? No. “Last year, in the spot I was in, I felt immense pressure,” said offensive lineman Wyatt Gassaway. “I mean coming off the best season in school history and having all those guys back, and being one of the guys who was replacing a guy who graduated, I felt that pressure. This year, I know my job because I’ve had a year of doing it at this level. I’m better pre-
help lead this team.” Gassaway and Bailey Puckett both filled holes on an offensive front that helped win 10 games, averaging 41.6 points per game. Bargsten was a second or third option at receiver behind 1,000-yard pass catcher Bradley Campbell — who walked on at Northeastern State — but led the secondary in tackles and interceptions. Hunter Woods at running back is the impact player returning on offense. He had 865 yards in 2013, including four straight 100-plus yard games that began in week 3 as a reserve then continued as a starter due to injury. “The running game is
and I think our best strength,” said Kirkhart. The big question is at quarterback and the shoes left empty by Chandler Puckett, last year’s Phoenix Large School Offensive Player of the Year. For now, freshman Jaron Nail, whose brother Dakota was a graduated member of the 2013 offensive front, looks to be the guy. Kirkhart hasn’t specified publicly the reason but Mitchell Croftcheck, Puckett’s backup who saw some action a year ago, won’t start the season and may not be back. With the bulk of the load on his shoulders, Woods knows who the voice in the huddle needs to be.
makes sure everyone stays together,” Woods said. “We have to make sure he has his head on straight. We have to build him up, make sure he’s doing what he needs to do and that way he doesn’t beat himself up when things get down. “He’s strong-headed enough, he’s shown he knows what to do at times and that’s what we need to help him build on. His line has experience, we know we can run the football, so he’s got plenty of support.” Two years may not make an elite tradition, but it’s a start. And it’s a direction the Hornets don’t want to reverse. “I think we can feed off that and build on it,” said Puckett.
Experience and size On a squad hit hard by graduation from a group that strung backto-back quarterfinal appearances, the offensive line has the most seasoning of any unit on either side of the ball. Puckett Bailey Puckett is moving from right guard to right tackle, and Wyatt Gassaway moves from right tackle to left tackle. Both will be joined by Gunner Drake, a 275pound senior, takes over at left guard and Xavier Milton, a 255-pound sophomore, got significant reps at right guard but by the start of preseason practice was moved to center. Isaac McWilliams is the
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Area team schedules
tight end. Levi East was then shifted to his guard spot.
On defense Matt Bargsten had six interceptions, a team-high, and was among the team’s leaders in tacklers. Hunter Woods will play a new spot, having worked at linebacker a year ago. “Matt is the only returning guy we have who is absolutely familiar with his role. In fact, he was our leader in the secondary last year as far as knowing what everyone is supposed to do,” Kirkhart Woods said. The projected front line is a case in point from one end to the other. Tanner Thomson (5-9, 210) at nose and William Dominguez (6-1, 165) are sophomores — and the elder statesmen. Hunter Reheard is a freshman at the other end spot. The two inside linebackers are juniors, Kobe Kuykendall and Devin Cochran. Cochran will see some action at running back behind Woods. The outside backers are sophomores Wyatt Wolfe and Isaac McWilliams. Joining Woods at corner is Cole Kiser, a junior. With Bargsten at the opposite safety is Trae Davison, a sophomore. Jay Newman is also battling at corner and Michael Hornback is battling at safety.
Leadership a key With the loss of 18 seniors who were nearly all in key spots, leadership will start with two seniors, Woods and Bargsten, as well as the other two returning starters in Gassaway and Puckett. But Kirkhart isn’t going to hold the others back if someone else arises. “You don’t have a senior to be a leader,” Kirkhart said. “If you’re the guy that busting his butt doing things right, then you can be that guy who can be a little vocal, that can say something and the other guy looks at and says to himself, he may make mistakes but he’s doing everything to lead this team in the right direction. That’s where the ultimate leaders will come from.” — Mike Kays
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 23
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6AII-1 MUSKOGEE at McAlester Owasso Fayetteville, Ark. **Sapulpa at Ponca City **Bartlesville (HC) at Claremore Sand Springs at Bixby at T. Washington *Hall of Fame night **Homecoming (HC)
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5A-4 TAHLEQUAH at Fort Gibson Stilwell Sallisaw East Central at Collinsville Pryor (HC) at Enid Tulsa Edison at Grove Coweta
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4A-3 WAGONER Coweta Pryor at Fort Gibson at Oologah at Cascia Hall Miami (HC) at Tulsa McClain Vinita at Cleveland Catoosa
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4A-4 FORT GIBSON Tahlequah at Hilldale Wagoner (HOF) at Sallisaw at Broken Bow Central (HC)
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Metro Christian at Muldrow Poteau at Stillwell
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3A-6 HILLDALE at Stigler Fort Gibson Tulsa McClain at Beggs Morris (HC) at Okmulgee Victory Christian at Eufaula Checotah at Tulsa Rogers
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CHECOTAH Keys at Henryetta Eufaula at Idabel Victory Christian at T. Rogers Morris Okmulgee (HC) at Hilldale at Beggs
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3A-7 KEYS at Checotah 7:30 p.m. Lincoln, Ark. 7 p.m. at Vian 7 p.m. at Jay 7 p.m. Westville (HC) 7 p.m. at Locust Grove 7 p.m. Kellyville 7 p.m. at Sequoyah 7 p.m. Cl. Sequoyah 7 p.m. Inola 7 p.m.
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Vian Continued from Page 22 as I should,” Simon said of his 68-of-127 numbers. “But I’ve got a year under my belt so we’ll see how it goes.” Vian coach Brandon Tyler thinks those numbers will rise. “He’s developed as a passer,” Tyler said. “The guys around him have developed too, guys like Josh Cowart, Denver Coffee, Dakota Brown at tight end, and then a newcomer in Garrett Willis who played at Keys last year.” Add to that the return of the Phoenix Small School Offensive Player of the Year, Eric Casey, and it’s an offense that could show some bursts to rival that of the 2012 team that was on a pace to set a national scoring record for points in a season before being shut out by Davis. In that game, Simon had to enter the game behind center when then-starter Landon Decker went
SEQUOYAH at Okemah Roland Broken Bow Inola
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Jay at Westville at Locust Grove Keys at Lincoln Christian at Cl. Sequoyah
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3A-8 EUFAULA Beggs 7 p.m. at Hartshorne 7 p.m. at Checotah 7:30 p.m. at Heavener 7 p.m. Spiro (HC) 7 p.m. at Valliant 7 p.m. Stigler 7 p.m. Hilldale 7 p.m. Idabel 7 p.m. at Roland 7 p.m.
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STIGLER Hilldale 7:30 p.m. at Sallisaw 7:30 p.m. Henryetta 7:30 p.m. Valliant 7 p.m. at Idabel 7 p.m. Heavener(HC) 7 p.m. at Eufaula 7 p.m. at Roland 7 p.m. Spiro 7 p.m. at Victory Christian 7 p.m.
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2A-6 VIAN Davis@ 3 at Heavener 7 Keys 7 Wilburton (HC) 7 at Liberty 7 at Hartshorne 7 Nowata 7:30 at Pocola 7 Antlers 7 Panama 7 Kickoff ClassicChoctaw
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2A-7 HASKELL Ketchum 7:30 p.m.
down with a concussion. “My goal is 2,000 yards (rushing) and 40 touchdowns, but I’ll take anything if we can get the gold ball,” Casey said. As for Simon, he’s not all that wrapped up in keeping the family tradition going with the defensive award streak. “I’m just going to go play the best I can at both positions and whatever happens, happens. The main goal has- Rodriguez n’t got anything to do with either of those anyway.” Tyler likes his options on offense. “We’ll take what the defense gives us. If it’s 5 to 10 yards throwing the ball, we’ll take it. So they can pick their poison. Run or pass, I think we’ll be pretty good at both,” he said.
Good genes Ty Andrews is drawing some lofty com-
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at Morris Spiro at Chouteau at Chelsea Hulbert Adair at Salina Kansas at Colcord
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HULBERT Porter Warner at Mounds Kansas at Salina at Haskell Colcord at Adair at Caney Valley Chouteau
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A-8 GORE at Panama Mounds Ketchum (HC) at Quinton Talihina at Central Porter at Choteau Warner at Savanna
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PORTER at Hulbert 7 p.m. Drumright (HC) 7 p.m. at Chouteau 7:30 p.m. at Sallisaw Central 7 p.m. at Warner 7 p.m. Quinton 7 p.m. at Gore 7 p.m. at Savanna 7 p.m. Talihina 7 p.m. Mounds 7 p.m. WARNER Summit Christian
parisons to a former Wolverine. The cousin of Tulsa signee Rob Boyd, Andrews stepped in for his relative last season and started all 13 games. He graded out at 90 percent. “He’s got the chance to be just as good,” Vian coach Brandon Tyler said. “The difference with him is that he plays with an attitude, a mean streak. Rob Andrews was good but more laidback.”
Commitment and tradition Nearly 50 kids are on the Vian varsity roster in a school of 259 enrollment. Include non-varsity and it’s about half the male student enrollment. It’s a byproduct of a tradition. “It’s tremendous leadership that holds everyone accountable,” Tyler said. “Football’s not for everyone and some who
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at Hulbert 7:30 p.m. Panama 7 p.m. at Pocola 7 p.m. Porter 7 p.m. at Savanna 7 p.m. Talihina 7 p.m. Central Sallisaw 7 p.m. at Gore 7 p.m. at Quinton 7 p.m.
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B-4 PORUM at Webbers Falls at Dewar Weleetka at Keota Haileyville Arkoma (HC) at Wetumka Canadian at Caddo Gans
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C-4 MIDWAY Wright Christian Sasakwa Cave Springs at Paoli at Thackerville Bokoshe (HC) at Webbers Falls Fox at Bowlegs Prue
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WEBBERS FALLS Porum 7:30 Fox 7:30 at Bowlegs 7:30 Destiny Christian 7:30 Sasakwa 7:30 at Cave Springs 7:30 Midway (HC) 7:30 Thackerville 7:30 at Bokoshe 7:30 at Paoli 7:30
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try don’t stay with it. But those that do buy into the expectation. Any day of the week in the summer you’ll see most of these guys at Rylee’s house where they’ve got their own weight room. They’re all selfmotivated kids. A lot of them are successful not only here but in baseball and in both sports, they know what’s expected. When kids get to high school, they know it’s time to turn on that tradition.” It’s also a tradition grounded in unselfishness. A.J. Rodriguez was asked to move from defensive end to linebacker in week 11. He will play there this spring after what Tyler called a “tremendous spring.” “I go at it from the standpoint that there’s nothing I can’t do for this team,” Rodriguez said. “Whatever my coaches want me to do they’ll tell me and in my thinking, they feel like that’s what’s going to be best for the team and for me. I know they have my best interest at heart, so whatever they tell me to do, I’m going to do.” —Mike Kays
Page 22 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
Seasoned Vian has special motivation for opener By Mike Kays Phoenix Sports Editor
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ylee Simon has heard the critics who say Vian’s postseason run isn’t sustained because the regular season schedule lacks toughness. “Whatever,” he says to it. “You can’t get much tougher than the defending state champion.” Ah yes, Davis. The Wolves guard the door that the Wolverines have been unable to unlock in two straight Class 2A semifinals. Davis won at Midwest City two seasons ago 22-0, then took a 56-39 decision last year at McAlester. This year, they’ll meet as part of the first Kickoff Classic to be held in Choctaw on Saturday. The critics can’t say that anymore. Really, though, it’s not like Vian hasn’t won tough games. A team that lost heavily to graduation a year ago scored a district championship win against Hartshorne, which was also a 2A semifinalist. The Wolverines have knocked off perennial power Hennessey in back-toback quarterfinals. So yeah, whatever. Simon and crew have beaten all comers, except for the team belonging to Jody Weber, whose brother Matt was a roommate of Vian coach Brandon Tyler while the two attended Northeastern State. With a wishbone offense, Weber runs one of the most archaic and seldom seen schemes — which makes it one of the most difficult to prepare for. The two coaches put the plan together
Phoenix file photo
Vian’s Rylee Simon, left, and Eric Casey will get another shot at attacking the Davis defense in a special neutral-site season opener at Choctaw.
last fall, before the season-ending loss. And the Wolverines went right to work on it, trying to find a way to solve a wishbone “We’ve been watching film since the season ended,” said senior A.J. Rodriguez.
“It started the day after we lost. In summer workouts, we’ve talked it over, talked with our defensive coordinator (Lance Winans) to find a way to stop it.” That’s motivation, and well it should be.
Davis scored on all seven of its first-half possessions and had 335 yards, 293 on the ground and 234 of those in the first quarter alone. “When a team scores 49 points in the first half, it’s unacceptable for us as a defense. I was embarrassed. I don’t want that to happen again.” The two teams enter the season ranked 1-2 in several preseason guides. Davis lost 11 starters, six on offense, while Vian returns 10 offensive and nine defensive starters. “Jody and I have talked a lot about it and you’ve got to keep this in perspective,” Tyler said. “They’re young and trying to fill some spots. We’re a little more experienced. This is week 1. We both want to play in week 15. What you do in week 1 isn’t a make-or-break. It’s a momentum boost for whoever wins, and it’s something the fans can enjoy. But week 15, that’s the important one.” Or, perhaps week 14 since that’s where the teams have met. Between those weeks, Vian looks to be the head of the District 2A-6 class with both Simon, the Phoenix’s Small School Defensive Player of the Year, and Eric Casey, the Small School Offensive Player of the Year, heading up a group of seasoned veterans, with the district coming down to the Wolverines and Hartshorne. But first things first. “The Davis game will show us where we are, and it’s a game we’ve looked forward to since we lost to them last year,” Simon said. “But one game’s not going to win you anything.”
vian wolverines Record last year: 13-1, Class 3A semifinalist Coach: Brandon Tyler (11th season, 110-18) Staff: Lance Winans, defensive coordinator/linebackers; Beau Burlison, offensive line/defensive line/special teams coordinator; Jeremy Gragg, offenTyler sive line/safeties; Ryan Tyler, wide receivers/defensive backs; Wilson Willhite, kickers/defensive backs; Johnny Teehee running backs/defensive backs.
Returning starters (10 offense, 9 defense): Rylee Simon, QB/LB, 6-1, 220, Sr.; Eric Casey, RB/DB/KR, 5-9, 165, Sr.; Denver Coffee, WR/DB. 6-1, 175, Sr.; Dakota Brown, TE/DE, 6-4, 210, Jr.; A.J. Rodriguez, OL/LB, 6-0, 225, Sr.; Ty Andrews, OL/DL, 6-2, 270, Jr.; Cowart Jakeb Curry, OL/DL, 5-10, 210, Jr.; Shelton Skaggs, OL/DE, 511, 215, So.; Ashton Vickers, OL/DL, 6-4, 250, Sr.; Josh Cowart, WR/DB, 61, 170, Sr.; Daylon McWaters, LB, 5-11, 190,
Jr.; Kevin Chew, DE, 6-0, 180, Sr.; J.T. Frazier, DB, 61, 175, So.; Rayne Cloud, DB, 6-1, 175, So. Top newcomers: Garrett Willis, WR/LB/DB, 5-9, 175, Jr.; Cliston Brown, TE/DE, 6-2, 230, Sr.; Terron Moses, RB/WR/DB, 5-10, 160, So.; Kyle England, Simon WR/DB, 5-10, 160, Jr.; Zak Griffin, DL, 511, 250, So.; Trinidy Teehee, WR/DB, 5-11, 155, Jr. Rylee Simon had meniscus surgery this summer
and a fractured ankle and has taken it slow most of the summer. But he’s back, ready to make a run at a state title as a primary piece on both sides of the ball. Simon succeeded his brother Rowdy as the Phoenix’s Small School Defensive Player of the Year in 2013. Rowdy won it in successive seasons, but his younger brother bested him in tackles two seasons ago and then led the team again in that category last year. He also took over at quarterback and had a combined 2,456 yards, 1,166 passing. “I didn’t have as high a pas-completion percentage (See VIAN, 23)
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 11
Linebacker duo a power core and provider of leadership By Ronn Rowland Phoenix Sports Writer
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f Wagoner coach Dale Condict’s smile gets bigger when talking about two of his linebackers, there’s a good reason for it. Roman Rodriguez, a 5-foot, 11-inch, 195pound senior, and KJ Lee, a 5-11, 205 sophomore, give the Bulldogs a formidable force up the middle to force offense to the outside of the Lee line of scrimmage. “These are our two leading tacklers coming back,” Condict said. ‘What I like about both of them is they’re not extremely boisterous. When they do talk, people respond to them. ‘They’re humble people and
also very tough. They’re enjoyable to coach.” Lee led the Bulldogs as a freshman with 147 tackles, 19 for a loss, forced four fumbles and had five sacks, and for his efforts was named the 2013 AllPhoenix Newcomer of the Year. Rodriguez finished the season with 126 tackles, 13 for a loss, and three sacks in 2013. “It should be a fun year,” Condict said. ‘Those two are the kind of leaders I want to Rodriguez be around and have on my team. They’re both kind of throwback guys.” Rodriguez is looking forward to playing his final season with Lee next to him. He feels Lee can build on his Newcomer of the Year honor. “I think it’s meant he’s going
to have a good future,” Rodriguez said. “He encouraged me to be better. ... We both coached each other to get better.” Lee, on the other hand, is glad to have a senior like Rodriguez to go to with questions. “I have someone supporting me every down,” Lee said. ‘He’s backing me up and giving me his advice on what I should do. He’s a good team leader.” And it’s the leadership skills of Rodriguez that Lee has noticed and incorporated into his own football philosophy. “I learned you’ve got to be a good team leader,” Lee said. “On every down you play, play hard. You need to support everyone on the field and not leave any one out.” And Condict is happy to have the duo to call on at any time during a game. ‘I’m excited about the possi-
AP
KJ Lee wraps up the Anadarko quarterback last year.
bilities on the defensive side,” Condict said. “I’ll put them up against any linebackers.” And, he said, it’s not going to be too bad handing them both the ball on the offensive side. The Wagoner offense will be minus the explosive Lawrence
Evitt, who over the last two seasons rushed for over 5,500 yards and was last year’s Phoenix Most Valuable Player. Yet it will take those two and a committee to replace Evitt, (See LINEBACKERS, 15)
wagoner bulldogs Record in 2013: 12-1, Class 4A semifinalist Head coach: Dale Condict, 10th season (149-20) Staff: Nick Humphries, offensive coordinator; Travis Bryant, defensive coordinator; Leland Alexander, receivers/special teams; James Henson, linebackers; Ray Bell, defensive ends; Micco Charboneau, defensive line; Scott Patton, running backs; Chad Soma, Condict offensive line; Allen Sevier, defensive backs; Kenneth Lee, strength/conditioning. Returning starters (5 on offense, 4 defense): Roman Rodriguez, 5-11, 195, LB/RB, Sr.; KJ Lee, 6-1, 215, LB/RB, So.; Brennan Goodfellow, 6-2, 235, TE/LB, Sr.; Eric Stepp, 511, 235, C, Jr.; AJ Freeth,, 6-2, 175, WR/DB, Jr.; Jake Woodson, 6-1, 190, QB, Sr. Top newcomers: PJ Hubbard, OL/NG, 6-0, 255, Jr.; Scottie Patton, RB/LB, 6-0, 185, So.; Austin Points, TE/DE, 63, 225, Sr.; Chris Murray, WR/DB, 5-9, 155, So; Cameron Dumond, WR/DB, 5-9, 155, So.; Dakota Lenard, OL, 6-1, 293, Jr.; Jacob King, OL/LB, 6-0, 190, Jr.; Luke Falwell, OL, 5-11, 235, Jr.; Orlandis Roberson, TE/DE, 6-2, 225, So. Kevin Peterson. Lawrence Evitt. Names that have been synonymous with the success of Wagoner football during the Dale Condict era. So what happens when you start the season without that ”name” player on the field? No big deal, says the Wagoner boss. “With guys like Peterson and Evitt, the play calls and ball distribution were geared more to them. But this year it will be different. They’ll be a more even distribution of the ball throughout the offense,” said Condict, now starting his 10th
season as the head coach.
No one-trick pony Even though the household names might not be there right now, that’s not to say that Wagoner won’t be a team to be reckoned with in Class 4A again this year. Leading the way will be returning quarterback Jake Woodson, who passed for over 700 yards last season. Joining him in the backfield will be the one-two punch of Roman Rodriguez (470 yards rushing) and KJ Lee (400 yards rushing), the latter named the AllPhoenix Newcomer of the Year in 2013. “Roman and KJ have both worked hard during the offsea-
son. They’re the kind of guys I really enjoy coaching,” said Condict.”Offensively, KJ is a little bigger and faster, while Roman does a better job of catching the ball out of the backfield.” Another name to watch for offensively, according to Condict, is wide receiver AJ Freeth. “He’s as talented as any guy around. He’s tall and rangy (6-2,175) with great speed,” said Condict. “I really think he’ll be someone everyone will hear about by the end of the year. (See WAGONER, 12)
Woodson
Page 12 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
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tahlequah tigers Record in 2013: 1-9 Head coach: Brad Gilbert (hird year, 2-18) Staff: Gary McClure, offensive coordinator / offensive line; Keith Wilson, Defensive coordinator / linebackers; Bart Frank, Special teams coordinator / secondary; Stank King, running backs, Quinton Tibbetts, receivers; Joe Inchiowski, outside linebackers; Greg Richmond, defensive line. Returning Gilbert starters (5 offense, 5 defense): Will Carlile, QB/QB, 6-1, 178, Sr.; Reese Davis, LB, 5-11, 182, Sr.; Bear Frank, LB, 5-10, 210 Sr.; Chase Campbell, DE, 61, 178, Sr.; Joseph Tucker, DT, 6-1, 298, Sr.; Cole Wilkie, G, 6-3, 284, Sr.; Kyle Lucas OLB/RB, 5-11, 190, Jr.; Mason McGee, C, 6-0, 254, Sr.,; Noah Hogan, T, 6-0, 271, Sr. Top newcomers: Dustin
Wiley, RB, 5-10, 171, Jr.; Chase Morris, WR, 6-1, 182, Jr.; Blake Cochran, OLB, 6-1, 189, Sr.; Tyler Winfield, DE, 5-11, 227, Sr.; Bryce Patrick, K, 5-10, 150, Jr. Inches can mean points. In the 2013 Tahlequah campaign, the Tigers lost five games by 10 points or less. Many of those games it came down to the proverbial Carlile inches — a few more inches to gain a first down and keep a drive alive or stop a game-winning drive. All of which would’ve turned another 1-9 season into a possible 6-4 record. With the lumps and losses over the last two seasons, one thing that the Tigers can bank on is that as a team, they have grown and learned that they do have what it takes to turn that notorious
corner. Returning for the Tigers are five starters on both sides of the ball, led by four seniors, linebackers in Reese Davis and Bear Frank, quarterback Will Carlile and guard Cole Wilkie, all four with an itch to put the program back on the winning track. “This has been the best offseason since I have been here,” said Gilbert. “We had nearly 100 percent participation in Davis this summer and that is a testament to the leadership.” Head coach Brad Gilbert feeds into that. “I am extremely excited about this senior group,” said the third-year coach. “We have taken another step or two this summer. Taken that extra step to change the program, to change the culture and change the expectations of the community.”
He’s willing Will Carlile, if he likes it or not, will be looked on as the leader lining up as the Tigers quarterback this season, even though he prefers his safety position. “I prefer defense more but I am ready to be the quarterback this season and lead our team,” said the 6foot-1 Carlile. Preparation is another aspect that the Tigers have with a Frank quad of seniors leading the way. One of those, is the 6-3 Wilkie, which gets high praise from teammates. “We have put in the work and paid the price the last two seasons,” said Wilkie. “I think that we are better than we have been, I think we will surprise people.”
Defense tweaked One noticeable change will be the defensive structure. The 3-4 scheme will allow the Tigers to take advantage of their talented linebacker corps. Leading that group is Davis and Frank, who have been there for the last two seasons. “Last year we were a bunch of individuals and this year we are more of a team,”
said Davis. “I think we are more prepared to win instead of the previous years we were trying to just not lose.” Not only will Davis be in his yearly linebacker spot, but will also gain more time as the Tigers’ featured back on offense. Frank will book-end the other side of the linebacker spot. “I think we have a much better attitude this season,” said Frank. “We are more prepared for it and we are Wilkie looking to make the playoffs this season.”
Looking ahead East Central sits as the first District 5A-4 game for Tahlequah and should tell the tale of the Tigers. It’s those close shaves that fuel the fire. “I think we have a great chance this season because we played with every one of these teams last season,” said Gilbert. “That fourth game is a marquee game for us.” And the Tigers insist they are prepared for the extra needed inches in the 2014 season.
Wagoner Continued from Page 11 We’re going to find ways to get AJ the ball because he can be a game breaker.”
Prep Football Preview
Checotah Continued from Page 19 Dayton Ellen, WR/CB, 5-10, 170, Sr.; Conner Gaithor, WR/S, 6-3, 175, Sr.; Cameron LaPdach, OT, 6-8, 270, Sr.
