Sources: Brown to take over at Booker T. Washington

1/26/2020 |  Ben Johnson

Booker T. Washington’s head-coaching vacancy didn’t last long. The Tulsa World reported that Brad Calip would be vacating his post as Hornets head coach for an assistant coaching job at Owasso on Sunday.

On Monday, Tulsa Public Schools is expected to formally announce Jonathan Brown as the Hornets new head coach at Booker T. Washington, according to multiple sources. Brown will be elevated from his current defensive coordinator role.

Calip leaves after going 32-15 during a four-year run as head coach. During that time, Booker T. Washington won the 2017 Class 6AIi state championship.

Brown is a former Booker T. Washington standout who graduated in 1994. He played college football at Tennessee and spent time during his professional career in both the NFL and Canadian Football League.

WRESTLING: All-State rosters announced

3/12/2019 |  Ben Johnson

The Oklahoma Coaches Association announced the 2019 All-State wrestling rosters on Tuesday morning.

Here are the rosters and some notes on the honorees:

Large East

113: David Boucher (Bartlesville)

120: Laif Jones (Bartlesville)

126: Ty Nohelty (McAlester)

132: Reece Witcraft (Broken Arrow) - Two-time state champion headed to Oklahoma State

138: Spencer Schickram (Ponca City) - Won the Class 6A 138 title this season

145: Gage Hight (Glenpool) - Finished as a three-time runner-up for the Warriors 

152: Ja’len Hernandez (Union) 

160: Scott Patton (Sand Springs) - Runner-up at 6A 152

170: Isaac Strain (Tahlequah)

182: Talon Borror (Coweta) - Three-time state champion headed to Oklahoma

195: Elijah Tomlin (Union)

220: Korbin McLaughlin (Skiatook) - The 5A 220 champion this season to help Skiatook split the 5A state title with Collinsville

HWT: Caleb Orr (Jenks) - Runner-up in 6A heavyweight this season

Large West

113: Dominic Derr (Westmoore)

120: Jayston Cato (Carl Albert) - Runner-up at 5A 120 this season

126: Mitchell Lance (Piedmont) - Third place finish at 5A 126 this season

132: Colt Newton (Choctaw) - Finished third at 6A 132 this season 

138: Cameron Picklo (Mustang) - Finished third at 138 this season

145: Kobi Gomez (Altus) - State champion at 5A 138 this season

152: Hunter Jump (Duncan) - State champion at 5A 160 after winning a state title at Lawton Mac as a junior

160: Rene Martinez (Putnam City) - Runner-up at 6A 160 this season

170: Zane Coleman (Choctaw) - Arizona State signee became a four-time state champion this season

182: Christian Maldonado (Lawton Mac) - State champion at 5A 170 this season

195: Carson Savage (Deer Creek) - Runner-up at 6A 195 this season

220: Jake McCoy (Edmond North) - Runner-up at 6A 220 this season

HWT: Josh Heindselman (Piedmont) - Became a two-time state champion by winning the 5A heavyweight crown this season

Small East

113: Kaleb Harris (Sallisaw)

120: Luke Montgomery (Bristow) - Finishied third at 4A 120 this season

126: Thaddeus Long (McLain) - Became the Titans’ first state champion since 1976 with a title at 4A 126

132: Wesley Scott (Pawnee) - Runner-up at 3A 132 this season

138: Price Perrier (Pawhuska) - Runner-up at 3A 138 this season

145: Trystian Shireman (Wagoner) - Finished third at 4A 138 this season

152: Hadyn Redus (Perry) - State champion at 3A 152 this season

160: Jacob Ahrberg (Cushing) - State champion at 4A 160 this season

170: Cade Shropshire (Checotah) - Two-time state champion for the Wildcats with the 3A 160 chamionship this season

182: River Simon (Vian) - Became a two-time state champion by winning the 3A 182 title this season

195: Eriq Simpson (Cushing) - Runner-up at 4A 195 this season

220: Drake Barbee (Blackwell) - State champion at 3A 195 this season

HWT: Teaguen Wilson (Perry) - Runner-up at 3A heavyweight this season

Small West

113: Remington White (Walters) - Former state champion was the 3A runner-up at 113 this season

120: Jaxon Miller (Comanche)

126: Logan Farrell (Tuttle) - Runner-up at 4A 126 this season

132: Kolton Smith (Bridge Creek) - Became the Bobcats’ first state champion by winning the 3A 126 title this season