Tried and untested Defensively, Lee and Rodriguez, who were the top two tacklers last year, anchor a solid linebacking corp while Freeth will be back in the secondary. Holes to fill for the Bulldogs will be up front where Wagoner will need help in Stepp the offensive and defensive lines and three spots in the secondary. Condict feels that help arrives for the Bulldogs in the form of a talented sophomore class. “We’ve got a young group that was unbeaten (24-0) through middle school. It’s a great group of kids and we’re excited to have them here for the next three years,” said Condict.
Lead dancer?
As one of the few senior Bulldogs this year, Rodriguez knows he has to be one of the team leaders. “I’ve been hitting the Eric Shannon, correspondent˚ weights hard and helping out the younger guys because I know some of them will be out there with us on Friday nights this season,” said Rodriguez. ”I think KJ (Lee) and I lead by showing heart. We may not be the biggest or fastest guys you’ll see, but I think we play the hardest.” With back-to-back losses in the 4A semifinals the past two years, Woodson, another of those senior leaders, knows it will be the little things that count in order for the Bulldogs to be able to get to the title game. “We’ve got to eliminate the minor mistakes. We’ve got the talent to go all the way, we just have to execute every play,” said the senior quarterback, who also happens to be a trained river dancer. “Yeah,” Woodson laughs.”But that really does help me with my footwork.” —Nick Hampton, correspondent
That close. A fumble inside the 5yard line kept Checotah from advancing to the quarterfinals of the Class 3A playoffs in coach Chad Hendricks’ first season at the helm. Seven starters on offense and six on defense return with their focus on Hendricks going further than the 10-2 mark carried them. “Being in the playoffs two years in a row (Checotah lost to Hilldale two years ago in the first round) fuels us. We were within 30 seconds of the third round last year, then everything went bad. It fuels our motivation to get it done this year,” said senior Cody Cox.
QB dilemma Jack Christian has seemed to emerge from a battle that started with three candidates this summer to be the team’s quarterback. He was one of the major mound weapons that got Checotah to the state baseball tournament last spring. If he throws passes like he did strikes, things should click. “We looked back at the Muskogee team camp and evaluating everything, felt like if we had to Christian go today it would be Jack,” said Checotah head coach Chad Hendricks. “Nakota (Warrior) is our backup. But they’re still in competition and as I’ve told them, although I don’t think sometimes kids see it like we do, the competition has made them both better.” Andrew Sands was also in that mix, but that’s changed with running back DeShay Bear, who became a productive back in his
Muskogee Phoenix only year at Checotah, moving back to Minnesota this month. Sands, at 6foot, 250 pounds, will be a running back. Being capable of the quarterback job, look for Sands to be Cox utilized in pass sitiuations. “DeShay moving sort of forced our hand there,” Hendricks said. “Keaton Donathan and DeShay were going to split time anyway. But we were counting on Keaton in a Donathan big role on defense so to go there and carry 35 times a game on offense, that’s tough.” But look for Donathan and perhaps Randy Wood to get a good share of handoffs.
Those are plusses If execution is at least decent in the skill posiitons, Checotah’s offense should be successful thanks to big guys up front in Cody Gilroy, Ronnie Clayton and Camaron Lapach. Gilroy is 6-foot-5, 285 pounds, Clayton 6-5, 305 and Lapach 6-8, 270, the foundation of a line that should offer plenty of Pulse holes to run as well as pass protection. At linebacker, Donathan and Hunter Collins totaled over 120 tackles each last year. “There’s a little rivalry there. Between them when one gets a tackle, the other gets mad but it’s spirited competition to do what’s necessary to win,” said Hendricks. Up front we’ve got three guys who started at least a game for us (Dominik Pulse, Sands,Cody Casey) . We’ve got speed and size and I’m very excited about where we are defensively. Main thing is we need some of these younger guys to step up and give us some depth and helpe us make a deep run.” — Mike Kays
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 21
haskell haymakers Record in 2013: 5-6 Head coach: Greg Wilson (4th season, 14-18) Staff: Kyel Ward, Mike Jones, Travis Hollis, Joe Brown, Rob Taylor. Returning starters: (8 on offense, 8 on defense) Brett Taber, OL / DL, 6-5, 270, Sr.; Josh Schooley, OL/LB, 6-0, 230, Sr.; Brody Enkey, QB/DB, 6-1, 160, Sr.; Chris Wright, WR/DB, 6-0, 160, Sr.; Dillon Dobbins, WR/DB, 6-0, 165, Sr.; Evan Lang, RB/LB, 6-0, 170, Jr.; Ty Garoutte, OL, 5-10. 175. Sr, Kanyon Kelley, FB/DE, 6-0, 260, Jr. Top newcomers: Tony Brown, RB/LB, 5-8, 180, Sr.; Austin Johnhnas, FB/LB, 5-10, 170,; T.J. Berry, QB/DB, 5-10, 170, Jr. Reloading should be the predominant thought at Haskell in 2014. Even though the Haymakers graduated a very leadership driven and experienced class last season, the weapon of choice this season is athleticism. “We are very excited about this group this season because of Wilson the athleticism that we have,” said Haskell coach Greg Wilson. Wilson has led his team to the playoffs the last two seasons, posting a 5-6 record and a second straight first-round elimination by Class 2A semifinalist Vian in 2013. Despite the graduation hits, just getting back to the postseason is not what
this year’s teams has in their sights. “Making the playoffs are OK, but we want more and we expect this group to get to that next point in the season,” Wilson said.
Size a plus It’s not just athleticism that fuels those hopes. He’s also got some size up front in 6foot-5, 270-pound Brett Taber and 60, 230 Josh Schooley. Both are offensive linemen. Taber is up front on defense and Schooley plays lineTaber backer. “I think with everyone leading by example we will step up and have a good season,” said Schooley. “We’ve been working hard in the offseason and putting our time in, I think we will be ready to go farther.” “I feel we have great leadership on the team this year,” said Taber. “We still have some work to Enkey do, but we continue to get better every day, every practice.” Standing tall behind his offensive line will be returning starter, senior quarterback Brody Enkey who led Haskell to the playoffs in 2013. “I feel very confident in the offensive line and they should be better than last
season,” said Enkey.
On the fly Enkey will look to a pair of returning widereceivers as his go to guys in seniors Chris Wright and Dillon Dobbins Dobbins. “We do feel that we have big shoes to fill but I feel confident that we can excel,” said Dobbins. Added Wright: “We’ve been Brown together since we were freshmen and we’ll just have to teach the younger players by the way we practice.”
A newcomer to the Haymakers, senior Tony Brown will fill the running back role this season.
Proving grounds Spiro (Sept. 19) is a game that should tell the Haymakers where they will stand on the season, and Wilson and company are ready to see where this year’s team stands. “We have a great group Wright of kids, they work hard and are doing a good job on building on the program,” said Wilson. “We want to see where we stand against teams like Vian, Spiro, Adair. We want more and want to get better.” —Eric Shannon, correspondent
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Muskogee Phoenix
eufaula ironheads Record in 2013: 5-5 Head coach: Larry Newton (third year, 6-14) Staff: Ryan Green, defensive coordinator; Victor Paden, offensive coordinator; Michael Campbell, wide receivers/defensive ends; Josh Luna, running backs/linebackers. Returning starters (6
offense, 6 defense): Daxton Williams, TE/DL, 63, 248, Sr.; Gage Durrett, OL/LB, 6-3, 225, Sr.; Gunner Ford, QB, 6-1, 200, So.; Zach Armendariz, WR/LB, 6-1, 190, Sr.; Hunter Bogle, OL, 6-3, 225; Cheyne Fowler, 6-0, 200, Sr.; Shane Moore, 5-11, 200, RB/OLB, Jr.; Hunter Reynolds, LB, 5-11, 185, Sr.
Top newcomers: Jesse Walker, RB/WR/DB, 5-11, 180, So.; Carlos Arriaga, OL/LB, 5-11, 215, So.; Johnny White, WR, 6-5, 195, Sr. After a 1-9 year in 2012, the Eufaula Ironheads were on the brink of making the Class 3A playoffs last season with a break-even 5-5 campaign. Size and conditioning will be huge keys as the Ironheads vie for another improvement year. “We made it really rough on them this summer,” said thirdyear coach Larry Newton. “We ran them a lot Newton and they handled it.” As in sixty 80-yard runs, broke into two 40-yard segments, on the final day of summer pride. Twenty-five to 30 kids made time. “At the end it was really impressive,” he said. “We were basing this on 120-150 plays a game. If you’re going full speed and playing both ways, you have to be in shape.” The conditioning should help them compete against some tougher opponents on their schedule this year, like top-10 ranked Beggs and archrival Checotah. Checotah’s monstrous size up front with Eufaula’s conditioning Reynolds should make the heated rivalry, which will be a nondistrict game this year, a little more interesting. “We are going to be in great physical shape this year,” said linebacker Hunter Reynolds. “I think Eufaula will be one of the best in shape teams out there this year. If we get beat, it won’t be because we are out of shape.”
Passing targets The Ironheads’ passing game has a good chance of being a workload for oppos-
cerns for the Ironheads is their safety and corner positions, as Devon Siers and Casey Pryor’s graduation left a big hole in the defense. “You can’t really replace those two,” said Newton. “They were exceptional players. If somebody got loose, Devon would catch them. If he didn’t, Casey definitely would. We are just going to have to make some adjustments and see what will work.” The coaching staff is still waiting patiently to decide who will fill those holes. “We’ll put the best guys in those spots that can do the job,” said defensive Special photo by John Hasler coordinator Durrett Ryan Green. Eufaula’s Daxton Williams, right, is expected to be a “Without the major weapon for the Ironheads this season. pads on, you really don’t know. But when they’re on, the Ironheads after transfer- we’ll figure out who can ing defenses this season. ring from Blanchard, whom Sophomore quarterback make the plays.” he played for when the Gunner Ford (6-1, 200) Eufaula’s defensive front returns after starting the last Lions won the 3A state title lost a player as Gage in 2012. four games for Eufaula in Durrett (6-3, 225) moved to the 2013 season. Newton plans to utilize the linebacker, but they still size of Williams and White Ford will have one of the have Daxton Williams on the to mix and match with best tight ends in the state, inside. opposing cornerbacks. Daxton Williams (6-3, 248, “Gage has been improvsenior) in his library of passZach Armendariz (6-1, ing a lot this summer, he ing options this year. 190) will be one of the tarhas been working really gets that may get a lot of “Gunner has really come hard,” said Newton. “We looks this year as a returnalong this summer. He noticed how aggressive he ing starter. He’ll be joined by is, and thought he would be gained some experience sophomore starting in our a pretty good fit as a lineJesse Walker final four backer.” (5-11, 180), games last A move-in from Missouri who is conseason and is will bring a new face to the sidered a top working even defense as Hunter Reynolds newcomer harder this (5-11, 185) joins Durrett at the summer,” linebacker. Shane Moore (5Ironheads, as said Newton. 11, 200), who is the possible his growth in “Daxton has Ford Williams starting running back for size and his gained like 30 Eufaula, could see some work during pounds since action as a linebacker. Also the summer really last season, so he is going in consideration is sophoimpressed the coaching to be a bigger target.” more Carlos Arriaga (5-11, Eufaula will also feature a staff. 215). Ford is really excited depth in their receiving core “We have a bunch of about the depth he will have crazy defensive-minded kids that Ford has a lot of confiaround him when the seadence in. this year,” said Durrett. “We son starts. “Daxton is always a bail look forward to team D and “We have a lot more wide going out there and playing out guy. You can really receivers than we did last count on him, but we also tough and cracking heads. I year,” said Ford. “Since we are really stacked in our think the toughness will be are all getting a lot stronger receivers,” said Ford. “We something we bring to the have around eight guys who and faster, our depth in that table this year.” position is going to really we can trust to play the Hunter Bogle (6-3, 225) entire game. It feels good to help us out this year.” could be a possible help on have the options like that.” the line this year, as he Senior Johnny White (6-5, could play on both sides. Back-end detail 195) will be another huge — Patrick Kays, One of the bigger contarget for Ford. White joins correspondent
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 13
sequoyah indians Record in 2013: 4-6 Head coach: Shane Richardson (second year) Staff: Phil Angleri, Brandon Richardson, Brad Jones, Jeromie Hammer, Jerrod Hammer. Returning starters (5 offense, 5 defense): Zach Parish, 6-1, 165, QB, Sr.; Justin Hooper, 5-6, 160, RB, Jr.; Kyle Sanders, 5-9, 165, WR/DB, Jr.; Nolan Philpott, 61, 250, OL, Sr.; Hunter Soap, 6-0, 240, OL/DE, Jr.; Tanner Crow, 6-0, 215, LB, Sr.; Tiran Gourd, 5-9, 180, OLB, Sr.; Hunter Crow, 6-2, 205, LB, Sr. The Sequoyah Indians enter the 2014 campaign with a little more confidence having one year under their belts under the current coaching regime. In his second year as head coach after serving on staff for nine seasons, Shane Richardson says his team is practicing with more intensity. They certainly got a full off-season following restrictions on spring and Richardson summer drills by the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association. “We still feel confident that we can build off what we did last year with our athletes,” he said. “And with the coaches we have, we expect to compete for a district championship.” One change from the previous season is on defense. The Indians will be switching from a 4-4 to a 3-4. “In the past, we’ve been in a 4-4 defense,” Richardson said. “This year, we’re going to the 3-4 to try and get some more of our athletic guys on the field to give our linemen a break. That way, we’re not playing as many offensive and defensive linemen on both sides of the ball.” Sequoyah believes that it is ready to return to the postseason after a two-year absence, the first of those years taken away by sanctions. However, Richardson believes District 3A-7 will be a struggle from top to bottom. “I feel like our district is one of the toughest in 3A,” Richardson said. “You look at
Locust Grove who last year had a big-time breakout year and they’re going to be ranked very high. Claremore Sequoyah is one of the best programs in 3A and then you got us. I think we’re right there with a chance to win district. “Then there’s Inola, Keys and Jay – those teams are coming along. I feel our district is Philpott going to be a tight race.” Nolan Philpott, a 6-foot-1 inch, 250 pound senior offensive lineman, feels that the comfort level with continuity and lacking disruption will lead to success. “We know how everybody works,” Philpott said. “We should come together and hopefully, we’ll have a good year and return to the playoffs.”
Building on 2013 Sophomore tailback Justin Hooper will be playing his first season without his brother Cody alongside him. Cody graduated in May. The younger Hooper finished the season with 1,272 yards on 223 carries and Richardson believes he has a player that is ready to break out of his shell. “Justin is a naturally competitive athlete,” Richardson said. “I don’t think that he needs a lot of outside influence to get him to play or raise his level. With his brother being gone, I think, just like a lot of our young guys, he has to take on more of a
leadership role.” Richardson also feels that Hooper is in the right spot to assume the role of being a leader. “Some of our guys now in crucial positions are juniors,” Richardson said. “We don’t have a deal on our football team where you have to be a senior to be a leader. It ends up that way a Hooper lot of times, but we look for anybody to. While he enjoyed playing with his brother, he’s the kind of guy that understands that you move on – it’s his stage.” As for the soft-spoken Hooper, being a leader is best shown by example. “I just need to work hard and practice hard,” Hooper said.
Keep things going Senior quarterback Zach Parish is excited to get the 2014 season underway. Parish passed for 1,450 yards and 19 touchdowns and hopes that the underclassmen can help him improve on those numbers. “I’m up for a better year Parish than last year,” Parish said. “We know the team now. We have that experience. “The underclassmen have to show up and work hard,” Parish said. “Sometimes we really have to push them to
work hard.”
Setting goals The Indians still have the bad taste in their mouths of missing the postseason for two straight years. Kyle Sanders, a 5-9, 165 junior wide receiver, is using the absence as a motivational tool. “I look forward to going to the playoffs and winning as many games as we can,” Sanders said. Sanders “Hopefully all of them.” Sanders also feels that to achieve team goals, he must make sure he does his part. “My most important job is to work hard, show up for practice and keep up in the weight room,” Sanders said. “For the team, the most Special photo by Von Castor important thing would be winSequoyah quarterback Zach Parish threw for 1,450 ning a district championship.” –Ronn Rowland yards and 19 touchdowns in 2013.
Page 14 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
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Prep Football Preview
The Stigler Panthers are coming off an 8-3 season
and their eighth consecutive trip to the playoffs in 2013. Because of tie-breakers in District 3A-8, last year’s squad had to settle for fourth in the district and traveled to Lincoln Christian, which ended the Panthers season in the Risenhoover first round of the playoffs. Stigler coach Chris Risenhoover is entering his sixth season at the helm of the Panther program and has a lot of work to do the get the Panthers to their ninth consecutive postseason party. On offense, Stigler return five starters – all on the line. “We do have to fill basically every spot across the board in our skill positions —our quarterback, our
receivers and running backs. But we feel like these kids are very capable to fill those roles,” said Risenhoover. “Physical ability, I’m not really concerned about. I think a little bit, schematically, we’ve got to do Bryant things right.” Replacing Seth Sandlin at quarterback, and his 1,500 yards of rushing, will be Dylan Bryant. ”Dylan is capable of running the ball three or four times a game,” Risenhoover said. “But his true strength is gonna be with his passing ability.” Repetition and familiarity are two things that Bryant feels has helped him get ready for the season. ”Going to seven on seven
camps, getting my timing down with the receivers and being in the weight room with them – the more time I spend with them, the easier it seems to be,” said Bryant.
Bug bites Perhaps the biggest loss for Stigler did not come by way of graduation, but by way of the injury bug. Trace Ballinger Jackson, the most experienced skill player and biggest big-play threat, was lost for the season during 7on-7 workouts over the summer with a torn ACL. “He’s played a lot of games. He played as a true freshman and averaged 12 yards per carry, but he has had a rough go since that
freshman year,” said Risenhoover. Jackson broke his foot during work outs last summer but was able to contribute late last year. Looking to fill the void left by Jackson will be Dawson Que. Jim Barger, Shayne Quick and Quentin Jim.
Manning up On the defensive side of the ball, Panther opponents may see a change from the three-man front Stigler has used the last two years. Gone from last year’s team is both defensive ends and nose guard. “We will probably go back to more of a four-front type of scheme. We felt like we
were a little light up front for a three-man to stop the run game,” said Risenhoover. “We’re gonna end up using a few more kids. Our starters on the offensive line are gonna have to play a dual role and share duties Davis at defensive tackles.” A bright spot for Risenhoover is the return of Quontez Jim at the linebacker spot. ”We know we are solid at that spot,” added Risenhoover. Others that are looking to fill spots on the defense include Quick, Barger and Quentin Jim, Quontez’s younger brother, in the secondary. —Jimmy Stinson, correspondent
keys cougars Record in 2013: 1-9 Head coach: Tuffy Thornton (first season) Staff: Todd Phillips, defensive coordinator; Beau Brannon, offensive coordinator; Duane Jones, special teams coordinator; Casper Petty, assistant coach; Travis Kirby, assistant coach. Returning starters (9 offense and 9 defense): Luke Phillips, WR/LB, 5-11, 170, Sr.; Dillon Clark, RB/LB, 6-0, 190 Sr.; Riley Light, WR/DB, 5-9, 150, Sr.; Dakota Matlock, RB/LB, 511, 185, Jr.; Chase Girdner, WR, 6-3, 200, Jr.; Bryan
Neff, OL/DL, 6-2, 285, So.; Chance Weir, DL, 6-3, 215, Jr.; Kylar Stilwell, DB, 5-9, 160, So.; Kenny Brown, DL, 5-10, 190, Sr.; Shane Littrell, DL, 6-2, 285, Sr. Kenneth “Tuffy” Thornton returns to his old stomping grounds as he takes over the coaching duties at Keys for 2014. And the Cougar faithful hope it will also mean a return to the playoffs. After spending the last four seasons as an assistant at Greenwood (Ark.) where his team won three state cham-
pionships, Thornton decided it was time to come home. “This job was close to my parents, close to everything I like to do, right there on the lake. I knew what kind of proThornton gram they had and what kind of kids they had and it seemed like a good fit,” said Thornton. The former Tahlequah coach takes over a Keys team that made the playoffs 12 straight years until they ran into a season that was thin on upperLight classmen and tplummeted to a 1-9 mark in 2013. “It wasn’t anything they did wrong,” said Thornton. “They started four or five freshmen and, as long as I’ve been in coaching, I know you’re not going to be very good when you have to start a whole bunch of sophomores, much
less freshmen.”
He’s the man One bright spot for the Cougars last year was the play of running back Dakota Matlock, who Keys will need to build around this year. The 4.5-40 junior speedster rushed for over 1,000 yards last year and led the team in tackles at the safety spot. He’s slated to move to linebacker this year which is OK by him. “I’ve never played linebacker before, but I think it will be all right,” said Matlock.
Who’s the boss? In order to get back on the playoff track, Thornton has three challenges to overcome before the Friday night lights go on in September. First, is to identify a quarterback. Senior Rylee Radomski is the early front runner, but he’s not a shoo-in for the job according to Thornton. “I was impressed with what I saw of Rylee in our passing league,” said the coach. “But we’ve got some options at quarterback and we just have to get into fall practice and see who can do what I’m
wanting to do.” One of those things that Thornton wants to do on offense is run at a faster pace, maybe even a no-huddle look. And Radomski thinks he’s the man for the job. “I’ve been working on being the quarterback since I was a freshman. I’m at the field three or four nights a week during the summer throwing and, with a new coach, I’m hoping my work will pay off this year,” said Radomski.
Stop the easy The second big challenge for Thornton will be shoring up a defense and special teams that gave up an average of over 40 points per game last year, many of those a result of poor kick coverage. “We’re going to bring an attack-style defense that gets in peoples’ faces and dares them to throw against us. We’re going to bring some heat and not sit back on our heels and let them dictate what we’re going to do,” said Thornton. “We’re going to work real hard on special teams. Those are easy points
we gave away last year. I think we can get a lot better real fast if we improve our play there. We’ve also got to identify a kicker and punter early on as well.”
Who’s on the bench? The third challenge for the Cougars is a lack of depth. “That’s one of the things we’ve got to get into from day one,” said Thornton. “If we want to run up-tempo on both sides of the ball, we’ll have to find some Clark depth – quick.” The Cougars look forward to putting last year in the past and using that disappointment as a springboard for 2014, according to senior lineman Dillon Clark. “I think we’ve done a lot of growing up since last year. Just having missed the playoffs will be a motivation for us to play harder just to try to get back there because that’s a Keys tradition,” said Clark. Nick Hampton, correspondent
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 19
Heavy machinery
stigler panthers Record in 2013: 8-3, 3A first round Head coach: Chris Risenhoover (sixth year, 4315, 76-39 overall) Staff: Dwight Carey, defensive coordinator; Bill Self Jr., line; Kevin Wilkett, QB/LB; Jeff Broyles, OL/DL; Eric Stout, special teams. Returning starters (5 offense, 2 defense): Colt Davis, OL, 5-9, 290, Sr.; Stephen Moseley, OL, 5-10, 230, So.; Justin Geralds, OL, 6-0, 240, So.; Micah Dunham, OL, 5-11, 265, Jr., Jake Fobber, OL, 6-3, 300, Jr.; Quontez Jim, LB, 6-0, 210, Jr.; Trace Jackson, RB, 5-9, 170, Jr. Top newcomers: Cordale Ballinger, CB, 5-8, 155, Sr.
Muskogee Phoenix
Wildcats’ line a sizeable concern for opponents By Mike Kays
Phoenix Sports Editor
hey’re used to the attention. Heads turned over the summer at various team camps when Checotah’s triple towers of Cody Gilroy, Ronnie Clayton and Camaron Lapach showed up. Gilroy is 6-foot-5, 285 pounds, Clayton 6-5, 305 and LaPach 6-8, 270, the foundation Gilroy of a line that undoubtedly will be one of the most intimidating in Class 3A this year. “We definitely make an appearance,” Gilroy said. “People will come up to us and be like ‘you guys look like a mini-Jenks.’ Muskogee’s coach (Rafe Watkins) came up to us at their team camp and was like ‘gosh, you guys look
T
like Jenks the way y’all are set up and everything.’ Maybe, but we definitely don’t have that size in second string like Jenks does.” But it’s definitely a Class 3A luxury. “They’re big but they’re also physical and athletic,” said offensive line coach J e r e m y Branchcomb. “Then we’ve also got a couple of guards who are smaller but maybe the most consistent guys we’ve got. “We can run the Clayton power game. We can get them out and pull them on the edge, we can run screens. Our problem is probably getting too big a playgook and not condensing it to the things we do really good. And that’s what we’re working on as a staff — not just with the linemen but with the receivers and running backs. We can run any
checotah wildcats Record last year: 10-2, lost in 3A second round Coach: Chad Hendricks (second season, 10-2) Staff: Jeramy Branchcomb, offensive line/offensive coordinator; Tom Butler wide receivers/corner backs; Rick Thompson linebackers/tight ends; Brian Young, quarterbacks/safeties. Returning starters (7 offense, 6 defense): Drew Dan, WR/CB, 6-2, 180, Jr.; Cody Cox, WR/S, 5-10, 170, Sr.; Dominik Pulse, TE/FB/DE, 6-3, 195, Sr.; Ronnie Clayton, OT, 6-5, 305, Sr.; Cody Casey, G/NG, 5-10, 225, Jr.; Cody Gilroy, C, 6-5, 285, Sr.; Andrew Sands, TB/DE, 6-0, 250, Hunter Collins, LB, 6-2, 220, Sr.; Keaton Donathon, RB/LB, 6-2, 210, Sr.; Sam Fisher, DE, 6-2, 225, Sr. Top newcomers: Jack Christian, WR/DB, 5-11, 170, Sr.; (See CHECOTAH, 21)
type of offense we want, but we’ve just got to get to what we do good.” Gilroy and Clayton have played together since Gilroy moved into Checotah from Morris. LaPach moved in at midterm a year ago from the Wildcats’ archrival, Eufaula. “I only started playing football in ninth grade,” LaPach said. “I always liked Checotah. I didn’t see anything wrong with them.” The chemistry is LaPach good, and not just because former rivals are OK with one another. It’s balance. “Cody’s laid back, Camaron’s the aggressive one and I guess I’m the crazy one of the three,” Clayton said. Gilroy will shift from guard to center, his natural position, after a year at tackle.
Special photo by Von Castor
From left, Checotah linemen Ronnie Clayton, Cody Gilroy and Cameron LaPach stand 6-foot-5, 6-5 and 6-8.
“He’s also an excellent deep snapper,” Hendricks said of the three-sport standout who was also a force inside the paint on the basketball court. “He’s scored high, around 21 or 22 on the ACT, which will add to his attractiveness to
schools at the next level. He’s very diverse, he’s good in run or pass protection and he’s also an emotional leader.” Any attention one of these guys gets will no doubt lead to a turned head or two toward the other two.
Page 18 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
It’s not all about the game Football guys just don’t focus on football. They do have other aspects of their lives that spark conversation. Here’s a few topics we found interesting.
Dreamland: If you could become invisible, what would you do? “Go to Fenway Park and watch David Ortiz hit.” — Bailey Puckett, Hilldale “Go to Fenway Park and hit dingers myself.” — Matthew Bargsten, Hilldale “Go to the President’s secret library and look up the truth to the secrets of our nation.” — Nick Burt, Fort Gibson “Go home.” — Justin Owen, Hulbert “Walk the sideline of the Super Bowl.” — Bryson McGowan, Hulbert “Go to a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader practice.” — Corey Miller, Midway “Go to France and steal food.” — Dylan Bryant, Stigler “Area 51, because I’m curious.” — Jack Christian, Checotah “I’d go to a college football game and mess with the ball.” — Tavian Davis, Muskogee “I’d watch free movies at the theater.” — Zack Jones, Warner “I’d swim in the fish tank at the mall.” — Zachary Rowell, Warner In a movie, who would play you? “Russell Westbrook.” — Tavian Davis, Muskogee “Morris Chestnut.” — Quintahj Cherry,
Singletons Continued from Page 17
think I can work with you a little bit.’ “Since then, every time we’re out doing drills and my dad tells me to do something, coach Whiteley will pull me aside and he’ll work with me on it, but he has a little something extra to add to it.” One problem that could have risen from the get-go was the talk from outside entities about favoritism. Coach Singleton said that never crossed his mind. “People are always going to talk,” he said. “That’s kind of the nature of the beast. J.R. came in with a pretty good resume coming from Muskogee.” As an eighth-grader, he was selected to play in the Eastbay All-American Game, an exhibition game in January of each year held in
Muskogee “Wes Welker.” — Bryson Bell, Muskogee “Terry Crews.” — Adonis Cole, Muskogee “Adam Sandler” – Kayden Hammans, Warner “LeBron James.” — Daxton Williams, Eufaula “Rylee Simon.” — Josh Cowart, Vian What TV show, reality or otherwise, could you star on? “American Ninja Warrior.” — Hunter Woods, Hilldale “Duck Dynasty.” — Bryson Bell, Muskogee “The Walking Dead.” — Ty Andrews, Vian “Survivor.” — K.J. Lee, Wagoner “Family Feud.” — Jacob Benningfield, Porter “Jersey Shore.” — Gage Durrett, Eufaula “Redneck Island.” — Cordel Balinger, Stigler
On love and socializing: What’s the highest priority for you when considering a partner — good looks, intelligence, sense of humor or something else? “Intelligence.” — Dominik Pulse, Checotah “Have a relationship with God.” — Riley Light, Keys When you meet someone for the first time and do not like them, what do you normally do?
San Antonio. The quarterback has seen his father grow more comfortable as the head man, which has led to easier decision-making in times of trouble. “He’s gotten a lot more comfortable on Fridays,” J.R. said. “Going from being an assistant coach to a head coach is kind of a big jump. But seeing him as a head coach, he’s learned to take that responsibility, good and bad. If there’s ever a bad call, it’s the head coach’s fault. He’s done a great job at taking that kind of heat and not really letting it get to him.” While this will be the final season for J.R. to play under his father’s tutelage, it won’t be that last season that a Singleton offspring will don a Fort Gibson uniform. One of two younger brothers, Bryce, is a wide receiver on the freshman team. The two siblings have been working together for some time and J.R. has been
“Try to get to know them to further judge how I feel.” — Adonis Cole, Muskogee “Never look at them again, but don’t ever hit them.” — Zach Parish, Sequoyah
What’s the funniest experience you have had in your entire life? “Every day in Checotah.” — Ronnie Clayton, Checotah
Ever been on a blind date and was it worth it? “Yes, and heck no!” — Cody Cox, Checotah
What’s the worst lie you’ve ever told in your life and were you caught? “It’s a secret, because I’ve never been caught.” — Hunter Reynolds, Eufaula
Age of first kiss by girl: “Tonight.” — Gunner Ford, Eufaula “One day old.” — Bear Frank, Tahlequah
You’re a waiter and a customer is rude to you, would you spill food on them or think about doing it? “No, I would tell them to go take a nap.” — Dillon Dobbins, Haskell
If you instantly turned into a woman for a day, how would you spend the day? “I’d find out what happens and what is said when a group of girls goes to the bathroom at the same time.” — Wyatt Gassaway, Hilldale “Being a woman.” — Camaron LaPach, Checotah “Shopping.” — J.R. Singleton, Fort Gibson “I would date my normal guy self.” — Jordan London, Fort Gibson “Trying to change back to a man.” — Dillon Clark, Keys “Become president.” — Michael Scott, Hulbert Riders “Doing what I want.” — Dakota Hooks, Hulbert “Sleeping.” — Hayden Morgan, Midway
Life lessons: Biggest regret you have from your life so far: “Nothing. I think everything happens for a reason.” — Cody Gilroy, Checotah
preparing his younger brother for life on the varsity level. “The only thing I can tell him is you have to put in the extra effort,” J.R. said. “One thing I always thought was funny is the past few years, I would throw the ball to him and he would say I was throwing the ball way too hard to him. I’m like ‘Bryce, two years from now, this is the exact same ball you’re going to be getting thrown to you when you’re out on the field.’ “Now whenever we go out, I can just sling it to him and he’s catching the ball. In one of the passing leagues this summer he was like ‘You’re right J.R. I’m glad you were throwing the ball hard back then because now it’s a lot easier.’” The working relationship between the two is something that their father says has developed his oldest son’s leadership qualities. The younger son has picked
Going deep: If you could ask God one thing, what would it be? “How grandma’s doing?” — Josh Cowart, Vian “All my questions would be answered when I saw him.” — Jordan Macheras, Porter “Was it Adam or Eve’s fault?” — Tristan Johnson, Fort Gibson “Do we win state?” — Garrett Lehnick, Gore “When are you coming back?” — Devon Barnes, Midway What is your greatest fear? “Getting hurt again.” — Roman Rodriguez, Wagoner “Bare feet.” — Erik Wiggins, Warner “Spiders.” — Nolan Philpott, Sequoyah “Not being good enough.” — Colt Davis, Stigler “Drowning” — Quentin Jim, Stigler
up on this and is learning what it takes to be a leader. “During our senior-led workouts, we encourage our freshmen to attend and seniors run all the workouts for the week,” James said. “Bryce kind of stayed with his brother’s group and just watched him to see how he did. And of course they talk quite a bit.” When January comes around, coach and quarterback will only have memories. “The biggest thing I’ll miss is going to be watching him play,” James said. “I’m pretty fortunate – I get to watch my son with the best seat in the house. That’s something where selfishly as a dad, I’m pretty excited about the opportunity that most dads don’t have. “But at the same time I know kids have to grow up and they’ve got to go. I will definitely miss that aspect of it.”
Prep Football Preview
Linebackers
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 15
The ultimate post-game meal guest list
Continued from Page 11
now at Central Oklahoma. “Them and some others,” Condict said. ‘We don’t expect them to average 10 yards a carry. We’ll just score touchdowns that take seven or eight plays instead of two.” While they’re roughly the same size, Lee and Rodriguez have their own skill set that brings a different aspect to the offense. ”They’re similar in a lot of ways, Condict said. ‘KJ’s got a little more power in his running game. Both of them are pretty elusive for their size, but Roman’s better catching the ball out of the backfield.” During the offseason, while still focusing on their defensive skills, both Rodriguez and Lee prepared for woring on their offensive prowess. Rodriguez knew that strength was going to be the key. “It’s not going to be a speed game,” Rodriguez said. ‘It’s going to be a power game this year. So we’ll have to change out a little bit. KJ and I will have to improve. Just working on conditioning, running bleachers, getting stronger – stuff like that.” For Lee, he is focused on making himself a better all-around back. “I’m working on my quickness and my catching ability,” Lee said. “You need to work on all the good stuff in practice that comes naturally in the game.” While Lee works on his conditioning during practice and in the weight room, it’s what he does outside school that has he is proud of. “After practice, I go work out,” Lee said. “When I get home, I do sit-ups or crunches or push-ups every day. Sometimes at night and sometimes in the morning, before I go to school, I’ll go run a mile or a mile and a half.” And when Lee wanted someone to look to for help with working out, he had to go no further than his own home. “My dad was training us and people that wanted to come,” Lee said. When Lee first stepped on the field, Rodriguez offered a word of advice that he thought would ease the then-freshman’s nerves. “I just told him to relax and let it all flow,” Rodriguez said. “He’s a pretty good athlete and talented. It’s just natural to him.”
We tabulated all the answers from 80 area players who were asked the question. From over 200 invites, these four collected the most votes on a question of “What five people would you want to invite to dinner?” Former Oklahoma Sooner Adrian Peterson received 13 votes. With eight each were Jesus, LeBron James and Peyton Manning. Well, that made for four. As for the fifth, that was a tie, so we’ll just see who can get there first between Mark Walhberg, Tim Tebow, Kevin Durant, Kate Upton and Dewayne “The Rock” Johnson.
Would we hear “Cut Just think of this — No doubt he’d field a lot of questions — not LeBron got more votes that meat!” from to mention control the than the Thunder guy. Peyton, or has he forgotten that commertempo of the dinner. cial?
Bob Stoops? Teddy Lehman? Jason White? Sam Bradford? No, it’s not even Bama slayer Trevor Knight. Around these guys, A.D. is still everyone’s OU hero.
He’ll cook for the fifth seat. Let ’em “smell what the Rock is cooking.”
Not suprising that Kate made the list, but that there’s no other swimsuit model.
Bet it gets really quiet when Tebow and Jesus talk.
Just think of this — LeBron got more votes than this Thunder guy.
Mark will be more ripped than anyone at the table.
Page 16 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
fort gibson tigers Record in 2013: 6-5, 4A first round Head coach: James Singleton (fourth year, 21-13) Staff: Greg Whiteley, off coordinator/quarterbacks; Ernie Ragland, offensive line; Craig Collins, tight ends; Kenyatta Wright, defensive coordinator/linebackers; Sammy Johnson, defensive line; Mike Shelton, receivers; Carter Bradley,running backs. Returning starters (8 offense, 7 defense): J.R. Singleton, QB/DB, 6-1, 198, Sr.; Jordan London, WR/DB, 6-1, 186, Sr.; Michael Rosales, OL/DL, 511, 222, So.; Chris Walker, TB/LB, 6-0, 185, So.; Jared Ragland, OL/DL, 6-2, 288, Sr.; Tristan Johnson, TB/LB, 6-0, 234, Sr.; McKenna Terrell, TE/LB, 6-2, 194, Sr.; Jared Cornelius, OL/DL, 6-0, 266, Jr.; Keifer Kirkhart, WR/DB, 6-0, 158, Sr.; Will Rumbley, WR/DB, 6-1, 156, Sr.; Nick Burt, OL/DL, 6-1, 222, Sr.
James Singleton enters his fourth season at Fort Gibson with probably the most veteran squad he’s had since taking over at the helm of the Tigers’ program. With 15 of 22 starters returning from last year’s 6-5 squad that lost to Wagoner in the first round, Fort Gibson looks to make a deep run in the 2014 postseason. Singleton “We're excited we have a lot of our skilled kids back, in the secondary, our linebackers, running backs and wide receivers,” Singleton said. “Up front, we had to replace three offensive linemen that were three-year starters for us, but we feel really comfortable about the underclassmen that we're putting into those positions. “We also have a senior (Adam Rigney) that couldn't play last year because of transfer issues with the OSSAA, so we're going to be
able to plug him right in at guard. Even though he's a rookie per se, me personally I still count him as a veteran. He's a senior and a great leader who knows what we're doing offensively and defensively.”
Challenging start The Tigers’ season gets off to a roaring start when they host Tahlequah at Leo Donahue/Tiger Stadium. After traveling cross county to face Hilldale in the annual battle for “The Rock” in week two, Fort Gibson returns home for a small chance at redemption, welcoming Wagoner to town. “We were able to get Wagoner on the schedule,” Singleton said. “We haven't had them on the schedule in a long time. We're really excited about that opportunity to renew that rivalry a little more.” After the Wagoner game, the Tigers begin district play by heading to Sallisaw. With the new district alignments taking place this season, Singleton feels that District
4A-4 could be one of the toughest in the state. “Our district's very challenging with Metro Christian coming in,” he said. “Of course, we have Broken Bow and Sallisaw and Poteau, who played for a state championship last year. With all that being said, we feel like we have an opportunity to go win every game we play this Burt year.”
Foundational adds Senior offensive lineman Nick Burt will be starting for his third year under coach Singleton. Burt says the knowledge he’s picked up can be passed along to the underclassmen coming up after him. "As a three-year starter, you kind of know what the defense is going to do,” Burt said. “You can see the way they line up – where their hands are at, how much
pressure they have on their hands and where they're going to go." And the passing on of the knowledge is something Burt credits to his predecessors. “The guys before me taught me a lot about hard work and blocking schemes,” he said. “They brought me up starting as sophomores. This year, I feel I know a London lot more and I'm ready and well prepared for the season."
Dynamic duo One of the weapons that J.R. Singleton will have at his disposal is senior wide receiver Jordan London. The twosome have worked together so much that London believes they can read each other’s thoughts. "He and I can see the way the defense is playing and I can break a route off earlier and he sees it as well,”
London said. “We can signal to each other so he knows if I'm going to break it off earlier or blow by my defender.” London, the 2013-14 AllPhoenix basketball MVP, feels his basketball skills will help him on the football. “The jumping helps,” he said. “Also, I'm not real fast, so technique and knowing my routes help.”
Rid of the bad taste
Johnson
Senior running back/linebacker Tristan Johnson is looking forward to his final season for the Tigers. He believes that last season went unfulfilled. “Last year, we kind of underachieved,” he said. “This year, based on all the athleticism we have coming back, we should be a better outcome. I’m looking forward to see how we do.” —Ronn Rowland
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 17
The road is nearing an end for father and son By Ronn Rowland Phoenix Sports Writer
W
hen James Singleton moved from an assistant at Muskogee High School to take over the coaching reins at Fort Gibson in 2011, he faced a dilemma. His son, J.R., was a freshman-to-be for the Tigers and the No. 1 choice to be the starting quarterback. The dilemma — the elder Singleton wasn’t 100 percent sure if his son was ready to handle the duties. “Ideally, when I first came in, I thought, me personally not only as a dad but as a coach, I wanted him down in ninth grade,” James Singleton said. “But after going through spring ball and summer workouts, coach (Greg) Whiteley, our offensive coordinator, and coach (Kenyatta) Wright, our defensive coordinator, both came to me and said it was more their decision than mine that he needed to be our Friday night guy.” There were growing pains. With J.R. at the helm, the Tigers went 4-6 but 4-3 in District 4A-4 action to qualify for a playoff spot. Speaking of pain, he suffered a broken tibia in the regular season finale at Broken Bow. “We kind of scaled the playbook back that first year for J.R.,” James said.
“Of course, we had Lane Dortch (NSU signee) and Jake Gandara (UCO) back there to lean on. Also, Ned Adair developed at tight end, so we had a nice supporting cast around J.R. He didn’t have to take full reins – just go out, manage the game and minimize mistakes.” Season two showed the leadership quality the coaches had in him as J.R. guided Fort Gibson to a 9-1 regular season record and berth in the Class 4A playoffs. However, the injury bug again bit him as he dislocated his throwing arm in the regular season finale at Sallisaw. He missed the postseason where the Tigers made it to the quarterfinals led by Gandara, the 2012 Phoenix MVP who amassed 2,234 rushing yards on the season, and Jordan London moving from receiver to quarterback. Last year, with J.R. surrounded by youth and inexperience and having more on his shoulders, the Tigers went 6-5 and lost to eventual semifinalist Wagoner in the first round. Heading into their final season together, the father and son are looking forward to seeing how far the Tigers can go. Fort Gibson returns eight starters on offense and seven on defense. “There’s a lot more trust
now between him and I out on the football field,” J.R. said about his father. “He’s always been my coach since I was a little boy putting on the helmet and running out. He’s always been coaching me up.” One thing that has helped keep peace in the Singleton clan is that J.R. does not always go to his head coach for instruction. From his first day in a Tigers’ uniform, the younger Singleton has had a very strong relationship with Whiteley who also doubles as the quarterbacks coach. “The first thing he did when we met was throw me a football and said ‘Throw me the football.’ So I threw him the football and he said ‘All right – I (See SINGLETONS, 18)
Special photo by Von Castor
Fort Gibson quarterback J.R. Singleton has started for his father and head coach James Singleton since the former was a freshman in his dad’s first season at the helm.
Page 16 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
fort gibson tigers Record in 2013: 6-5, 4A first round Head coach: James Singleton (fourth year, 21-13) Staff: Greg Whiteley, off coordinator/quarterbacks; Ernie Ragland, offensive line; Craig Collins, tight ends; Kenyatta Wright, defensive coordinator/linebackers; Sammy Johnson, defensive line; Mike Shelton, receivers; Carter Bradley,running backs. Returning starters (8 offense, 7 defense): J.R. Singleton, QB/DB, 6-1, 198, Sr.; Jordan London, WR/DB, 6-1, 186, Sr.; Michael Rosales, OL/DL, 511, 222, So.; Chris Walker, TB/LB, 6-0, 185, So.; Jared Ragland, OL/DL, 6-2, 288, Sr.; Tristan Johnson, TB/LB, 6-0, 234, Sr.; McKenna Terrell, TE/LB, 6-2, 194, Sr.; Jared Cornelius, OL/DL, 6-0, 266, Jr.; Keifer Kirkhart, WR/DB, 6-0, 158, Sr.; Will Rumbley, WR/DB, 6-1, 156, Sr.; Nick Burt, OL/DL, 6-1, 222, Sr.
James Singleton enters his fourth season at Fort Gibson with probably the most veteran squad he’s had since taking over at the helm of the Tigers’ program. With 15 of 22 starters returning from last year’s 6-5 squad that lost to Wagoner in the first round, Fort Gibson looks to make a deep run in the 2014 postseason. Singleton “We're excited we have a lot of our skilled kids back, in the secondary, our linebackers, running backs and wide receivers,” Singleton said. “Up front, we had to replace three offensive linemen that were three-year starters for us, but we feel really comfortable about the underclassmen that we're putting into those positions. “We also have a senior (Adam Rigney) that couldn't play last year because of transfer issues with the OSSAA, so we're going to be
able to plug him right in at guard. Even though he's a rookie per se, me personally I still count him as a veteran. He's a senior and a great leader who knows what we're doing offensively and defensively.”
Challenging start The Tigers’ season gets off to a roaring start when they host Tahlequah at Leo Donahue/Tiger Stadium. After traveling cross county to face Hilldale in the annual battle for “The Rock” in week two, Fort Gibson returns home for a small chance at redemption, welcoming Wagoner to town. “We were able to get Wagoner on the schedule,” Singleton said. “We haven't had them on the schedule in a long time. We're really excited about that opportunity to renew that rivalry a little more.” After the Wagoner game, the Tigers begin district play by heading to Sallisaw. With the new district alignments taking place this season, Singleton feels that District
4A-4 could be one of the toughest in the state. “Our district's very challenging with Metro Christian coming in,” he said. “Of course, we have Broken Bow and Sallisaw and Poteau, who played for a state championship last year. With all that being said, we feel like we have an opportunity to go win every game we play this Burt year.”
Foundational adds Senior offensive lineman Nick Burt will be starting for his third year under coach Singleton. Burt says the knowledge he’s picked up can be passed along to the underclassmen coming up after him. "As a three-year starter, you kind of know what the defense is going to do,” Burt said. “You can see the way they line up – where their hands are at, how much
pressure they have on their hands and where they're going to go." And the passing on of the knowledge is something Burt credits to his predecessors. “The guys before me taught me a lot about hard work and blocking schemes,” he said. “They brought me up starting as sophomores. This year, I feel I know a London lot more and I'm ready and well prepared for the season."
Dynamic duo One of the weapons that J.R. Singleton will have at his disposal is senior wide receiver Jordan London. The twosome have worked together so much that London believes they can read each other’s thoughts. "He and I can see the way the defense is playing and I can break a route off earlier and he sees it as well,”
London said. “We can signal to each other so he knows if I'm going to break it off earlier or blow by my defender.” London, the 2013-14 AllPhoenix basketball MVP, feels his basketball skills will help him on the football. “The jumping helps,” he said. “Also, I'm not real fast, so technique and knowing my routes help.”
Rid of the bad taste
Johnson
Senior running back/linebacker Tristan Johnson is looking forward to his final season for the Tigers. He believes that last season went unfulfilled. “Last year, we kind of underachieved,” he said. “This year, based on all the athleticism we have coming back, we should be a better outcome. I’m looking forward to see how we do.” —Ronn Rowland
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 17
The road is nearing an end for father and son By Ronn Rowland Phoenix Sports Writer
W
hen James Singleton moved from an assistant at Muskogee High School to take over the coaching reins at Fort Gibson in 2011, he faced a dilemma. His son, J.R., was a freshman-to-be for the Tigers and the No. 1 choice to be the starting quarterback. The dilemma — the elder Singleton wasn’t 100 percent sure if his son was ready to handle the duties. “Ideally, when I first came in, I thought, me personally not only as a dad but as a coach, I wanted him down in ninth grade,” James Singleton said. “But after going through spring ball and summer workouts, coach (Greg) Whiteley, our offensive coordinator, and coach (Kenyatta) Wright, our defensive coordinator, both came to me and said it was more their decision than mine that he needed to be our Friday night guy.” There were growing pains. With J.R. at the helm, the Tigers went 4-6 but 4-3 in District 4A-4 action to qualify for a playoff spot. Speaking of pain, he suffered a broken tibia in the regular season finale at Broken Bow. “We kind of scaled the playbook back that first year for J.R.,” James said.
“Of course, we had Lane Dortch (NSU signee) and Jake Gandara (UCO) back there to lean on. Also, Ned Adair developed at tight end, so we had a nice supporting cast around J.R. He didn’t have to take full reins – just go out, manage the game and minimize mistakes.” Season two showed the leadership quality the coaches had in him as J.R. guided Fort Gibson to a 9-1 regular season record and berth in the Class 4A playoffs. However, the injury bug again bit him as he dislocated his throwing arm in the regular season finale at Sallisaw. He missed the postseason where the Tigers made it to the quarterfinals led by Gandara, the 2012 Phoenix MVP who amassed 2,234 rushing yards on the season, and Jordan London moving from receiver to quarterback. Last year, with J.R. surrounded by youth and inexperience and having more on his shoulders, the Tigers went 6-5 and lost to eventual semifinalist Wagoner in the first round. Heading into their final season together, the father and son are looking forward to seeing how far the Tigers can go. Fort Gibson returns eight starters on offense and seven on defense. “There’s a lot more trust
now between him and I out on the football field,” J.R. said about his father. “He’s always been my coach since I was a little boy putting on the helmet and running out. He’s always been coaching me up.” One thing that has helped keep peace in the Singleton clan is that J.R. does not always go to his head coach for instruction. From his first day in a Tigers’ uniform, the younger Singleton has had a very strong relationship with Whiteley who also doubles as the quarterbacks coach. “The first thing he did when we met was throw me a football and said ‘Throw me the football.’ So I threw him the football and he said ‘All right – I (See SINGLETONS, 18)
Special photo by Von Castor
Fort Gibson quarterback J.R. Singleton has started for his father and head coach James Singleton since the former was a freshman in his dad’s first season at the helm.