138: Kobey Kizarr (Marlow) - State champion at 3A 138 this season

145: Val Park (Heritage Hall) - Became a three-time state champion by winning 4A 138 title this season

152: Alec McDoulett (Little Axe) - Runner-up at 3A 152 this season

160: Tyler Lavey (Marlow) - Runner-up at 3A 160 this season

170: Ethon Hamrick (Comanche) 

182: Denver Dahlenburg (Hinton) 

195: Carson Berryhill (Tuttle) - Won a second straight state championship by winning 4A 195 title this season

220: Cameron Gregg (Pauls Valley)

HWT: Ruben Guiterrez (Clinton) - Finished third at 4A heavyweight this season

**Photo courtesy of Austin Bernard/Owrestle.com

STATE TOURNAMENT WRESTLING: Complete class-by-class roundup

2/25/2019 |  Ben Johnson

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Zane Coleman stepped off the podium and started fielding multiple requests. Everyone inside Jim Norick Arena wanted to snap a photo with the newest member of the four-time state champion club.
The Choctaw senior joined the exclusive membership with a 1-0 victory over Broken Arrow’s Bryce Mattioda, making it 37 wrestlers to be share the lofty accomplishment.
“It’s unbelievable,” said Coleman, the 170-pound senior who did it with his dad, Benny Coleman, coaching him to all four championships. “I dreamed about this forever, and now that it’s come true I couldn’t be happier.”
Finishing as Class 6A’s Most Outstanding Wrestler of the state tournament capped Coleman’s career and wrapped up a 41-1 season. He’ll soon depart for Tempe, Arizona, where he’ll join the Arizona Sun Devils program.
“They have a great coaching staff,” Zane Coleman said, “and I think we’re the No. 2 recruiting class right now, so we have good things coming.”

Class 3A wrap-up

Perry wins another title; Bridge Creek claims first individual crowns

The state’s preeminent wrestling program did what it normally does to end each wrestling season: pose with a trophy to memorialize another team championship. For Perry, that’s now 43 team championships. The closest to the Maroons? Tuttle and Midwest City with 16.
“It’s pretty awesome to win as a team,” Perry’s Ryan Smith told the Stillwater NewsPress. “Since I’ve been a freshman, we’ve won every year. All of my teammates did what they’re supposed to do.”
Smith picked up one of three individual championships for the Maroons. Smith beat Walters’ Remington White, 4-2, to capture the 113 title. Dylan Avery (132) and Hadyn Redus (152) claimed the Maroons other two championships.
- Smith, DePron lead Bridge Creek: The Bridge Creek Bobcats had waited long enough, so Kolton Smith made sure to make quick of his opponent. Smith, at 126 pounds, pinned Marlow’s Anthony Orum in 58 seconds to claim Bridge Creek’s first individual championship.
Then Kolby DePron followed at 145 with another title, picking up a 10-8 victory over Geary’s Landon Holt to double up the Bobcats’ hardward in one evening.
“It feels insane,” DePron said. “I don’t think it’s sunk in yet. … I hardly remember the match. Just an adrenaline rush; I went out and barfed everywhere.”
- Marlow finishes second: Perry was too far out of reach, but Marlow still made plenty of noise in the championship matches on Saturday night. Tyler Lawson (106) picked up a title with a 6-2 over Vian’s Braylen Rodgers, and Kobey KIzarr pinned Pawhuska’s Price Perrier at 6:57 to pick up the Outlaws second title.
Perry topped the 3A leaderboard with Marlow in second place with 91 points.
- Other 3A titles: Vinita’s Alex Prince won the 120 crown with an 8-3 win over Newkirk’s Dayton Cary. Sperry’s Bryce Carter beat Comanche’s Cade Cook 6-4 at 170 pounds. Blackwell’s Drake Barbee (182) pinned Inola’s Brody Jenkins at 2:33.
All three became first-time champions.
Checotah’s Cade Shrosphire beat Marlow’s Tyler Lavey, 3-2, in an ultimate tiebreaker. Vian’s River Simon (182) pinned Perry’s Kohl Owen at 3:41. Comanche’s Konner Doucet picked up a 15-0 technical fall over Berryhill’s Nico Lopez for the 220 crown, and Davis’ Cooper Webb won the heavyweight crown by pinning Perry’s Teaguan Wilson at 1:20. All four became repeat champions. It was the second for Shrosphire, Simon and Webb, and Doucet picked up his third in three years. He’ll attempt to become a four-time state champion as a senior next season.