Page 18 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
It’s not all about the game Football guys just don’t focus on football. They do have other aspects of their lives that spark conversation. Here’s a few topics we found interesting.
Dreamland: If you could become invisible, what would you do? “Go to Fenway Park and watch David Ortiz hit.” — Bailey Puckett, Hilldale “Go to Fenway Park and hit dingers myself.” — Matthew Bargsten, Hilldale “Go to the President’s secret library and look up the truth to the secrets of our nation.” — Nick Burt, Fort Gibson “Go home.” — Justin Owen, Hulbert “Walk the sideline of the Super Bowl.” — Bryson McGowan, Hulbert “Go to a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader practice.” — Corey Miller, Midway “Go to France and steal food.” — Dylan Bryant, Stigler “Area 51, because I’m curious.” — Jack Christian, Checotah “I’d go to a college football game and mess with the ball.” — Tavian Davis, Muskogee “I’d watch free movies at the theater.” — Zack Jones, Warner “I’d swim in the fish tank at the mall.” — Zachary Rowell, Warner In a movie, who would play you? “Russell Westbrook.” — Tavian Davis, Muskogee “Morris Chestnut.” — Quintahj Cherry,
Singletons Continued from Page 17
think I can work with you a little bit.’ “Since then, every time we’re out doing drills and my dad tells me to do something, coach Whiteley will pull me aside and he’ll work with me on it, but he has a little something extra to add to it.” One problem that could have risen from the get-go was the talk from outside entities about favoritism. Coach Singleton said that never crossed his mind. “People are always going to talk,” he said. “That’s kind of the nature of the beast. J.R. came in with a pretty good resume coming from Muskogee.” As an eighth-grader, he was selected to play in the Eastbay All-American Game, an exhibition game in January of each year held in
Muskogee “Wes Welker.” — Bryson Bell, Muskogee “Terry Crews.” — Adonis Cole, Muskogee “Adam Sandler” – Kayden Hammans, Warner “LeBron James.” — Daxton Williams, Eufaula “Rylee Simon.” — Josh Cowart, Vian What TV show, reality or otherwise, could you star on? “American Ninja Warrior.” — Hunter Woods, Hilldale “Duck Dynasty.” — Bryson Bell, Muskogee “The Walking Dead.” — Ty Andrews, Vian “Survivor.” — K.J. Lee, Wagoner “Family Feud.” — Jacob Benningfield, Porter “Jersey Shore.” — Gage Durrett, Eufaula “Redneck Island.” — Cordel Balinger, Stigler
On love and socializing: What’s the highest priority for you when considering a partner — good looks, intelligence, sense of humor or something else? “Intelligence.” — Dominik Pulse, Checotah “Have a relationship with God.” — Riley Light, Keys When you meet someone for the first time and do not like them, what do you normally do?
San Antonio. The quarterback has seen his father grow more comfortable as the head man, which has led to easier decision-making in times of trouble. “He’s gotten a lot more comfortable on Fridays,” J.R. said. “Going from being an assistant coach to a head coach is kind of a big jump. But seeing him as a head coach, he’s learned to take that responsibility, good and bad. If there’s ever a bad call, it’s the head coach’s fault. He’s done a great job at taking that kind of heat and not really letting it get to him.” While this will be the final season for J.R. to play under his father’s tutelage, it won’t be that last season that a Singleton offspring will don a Fort Gibson uniform. One of two younger brothers, Bryce, is a wide receiver on the freshman team. The two siblings have been working together for some time and J.R. has been
“Try to get to know them to further judge how I feel.” — Adonis Cole, Muskogee “Never look at them again, but don’t ever hit them.” — Zach Parish, Sequoyah
What’s the funniest experience you have had in your entire life? “Every day in Checotah.” — Ronnie Clayton, Checotah
Ever been on a blind date and was it worth it? “Yes, and heck no!” — Cody Cox, Checotah
What’s the worst lie you’ve ever told in your life and were you caught? “It’s a secret, because I’ve never been caught.” — Hunter Reynolds, Eufaula
Age of first kiss by girl: “Tonight.” — Gunner Ford, Eufaula “One day old.” — Bear Frank, Tahlequah
You’re a waiter and a customer is rude to you, would you spill food on them or think about doing it? “No, I would tell them to go take a nap.” — Dillon Dobbins, Haskell
If you instantly turned into a woman for a day, how would you spend the day? “I’d find out what happens and what is said when a group of girls goes to the bathroom at the same time.” — Wyatt Gassaway, Hilldale “Being a woman.” — Camaron LaPach, Checotah “Shopping.” — J.R. Singleton, Fort Gibson “I would date my normal guy self.” — Jordan London, Fort Gibson “Trying to change back to a man.” — Dillon Clark, Keys “Become president.” — Michael Scott, Hulbert Riders “Doing what I want.” — Dakota Hooks, Hulbert “Sleeping.” — Hayden Morgan, Midway
Life lessons: Biggest regret you have from your life so far: “Nothing. I think everything happens for a reason.” — Cody Gilroy, Checotah
preparing his younger brother for life on the varsity level. “The only thing I can tell him is you have to put in the extra effort,” J.R. said. “One thing I always thought was funny is the past few years, I would throw the ball to him and he would say I was throwing the ball way too hard to him. I’m like ‘Bryce, two years from now, this is the exact same ball you’re going to be getting thrown to you when you’re out on the field.’ “Now whenever we go out, I can just sling it to him and he’s catching the ball. In one of the passing leagues this summer he was like ‘You’re right J.R. I’m glad you were throwing the ball hard back then because now it’s a lot easier.’” The working relationship between the two is something that their father says has developed his oldest son’s leadership qualities. The younger son has picked
Going deep: If you could ask God one thing, what would it be? “How grandma’s doing?” — Josh Cowart, Vian “All my questions would be answered when I saw him.” — Jordan Macheras, Porter “Was it Adam or Eve’s fault?” — Tristan Johnson, Fort Gibson “Do we win state?” — Garrett Lehnick, Gore “When are you coming back?” — Devon Barnes, Midway What is your greatest fear? “Getting hurt again.” — Roman Rodriguez, Wagoner “Bare feet.” — Erik Wiggins, Warner “Spiders.” — Nolan Philpott, Sequoyah “Not being good enough.” — Colt Davis, Stigler “Drowning” — Quentin Jim, Stigler
up on this and is learning what it takes to be a leader. “During our senior-led workouts, we encourage our freshmen to attend and seniors run all the workouts for the week,” James said. “Bryce kind of stayed with his brother’s group and just watched him to see how he did. And of course they talk quite a bit.” When January comes around, coach and quarterback will only have memories. “The biggest thing I’ll miss is going to be watching him play,” James said. “I’m pretty fortunate – I get to watch my son with the best seat in the house. That’s something where selfishly as a dad, I’m pretty excited about the opportunity that most dads don’t have. “But at the same time I know kids have to grow up and they’ve got to go. I will definitely miss that aspect of it.”
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Linebackers
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 15
The ultimate post-game meal guest list
Continued from Page 11
now at Central Oklahoma. “Them and some others,” Condict said. ‘We don’t expect them to average 10 yards a carry. We’ll just score touchdowns that take seven or eight plays instead of two.” While they’re roughly the same size, Lee and Rodriguez have their own skill set that brings a different aspect to the offense. ”They’re similar in a lot of ways, Condict said. ‘KJ’s got a little more power in his running game. Both of them are pretty elusive for their size, but Roman’s better catching the ball out of the backfield.” During the offseason, while still focusing on their defensive skills, both Rodriguez and Lee prepared for woring on their offensive prowess. Rodriguez knew that strength was going to be the key. “It’s not going to be a speed game,” Rodriguez said. ‘It’s going to be a power game this year. So we’ll have to change out a little bit. KJ and I will have to improve. Just working on conditioning, running bleachers, getting stronger – stuff like that.” For Lee, he is focused on making himself a better all-around back. “I’m working on my quickness and my catching ability,” Lee said. “You need to work on all the good stuff in practice that comes naturally in the game.” While Lee works on his conditioning during practice and in the weight room, it’s what he does outside school that has he is proud of. “After practice, I go work out,” Lee said. “When I get home, I do sit-ups or crunches or push-ups every day. Sometimes at night and sometimes in the morning, before I go to school, I’ll go run a mile or a mile and a half.” And when Lee wanted someone to look to for help with working out, he had to go no further than his own home. “My dad was training us and people that wanted to come,” Lee said. When Lee first stepped on the field, Rodriguez offered a word of advice that he thought would ease the then-freshman’s nerves. “I just told him to relax and let it all flow,” Rodriguez said. “He’s a pretty good athlete and talented. It’s just natural to him.”
We tabulated all the answers from 80 area players who were asked the question. From over 200 invites, these four collected the most votes on a question of “What five people would you want to invite to dinner?” Former Oklahoma Sooner Adrian Peterson received 13 votes. With eight each were Jesus, LeBron James and Peyton Manning. Well, that made for four. As for the fifth, that was a tie, so we’ll just see who can get there first between Mark Walhberg, Tim Tebow, Kevin Durant, Kate Upton and Dewayne “The Rock” Johnson.
Would we hear “Cut Just think of this — No doubt he’d field a lot of questions — not LeBron got more votes that meat!” from to mention control the than the Thunder guy. Peyton, or has he forgotten that commertempo of the dinner. cial?
Bob Stoops? Teddy Lehman? Jason White? Sam Bradford? No, it’s not even Bama slayer Trevor Knight. Around these guys, A.D. is still everyone’s OU hero.
He’ll cook for the fifth seat. Let ’em “smell what the Rock is cooking.”
Not suprising that Kate made the list, but that there’s no other swimsuit model.
Bet it gets really quiet when Tebow and Jesus talk.
Just think of this — LeBron got more votes than this Thunder guy.
Mark will be more ripped than anyone at the table.
Page 14 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
Prep Football Preview
The Stigler Panthers are coming off an 8-3 season
and their eighth consecutive trip to the playoffs in 2013. Because of tie-breakers in District 3A-8, last year’s squad had to settle for fourth in the district and traveled to Lincoln Christian, which ended the Panthers season in the Risenhoover first round of the playoffs. Stigler coach Chris Risenhoover is entering his sixth season at the helm of the Panther program and has a lot of work to do the get the Panthers to their ninth consecutive postseason party. On offense, Stigler return five starters – all on the line. “We do have to fill basically every spot across the board in our skill positions —our quarterback, our
receivers and running backs. But we feel like these kids are very capable to fill those roles,” said Risenhoover. “Physical ability, I’m not really concerned about. I think a little bit, schematically, we’ve got to do Bryant things right.” Replacing Seth Sandlin at quarterback, and his 1,500 yards of rushing, will be Dylan Bryant. ”Dylan is capable of running the ball three or four times a game,” Risenhoover said. “But his true strength is gonna be with his passing ability.” Repetition and familiarity are two things that Bryant feels has helped him get ready for the season. ”Going to seven on seven
camps, getting my timing down with the receivers and being in the weight room with them – the more time I spend with them, the easier it seems to be,” said Bryant.
Bug bites Perhaps the biggest loss for Stigler did not come by way of graduation, but by way of the injury bug. Trace Ballinger Jackson, the most experienced skill player and biggest big-play threat, was lost for the season during 7on-7 workouts over the summer with a torn ACL. “He’s played a lot of games. He played as a true freshman and averaged 12 yards per carry, but he has had a rough go since that
freshman year,” said Risenhoover. Jackson broke his foot during work outs last summer but was able to contribute late last year. Looking to fill the void left by Jackson will be Dawson Que. Jim Barger, Shayne Quick and Quentin Jim.
Manning up On the defensive side of the ball, Panther opponents may see a change from the three-man front Stigler has used the last two years. Gone from last year’s team is both defensive ends and nose guard. “We will probably go back to more of a four-front type of scheme. We felt like we
were a little light up front for a three-man to stop the run game,” said Risenhoover. “We’re gonna end up using a few more kids. Our starters on the offensive line are gonna have to play a dual role and share duties Davis at defensive tackles.” A bright spot for Risenhoover is the return of Quontez Jim at the linebacker spot. ”We know we are solid at that spot,” added Risenhoover. Others that are looking to fill spots on the defense include Quick, Barger and Quentin Jim, Quontez’s younger brother, in the secondary. —Jimmy Stinson, correspondent
keys cougars Record in 2013: 1-9 Head coach: Tuffy Thornton (first season) Staff: Todd Phillips, defensive coordinator; Beau Brannon, offensive coordinator; Duane Jones, special teams coordinator; Casper Petty, assistant coach; Travis Kirby, assistant coach. Returning starters (9 offense and 9 defense): Luke Phillips, WR/LB, 5-11, 170, Sr.; Dillon Clark, RB/LB, 6-0, 190 Sr.; Riley Light, WR/DB, 5-9, 150, Sr.; Dakota Matlock, RB/LB, 511, 185, Jr.; Chase Girdner, WR, 6-3, 200, Jr.; Bryan
Neff, OL/DL, 6-2, 285, So.; Chance Weir, DL, 6-3, 215, Jr.; Kylar Stilwell, DB, 5-9, 160, So.; Kenny Brown, DL, 5-10, 190, Sr.; Shane Littrell, DL, 6-2, 285, Sr. Kenneth “Tuffy” Thornton returns to his old stomping grounds as he takes over the coaching duties at Keys for 2014. And the Cougar faithful hope it will also mean a return to the playoffs. After spending the last four seasons as an assistant at Greenwood (Ark.) where his team won three state cham-
pionships, Thornton decided it was time to come home. “This job was close to my parents, close to everything I like to do, right there on the lake. I knew what kind of proThornton gram they had and what kind of kids they had and it seemed like a good fit,” said Thornton. The former Tahlequah coach takes over a Keys team that made the playoffs 12 straight years until they ran into a season that was thin on upperLight classmen and tplummeted to a 1-9 mark in 2013. “It wasn’t anything they did wrong,” said Thornton. “They started four or five freshmen and, as long as I’ve been in coaching, I know you’re not going to be very good when you have to start a whole bunch of sophomores, much
less freshmen.”
He’s the man One bright spot for the Cougars last year was the play of running back Dakota Matlock, who Keys will need to build around this year. The 4.5-40 junior speedster rushed for over 1,000 yards last year and led the team in tackles at the safety spot. He’s slated to move to linebacker this year which is OK by him. “I’ve never played linebacker before, but I think it will be all right,” said Matlock.
Who’s the boss? In order to get back on the playoff track, Thornton has three challenges to overcome before the Friday night lights go on in September. First, is to identify a quarterback. Senior Rylee Radomski is the early front runner, but he’s not a shoo-in for the job according to Thornton. “I was impressed with what I saw of Rylee in our passing league,” said the coach. “But we’ve got some options at quarterback and we just have to get into fall practice and see who can do what I’m
wanting to do.” One of those things that Thornton wants to do on offense is run at a faster pace, maybe even a no-huddle look. And Radomski thinks he’s the man for the job. “I’ve been working on being the quarterback since I was a freshman. I’m at the field three or four nights a week during the summer throwing and, with a new coach, I’m hoping my work will pay off this year,” said Radomski.
Stop the easy The second big challenge for Thornton will be shoring up a defense and special teams that gave up an average of over 40 points per game last year, many of those a result of poor kick coverage. “We’re going to bring an attack-style defense that gets in peoples’ faces and dares them to throw against us. We’re going to bring some heat and not sit back on our heels and let them dictate what we’re going to do,” said Thornton. “We’re going to work real hard on special teams. Those are easy points
we gave away last year. I think we can get a lot better real fast if we improve our play there. We’ve also got to identify a kicker and punter early on as well.”
Who’s on the bench? The third challenge for the Cougars is a lack of depth. “That’s one of the things we’ve got to get into from day one,” said Thornton. “If we want to run up-tempo on both sides of the ball, we’ll have to find some Clark depth – quick.” The Cougars look forward to putting last year in the past and using that disappointment as a springboard for 2014, according to senior lineman Dillon Clark. “I think we’ve done a lot of growing up since last year. Just having missed the playoffs will be a motivation for us to play harder just to try to get back there because that’s a Keys tradition,” said Clark. Nick Hampton, correspondent
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 19
Heavy machinery
stigler panthers Record in 2013: 8-3, 3A first round Head coach: Chris Risenhoover (sixth year, 4315, 76-39 overall) Staff: Dwight Carey, defensive coordinator; Bill Self Jr., line; Kevin Wilkett, QB/LB; Jeff Broyles, OL/DL; Eric Stout, special teams. Returning starters (5 offense, 2 defense): Colt Davis, OL, 5-9, 290, Sr.; Stephen Moseley, OL, 5-10, 230, So.; Justin Geralds, OL, 6-0, 240, So.; Micah Dunham, OL, 5-11, 265, Jr., Jake Fobber, OL, 6-3, 300, Jr.; Quontez Jim, LB, 6-0, 210, Jr.; Trace Jackson, RB, 5-9, 170, Jr. Top newcomers: Cordale Ballinger, CB, 5-8, 155, Sr.
Muskogee Phoenix
Wildcats’ line a sizeable concern for opponents By Mike Kays
Phoenix Sports Editor
hey’re used to the attention. Heads turned over the summer at various team camps when Checotah’s triple towers of Cody Gilroy, Ronnie Clayton and Camaron Lapach showed up. Gilroy is 6-foot-5, 285 pounds, Clayton 6-5, 305 and LaPach 6-8, 270, the foundation Gilroy of a line that undoubtedly will be one of the most intimidating in Class 3A this year. “We definitely make an appearance,” Gilroy said. “People will come up to us and be like ‘you guys look like a mini-Jenks.’ Muskogee’s coach (Rafe Watkins) came up to us at their team camp and was like ‘gosh, you guys look
T
like Jenks the way y’all are set up and everything.’ Maybe, but we definitely don’t have that size in second string like Jenks does.” But it’s definitely a Class 3A luxury. “They’re big but they’re also physical and athletic,” said offensive line coach J e r e m y Branchcomb. “Then we’ve also got a couple of guards who are smaller but maybe the most consistent guys we’ve got. “We can run the Clayton power game. We can get them out and pull them on the edge, we can run screens. Our problem is probably getting too big a playgook and not condensing it to the things we do really good. And that’s what we’re working on as a staff — not just with the linemen but with the receivers and running backs. We can run any
checotah wildcats Record last year: 10-2, lost in 3A second round Coach: Chad Hendricks (second season, 10-2) Staff: Jeramy Branchcomb, offensive line/offensive coordinator; Tom Butler wide receivers/corner backs; Rick Thompson linebackers/tight ends; Brian Young, quarterbacks/safeties. Returning starters (7 offense, 6 defense): Drew Dan, WR/CB, 6-2, 180, Jr.; Cody Cox, WR/S, 5-10, 170, Sr.; Dominik Pulse, TE/FB/DE, 6-3, 195, Sr.; Ronnie Clayton, OT, 6-5, 305, Sr.; Cody Casey, G/NG, 5-10, 225, Jr.; Cody Gilroy, C, 6-5, 285, Sr.; Andrew Sands, TB/DE, 6-0, 250, Hunter Collins, LB, 6-2, 220, Sr.; Keaton Donathon, RB/LB, 6-2, 210, Sr.; Sam Fisher, DE, 6-2, 225, Sr. Top newcomers: Jack Christian, WR/DB, 5-11, 170, Sr.; (See CHECOTAH, 21)
type of offense we want, but we’ve just got to get to what we do good.” Gilroy and Clayton have played together since Gilroy moved into Checotah from Morris. LaPach moved in at midterm a year ago from the Wildcats’ archrival, Eufaula. “I only started playing football in ninth grade,” LaPach said. “I always liked Checotah. I didn’t see anything wrong with them.” The chemistry is LaPach good, and not just because former rivals are OK with one another. It’s balance. “Cody’s laid back, Camaron’s the aggressive one and I guess I’m the crazy one of the three,” Clayton said. Gilroy will shift from guard to center, his natural position, after a year at tackle.
Special photo by Von Castor
From left, Checotah linemen Ronnie Clayton, Cody Gilroy and Cameron LaPach stand 6-foot-5, 6-5 and 6-8.
“He’s also an excellent deep snapper,” Hendricks said of the three-sport standout who was also a force inside the paint on the basketball court. “He’s scored high, around 21 or 22 on the ACT, which will add to his attractiveness to
schools at the next level. He’s very diverse, he’s good in run or pass protection and he’s also an emotional leader.” Any attention one of these guys gets will no doubt lead to a turned head or two toward the other two.
Page 20 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
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Muskogee Phoenix
eufaula ironheads Record in 2013: 5-5 Head coach: Larry Newton (third year, 6-14) Staff: Ryan Green, defensive coordinator; Victor Paden, offensive coordinator; Michael Campbell, wide receivers/defensive ends; Josh Luna, running backs/linebackers. Returning starters (6
offense, 6 defense): Daxton Williams, TE/DL, 63, 248, Sr.; Gage Durrett, OL/LB, 6-3, 225, Sr.; Gunner Ford, QB, 6-1, 200, So.; Zach Armendariz, WR/LB, 6-1, 190, Sr.; Hunter Bogle, OL, 6-3, 225; Cheyne Fowler, 6-0, 200, Sr.; Shane Moore, 5-11, 200, RB/OLB, Jr.; Hunter Reynolds, LB, 5-11, 185, Sr.
Top newcomers: Jesse Walker, RB/WR/DB, 5-11, 180, So.; Carlos Arriaga, OL/LB, 5-11, 215, So.; Johnny White, WR, 6-5, 195, Sr. After a 1-9 year in 2012, the Eufaula Ironheads were on the brink of making the Class 3A playoffs last season with a break-even 5-5 campaign. Size and conditioning will be huge keys as the Ironheads vie for another improvement year. “We made it really rough on them this summer,” said thirdyear coach Larry Newton. “We ran them a lot Newton and they handled it.” As in sixty 80-yard runs, broke into two 40-yard segments, on the final day of summer pride. Twenty-five to 30 kids made time. “At the end it was really impressive,” he said. “We were basing this on 120-150 plays a game. If you’re going full speed and playing both ways, you have to be in shape.” The conditioning should help them compete against some tougher opponents on their schedule this year, like top-10 ranked Beggs and archrival Checotah. Checotah’s monstrous size up front with Eufaula’s conditioning Reynolds should make the heated rivalry, which will be a nondistrict game this year, a little more interesting. “We are going to be in great physical shape this year,” said linebacker Hunter Reynolds. “I think Eufaula will be one of the best in shape teams out there this year. If we get beat, it won’t be because we are out of shape.”
Passing targets The Ironheads’ passing game has a good chance of being a workload for oppos-
cerns for the Ironheads is their safety and corner positions, as Devon Siers and Casey Pryor’s graduation left a big hole in the defense. “You can’t really replace those two,” said Newton. “They were exceptional players. If somebody got loose, Devon would catch them. If he didn’t, Casey definitely would. We are just going to have to make some adjustments and see what will work.” The coaching staff is still waiting patiently to decide who will fill those holes. “We’ll put the best guys in those spots that can do the job,” said defensive Special photo by John Hasler coordinator Durrett Ryan Green. Eufaula’s Daxton Williams, right, is expected to be a “Without the major weapon for the Ironheads this season. pads on, you really don’t know. But when they’re on, the Ironheads after transfer- we’ll figure out who can ing defenses this season. ring from Blanchard, whom Sophomore quarterback make the plays.” he played for when the Gunner Ford (6-1, 200) Eufaula’s defensive front returns after starting the last Lions won the 3A state title lost a player as Gage in 2012. four games for Eufaula in Durrett (6-3, 225) moved to the 2013 season. Newton plans to utilize the linebacker, but they still size of Williams and White Ford will have one of the have Daxton Williams on the to mix and match with best tight ends in the state, inside. opposing cornerbacks. Daxton Williams (6-3, 248, “Gage has been improvsenior) in his library of passZach Armendariz (6-1, ing a lot this summer, he ing options this year. 190) will be one of the tarhas been working really gets that may get a lot of “Gunner has really come hard,” said Newton. “We looks this year as a returnalong this summer. He noticed how aggressive he ing starter. He’ll be joined by is, and thought he would be gained some experience sophomore starting in our a pretty good fit as a lineJesse Walker final four backer.” (5-11, 180), games last A move-in from Missouri who is conseason and is will bring a new face to the sidered a top working even defense as Hunter Reynolds newcomer harder this (5-11, 185) joins Durrett at the summer,” linebacker. Shane Moore (5Ironheads, as said Newton. 11, 200), who is the possible his growth in “Daxton has Ford Williams starting running back for size and his gained like 30 Eufaula, could see some work during pounds since action as a linebacker. Also the summer really last season, so he is going in consideration is sophoimpressed the coaching to be a bigger target.” more Carlos Arriaga (5-11, Eufaula will also feature a staff. 215). Ford is really excited depth in their receiving core “We have a bunch of about the depth he will have crazy defensive-minded kids that Ford has a lot of confiaround him when the seadence in. this year,” said Durrett. “We son starts. “Daxton is always a bail look forward to team D and “We have a lot more wide going out there and playing out guy. You can really receivers than we did last count on him, but we also tough and cracking heads. I year,” said Ford. “Since we are really stacked in our think the toughness will be are all getting a lot stronger receivers,” said Ford. “We something we bring to the have around eight guys who and faster, our depth in that table this year.” position is going to really we can trust to play the Hunter Bogle (6-3, 225) entire game. It feels good to help us out this year.” could be a possible help on have the options like that.” the line this year, as he Senior Johnny White (6-5, could play on both sides. Back-end detail 195) will be another huge — Patrick Kays, One of the bigger contarget for Ford. White joins correspondent
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 13
sequoyah indians Record in 2013: 4-6 Head coach: Shane Richardson (second year) Staff: Phil Angleri, Brandon Richardson, Brad Jones, Jeromie Hammer, Jerrod Hammer. Returning starters (5 offense, 5 defense): Zach Parish, 6-1, 165, QB, Sr.; Justin Hooper, 5-6, 160, RB, Jr.; Kyle Sanders, 5-9, 165, WR/DB, Jr.; Nolan Philpott, 61, 250, OL, Sr.; Hunter Soap, 6-0, 240, OL/DE, Jr.; Tanner Crow, 6-0, 215, LB, Sr.; Tiran Gourd, 5-9, 180, OLB, Sr.; Hunter Crow, 6-2, 205, LB, Sr. The Sequoyah Indians enter the 2014 campaign with a little more confidence having one year under their belts under the current coaching regime. In his second year as head coach after serving on staff for nine seasons, Shane Richardson says his team is practicing with more intensity. They certainly got a full off-season following restrictions on spring and Richardson summer drills by the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association. “We still feel confident that we can build off what we did last year with our athletes,” he said. “And with the coaches we have, we expect to compete for a district championship.” One change from the previous season is on defense. The Indians will be switching from a 4-4 to a 3-4. “In the past, we’ve been in a 4-4 defense,” Richardson said. “This year, we’re going to the 3-4 to try and get some more of our athletic guys on the field to give our linemen a break. That way, we’re not playing as many offensive and defensive linemen on both sides of the ball.” Sequoyah believes that it is ready to return to the postseason after a two-year absence, the first of those years taken away by sanctions. However, Richardson believes District 3A-7 will be a struggle from top to bottom. “I feel like our district is one of the toughest in 3A,” Richardson said. “You look at
Locust Grove who last year had a big-time breakout year and they’re going to be ranked very high. Claremore Sequoyah is one of the best programs in 3A and then you got us. I think we’re right there with a chance to win district. “Then there’s Inola, Keys and Jay – those teams are coming along. I feel our district is Philpott going to be a tight race.” Nolan Philpott, a 6-foot-1 inch, 250 pound senior offensive lineman, feels that the comfort level with continuity and lacking disruption will lead to success. “We know how everybody works,” Philpott said. “We should come together and hopefully, we’ll have a good year and return to the playoffs.”
Building on 2013 Sophomore tailback Justin Hooper will be playing his first season without his brother Cody alongside him. Cody graduated in May. The younger Hooper finished the season with 1,272 yards on 223 carries and Richardson believes he has a player that is ready to break out of his shell. “Justin is a naturally competitive athlete,” Richardson said. “I don’t think that he needs a lot of outside influence to get him to play or raise his level. With his brother being gone, I think, just like a lot of our young guys, he has to take on more of a
leadership role.” Richardson also feels that Hooper is in the right spot to assume the role of being a leader. “Some of our guys now in crucial positions are juniors,” Richardson said. “We don’t have a deal on our football team where you have to be a senior to be a leader. It ends up that way a Hooper lot of times, but we look for anybody to. While he enjoyed playing with his brother, he’s the kind of guy that understands that you move on – it’s his stage.” As for the soft-spoken Hooper, being a leader is best shown by example. “I just need to work hard and practice hard,” Hooper said.
Keep things going Senior quarterback Zach Parish is excited to get the 2014 season underway. Parish passed for 1,450 yards and 19 touchdowns and hopes that the underclassmen can help him improve on those numbers. “I’m up for a better year Parish than last year,” Parish said. “We know the team now. We have that experience. “The underclassmen have to show up and work hard,” Parish said. “Sometimes we really have to push them to
work hard.”
Setting goals The Indians still have the bad taste in their mouths of missing the postseason for two straight years. Kyle Sanders, a 5-9, 165 junior wide receiver, is using the absence as a motivational tool. “I look forward to going to the playoffs and winning as many games as we can,” Sanders said. Sanders “Hopefully all of them.” Sanders also feels that to achieve team goals, he must make sure he does his part. “My most important job is to work hard, show up for practice and keep up in the weight room,” Sanders said. “For the team, the most Special photo by Von Castor important thing would be winSequoyah quarterback Zach Parish threw for 1,450 ning a district championship.” –Ronn Rowland yards and 19 touchdowns in 2013.
Page 12 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
tahlequah tigers Record in 2013: 1-9 Head coach: Brad Gilbert (hird year, 2-18) Staff: Gary McClure, offensive coordinator / offensive line; Keith Wilson, Defensive coordinator / linebackers; Bart Frank, Special teams coordinator / secondary; Stank King, running backs, Quinton Tibbetts, receivers; Joe Inchiowski, outside linebackers; Greg Richmond, defensive line. Returning Gilbert starters (5 offense, 5 defense): Will Carlile, QB/QB, 6-1, 178, Sr.; Reese Davis, LB, 5-11, 182, Sr.; Bear Frank, LB, 5-10, 210 Sr.; Chase Campbell, DE, 61, 178, Sr.; Joseph Tucker, DT, 6-1, 298, Sr.; Cole Wilkie, G, 6-3, 284, Sr.; Kyle Lucas OLB/RB, 5-11, 190, Jr.; Mason McGee, C, 6-0, 254, Sr.,; Noah Hogan, T, 6-0, 271, Sr. Top newcomers: Dustin
Wiley, RB, 5-10, 171, Jr.; Chase Morris, WR, 6-1, 182, Jr.; Blake Cochran, OLB, 6-1, 189, Sr.; Tyler Winfield, DE, 5-11, 227, Sr.; Bryce Patrick, K, 5-10, 150, Jr. Inches can mean points. In the 2013 Tahlequah campaign, the Tigers lost five games by 10 points or less. Many of those games it came down to the proverbial Carlile inches — a few more inches to gain a first down and keep a drive alive or stop a game-winning drive. All of which would’ve turned another 1-9 season into a possible 6-4 record. With the lumps and losses over the last two seasons, one thing that the Tigers can bank on is that as a team, they have grown and learned that they do have what it takes to turn that notorious
corner. Returning for the Tigers are five starters on both sides of the ball, led by four seniors, linebackers in Reese Davis and Bear Frank, quarterback Will Carlile and guard Cole Wilkie, all four with an itch to put the program back on the winning track. “This has been the best offseason since I have been here,” said Gilbert. “We had nearly 100 percent participation in Davis this summer and that is a testament to the leadership.” Head coach Brad Gilbert feeds into that. “I am extremely excited about this senior group,” said the third-year coach. “We have taken another step or two this summer. Taken that extra step to change the program, to change the culture and change the expectations of the community.”
He’s willing Will Carlile, if he likes it or not, will be looked on as the leader lining up as the Tigers quarterback this season, even though he prefers his safety position. “I prefer defense more but I am ready to be the quarterback this season and lead our team,” said the 6foot-1 Carlile. Preparation is another aspect that the Tigers have with a Frank quad of seniors leading the way. One of those, is the 6-3 Wilkie, which gets high praise from teammates. “We have put in the work and paid the price the last two seasons,” said Wilkie. “I think that we are better than we have been, I think we will surprise people.”
Defense tweaked One noticeable change will be the defensive structure. The 3-4 scheme will allow the Tigers to take advantage of their talented linebacker corps. Leading that group is Davis and Frank, who have been there for the last two seasons. “Last year we were a bunch of individuals and this year we are more of a team,”
said Davis. “I think we are more prepared to win instead of the previous years we were trying to just not lose.” Not only will Davis be in his yearly linebacker spot, but will also gain more time as the Tigers’ featured back on offense. Frank will book-end the other side of the linebacker spot. “I think we have a much better attitude this season,” said Frank. “We are more prepared for it and we are Wilkie looking to make the playoffs this season.”
Looking ahead East Central sits as the first District 5A-4 game for Tahlequah and should tell the tale of the Tigers. It’s those close shaves that fuel the fire. “I think we have a great chance this season because we played with every one of these teams last season,” said Gilbert. “That fourth game is a marquee game for us.” And the Tigers insist they are prepared for the extra needed inches in the 2014 season.
Wagoner Continued from Page 11 We’re going to find ways to get AJ the ball because he can be a game breaker.”
Prep Football Preview
Checotah Continued from Page 19 Dayton Ellen, WR/CB, 5-10, 170, Sr.; Conner Gaithor, WR/S, 6-3, 175, Sr.; Cameron LaPdach, OT, 6-8, 270, Sr.
Tried and untested Defensively, Lee and Rodriguez, who were the top two tacklers last year, anchor a solid linebacking corp while Freeth will be back in the secondary. Holes to fill for the Bulldogs will be up front where Wagoner will need help in Stepp the offensive and defensive lines and three spots in the secondary. Condict feels that help arrives for the Bulldogs in the form of a talented sophomore class. “We’ve got a young group that was unbeaten (24-0) through middle school. It’s a great group of kids and we’re excited to have them here for the next three years,” said Condict.
Lead dancer?
As one of the few senior Bulldogs this year, Rodriguez knows he has to be one of the team leaders. “I’ve been hitting the Eric Shannon, correspondent˚ weights hard and helping out the younger guys because I know some of them will be out there with us on Friday nights this season,” said Rodriguez. ”I think KJ (Lee) and I lead by showing heart. We may not be the biggest or fastest guys you’ll see, but I think we play the hardest.” With back-to-back losses in the 4A semifinals the past two years, Woodson, another of those senior leaders, knows it will be the little things that count in order for the Bulldogs to be able to get to the title game. “We’ve got to eliminate the minor mistakes. We’ve got the talent to go all the way, we just have to execute every play,” said the senior quarterback, who also happens to be a trained river dancer. “Yeah,” Woodson laughs.”But that really does help me with my footwork.” —Nick Hampton, correspondent
That close. A fumble inside the 5yard line kept Checotah from advancing to the quarterfinals of the Class 3A playoffs in coach Chad Hendricks’ first season at the helm. Seven starters on offense and six on defense return with their focus on Hendricks going further than the 10-2 mark carried them. “Being in the playoffs two years in a row (Checotah lost to Hilldale two years ago in the first round) fuels us. We were within 30 seconds of the third round last year, then everything went bad. It fuels our motivation to get it done this year,” said senior Cody Cox.
QB dilemma Jack Christian has seemed to emerge from a battle that started with three candidates this summer to be the team’s quarterback. He was one of the major mound weapons that got Checotah to the state baseball tournament last spring. If he throws passes like he did strikes, things should click. “We looked back at the Muskogee team camp and evaluating everything, felt like if we had to Christian go today it would be Jack,” said Checotah head coach Chad Hendricks. “Nakota (Warrior) is our backup. But they’re still in competition and as I’ve told them, although I don’t think sometimes kids see it like we do, the competition has made them both better.” Andrew Sands was also in that mix, but that’s changed with running back DeShay Bear, who became a productive back in his
Muskogee Phoenix only year at Checotah, moving back to Minnesota this month. Sands, at 6foot, 250 pounds, will be a running back. Being capable of the quarterback job, look for Sands to be Cox utilized in pass sitiuations. “DeShay moving sort of forced our hand there,” Hendricks said. “Keaton Donathan and DeShay were going to split time anyway. But we were counting on Keaton in a Donathan big role on defense so to go there and carry 35 times a game on offense, that’s tough.” But look for Donathan and perhaps Randy Wood to get a good share of handoffs.
Those are plusses If execution is at least decent in the skill posiitons, Checotah’s offense should be successful thanks to big guys up front in Cody Gilroy, Ronnie Clayton and Camaron Lapach. Gilroy is 6-foot-5, 285 pounds, Clayton 6-5, 305 and Lapach 6-8, 270, the foundation of a line that should offer plenty of Pulse holes to run as well as pass protection. At linebacker, Donathan and Hunter Collins totaled over 120 tackles each last year. “There’s a little rivalry there. Between them when one gets a tackle, the other gets mad but it’s spirited competition to do what’s necessary to win,” said Hendricks. Up front we’ve got three guys who started at least a game for us (Dominik Pulse, Sands,Cody Casey) . We’ve got speed and size and I’m very excited about where we are defensively. Main thing is we need some of these younger guys to step up and give us some depth and helpe us make a deep run.” — Mike Kays
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 21
haskell haymakers Record in 2013: 5-6 Head coach: Greg Wilson (4th season, 14-18) Staff: Kyel Ward, Mike Jones, Travis Hollis, Joe Brown, Rob Taylor. Returning starters: (8 on offense, 8 on defense) Brett Taber, OL / DL, 6-5, 270, Sr.; Josh Schooley, OL/LB, 6-0, 230, Sr.; Brody Enkey, QB/DB, 6-1, 160, Sr.; Chris Wright, WR/DB, 6-0, 160, Sr.; Dillon Dobbins, WR/DB, 6-0, 165, Sr.; Evan Lang, RB/LB, 6-0, 170, Jr.; Ty Garoutte, OL, 5-10. 175. Sr, Kanyon Kelley, FB/DE, 6-0, 260, Jr. Top newcomers: Tony Brown, RB/LB, 5-8, 180, Sr.; Austin Johnhnas, FB/LB, 5-10, 170,; T.J. Berry, QB/DB, 5-10, 170, Jr. Reloading should be the predominant thought at Haskell in 2014. Even though the Haymakers graduated a very leadership driven and experienced class last season, the weapon of choice this season is athleticism. “We are very excited about this group this season because of Wilson the athleticism that we have,” said Haskell coach Greg Wilson. Wilson has led his team to the playoffs the last two seasons, posting a 5-6 record and a second straight first-round elimination by Class 2A semifinalist Vian in 2013. Despite the graduation hits, just getting back to the postseason is not what
this year’s teams has in their sights. “Making the playoffs are OK, but we want more and we expect this group to get to that next point in the season,” Wilson said.
Size a plus It’s not just athleticism that fuels those hopes. He’s also got some size up front in 6foot-5, 270-pound Brett Taber and 60, 230 Josh Schooley. Both are offensive linemen. Taber is up front on defense and Schooley plays lineTaber backer. “I think with everyone leading by example we will step up and have a good season,” said Schooley. “We’ve been working hard in the offseason and putting our time in, I think we will be ready to go farther.” “I feel we have great leadership on the team this year,” said Taber. “We still have some work to Enkey do, but we continue to get better every day, every practice.” Standing tall behind his offensive line will be returning starter, senior quarterback Brody Enkey who led Haskell to the playoffs in 2013. “I feel very confident in the offensive line and they should be better than last
season,” said Enkey.
On the fly Enkey will look to a pair of returning widereceivers as his go to guys in seniors Chris Wright and Dillon Dobbins Dobbins. “We do feel that we have big shoes to fill but I feel confident that we can excel,” said Dobbins. Added Wright: “We’ve been Brown together since we were freshmen and we’ll just have to teach the younger players by the way we practice.”
A newcomer to the Haymakers, senior Tony Brown will fill the running back role this season.
Proving grounds Spiro (Sept. 19) is a game that should tell the Haymakers where they will stand on the season, and Wilson and company are ready to see where this year’s team stands. “We have a great group Wright of kids, they work hard and are doing a good job on building on the program,” said Wilson. “We want to see where we stand against teams like Vian, Spiro, Adair. We want more and want to get better.” —Eric Shannon, correspondent
Page 22 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
Seasoned Vian has special motivation for opener By Mike Kays Phoenix Sports Editor
R
ylee Simon has heard the critics who say Vian’s postseason run isn’t sustained because the regular season schedule lacks toughness. “Whatever,” he says to it. “You can’t get much tougher than the defending state champion.” Ah yes, Davis. The Wolves guard the door that the Wolverines have been unable to unlock in two straight Class 2A semifinals. Davis won at Midwest City two seasons ago 22-0, then took a 56-39 decision last year at McAlester. This year, they’ll meet as part of the first Kickoff Classic to be held in Choctaw on Saturday. The critics can’t say that anymore. Really, though, it’s not like Vian hasn’t won tough games. A team that lost heavily to graduation a year ago scored a district championship win against Hartshorne, which was also a 2A semifinalist. The Wolverines have knocked off perennial power Hennessey in back-toback quarterfinals. So yeah, whatever. Simon and crew have beaten all comers, except for the team belonging to Jody Weber, whose brother Matt was a roommate of Vian coach Brandon Tyler while the two attended Northeastern State. With a wishbone offense, Weber runs one of the most archaic and seldom seen schemes — which makes it one of the most difficult to prepare for. The two coaches put the plan together
Phoenix file photo
Vian’s Rylee Simon, left, and Eric Casey will get another shot at attacking the Davis defense in a special neutral-site season opener at Choctaw.
last fall, before the season-ending loss. And the Wolverines went right to work on it, trying to find a way to solve a wishbone “We’ve been watching film since the season ended,” said senior A.J. Rodriguez.
“It started the day after we lost. In summer workouts, we’ve talked it over, talked with our defensive coordinator (Lance Winans) to find a way to stop it.” That’s motivation, and well it should be.
Davis scored on all seven of its first-half possessions and had 335 yards, 293 on the ground and 234 of those in the first quarter alone. “When a team scores 49 points in the first half, it’s unacceptable for us as a defense. I was embarrassed. I don’t want that to happen again.” The two teams enter the season ranked 1-2 in several preseason guides. Davis lost 11 starters, six on offense, while Vian returns 10 offensive and nine defensive starters. “Jody and I have talked a lot about it and you’ve got to keep this in perspective,” Tyler said. “They’re young and trying to fill some spots. We’re a little more experienced. This is week 1. We both want to play in week 15. What you do in week 1 isn’t a make-or-break. It’s a momentum boost for whoever wins, and it’s something the fans can enjoy. But week 15, that’s the important one.” Or, perhaps week 14 since that’s where the teams have met. Between those weeks, Vian looks to be the head of the District 2A-6 class with both Simon, the Phoenix’s Small School Defensive Player of the Year, and Eric Casey, the Small School Offensive Player of the Year, heading up a group of seasoned veterans, with the district coming down to the Wolverines and Hartshorne. But first things first. “The Davis game will show us where we are, and it’s a game we’ve looked forward to since we lost to them last year,” Simon said. “But one game’s not going to win you anything.”
vian wolverines Record last year: 13-1, Class 3A semifinalist Coach: Brandon Tyler (11th season, 110-18) Staff: Lance Winans, defensive coordinator/linebackers; Beau Burlison, offensive line/defensive line/special teams coordinator; Jeremy Gragg, offenTyler sive line/safeties; Ryan Tyler, wide receivers/defensive backs; Wilson Willhite, kickers/defensive backs; Johnny Teehee running backs/defensive backs.
Returning starters (10 offense, 9 defense): Rylee Simon, QB/LB, 6-1, 220, Sr.; Eric Casey, RB/DB/KR, 5-9, 165, Sr.; Denver Coffee, WR/DB. 6-1, 175, Sr.; Dakota Brown, TE/DE, 6-4, 210, Jr.; A.J. Rodriguez, OL/LB, 6-0, 225, Sr.; Ty Andrews, OL/DL, 6-2, 270, Jr.; Cowart Jakeb Curry, OL/DL, 5-10, 210, Jr.; Shelton Skaggs, OL/DE, 511, 215, So.; Ashton Vickers, OL/DL, 6-4, 250, Sr.; Josh Cowart, WR/DB, 61, 170, Sr.; Daylon McWaters, LB, 5-11, 190,
Jr.; Kevin Chew, DE, 6-0, 180, Sr.; J.T. Frazier, DB, 61, 175, So.; Rayne Cloud, DB, 6-1, 175, So. Top newcomers: Garrett Willis, WR/LB/DB, 5-9, 175, Jr.; Cliston Brown, TE/DE, 6-2, 230, Sr.; Terron Moses, RB/WR/DB, 5-10, 160, So.; Kyle England, Simon WR/DB, 5-10, 160, Jr.; Zak Griffin, DL, 511, 250, So.; Trinidy Teehee, WR/DB, 5-11, 155, Jr. Rylee Simon had meniscus surgery this summer
and a fractured ankle and has taken it slow most of the summer. But he’s back, ready to make a run at a state title as a primary piece on both sides of the ball. Simon succeeded his brother Rowdy as the Phoenix’s Small School Defensive Player of the Year in 2013. Rowdy won it in successive seasons, but his younger brother bested him in tackles two seasons ago and then led the team again in that category last year. He also took over at quarterback and had a combined 2,456 yards, 1,166 passing. “I didn’t have as high a pas-completion percentage (See VIAN, 23)
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 11
Linebacker duo a power core and provider of leadership By Ronn Rowland Phoenix Sports Writer
I
f Wagoner coach Dale Condict’s smile gets bigger when talking about two of his linebackers, there’s a good reason for it. Roman Rodriguez, a 5-foot, 11-inch, 195pound senior, and KJ Lee, a 5-11, 205 sophomore, give the Bulldogs a formidable force up the middle to force offense to the outside of the Lee line of scrimmage. “These are our two leading tacklers coming back,” Condict said. ‘What I like about both of them is they’re not extremely boisterous. When they do talk, people respond to them. ‘They’re humble people and
also very tough. They’re enjoyable to coach.” Lee led the Bulldogs as a freshman with 147 tackles, 19 for a loss, forced four fumbles and had five sacks, and for his efforts was named the 2013 AllPhoenix Newcomer of the Year. Rodriguez finished the season with 126 tackles, 13 for a loss, and three sacks in 2013. “It should be a fun year,” Condict said. ‘Those two are the kind of leaders I want to Rodriguez be around and have on my team. They’re both kind of throwback guys.” Rodriguez is looking forward to playing his final season with Lee next to him. He feels Lee can build on his Newcomer of the Year honor. “I think it’s meant he’s going
to have a good future,” Rodriguez said. “He encouraged me to be better. ... We both coached each other to get better.” Lee, on the other hand, is glad to have a senior like Rodriguez to go to with questions. “I have someone supporting me every down,” Lee said. ‘He’s backing me up and giving me his advice on what I should do. He’s a good team leader.” And it’s the leadership skills of Rodriguez that Lee has noticed and incorporated into his own football philosophy. “I learned you’ve got to be a good team leader,” Lee said. “On every down you play, play hard. You need to support everyone on the field and not leave any one out.” And Condict is happy to have the duo to call on at any time during a game. ‘I’m excited about the possi-
AP
KJ Lee wraps up the Anadarko quarterback last year.
bilities on the defensive side,” Condict said. “I’ll put them up against any linebackers.” And, he said, it’s not going to be too bad handing them both the ball on the offensive side. The Wagoner offense will be minus the explosive Lawrence
Evitt, who over the last two seasons rushed for over 5,500 yards and was last year’s Phoenix Most Valuable Player. Yet it will take those two and a committee to replace Evitt, (See LINEBACKERS, 15)
wagoner bulldogs Record in 2013: 12-1, Class 4A semifinalist Head coach: Dale Condict, 10th season (149-20) Staff: Nick Humphries, offensive coordinator; Travis Bryant, defensive coordinator; Leland Alexander, receivers/special teams; James Henson, linebackers; Ray Bell, defensive ends; Micco Charboneau, defensive line; Scott Patton, running backs; Chad Soma, Condict offensive line; Allen Sevier, defensive backs; Kenneth Lee, strength/conditioning. Returning starters (5 on offense, 4 defense): Roman Rodriguez, 5-11, 195, LB/RB, Sr.; KJ Lee, 6-1, 215, LB/RB, So.; Brennan Goodfellow, 6-2, 235, TE/LB, Sr.; Eric Stepp, 511, 235, C, Jr.; AJ Freeth,, 6-2, 175, WR/DB, Jr.; Jake Woodson, 6-1, 190, QB, Sr. Top newcomers: PJ Hubbard, OL/NG, 6-0, 255, Jr.; Scottie Patton, RB/LB, 6-0, 185, So.; Austin Points, TE/DE, 63, 225, Sr.; Chris Murray, WR/DB, 5-9, 155, So; Cameron Dumond, WR/DB, 5-9, 155, So.; Dakota Lenard, OL, 6-1, 293, Jr.; Jacob King, OL/LB, 6-0, 190, Jr.; Luke Falwell, OL, 5-11, 235, Jr.; Orlandis Roberson, TE/DE, 6-2, 225, So. Kevin Peterson. Lawrence Evitt. Names that have been synonymous with the success of Wagoner football during the Dale Condict era. So what happens when you start the season without that ”name” player on the field? No big deal, says the Wagoner boss. “With guys like Peterson and Evitt, the play calls and ball distribution were geared more to them. But this year it will be different. They’ll be a more even distribution of the ball throughout the offense,” said Condict, now starting his 10th
season as the head coach.
No one-trick pony Even though the household names might not be there right now, that’s not to say that Wagoner won’t be a team to be reckoned with in Class 4A again this year. Leading the way will be returning quarterback Jake Woodson, who passed for over 700 yards last season. Joining him in the backfield will be the one-two punch of Roman Rodriguez (470 yards rushing) and KJ Lee (400 yards rushing), the latter named the AllPhoenix Newcomer of the Year in 2013. “Roman and KJ have both worked hard during the offsea-
son. They’re the kind of guys I really enjoy coaching,” said Condict.”Offensively, KJ is a little bigger and faster, while Roman does a better job of catching the ball out of the backfield.” Another name to watch for offensively, according to Condict, is wide receiver AJ Freeth. “He’s as talented as any guy around. He’s tall and rangy (6-2,175) with great speed,” said Condict. “I really think he’ll be someone everyone will hear about by the end of the year. (See WAGONER, 12)
Woodson
Page 10 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
Hilldale Continued from Page 9 So.; Tanner Thomson, NG, 5-9, 210, So.; William Dominguez, DE, Hunter Reheard, DE, Fr.; Kobe Kuykendall, 5-7, 170, So.; Cole Kiser, CB, 5-11, 145, Jr.; Trae Davidson, S, 6-1, 170, So.; Levi East, G, 5-10, 245, So.; Jaron Nail, 6-1, 160, Fr.
As young as Hilldale is, it couldn’t get any younger than behind center. But 6-foot-1 freshman Jaron Nail has the height as well as some poise. His first time out he helped generate 51 points against Wilburton in a 7-on-7 tournament on a day he also led his team to a win over Wagoner. Still, 7-on-7 isn’t 11-on-11 and the lights of Friday night. At least Nail, whose brother Dakota was an offensive tackle last year, got to see the last two years up close as a ball boy while working earlier in the week as a middle school quarterback. “I usually adapt fast to things,” Nail said. “I just got to earn that trust. “I started off the summer Special photo by Von Castor carrying a notebook with the plays in it. I’m picking them Hilldale’s Hunter Woods runs for a touchdown in one of his 100-plus yard rushing games in 2013. up every practice, new plays every day and I’ll go through them all day long. I like going this route better than playing pared to handle my job and going to be the key for us “I’ll be the guy who JV. It’s better experience.”
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every week we step out there because — and it doesn’t matter to us — but nobody out there thinks wer’e going to be very good.” But pressure? No. “Last year, in the spot I was in, I felt immense pressure,” said offensive lineman Wyatt Gassaway. “I mean coming off the best season in school history and having all those guys back, and being one of the guys who was replacing a guy who graduated, I felt that pressure. This year, I know my job because I’ve had a year of doing it at this level. I’m better pre-
help lead this team.” Gassaway and Bailey Puckett both filled holes on an offensive front that helped win 10 games, averaging 41.6 points per game. Bargsten was a second or third option at receiver behind 1,000-yard pass catcher Bradley Campbell — who walked on at Northeastern State — but led the secondary in tackles and interceptions. Hunter Woods at running back is the impact player returning on offense. He had 865 yards in 2013, including four straight 100-plus yard games that began in week 3 as a reserve then continued as a starter due to injury. “The running game is
and I think our best strength,” said Kirkhart. The big question is at quarterback and the shoes left empty by Chandler Puckett, last year’s Phoenix Large School Offensive Player of the Year. For now, freshman Jaron Nail, whose brother Dakota was a graduated member of the 2013 offensive front, looks to be the guy. Kirkhart hasn’t specified publicly the reason but Mitchell Croftcheck, Puckett’s backup who saw some action a year ago, won’t start the season and may not be back. With the bulk of the load on his shoulders, Woods knows who the voice in the huddle needs to be.
makes sure everyone stays together,” Woods said. “We have to make sure he has his head on straight. We have to build him up, make sure he’s doing what he needs to do and that way he doesn’t beat himself up when things get down. “He’s strong-headed enough, he’s shown he knows what to do at times and that’s what we need to help him build on. His line has experience, we know we can run the football, so he’s got plenty of support.” Two years may not make an elite tradition, but it’s a start. And it’s a direction the Hornets don’t want to reverse. “I think we can feed off that and build on it,” said Puckett.
Experience and size On a squad hit hard by graduation from a group that strung backto-back quarterfinal appearances, the offensive line has the most seasoning of any unit on either side of the ball. Puckett Bailey Puckett is moving from right guard to right tackle, and Wyatt Gassaway moves from right tackle to left tackle. Both will be joined by Gunner Drake, a 275pound senior, takes over at left guard and Xavier Milton, a 255-pound sophomore, got significant reps at right guard but by the start of preseason practice was moved to center. Isaac McWilliams is the
Prep Football Preview
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Area team schedules
tight end. Levi East was then shifted to his guard spot.
On defense Matt Bargsten had six interceptions, a team-high, and was among the team’s leaders in tacklers. Hunter Woods will play a new spot, having worked at linebacker a year ago. “Matt is the only returning guy we have who is absolutely familiar with his role. In fact, he was our leader in the secondary last year as far as knowing what everyone is supposed to do,” Kirkhart Woods said. The projected front line is a case in point from one end to the other. Tanner Thomson (5-9, 210) at nose and William Dominguez (6-1, 165) are sophomores — and the elder statesmen. Hunter Reheard is a freshman at the other end spot. The two inside linebackers are juniors, Kobe Kuykendall and Devin Cochran. Cochran will see some action at running back behind Woods. The outside backers are sophomores Wyatt Wolfe and Isaac McWilliams. Joining Woods at corner is Cole Kiser, a junior. With Bargsten at the opposite safety is Trae Davison, a sophomore. Jay Newman is also battling at corner and Michael Hornback is battling at safety.
Leadership a key With the loss of 18 seniors who were nearly all in key spots, leadership will start with two seniors, Woods and Bargsten, as well as the other two returning starters in Gassaway and Puckett. But Kirkhart isn’t going to hold the others back if someone else arises. “You don’t have a senior to be a leader,” Kirkhart said. “If you’re the guy that busting his butt doing things right, then you can be that guy who can be a little vocal, that can say something and the other guy looks at and says to himself, he may make mistakes but he’s doing everything to lead this team in the right direction. That’s where the ultimate leaders will come from.” — Mike Kays
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 23
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6AII-1 MUSKOGEE at McAlester Owasso Fayetteville, Ark. **Sapulpa at Ponca City **Bartlesville (HC) at Claremore Sand Springs at Bixby at T. Washington *Hall of Fame night **Homecoming (HC)
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5A-4 TAHLEQUAH at Fort Gibson Stilwell Sallisaw East Central at Collinsville Pryor (HC) at Enid Tulsa Edison at Grove Coweta
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4A-3 WAGONER Coweta Pryor at Fort Gibson at Oologah at Cascia Hall Miami (HC) at Tulsa McClain Vinita at Cleveland Catoosa
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4A-4 FORT GIBSON Tahlequah at Hilldale Wagoner (HOF) at Sallisaw at Broken Bow Central (HC)
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Metro Christian at Muldrow Poteau at Stillwell
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3A-6 HILLDALE at Stigler Fort Gibson Tulsa McClain at Beggs Morris (HC) at Okmulgee Victory Christian at Eufaula Checotah at Tulsa Rogers
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CHECOTAH Keys at Henryetta Eufaula at Idabel Victory Christian at T. Rogers Morris Okmulgee (HC) at Hilldale at Beggs
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3A-7 KEYS at Checotah 7:30 p.m. Lincoln, Ark. 7 p.m. at Vian 7 p.m. at Jay 7 p.m. Westville (HC) 7 p.m. at Locust Grove 7 p.m. Kellyville 7 p.m. at Sequoyah 7 p.m. Cl. Sequoyah 7 p.m. Inola 7 p.m.
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Vian Continued from Page 22 as I should,” Simon said of his 68-of-127 numbers. “But I’ve got a year under my belt so we’ll see how it goes.” Vian coach Brandon Tyler thinks those numbers will rise. “He’s developed as a passer,” Tyler said. “The guys around him have developed too, guys like Josh Cowart, Denver Coffee, Dakota Brown at tight end, and then a newcomer in Garrett Willis who played at Keys last year.” Add to that the return of the Phoenix Small School Offensive Player of the Year, Eric Casey, and it’s an offense that could show some bursts to rival that of the 2012 team that was on a pace to set a national scoring record for points in a season before being shut out by Davis. In that game, Simon had to enter the game behind center when then-starter Landon Decker went
SEQUOYAH at Okemah Roland Broken Bow Inola
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Jay at Westville at Locust Grove Keys at Lincoln Christian at Cl. Sequoyah
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3A-8 EUFAULA Beggs 7 p.m. at Hartshorne 7 p.m. at Checotah 7:30 p.m. at Heavener 7 p.m. Spiro (HC) 7 p.m. at Valliant 7 p.m. Stigler 7 p.m. Hilldale 7 p.m. Idabel 7 p.m. at Roland 7 p.m.
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STIGLER Hilldale 7:30 p.m. at Sallisaw 7:30 p.m. Henryetta 7:30 p.m. Valliant 7 p.m. at Idabel 7 p.m. Heavener(HC) 7 p.m. at Eufaula 7 p.m. at Roland 7 p.m. Spiro 7 p.m. at Victory Christian 7 p.m.
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2A-6 VIAN Davis@ 3 at Heavener 7 Keys 7 Wilburton (HC) 7 at Liberty 7 at Hartshorne 7 Nowata 7:30 at Pocola 7 Antlers 7 Panama 7 Kickoff ClassicChoctaw
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2A-7 HASKELL Ketchum 7:30 p.m.
down with a concussion. “My goal is 2,000 yards (rushing) and 40 touchdowns, but I’ll take anything if we can get the gold ball,” Casey said. As for Simon, he’s not all that wrapped up in keeping the family tradition going with the defensive award streak. “I’m just going to go play the best I can at both positions and whatever happens, happens. The main goal has- Rodriguez n’t got anything to do with either of those anyway.” Tyler likes his options on offense. “We’ll take what the defense gives us. If it’s 5 to 10 yards throwing the ball, we’ll take it. So they can pick their poison. Run or pass, I think we’ll be pretty good at both,” he said.
Good genes Ty Andrews is drawing some lofty com-
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at Morris Spiro at Chouteau at Chelsea Hulbert Adair at Salina Kansas at Colcord
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HULBERT Porter Warner at Mounds Kansas at Salina at Haskell Colcord at Adair at Caney Valley Chouteau
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A-8 GORE at Panama Mounds Ketchum (HC) at Quinton Talihina at Central Porter at Choteau Warner at Savanna
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PORTER at Hulbert 7 p.m. Drumright (HC) 7 p.m. at Chouteau 7:30 p.m. at Sallisaw Central 7 p.m. at Warner 7 p.m. Quinton 7 p.m. at Gore 7 p.m. at Savanna 7 p.m. Talihina 7 p.m. Mounds 7 p.m. WARNER Summit Christian
parisons to a former Wolverine. The cousin of Tulsa signee Rob Boyd, Andrews stepped in for his relative last season and started all 13 games. He graded out at 90 percent. “He’s got the chance to be just as good,” Vian coach Brandon Tyler said. “The difference with him is that he plays with an attitude, a mean streak. Rob Andrews was good but more laidback.”
Commitment and tradition Nearly 50 kids are on the Vian varsity roster in a school of 259 enrollment. Include non-varsity and it’s about half the male student enrollment. It’s a byproduct of a tradition. “It’s tremendous leadership that holds everyone accountable,” Tyler said. “Football’s not for everyone and some who
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at Hulbert 7:30 p.m. Panama 7 p.m. at Pocola 7 p.m. Porter 7 p.m. at Savanna 7 p.m. Talihina 7 p.m. Central Sallisaw 7 p.m. at Gore 7 p.m. at Quinton 7 p.m.
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B-4 PORUM at Webbers Falls at Dewar Weleetka at Keota Haileyville Arkoma (HC) at Wetumka Canadian at Caddo Gans
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C-4 MIDWAY Wright Christian Sasakwa Cave Springs at Paoli at Thackerville Bokoshe (HC) at Webbers Falls Fox at Bowlegs Prue
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WEBBERS FALLS Porum 7:30 Fox 7:30 at Bowlegs 7:30 Destiny Christian 7:30 Sasakwa 7:30 at Cave Springs 7:30 Midway (HC) 7:30 Thackerville 7:30 at Bokoshe 7:30 at Paoli 7:30
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try don’t stay with it. But those that do buy into the expectation. Any day of the week in the summer you’ll see most of these guys at Rylee’s house where they’ve got their own weight room. They’re all selfmotivated kids. A lot of them are successful not only here but in baseball and in both sports, they know what’s expected. When kids get to high school, they know it’s time to turn on that tradition.” It’s also a tradition grounded in unselfishness. A.J. Rodriguez was asked to move from defensive end to linebacker in week 11. He will play there this spring after what Tyler called a “tremendous spring.” “I go at it from the standpoint that there’s nothing I can’t do for this team,” Rodriguez said. “Whatever my coaches want me to do they’ll tell me and in my thinking, they feel like that’s what’s going to be best for the team and for me. I know they have my best interest at heart, so whatever they tell me to do, I’m going to do.” —Mike Kays
Page 24 —Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
hulbert riders Record in 2013: 1-9 Head coach: Rusty Harris (first year) Staff: Curtis Waltman, offensive coordinator; Mickey McGowan, line; Aaron Fowler, secondary/receivers. Returning starters (8 offense, 10 defense): Trey Feed, OL/CL, 5-7, 240, Sr.; Greg Landaverde, Harris OL/DL, 5-10, 220, Jr.; Bryson McGowan, OL/DL, 6-2, 240, Sr.; Michael Scott, WR/DB, 5-8, 145, Sr.; Levi Carson, WR/DB, 5-8, 160, Sr.; Justin Owens, QB, 5-8, 165, Sr.; Anthony Howard, RB, 5-8, 180, Jr.; Dylan Ellis, QB/TE/LB, 5-10, 230, Jr; Ethan Autry, LB/WR, 6-0, 175, Jr; Dakota Hooks, OL/DL, 6-0, 240, Sr.; Johnathan Hamby, DB/WR, 6-0, 170, Sr.; Gabe Medlin,
OL/DL, 6-0, 235, Sr. It’s been a busy summer for Rusty Harris. The former Muskogee High assistant coach took the principal’s position at Hulbert in early June and two weeks later became the third head football coach in the past three years for the Riders. “I didn’t go over there to be the footHooks ball coach. I went over there to be the principal, but because of some other issues, it just appeared,” said Harris, who got out of coaching the last three years to watch his son, Kyler, play at Northeastern State (Kyler, however, moved to Southern Virginia for his senior season to pursue football and ministry studies). “I kind of prayed things through and I felt like it was
what I was supposed to do. It’s fun to be back in coaching again with a different kind of classroom setting.” No intros necessary With eight returning starters on offense and 10 on defense, Harris hopes he can restore life to a program that has struggled in recent years. On offense, he wants to run at a faster pace McGowan which is just fine with returning quarterback Justin Owens. “We ran the power-I last year and we’re going to run more of a spread offense this year so it’s going to be a lot different. But I think it’s going to be easy to catch on to,” said Owens. Harris favors the spread offense because of the versatility it can offer. “We want to run the ball first,” said the new head coach. “If we can do that
well and with the improvements we should have in our line play, I think the spread opens up more options for us on offense.”
Here’s the beef Perhaps the strength of the offense for the Riders will be in the line where they return most of their starters including seniors Owen Bryson McGowan (62, 240), Dakota Hooks (6-0, 260), and Trey Feed (5-7, 240). The added year of experience and growth is a big plus for Hulbert, said McGowan. “The offensive line is a lot better than it was last year, I can already tell you that,” he said. “We’ve been in the weight room all summer after we fell off a little last year.” “We’ve all gotten a lot
stronger and faster,” added Hooks. “As long as we keep pushing and we do it right and we have mental toughness, we’re going to be really good.”
D his way The Riders will move to a 3-4 look on defense and strive to be much more aggressive in hopes of reducing the Scott 36-plus points given up per game last year. “Defen-sively, I am a huge 3-4 guy and the way we run the 3-4 is significantly different than most people, so that will take some adjusting for the guys,” said Harris. “I’m very encouraged with what I’ve seen so far on defense and I think we can be really, really good.”
More if needed The Riders have another
plus not often seen in the smaller schools in that they have some depth in the line that should help according to Harris. “We have some depth up front and, with the pace we want to play at on both sides of the ball, it will be nice to be able to roll as many as 10 guys in and out of the offensive and defensive lines,” he said. Also new for Hulbert this season will be a new district as they move from 2A-8 to 2A-7 where they will welcome Adair, Haskell and Chouteau to be joined by holder-overs Salina, Colcord and Kansas. So there’s an increased sense of optimism in Hulbert this year as best expressed by McGowan. “I think we can win the district,” he said. “We’re not expecting to lose and really expecting to win every time out.” — Nick Hampton, correspondent
gore pirates Record in 2013: 2-8 Head coach: Jimmy Whitlock (first year) Staff: Martin Lincoln, defensive coordinator; Chauncey Dana, line; Travis Cockerll, receivers/secondary. Returning starters: (9 on offense, 9 on defense): Wade Shanks, QB/DB, 5-11, 150, Sr.; CJ Lehnick, RB/DB, 6-0, 160, Sr.; Tanner Clay, RB/LB, 5-10, 170, Sr.; Noah Batesole, OL/DL, 511, 200, Sr.; BJ Knowlton,
OL/DL, 6-1, 250, Sr.; Zach Williams, OL/DL, 6-2, 300, Sr.; Blade Ferguson, OL/DL, 5-10, 225, So.; Owen James, OL/DL, 5-10, 230, So.; Colt Vogele, WR/DB, 5-9, 140, So Top newcomers: Trey Mattox, WR/DB, 6-0, 140, Fr.; Dakota Whitlock Hopkins,
OL/DL, 5-9, 170, Fr.; Lane Mc Daniels, OL/DL, 5-9, 170, Fr. After making the Class A playoffs for seven straight years, the Gore Pirates hit a bump in the road in 2013 as they fell to 2-8. Batesole Long-time Seminole assistant coach Jimmy Whitlock comes aboard as the new Pirate mentor this season with a ton of experienced players hoping to get things back on the playoff track. “We’ve got a senior-led team with nine starters back on both sides of the ball,’ said Whitlock. “We’ve got a quarterback (Wade Shanks) returning who’s a four-year starter, a running back in CJ Lehnick who’s a three-year starter, and Noah Batesole, BJ Knowlton, and Zach Williams, all seniors, anchoring the offensive line.” Coming from a high school that routinely had
over 100 kids turn out for football, Whitlock knows he’ll have to make some adjustments. “I know we won’t have the numbers I’m accustomed to, but I’ll be fine with the kids I know are coming out for football,” said Whitlock. “Our big concern will be Lehnick keeping everyone healthy, especially our skill people.”
Spreading it out With a new coach comes new strategies for offense and defense. The offense will switch to a multiple-set, spread attack emphasizing the run first and ball control. For Shanks and Lehnick, the offensive change is promising. “I think the new offense will be good because the speed we have will spread the defense and give us more options,” said Shanks.
“We ran some spread offense when I was a freshman and I like it a lot,” said Lehnick, who rushed for over 1,000 yards last season. “It spreads people out and opens more playaction passes and screens, and that will also help the running game.”
In-yourface D
Shanks
On defense, the Pirates will utilize the 3-4 with an emphasis on aggressiveness. “We’re going to have to get aggressive on the defensive side of the football,” said Whitlock. “We’d rather get beat with a big play than by somebody just driving it down our throats six yards a pop all the way down the field.” For the line, Batesole doesn’t see a big problem adjusting to the new plans for the guys in the trenches. “I don’t think the changes
will impact defense much. We’ve gotten used to it and I think we’ll do all right,” said Batesole.
Ship captains With experience comes the responsibility of leadership for this senior-laden team, and Lehnick knows what has to be done. “I think we’ll have to push the underclassmen harder than we were pushed when we were young,” said the Pirate running back. “We had the talent to go far in the past, but I don’t think we had the pressure to perform on us like we should have.”
Up first Gore opens the season on Thursday night at Panama. After two years off their schedules due to being in different districts, the Pirates will again lock horns with neighboring Warner as a District A-8 opponent in 2014. — Nick Hampton, correspondent
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 9
Reloading for another run?
hilldale hornets
Hilldale has been down this road before By Mike Kays Phoenix Sports Editor
I
t’s a road Hilldale head coach Chad Kirkhart and company has been down before. Two seasons ago, a group of underclassmen took over the reins from 18 seniors and faced critics, both on paper and near school lockers, that hard times were ahead. What happened? Two straight Class 3A quarterfinal runs. Four starters, two going both ways, are all that’s left from that squad to see if there’s a way to an encore. And just like the group before them, they too have heard the critics. Matt Bargsten, one of the two two-way starters back at receiver and defensive back, said he’s heard people peg this team with anywhere from a 5-5 to a 3-7 season. He bristles at that thought of that happening. “I think we can shock some people,” Bargsten said. “We’ve been taught to
take football one game at a time and it’s worked out for us pretty good in the past. But as far as a new tradition, I don’t think we’ve established that in two years. It’s more like 10 years and we’re working toward that. We just expect to win. How many, we’ll address one game at a time.” Still, Kirkhart knows the challenge of matching the success of a similarly young team two seasons ago will be tough, just as it was to an extent then. One week into preseason practice, he gathered his team to talk about that. “I told them I don’t want them to look in the past, but I do want them to understand where we’ve been,” he said. “Two years ago we were in the same boat. Those guys played with a chip on their shoulder all year long. “And if that motivates us, let’s take that approach and have that mindset. We’ve got something to prove (See RELOAD, 10)
Special photo by John Hasler
Hilldale coach Chad Kirkhart with from left, Hunter Woods, Jaron Nail, Hunter Reheard and Matt Bargsten.
Record in 2013: 11-2, Class 3A quarterfinals. Head coach: Chad Kirkhart (fourth year, 37-12) Staff: Ryan Kirkhart Keenom, offensive coordinator, receivers and secondary; Phil McWilliams, offensive coordinator/offensive and defensive line; Eric Stout, linemen; Levi Walker, running backs/linebackers; Tim Stevens, lineBargsten backers/wide receivers. Returning starters (4 offense, 2 defense): Matt Bargsten, WR/DB, 6-1, 170. Sr.; Hunter Woods, Gassaway RB/DB, 5-9, 165, Sr.; Bailey Puckett, OL, 6-4, 275, Jr.; Wyatt Gassaway, OL, 63, 225, Jr. Newcomers: Devin Cochran, RB/ILB, 5-11, 190, Jr.; Isaac McWilliams, TE/OLB, 5-10, 205, Jr.; Xavier Milton, C, 6-0, 235, So.; Gunnar Drake, OL, 6-1, 310, Sr.; Grant Sikes, WR/FS, 6-1, 155, So.; Wyatt Wolfe, WR/ILB, 6-10, 190, (See HILLDALE, 10)
Page 8 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Continued from Page 6 man season due to injury. The opportunity became a meat grinder. His numbers weren’t abysmal - he was 19-of-36 for 287 yards, two touchdown passes and two interceptions. But the support staff wasWatkins n’t equipped to support a freshman signal-caller. Muskogee was outscored 116-20 in those games. Last year he put 10 games under his belt with greater production: 1,902 passing yards and three victories. But his best attribute his ability to run with the ball – hasn’t been as utilized, averaging just eight carries a game a year ago. Not anymore. Head coach Rafe Watkins scraped the pass-option for a smashmouth run game that incor-
porates the quarterback into run-pass off bootlegs and roll-outs with limited read responsibilities. “The last couple of years there was a lot of thinking and reading. This is simplified. Coach wants me to run first, pass second and use my feet,” Cherry said. “I haven’t been used to that but I like it.” Adds Watkins: “Our jobs are riding on 15- to Bell 18-year-olds enough. I don’t want to saddle them with a lot of audibles and stuff,” he said. “I want him to read the game off our option and not have to read the secondary. We should be able to recognize two-high or one-high safeties. That’s it. “Otherwise I want it to be reaction-based. With the bootleg and roll-out system, if there’s 10 yards to get even though your receiver may be open at 10 yards, we want to run it. Three things can happen on a pass
Muskogee Phoenix that are bad. You can throw a bad ball, drop a good pass or be intercepted.” The idea, anyway, is to run first, but Watkins’ teams didn’t get to four state championships without putting it in the air. James Buckhanan, Connor Cole, Tavian Davis and Bryson Bell head up a receiving corps that will mix in Rashaun Marshall and Jamari Davis. Bell understands the Cherry system a lot better than the first pattern he ran on a bootleg in the spring. “It’s low risk, more production,” he said.
Deep backfield Watkins’ strategy is supported by a deep backfield. Jacouri Freeman, a powertype back, looked impressive in the first preseason scrimmage. Cantrell Ashley is a mix between Freeman and 130-pound Tyriq Beasley, the fastest player on the
team but has battled ankle issues of late. Molijah Gilbert is another power back with size similar to Freeman. They’ll have an improved offensive line that has four of the five interior guys back. Logan Stovall is at center, Zane Rasmussen and Jacolby Anderson at the guards and Adonis Cole, perhaps with his size (6-foot-3, 240 pounds) the best of the group, at Cole one tackle, joined on the other side by Hunter Watkins, son of the head coach. The tight ends are J.T. Stanford and Joshua Medrano with Taylor Duncan also in the mix.
Where’s the sacks? The challenge to the Roughers’ odd-stack defense will be finding someone to take up the pressure created by Tramal Ivy, who as a senior posted a school-record 19 sacks
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playing both defensive end and at times, free safety. He played safety out of necessity due to Tavian Davis missing four games. With Davis back in the lineup, Muskogee went 3-3. Now, to find that pressure. It’s most likely to start with the play of nose tackle Rogerick Kirby (5-11, 300), a talent who when on all cylinders, has been compared to ex-Rougher Davis and exArkansas Razorback Robert Thomas. “Our success is dependent on the nose guard, the mac (middle line)backer and free safety. Those three have to dominate for this defense to work,” he said. “He’s an intricate part of that so if he doesn’t go hard every play, we’re not going to click,” said assistant head coach/co-defensive coordinator David Heath. Luke Leatherman is the mac backer with Davis back at safety. Tracy Hughes is
the leading returning tackler and will man an outside linebacker position with Noah Ashley at the other. Hughes had 80 total tackles, 47 solo, but on average, Davis had more, finishing with 46 solos over six games. “I don’t think of myself as a big-impact guy,” Davis said. “I just try to influence my team to play at the same level of energy as I play with.”
Still Soper Chase Soper will handle kicking and punting duties. It will be the sixth consecutive year a Soper has put a foot to the jobs. Preston Soper, Chase’s brother, handled duties for four years before going to Missouri as a preferred walk-on. —Mike Kays
Watkins Continued from Page 6
“When Ron (Lancaster) hired me, he told me Muskogee wasn’t known for skill kids, it was known for running the football,” said Jason Medrano, the cooffensive coordinator and offensive line coach. “And that got us to the semifinals three straight years, so it’s nice that we’re getting back to it. I don’t know if our receivers like it, but scoring touchdowns cures all ills.” With Watkins, it’s what happened after missing out on the Broken Arrow job as one of two finalists. Within weeks, he was checking himself out in green. He sees it as a blessing in disguise, a more proper fit. “The two communities, Guthrie and Muskogee, are similar in makeup. We were a blue-collar team there and that’s our approach here,” Watkins said. “And I think that’s important. Guthrie, Muskogee, Lawton, even Jenks for that matter, those are working communities. Our approach takes on the character of the community — hardworking, tough-nose people. It fits.”
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Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 25
warner eagles Record last year: 6-5 Coach: Mike Burdge (second season, 6-5) Staff: Jon Eddy, running backs/defensive backs/defensive coordinator; Paul Whitley, wide receivers/corner backs; Chuck Capps, quarterbacks/linebackers. Returning starters (8 offense, 7 defense): Zac Rowell, G, 6-1, 155, Jr.; Bryce Burdge Wyatt, C, 510, 205, Jr.; Kayden Hammons, G/LB, 5-10, 185, Jr.; Zac Jones, T/DE, 6-2, 175, Jr.; Jacob Crabtree, RB/CB, 6-1, 170, Jr.; Eric Wiggins, WB/FS, 5-8, 155, Jr.; Bobby Ward, QB, 5-10, 165, Jr.; Mekko Special photo by John Hasler Washington, TE/STAR, 62, 160, Jr. Warner quarterback Bobby Ward looks to elude an Afton defender last season. Top newcomers: Ward and the Eagles lost in the first round of the Class A playoffs. Ty Neighbors, DB, 6-2,
160, Fr. Warner is poised to make yet another run into the Class A playoffs this year. The Eagles return eight offensive and seven defensive starters from a team that fell to the Kiefer Trojans in the first round
last season. In his second year as Warner’s head coach, Mike Burdge knows experience will be a strength for them this season. “Our guys have really been getting into the pro(See WARNER, 26)
Page 26 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Warner Continued from Page 25 gram this summer and working extremely hard,” said Burdge. “They are all getting stronger, faster, and bigger. I think these young men have really matured in their approach to the game of football. They have a lot of hard work and determination.”
Signal caller’s back Bobby Ward returns at quarterback for the Eagles without the assistance of Clint Kite as a run option. Eric Wiggins will take over Kite’s responsibility at wingback. Wiggins will not be the only running threat as Jacob Crabtree will step into a running back position. Warner continues to put pieces together to situate their receiving core. No player has been specified, but Wiggins and Crabtree were options last year and could be this year. Ty Neighbors is a potenWiggins tial starting receiver as well, as he vies for a spot as cornerback. But Ward will have a huge option in their tight end, Mekko Washington. The talent they have will be utilized in Burdge’s new offensive style. “We are going to get into another tight end offense, get in the gun,” said Burdge. “We are going to use an Auburn-style offense to utilize the speed that we have.”
Leadership in D Wiggins, who is the team’s only senior returning starter, will be the Eagle in the sky at free safety. He is prepared to take on the leadership role this year. “I’m trying to take my leadership position and really just try and help my team in any way I can,” said Wiggins. “I have to be responsible for myself and my team by being an example, and help and encourage my teammates in whatever way I can.” Crabtree will see action again this season at cornerback. Neighbors is the newest addition to Warner’s squad, and Burdge calls him a potential starter. Neighbors, a freshman, and could see action with Crabtree at corner or Wiggins at safety. Burdge will be looking to add
Muskogee Phoenix
more depth to the Eagles secondary as practices roll around.
Speed to burn On the defensive side, the Eagles will feature some big threats with Washington and Zac Jones. Washington will be a hybrid linebacker/safety labeled as a star position, as Jones is a defensive end. Jones also could see action at strong tackle. Washington was third in the 400-meter dash at the Class 2A state finals last spring and a main cog in the 1,600 and 3,200 relay teams, both of which finJones ished eighth. “He’s a strong kid. He’s 160 pounds and squats 350. He’s fast and he’ll hit you like a 200-pounder,” said Burdge. “He makes good grades, he’s real smart and disciplined.” “We’ll put him on the opponent’s best receiver or position him where we think the ball is going,” Burdge said. Several players that face off on the line were state qualifiers on Warner’s track team. The speed it has on its line is something that can really help them this year. “The motivation level is a lot better than it was at this point last year,” said Jones. “We are getting a lot better, faster. We are workRowell ing hard. We should find some success this year if we just keep working hard.”
OL needs depth Kayden Hammans will be a key player for the Eagles as he returns to the offensive line and also inside linebacker. Hammans will work the trenches with Bryce Wyatt and Zac Rowell. The offensive line is another area that Burdge knows needs more depth. Hammans “We are going to continue working hard and finding those guys who will step up,” said Burdge. “They fight hard so I am sure we will get the problems we have situated by the time the season comes around.” — Patrick Kays, correspondent
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Predictions, Polls 6AII-1
The gist: Just 385 students separate the biggest from the smallest in this district. Welcome to the new 6A Lite. Washington has the playoff pedigree, Bixby has the experience returning and Muskogee the revival. The picks: 1. Tulsa Washington. 2. Bixby. 3. Muskogee. 4. Claremore. 5. Bartlesville. 6. Sand Springs. 7. Sapulpa. 8. Ponca City. Mark this game down: Starting with a week 1 visit to McAlester (Rafe Watkins and McAlester’s Bryan Pratt were two of the three finalists for the job that Watkins got, and the two met in last year’s 5A championship game when Watkins was at Guthrie), every week will be an adventure for the Roughers, but the final two road games (at Bixby Oct. 31, at Tulsa Washington Nov. 7) will determine their fate.
5A-4
The gist: Pryor has the momentum from a run to the 5A quarterfinals under ex-Rougher Jason Freeman and has most of its parts back. Kenny Evans, who was dismissed from NSU at the end of last season, tries to revive East Central. The picks: 1. Pryor. 2. Collinsville. 3. Coweta. 4. East Central. 5. Edison. 6. Tahlequah. 7. Grove. Mark this game down: Kenny Evans visits Gable Field Sept. 26 to take on Tahlequah on the same field he coached NSU on.
4A-3 The gist: A 4A-4 partner with Fort Gibson the past two years, Cascia comes joins Wagoner and the northern 4A-3 group. Cascia gets the early nod because it gets Wagoner at home. The picks: 1. Cascia Hall; 2. Wagoner. 3. Oologah. 4. Catoosa. 5. McLain. 6. Cleveland. 7. Miami. Circle the date: We’ve already mentioned it. Wagoner at Cascia, Oct. 3.District 4A-4
4A-4
The gist: Poteau’s breakout season had the Pirates in the Class 4A championship game in 2013 and has the momentum of several key starters returning. Metro, moving up from 4A, has a good chunk of a 3A team that was knocked off by Hilldale in the second round of the postseason. Central, traditionally loaded at the skill positions, drops from 5A. Sallisaw starts over with a new coach. The catalyst to unlocking a champion may rest with a Fort Gibson defense that seven starters back from a team that registered two shutouts last year, something they hadn’t done once since 2006. The picks: 1. Poteau;2. Fort Gibson; 3. Metro Christian; 4. Central; 5. Sallisaw; 6. Stilwell. 7. Broken Bow. 8. Muldrow. Circle the date: Fort Gibson draws Poteau on week 9, Oct. 31.
3A-6
The gist: Coached by former Gore mentor Lee Blankenship, Beggs’ backfield tandem is among seven returning starters offensively and among the best back tandem in 3A.
PHOENIX AREA SUPER 7 1. 2. 3. 4. 4. 6. 7.
Vian (8) 56 Fort Gibson 44 Wagoner 40 Muskogee 31 Checotah 28 Sequoyah 8 Hilldale 5 Others receiving votes: Haskell 4, Stigler, Eufaula, Gore, 2; Warner, Keys, 1. Those Demons won’t be running behind the likes of a Checotah tripletower offensive line that have just as few comparative peers. Victory Christian has a 5,000-yard career passer back and a tradition of success. And can a young Hilldale team repeat two-year run of last year’s large senior class that put together two quarterfinal runs? The picks: 1. Beggs; 2. Checotah; 3. Victory Christian; 4. Hilldale; 5. Tulsa Rogers; 6. Okmulgee; 7. Morris. Circle the date: Checotah at Hilldale Oct. 31 could settle a lot.
3A-7
The gist: Locust Grove and exMuskogee coach Matt Hennesy returns loaded in all areas after a 10-0 regular season and quarterfinal run. With plenty of experience and a full off-season of work behind them for the first time in two years, Sequoyah could mount a threat. Claremore Sequoyah has the pedigree. Keys, still young, could mount a challenge. The picks: 1. Locust Grove; 2. T. Sequoyah; 3. C. Sequoyah; 4. Inola; 5. Keys; 6. Jay; 7. Westville. Circle the date: Locust Grove at Sequoyah, Oct. 24.
2A-7 The gist: Two area teams are in prime position to sneak up on expected contenders; Haskell with youth and determination and Hulbert with a new approach and coach along with a solid group of returning starters. The picks: 1. Adair; 2. Colcord; 3. Kansas; 4. Salina; 5. Haskell; 6. Hulbert; 7. Chouteau. Circle the date: Hulbert at Haskell, Oct. 10. A loss in this one will be hard to overcome for playoff aspirations.
A-8 The gist: Talihina is a state contender; Warner-Gore will carry extra meaning now that they’re district rivals again. How many steps can new Porter coach Zac Ross take on the Pirates’ reclamation project in a district where everyone is a playoff contender? The picks: 1. Talihina; 2. Savanna; 3. Warner; 4.Gore; 5. C. Sallisaw; 6. Porter; 7. Quinton. Circle the date: Warner at Gore, Oct. 31. One, it’s a rivalry; two, bet on it having huge playoff ramifications.
B-4 The gist: A district with some of the league’s best running backs: Keota’s Seth Bryant and Porum’s Darren Bollman. We’ll go with Keota to win it all based on a more experienced line -- for second. Dewar welcomes back starters at every position. The picks: 1. Dewar; 2. Keota; 3. Weleetka; 4. Wetumka; 5. Porum; 6. Arkoma; 7. Haileyville; 8. Gans; 9. Caddo; 10. Canadian. Circle the date: Heck, any date involving the top six above is critical when you’re in a 10-team district with just one game to get it right before they start counting. How about a Class D, OSSAA?
The gist: Stigler has some injuries to overcome but the Panthers’ established tradition will have them in contention. After a four-game improvement in 2013 and with a nucleus returning, Eufaula may be on the verge of a memorable year. Spiro will bring their athleticism. Team to beat, though? Roland has Arkansas commit Austin Cantrell as the linchpin on offense. The picks: 1. Roland; 2. Eufaula; 3. Stigler; 4. Spiro; 5.Heavener; 6. Idabel; 7. Valliant. Circle the date: Eufaula hosts Stigler Oct. 16. If we’re accurate, this is for a home game in the first round of the playoffs.
2A-6
State champions:
The gist: Vian and Hartshorne were quarterfinalists a year ago. There’s nothing to indicate these two won’t be settling all the marbles on Oct. 10 at Hartshorne. The picks: 1. Vian; 2. Hartshorne; 3. Panama. 4. Wilburton; 5. Pocola; 6. Antlers; 7. Liberty. Circle the date: Do we have to say it a second time?
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 7
Pure football talk What’s your pre-game ritual? “Praying in my locker.” — Quintahj Cherry, Muskogee “I listen to the same songs in order before every game.” — Eric Stepp, Wagoner “Head-butt Will Carlile.” — Reese Davis, Tahlequah Favorite pre-game meal: “Subway. It’s the only restaurant in Vian.” — A.J. Rodriguez, Vian “Bananas.” — Wade Shanks, Gore “June’s boneless chicken, mashed potatoes and a salad with sweet tea.” — Clay Watts, Midway “Chicken Alfredo.” — Jake Woodson, Wagoner Best thing about practice “Special teams while we’re under the shade tree.” — Wyatt Gassaway, Hilldale “7 on 7.” — Kyle Sanders, Sequoyah “Water breaks.” — Justin Hooper, Sequoyah “Hanging out.” — Hunter McNeely, Webbers Falls “Being with my teammates.” — Luke Phillips, Keys “Getting hit.” — Jordan Doke, Porum
We’re not sure how it would taste, but mixing these guys’ favorites, how ‘bout a chicken and banana sub?
What would be the result of a uniform makeover on your team? “All camos with ‘Yee-Yee’ on the helmet.” — Bailey Puckett, Hilldale “Make them feel good.” — Dean VanVors, Porter “Three-D camo.” — Easton Eckhardt, Webbers Falls “All white.” — Cole Wilkie, Tahlequah “All black.” — Will Carlile, Tahlequah “Digital camo.” — Noah Batesole, Gore
C-4 The gist: Continuity at Webbers will boost the Warriors’ chances and enthusiasm of a new coach at Midway gives Charger fans hope of a return to the middle of last decade when postseason games were common at Council Hill. But westward expansion dropped one of the prime state contenders in this league. Fox is in the henhouse with an eye on the golden egg. The picks: 1. Fox; 2. Webbers Falls; 3. Thackerville; 4. Sasakwa; 5. Cave Springs; 6. Midway; 7. Bowlegs; 8. Bokoshe; 9. Paoli. Circle the date: Webbers gets one week before Fox arrives Sept. 12. A loss there and the rival game with Midway at home Oct. 16 carries greater weight.
3A-8
Prep Football Preview
Class 6AI- Union Class 6AII- Midwest City Class 5A: Carl Albert Class 4A: Anadarko Class 3A: Douglass Class 2A: Vian Class A: Talihina Class B: Laverne Class C: Fox
Divided Continued from Page 5
“It’s not what we as coaches came up with, but it’s what we’ve been given for now,” the new Muskogee High coach said. “I don’t know how it’s going to be viewed, but if we’re fortunate enough to win a state title, we’re going to celebrate it because it’s under the laws we were given.” Typically, the OSSAA and the Oklahoma Football Coaches Association work in tandem on class and district structuring. When it became apparent that the move to do something about
the discrepancy between the biggest three (Broken Arrow, Union and Jenks) and the rest of the state had the momentum needed for a change, the coaches in a meeting two years ago came up with a plan putting six teams from each of the fourteam districts in the postseason to be split into divisions according to size in enrollment. That wasn’t even one of the two final proposals sent to school administrators by the OSSAA. And the one adopted has a 3,000-student gap between Broken Arrow and Putnam City (1,700), which slipped below Enid in this summer’s average daily membership numbers but is stuck for now in the big-school divi-
sion. Of the big 16, only four are east teams — BA, Jenks, Union and Owasso. “It’s helped the bottom 16 and it’s hurt travel for those four and no one on the west side will care,” Watkins said. The Muskogee coach is on the competition committee for 6A and has a couple ideas of how this may work out in the end. “One, you can take all of 6A and the top 16 in 5A, giving you 48, then have six eightteam districts or eight six, then split into two divisions based on enrollment for playoff time,” Watkins said. “The 6A coaches would go for this. Another idea would be to put all of 5A with
the bottom 16 in 6A and split into enrollment divisions for the playoffs.” That would put Watkins in a group he’s just come out of, winning four 5A titles in Guthrie against the likes of Tulsa Washington, Carl Albert and McAlester. “The Carl Alberts, Guthries, Lawton Macs, McAlesters and East Centrals in their good years can compete with anybody in 6A but the big four,” Watkins said. Clearly, it’ll be a season of evaluation on everyone’s part. But for Muskogee, it represents an even playing field and a championship the Roughers would welcome, JV label or not. “I have friends at Jenks and
Union who play. I think I’m as good as them but there’s 120 on their sidelines to our 50,” said senior offensive lineman Adonis Cole. “To me, it’s not like the players chose this,” senior wide receiver/defensive back Bryson Bell said. “We just want to go compete and win.” “It’s bittersweet,” said senior defensive lineman Rogerick Kirby. “The younger guys, like freshmen and sophomores, are sitting around thinking ‘now we have a chance.’ Us older guys, we wanted another opportunity at those guys. But this is still an opportunity that at the end sits a gold ball. We’re going to go and try and get that.”
Page 6 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Prep Football Preview
Like Guthrie, like Muskogee? Watkins hopes blue-collar contrasts work on gridiron By Mike Kays
Phoenix Sports Editor
donis Cole was in a unique position when Muskogee went looking for its new head football coach last February. Cole’s father, Tracy Cole, was on the interview committee that would eventually lead to the selection of Rafe Watkins. Adonis recalls a few conversations about it between father and son at the dinner table about the topic. “He’s very present around the stadium and always at practice watching and had his own ideas,” Adonis said of his father. “But we did talk and he asked me what I thought. I told him I just wanted someone who had a run style. I really love that style.” So does Watkins, as evidenced by four Class 5A gold balls. “A lot of applicants liked that style, but coach Watkins had the best application for it,” Adonis said. Whether he meant application as in resume or how Watkins applies the run game wasn’t clear, but it is definitely interchangeable. MTXE — which stands for Mental Toughness, Extra Effort — is the slogan Watkins had at Guthrie. And yes, he is aware, extra doesn’t start with an X, it just includes it. “It looks tougher that way,” said quarterback Quintahj Cherry. That’s what they said in Guthrie too. And just like there, they’ve learned it here. “He’s the most demanding coach I’ve ever had in weights and conditioning,” said defen-
A
Special photo by Von Castor
Rafe Watkins won four state championships as Guthrie’s head coach.
sive lineman Rogerick Kirby. Padded workouts were maximized in spring football. “Two springs ago, Mondays and Tuesdays were full pads and Wednesdays were shorts. This year it was full contact every day and everyone gets hit. Quarterbacks getting hit, receivers are getting hit and we got two running backs that could get hit too when we’re on defense.”
muskogee roughers Record in 2013: 3-7 Head coach: Rafe Watkins: (first year) Staff: David Heath, assistant head coach; Jason Medrano, offensive coordinator; Scott Sapulpa, defensive coordinator; Curt Denton, special teams; John Graham, strength coordinator; Darrien Reeves, defensive line; Anthony McNac, tight ends; Adam Pemberton, defensive backs; Don Mayes, defensive backs; Adam Hobbs, wide receivers; Parker Borovetz, offensive line. Returning starters (8 offense, 6 defense): Quintahj Cherry, QB, 5-10, 170, Jr.; Tyriq Beasley, RB, 5-2, 130, Jr.; Tavian Davis, WR/DB, 5-11, 165, Jr.; Bryson Bell, WR/DB, 5-5, 165, Sr.; Adonis Cole, OL, 6-3, 240, Sr.; Zane Rasmussen, OL, 6-0, 210, Jr.; Logan Stovall, C, 5-8, 215, Sr.; Jacolby Anderson, OL, 6-3, 285, Jr.; Rogerick Kirby, NG, 5-11, 300, Sr.; Darion McNac, DB, 5-9, 175, Sr.; Tracy Hughes, DE, 6-0, 185, Sr.; Joshua Medrano, DB, 5-11, 165, Jr. Top newcomers: Jacouri Freeman, RB, 5-11, 170, Sr.; Luke Leatherman, LB, 5-11, 150, Sr.; James Buckhanan, WR, 6-0, 170, Sr.; Noah Ashley, LB, 6-0, 195, Sr.; Cantrell Ashley, RB, 6-0, 190, Sr.; J.T. Stanford, TE, 5-10, 180, Sr.; Molijah Gilbert, RB, 5-9, 170, So.; Devon McCoy, DB, 5-11, 155, Jr.; Kamren Curl, DB, 5-11, 165, Jr.; Hunter Watkins, OL, 6-2, 240, Jr.; Christian Maier, DE, 6-4, 210, Jr.
Cherry didn’t mind it. He’d run the speed option and get hit. To say Quintahj Cherry has had to “I got exposed to that in seventh grade. It’s endure growing pains would be an simple, it’s comfortable. It’s about using my understatement. feet and not having to think so much and The junior quarterback was thrust that takes the best part of my ability and into two games as a starter his freshputs it out there to use,” Cherry said. The excitement isn’t limited to players. (See WATKINS, 8)
(See ROUGHERS, 8)
Prep Football Preview
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 27
Familiar face facilitates Pirate pride By Patrick Kays
Phoenix Correspondent
ac Ross has always wanted to be a head coach for a high school football team. His search has sent him all over the country, and he finally found his first break near familiar grounds. Ross takes over this season the head coaching job at Porter, which is just a few miles from where he played high school football. “I graduated from Muskogee, so I know it would have felt good to be around where I used to be,” Ross said. “For my wife and I to be close to our families, I thought it would be a really good fit for us. I’m happy to be here.” The 2005 graduate of Muskogee attended Fort Gibson and lettered in baseball, basketball, and baseball his freshman and sophomore years before he transferred to Muskogee and became the quarterback for the Roughers. Ross led Muskogee to the first round of the Class 6A playoffs in both his junior and senior season. He compiled 1,500 passing yards, 800 rushing yards, and had 24 touchdowns in his senior year.
Z
Special photo by John Hasler
Porter head coach Zac Ross talks to his team in a practice break.
Ross continued his playing career through college, as he walked on at Oklahoma State. He redshirted his first year but made the active roster in 2006. After playing four games on special teams for the Cowboys, Ross
transferred to Harding University in Searcy, Ark., in 2007, where he would become the career leader in kickoff return yards with 1,455. After his playing career was over, he pursued a career in
coaching like his father, David Ross, who was head coach at Bacone College. But Zac preferred the high school route. “My dad was a coach for 28 years and it has just been something I have always wanted to
do,” said Zac Ross. “(College coaching) demands a lot more from being away from the house. That is why I chose to go after high school coaching to be able to spend more time with my family.” Zac’s career choice didn’t surprise his dad. “When I had my first head coaching job, he was about 3 years old, and he would just beg me to go to practice,” said David Ross. “After practices he would show me everything he had learned. He would come to me and show me his wide receiver stance. He always had an interest in the game.” After a season as a wide receivers coach at Southern Arkansas, Zac became the offensive coordinator at Mobile (Ala.) Christian High School. Ross moved to Texas shortly thereafter and became an assistant at San Angelo (Texas) Grape Creek. Ross has taken some valuable lessons he had learned while playing football at Muskogee under then head coach Ron Lancaster, and is teaching those lessons and characteristics to his new team at Porter. (See ROSS, 28)
porter pirates Record last year: 3-7 Head coach: Zac Ross (first year) Staff: Chris Sherwood, defensive coordinator; Dalton Worthington, running backs/linebackers/special teams coordinator. Returning starters (4 offense, 5 defense): Dean Van Vors, QB/FS, 59, 165, Jr.; Jordan Macheras, FB/LB, 5-11, 210, Jr.; Dylan Ross Woods, OL/DL, 511, 185, Sr.; Daniel Smith, WR/SS, 5-7, 170, Jr.; Jacob Benningfield, RB/LB, 6-1, 190, Sr. Top newcomers: Bracey Kilgore, WR/SS, 5-9, 160, Jr.; John Isreal, WR/CB, 6-2, 170, So.; Levi Snyder, WR/CB, 5-11, 185, Sr.; Jon Bailey, OL/DL, 6-0, 190.
Since leaving 8-man football in 2010, the Porter Pirates have not had a winning season, finishing 37 last year. First-year coach Zac Ross sees the need for playing experience, and is patient and confident that his team will improve and pick up his new system. “It’s a process to learn my stuff and learn how to play the game right. It’s going to take time Benningfield but the kids are buying in and are getting a lot better than when I first arrived,” he said. Ross’ changes have sparked interest in the community and his players, as Porter have a new season ahead of them. The community will see a new Pirate team decked out in new uniforms and helmets and also a tunnel for the
players to enter through. “Porter is a football town,” said Ross. “We have a lot of community support and we will use that to help us get back to those successful years Porter has had. But it’s going to take some work.”
Ground attack The run game is going to be a key point in Porter’s offensive attack. Ross has many run- Macheras ning threats to work with from junior quarterback Dean Van Vors, stocky junior fullback Jordan Macheras (5-11, 210), and senior running back Jacob Benningfield. Ross is introducing a spreadstyle, hurry-up offense that will feature misdirection runs and quick, short passes.
“We are going to be a fairly runoriented team. We are just going to run straight down the field, and hit them in the gaps and the isos,” said Benningfield. “We are going to hit them quick and get through into open field and hope to make a play.” Dylan Woods will return to the line for his final year and will try to open the holes for the running game. He will be joined by junior Smith Jon Bailey..
Passing fancy Van Vors will take the snaps for the Pirates this season and he will see much more improvement with the help of his new head coach. Ross was a quarterback for the Muskogee Roughers and played as a wide receiver at Harding University.
“Coach Ross has really helped me with my mechanics. He approaches to us individually and that has really helped me learn this new style. He is very helpful, he does all that he can to help us. He doesn’t quit,” said Van Vors. “Since he was a wide receiver, he has helped me learn their perspective which has helped me develop as a strong quarterback. It helps me make VanVors adjustments to make changes based off of how they play and how I play.” Daniel Smith will be a primary target for Van Vors.
Defense first (See PORTER, 28)
Page 28 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Ross Continued from Page 27
“I’m trying to teach them that we need to be proud of where we are from,” said Ross as he alluded to the paint job and improvements made to the weight and locker facilities at Porter High. “Lancaster made improvements to the stuff we had and he taught us to take care of it. I am using that same idea. We don’t have the best stuff at Porter, but what we do have we are going to take care of.”
Porter Continued from Page 27 Ross knows the need of improvement in their defense is there, and plans to bring in an easy to learn defense that will get his team on the same page. “We are going to put a lot of emphasis on defense,” said Ross. “As a young team, defense has to come first.” Smith and Van Vors will be joined in the backfield by junior Bracey Kilgoreat strong safety, backing up Macheras and Benningfield at the linebacker positions. Sophomore John Isreal will use his 6-foot-2 frame to harass receivers this year at cornerback. He will be joined by senior Levi Snyder to complete a somewhat promising backfield.
With community support, Ross has obtained new uniforms and helmets and also an inflatable tunnel and flags for the team’s entrances this season. “I think he came in with a lot of energy. He’s come in and told us what he wants to do with the program and got us really excited,” said Porter quarterback Dean Van Vors. “He has been pushing hard for us to work hard and get in the weight room. You can see the excitement in the players and in the community. It is really starting to show.” “In our secondary we have strong points and weak points,” said Smith. “It just depends on what side of the field you are looking at. If you’re looking at the field side, we are a run style. If you’re looking at a boundary side we are more coverage. Each side varies. We have been working to stopping the run and also not let anything get over the top of us.”
High hopes Benningfield hopes the hard work pays off in his final year at Porter. “I wanna see some results this year. Every year of high school has lead up to this,” said Benningfield. “We have worked extremely hard and I feel we can make this a special year. This is our year.” — Patrick Kays, correspondent
Muskogee Phoenix
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Record last year: 4-6 Head coach: Kenny Hokit (14th year) Staff: Norman Powell, assistant. Returning starters (5 offensive, 5 defensive): Darren Bollman, RB/LB, 5-9, 185, Sr.; Jordan Doke, QB/OLB, 6-1, 145, Sr.; Tristan Mann, FB/CB, 6-1, 170, Jr.; Dakota Wright, WR/OLB, 510, 150, Sr.; Lane Fletcher, G/DE, 5-10, 185, Jr. Top newcomers: Ty Parsons, G, 6-2, 190, So.
Roughers embark in new era in split Class 6A By Mike Kays Phoenix Sports Editor
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Special photo by John Hasler
Darren Bollman will be the barometer for the Panthers’ success. centerpiece of the offense and the barometer for Porum’s success. “Running me through the middle with eight in the box, it works sometimes. But if we can spread it out a little more by getting some guys out of here and throw the ball, I think it’ll do more damage,” Bollman said.
Putmeincoach Jordan Doke stepped in late last year to fill in at quarterback due to disciplinary and injury issues that sidelined the first two on the depth chart. “We had a backup freshman who on like the second series of the game broke his arm,” Hokit said. “I was going to go with direct snaps to Darren, but Jordan came up to me on the sideline and said ‘Coach, I’ll play it.’” Recalls Doke: “I was supposed to be a backup in junior high but I never played or really practiced,” he said. “When we lost our backup, I knew the plays, we needed someone to step in and I did. I didn’t want to let my team down.” That freshman moved.
The original starter, Dakota Wright, is back in the lineup but Hokit will use him as a slot receiver. So the job is Doke’s. Nothing the matter with that, said Hokit. “Doke brings a calmness to us and his biggest asset is his ability to lead,” the coach said. “We’re good with him back there.” As far as improvement with an offseason under his belt? “Last year my passing accuracy was Doke horrible and I didn’t have a strong arm,” Doke said. “But I feel like my accuracy has increased quite a bit. I still don’t have the strongest arm but those short ones, like slot routes of 10 yards or so, I can throw well.” Tristan Mann, a junior fullback and three-year starter there, will also look to get some additional touches.
Guardup Ty Parsons is a 6-2, 190 sophomore guard who has the tools to step in and be productive. “His only draw-
Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 5
Divided we stand, united we aren’t
porum panthers
Power football has been the theme of Kenny Hokit’s eight-man football offensive playbook. A lot of those power-I, double tight end pages will be scrapped this season, his 14th at Porum. The Panthers have back their 2,069-yard, 32-touchdown rusher in Darren Bollman, but the beef up front all graduated. A leaner line will result in a change. “When we had 260, 260 and 220 Hokit (pounders) across the front we could run right at you. We’re going to implement more misdirection, giving them better angles to block,” Hokit said. “It’s looking good. It’s going to be a slow process because they’ve run the same thing since seventh grade under me. The timBollman ing is just going to take a while on some of it but we’ve been working hard and staying late and it’s going about as well as I could expect. He’ll also diversify the attack away from Bollman. “He just wore down last year and we can’t just run him up the middle anymore. We’re going to limit his carries and use him as a decoy more,” Hokit said. “Since I’ve been here, our four skill guys are about as good as I’ve had. We’re going to utilize all of it.” Still, expect the 5-foot-9, 185-pound Bollman to be the
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back is the experience factor. He’s had a couple starts but I think he’ll develop into a good one,” Hokit said. The other guard, Lane Fletcher, moves there from center. “He’s come in in better shape than he’s ever been. It seems as if he’s ready to go,” Hokit said.
Adjusttotimes The 3-3 defense will get tweaked, Hokit said. “It’s been a gap control, pressure-type defense, but we’re going to have to adapt to the trend in 8-man where more teams are passing the ball,” Hokit Mann said. “We’ll try and run a cover 3 instead of a man so much on the corners. And again, our skill kid will be an asset to this on the defensive side of the ball too. “If we can overcome our lack of size, get good contribution from all our skill kids and stay healthy, I think we can have a good year.” — Mike Kays
he playing field in Class 6A, many will tell you, is now level. Some of those who say that will also say it took creating a varsity and a junior varsity level to do it. Welcome to the JV league, Muskogee — more commonly called Class 6A, Division II. The move that began almost two years ago came to fruition in February 2013 when the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association’s board of directors voted unanimously to split the 32-team class into two divisions according to enrollment, bringing an end to matchups involving Muskogee (1,504 students) with Broken Arrow (4,790) or Jenks (3,194). Gone also is Union (4,483), a team Muskogee last met in the 2008 semifinals in Tahlequah. Muskogee’s had just two preseason games since then, both losses. Thirteen other schools are still are stuck knowing the only way to a state championship is to get past the only two teams to win a 6A title since 1995. Muskogee will join Bartlesville, Bixby, Claremore, Ponca City, Sand Springs, Sapulpa and Tulsa Washington in 6AII-1. The other district, 6AII-2, is all west side with Choctaw, Enid, Lawton, Lawton Ike, Midwest City and Stillwater. U.S. Grant was granted independent status for the next two seasons in football, leaving 6AII-2 with seven teams and the whole of Division II with 15 teams. Fifteen teams, one state champion which in a playoff format like the one in Division I, will consist of three rounds of postseason play with a one-week break between the semifinals and finals. Fifteen JV league teams, as some say. Rafe Watkins laughs at the notion. (See DIVIDED, 7)
The new and divided Class 6A District 6AI-1 Edmond Memorial Broken Arrow Edmond Jenks Norman Putnam City Westmoore Yukon
District 6AI-2 Edmond North Moore Mustang Norman North Owasso Putnam City North Southmoore Union
District 6AII-1 Bartlesville Bixby Claremore Muskogee Ponca City Sapulpa Sand Springs Tulsa Washington
District 6AII-2 Choctaw Lawton Eisenhower Enid Lawton Midwest City Putnam City West Stillwater *U.S. Grant
* will play as an independent in 2014
Page 4 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
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Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 29
midway chargers Record in 2013: 1-9 Head coach: G. B. Myles (first year) Staff: Danny Rich, codefensive coordinator; Luke Broadbent, co-defensive coordinator;Heath Durrett, offensive coach Returning starters (5 offense, 4 defense): Clay Watts, FB/MLB, 6-0, 220, Sr.; Hunter Russell, G/DL, 5-10, 225, Sr.; Blake Nelson, TE/LB, 6-1, Myles 190, Sr.; Hayden Morgan, TE/NG, 6-3, 304, So.; Devon Barnes, TB/DB, 5-9, 165, So.; Corey Miller, QB/DB, 5-8, 150, So. Top newcomers: D. J. Nelson, OL/DL, 5-2, 200,
So. Change seems to be the only constant for the Midway Chargers. Competing in District C-4, the Chargers will start this season, as they have the last three, with a new head coach. This year, G. B. Myles takes over the reigns of a Charger program that finished last Watts year with a disappointing 1-9 record. However, the timing of the coaching change and higher expectations from Myles may help Midway reap benefits from this change. “I’ve changed coaches every four years that I’ve been here and I’ve kinda
gotten used to seeing a new coach,” said returning senior Clay Watts. “Last year we didn’t get to know our coach until the season started and that kinda hurt us.” With Myles’ arrival at Midway earlier in the summer, the Chargers have had longer to learn the coach’s offensive and defensive Barnes plans and an opportunity that they have been missing in recent years. “This is the first time we have a had summer pride program in a long time,” said Watts. “We’ve been hitting the weights really hard and I think we have gotten a lot stronger and faster and
everybody’s learning their roles.” The timing of Myles’ arrival has also helped solidify what Myles expects from his team. “He gives you a push,” said Watts. “The man just expects for you to get your job done and nothing less. Nothing but near perfection.”
Touchdown D Myles’ defensive unit will have to be near perfect as the coach is installing a new hyper defense. Myles expects more from his defense than some other coaches might. “Our number one goal of our defense is to score,” Myles said. “Most defenses try to get a stop or a turnover but I don’t think any play is complete in football
until you score, especially in the eight-man game. If we can score five or six times in the season on defense, it’s gonna help us out. “It can change momentum, it’s gonna change field position and it can change a season and that is what we are really focused on.” Anchoring the defense will be nose guard Hayden Morgan Morgan with Watts and Blake Nelson at linebackers, and Corey Miller and Devon Barnes as defensive backs. “He (coach) works us hard,” Morgan said. “I’ve been working on my stance and learning to do my job to stop the other team.”
Pistol set to fire Change has come to the offense as well but the expectations are not any lower. Taking over at quarterback this year is sophomore Corey Miller. Miller and the rest of the Chargers have been adjusting to a new offensive scheme that has become popular at all levels of football – the pistol formation. “It’s about as true a version of the pistol as you can have in the eight-man game,” said Myles. Watts and Barnes will both spend time in the backfield. Watts and his 220-pound frame could attack defenses as a bruiser, while the fleet feet of Barnes will help keep defenses off guard. — Jimmy Stinson, correspondent
webbers falls warriors Record in 2013: 4-5 Head coach: Steve Corn (second year, 4-5) Staff: Clint Gillman, defensive coordinator. Returning starters (6 offense, 5 defense): Darren Shanks, QB/LB, 6-0, 165, Jr.; Easton Eckhardt, FB/DT, 5-9, 170, Sr.; Dakota Reed, HB/WR, 5-9, 160, So.; Jayton Eckhardt, FB/TE/OLB, Corn 5-11, 175, So.; Bruce Yang, OL, 5-8, 185, So.; Hunter McNeely, OL/DT, 5-8, 250, Sr.; Taylor Stephens, DE/TE, 5-9, 185, Jr. Steve Corn enters his second season as the Warriors’ head man looking to return the team to the postseason and beyond. Coming off a 4-5 record in 2013, the Warriors return 11 starters, six on offense and five on defense, including four in the skill positions. Leading the way is Darren Shanks, a 6-foot, 165-pound junior who passed for 1,100 yards last season. Corn is confident Shanks will improve on that number. “He’s a player that’s going to get better and have better
numbers,” Corn said. “Last year, he played most of the season hurt with a slightly separated shoulder. He also had 700 yards rushing and that’s not being healthy. “So having him healthy and keeping him healthy, I’d like to see what we’re going to do.” Someone else to pay attention to is senior Colby Menie, a 5-7, 145 wide receiver/outside linebacker. Gillman “He’s not a big kid, but he’s a smart kid with a big learning curve,” Corn said. “You tell him to go do something and he’s going to do it. As a senior, number one he’s a great example for the other kids and number two it’s one less thing as a coach you have to worry about.” What has Corn excited more than anything is continuity. “This group has had a different coaching staff for each of the last two or three years until this year,” he said. “We’ve definitely grown in practice. It’s things like knowing who we are supposed to pick up on certain plays, where before it was a constant reminder."
One consistency that Corn would like to change is the Warriors’ sudden exits in postseason play. "District C-4 for many years was one of the worst districts in Class C,” he said. “That’s not the same anymore. Last year, I think our two top teams lost in the second round. Years before, it didn’t matter. “C-4 is not the same. With the addiEckhardt tion of Fox, who went 102 last year in Class B, you could definitely see someone from C-4 playing for a gold ball. Hopefully we can win the district and maybe that’ll be us."
Don’t forget defense While most people see eight-man football as purely offense, the performance of the defense can take a team a long way. Warriors’ defensive coordinator Chris Gillman knows that knowing your Xs and Os will pay dividends down the road. “You really have to maintain your discipline,” Gillman said. “One small mistake, one little misalignment can put six on the board for the
other team. Two or three mistakes and you’re down a significant amount. Knowing your position, knowing where you’re supposed to be and executing your assignment are critical.” Conditioning is also very critical “In small school eightman football, many times you don’t come off the field,” Corn said. “We can tell you ‘Do all this’ but you McNeely have to do even more. You have to take pride in it.”
Remaining the same Webbers Falls fullback/defensive tackle Easton Eckhardt is thrilled to see the same coaches looking back at him this season. The 5-9, 170 senior can concentrate on improving on what he learned last season to help the Warriors get better instead of adapting to a new system. "We know all the plays,” Eckhardt said. “Plus, we’ve gotten a little older and a little bigger." Being a senior, Eckhardt knows the responsibility that goes along with being an
upperclassmen. “That’s the job of the seniors – to step it up,” he said. “We have to show the underclassmen that you have to give it everything you have every day."
Moving along There are times a player will move from the position he’s known to a new spot in the lineup that benefits the team more than him. Hunter McNeely, a 5-8, 250 senior, will be one of those players for Webbers Falls in 2014, moving to center from guard. “When he steps to the line, he’s looking at the nose
guard or linebacker and reading from that,” Corn said. “Last year, Hunter was coming off a serious injury so he didn’t quite get the snaps we were expecting out of him. “Here’s the thing about Hunter. He’s very strong, very smart and he’s going to be a big-time player for us this year.” And what made McNeely more comfortable in the switch was coaching stability. “It means a lot to me,” McNeely said. “We actually have a coach that’s going to stay with us this year instead of going off to another school.” — Ronn Rowland
Page 30 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
A fade to black..... one final look back
Above, Wagoner’s Lawrence Evitt, the MVP of the All-Phoenix team in 2013, rushes for yardage in his final high school game, a Class 4A semifinal loss to Anadarko.
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20
Top, Chandler Puckett, the All-Phoenix team’s Large School Offensive Player of the Year, runs for yardage against Metro Christian in the second round of the Class 3A playoffs. Left, Muskogee’s Tramal Ivy, the Large School Defensive Player of the Year, embarks on a touchdown run against Bixby.
Phoenix file photos
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Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 3
Page 2 — Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014
Muskogee Phoenix
Contents
TEAM PAGES
COVER STORY: Great enrollment divide in Class 6A leads to a division of competition. Page 5
New era at Muskogee, Page 6
Vian set for early showdown, Page 22
Hilldale reloads, Page 9
Ex-Rougher takes Porter reins, Page 27
Wagoner’s ’backers are key to defense,. p. 11
One final look back at 2013, Page 30
Father, son journey winds down at FTG, Page 16
Schedules, Page 23
Checotah’s got the beef, Page 19
VS.
???
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Area rankings, Page 26
• Fun stuff with Q and As: Pages 15 and 18 Add to your enjoyment of the preseason preview by going online for media days press conferences with each team at http:// muskogee phoenix.com/sports
Muskogee, 6 Hilldale, 9 Wagoner, 11 Tahlequah, 12 Sequoyah, 13 Stigler, 14 Keys, 14 Fort Gibson, 16 Checotah, 19 Eufaula, 20 Haskell, 21 Vian, 22 Hulbert, 24 Gore, 24 Warner, 25 Porter, 27 Porum, 28 Midway, 29 Webbers Falls, 29 COVER PHOTO: Muskogee head coach Rafe Watkins and players Quintahj Cherry and Adonis Cole along with the rest of the Roughers are set to break through into a new form of Class 6A football as the biggest league in Oklahoma is split down the middle. MHS cheerleaders Kaytlynn Toney and Cecilia Rodriguez are also pictured. — Photo by Mandy Lundy
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Muskogee Phoenix
Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014 — Page 31
After the regular season:
13
Special photo by John Hasler
Vian’s Eric Casey, the Phoenix’s Small School Offensive Player of the Year, catches a touchdown pass as the Wolverines marched to the Class 2A semifinals in 2013.
6A-2 Jenks (+105) Broken Arrow (+70) Westmoore (+16) Sapulpa (-1) Bixby (-13) Muskogee (-31) Tulsa Edison (-83) Putnam City (-63)
Dist All 7-0 10-0 6-1 8-2 5-2 8-2 3-4 6-4 3-4 6-4 3-4 3-7 1-6 4-6 0-7 2-8
PF 401 366 306 301 289 213 213 207
PA 123 174 181 229 289 382 325 278
Quinton (-14) Gore (-25) Canadian (-51) Haileyville (-90)
3-3 5-4 2-4 2-8 1-5 1-8 0-6 0-10
5A-4 Collinsville (+44) Pryor (+53) Claremore (+27) T. E Central (-20) Coweta (+1) Tulsa Central (-7) Tahlequah (-38) Grove (-60)
Dist 6-1 6-1 5-2 4-3 3-4 2-5 1-6 1-6
All 8-2 7-3 7-3 4-6 4-6 3-7 1-9 2-8
PF 321 299 332 269 269 180 235 221
PA 249 232 282 388 313 259 337 339
4A-3 Wagoner (+96) Oologah (+64) Catoosa (+57) Cleveland (+23) Tulsa McLain (-41) Miami (-55) Vinita (-52) Tulsa Webster (-92)
Dist All 7-0 10-0 6-1 7-3 5-2 7-3 4-3 5-5 3-4 5-5 2-5 3-7 1-6 2-8 0-7 0-10
PF 361 303 289 263 244 206 163 146
PA 176 195 179 280 230 337 231 419
4A-4 Poteau (+78) Cascia Hall (+68) Sallisaw (+62) Fort Gibson (+30) Stilwell (-37) Muldrow (-50) Tulsa Rogers (-80) Broken Bow (-71)
Dist 6-1 6-1 6-1 4-3 3-4 2-5 1-6 0-7
All 9-1 9-1 8-2 6-4 4-6 2-8 3-7 1-9
PF 400 342 361 324 123 155 205 151
PA 187 208 252 212 292 272 338 361
3A-7 Locust Grove (+65) Hilldale (+74) Lincoln Christ (+30) Jay (0) Sequoyah (-19) Keys (-68) Westville (-82)
Dist All 6-0 10-0 5-1 8-2 4-2 6-4 3-3 6-4 2-4 4-6 1-5 1-9 0-6 0-10
PF 499 467 379 260 273 136 122
PA 226 193 324 190 313 439 488
Class 4A First round Wagoner 28, Fort Gibson 7 Quarterfinal Wagoner 28, Woodward 21 Semifinal Anadarko 34, Wagoner 14
3A-8 Checotah (+83) Stigler (+79) Spiro (+51) Roland (-20) Eufaula (+4) Valliant (-57) Idabel (-74) Heavener (-66)
Dist 6-1 6-1 6-1 3-4 3-4 2-5 1-6 1-6
All 9-1 8-2 8-2 6-4 5-5 2-8 1-9 2-7
PF 382 387 293 271 236 105 154 111
PA 148 152 160 236 177 357 407 290
Class 3A First round Hilldale 32, Spiro 7 Checotah 37, Jay 13 Lincoln Christian 41, Stigler 21 Second final Hilldale 14, Metro Christian 12 Beggs 34, Checotah 28 Quarterfinals Seminole 43, Hilldale 28
2A-5 Meeker (+88) Okemah (+48) Stroud (+44) Haskell (0) Mounds (-44) Holdenville (-46) Wellston (-90)
Dist All 6-0 10-0 5-1 8-2 4-2 6-4 3-3 5-5 2-4 6-4 1-5 2-8 0-6 1-9
PF 394 332 222 241 212 186 91
PA 57 186 153 290 220 307 390
2A-6 Vian (+82) Hartshorne (+68) Panama (+16) Hugo (+7) Antlers (-30) Pocola (-53) Wilburton (-90)
Dist All 6-0 10-0 5-1 8-2 4-2 7-3 3-3 7-3 2-4 4-6 1-5 3-7 0-6 0-10
PF 401 423 291 391 235 284 193
PA 76 151 200 230 266 373 602
2A-8 Commerce (+97) Salina (+64) Colcord (+64) Kansas (+15) Wyandotte (-15) Hulbert (-63) Ketchum (-75) Quapaw (-87)
Dist All 7-0 10-0 6-1 8-2 5-2 7-3 4-3 6-4 3-4 5-5 1-6 1-9 1-6 3-7 1-6 1-9
PF 412 334 341 346 299 97 180 94
PA 129 124 100 225 240 366 357 456
A-6 Talihina (+90) Savanna (+52) Cent Sallisaw (+38)
Dist All 6-0 10-0 5-1 8-2 4-2 5-5
PF PA 472 108 370 114 272 249
180 157 118 81
220 337 316 488
A-8 Afton (+79) Summit Christ (+59) Warner (+37) Fairland (-4) Porter (-32) Liberty (-60) Foyil (-79)
Dist 6-0 5-1 4-2 3-3 2-4 1-5 0-6
All 9-1 9-1 6-4 4-5 3-7 1-9 1-9
PF 414 387 259 156 117 110 147
PA 101 153 189 238 281 381 333
B-4 Wetumka (+127) Keota (+82) Davenport (+81) Dewar (+44) Weleetka (+27) Strother (-26) Porum (-44) Cave Springs (-51) Gans (-108) Bowlegs (-132)
Dist All 9-0 10-0 7-2 8-2 7-2 8-2 7-2 7-3 5-4 5-5 4-5 5-5 3-6 4-6 2-7 3-7 1-8 2-8 0-9 0-10
PF 516 525 435 372 346 436 280 396 150 52
PA 196 260 131 258 340 398 376 442 442 543
C-4 Thackerville (+105) Arkoma (+59) Sasakwa (+21) SW Covenant (+12) Webbers Falls (-16) Maud (-1) Midway (-75) Bokoshe (-105)
Dist 7-0 5-2 5-2 4-3 3-4 3-4 1-6 0-7
PF 454 469 434 414 306 372 217 129
PA 82 295 339 289 277 286 539 457
All 9-0 7-3 7-3 6-4 4-5 5-5 1-9 1-8
Then the playoffs:
Class 2A First round Vian 40, Haskell 14 Second round Vian 41, Salina 20 Quarterfinals Vian 21, Hennessey 20 Semifinals Davis 56, Vian 39 Class 2A First round Keifer 52, Warner 0
2014 Prep Football Preview
Breakup of the big boys: Muskogee finds itself with a more common enemy as Class 6A splits in half ALSO: Special features, 19 area team breakdowns, staff predictions