Class 4A wrap-up

Long breaks McLain’s title drought; Tuttle picks up title No. 16

McLain’s TJ Long put the Titans back on the wrestling map at State Fair Arena. In perhaps the match of the night, Long went back and forth with Tuttle’s Logan Farrell in the 126-pound title bout before ultimately picking up a 12-10 win in sudden victory.
It was McLain’s first individual championship since 1977 (Greg Hawkins at 178 pounds).
“It sounds like I just wrote my name in the record books,” Long said.
Long, last year’s runner-up at 126 pounds, capped his senior season at 36-0.
“I lost in the finals last year,” Long said. “And I said, ‘that’s not happening this year. I’m known for clutch situations, so I was like, ‘I got this.’”
- Tuttle wins again: There was never a doubt -- even before the weekend started -- as to who would claim the 4A championship. Tuttle made it look easy again, claiming 229 points to cruise to its 16th championship in its program’s history.
“I transferred to Tuttle my eighth grade year to experience this, and it’s great,” said Plott, ranked third nationally at 170 pounds. “The group of guys we have right now is like a family. We hang out a lot, and we’re all really close.”
Garrett Steidley (113), Ryder Ramsey (132), Brady DeArmond (145), Luke Surber (152), Plott and Carson Berryhill (195) each picked up individual crowns for the Tigers. Reese Davis (120), Farrell (126), Bryce Dauphin (138), Harley Andrews (160) and Kavan Guffey (182) were all runners-up at their respective weights.
-- Cascia Hall sophomore Eli Griffin picked up a 9-1 major decision win over Cushing Luke Ahrberg for his second title in two years. The Commandos have claimed at least one individual title every year since Mike Bizzle won the school’s first in 2002.
-- Heritage Hall’s Val Park beat Dauphin 3-0 for his third consecutive championship. He became the school’s fourth wrestler to win at least three individual championships, with Rodrick Mosley being the most recent with his title at 152 last season.
-- Cushing picked it first individual championships since 2014. Jacob Ahrberg finished the season 26-0 with a 9-8 win over Tuttle’s Harley Andrews. Gage Hockett followed at 182 and beat Tuttle’s Kavan Guffey 3-2 in an tiebreaker. Hockett finished the season 32-0.
-- Bristow’s Luke Fortney pinned Poteau’s Seth Ford at 3:06 to claim the 220 championship, Bristow’s first since 2007.
-- Other 4A champions included Wagoner’s Braden Drake (120) and Blanchard’s Ryder Wiese at heavyweight.

Class 5A wrap-up

Collinsville, Skiatook split 5A title; Borror wins for a 3rd time

The pressure was sitting squarely on Korbin McLaughlin’s shoulders. The Skiatook senior needed a victory at 220 pounds for the Bulldogs to have a chance at the Class 5A championship.
Collinsville was leading Skiatook 137 to 133, and a win by decision by McLaughlin would be enough to pull the Bulldogs even. Anything better than that would give Skiatook the championship outright, two weeks after celecrating a dual state title in Shawnee.
McLaughlin wound up beating Claremore’s Seth Seago, 4-1, meaning Skiatook and Collinsville both left Jim Norick Arena with first-place honors.
Collinsville finished with four individual champions, including junior Caleb Tanner (132) beating Skiatook’s Cody Francis, 9-0, for his third title in three years. Two Cardinal freshmen claimed their first titles: Cameron Steed (106) and Jordan Williams (113). Rocky Stephens (120) followed with a title by posting an 8-0 win over Carl Albet’s Jayston Cato.
Skiatook sophomore Josh Taylor (126) picked up his second championship in as many seasons with a 9-3 win over Collinsville’s Jordan Cullors. Then the Bulldogs’ Cougar Anderson capped an unbeaten season (38-0) by pinning Piedmont’s Landis Scoon at 4:36 for the 152 crown.
For Collinsville, it’s the Cardinals’ second straight championship, and Skiatook claimed its first title since 1987.
- Borror bests 182 field: Piedmont’s Austin Cooley jumped out to an early lead against Coweta’s Talon Borror. But Borror didn’t let that last long, rallying to pin Cooley at 2:43 to pick up his third consecutive championship.
“There’s a lot of hard work that goes into it,” Borror said. “Now it’s time call it a career.”
Well, high school career, that is. Borror wrapped up his senior varsity stint at 38-2 and now will head to Norman and join the Sooners.
“We’re building a good team and have a lot of good recruits coming in,” Borror said. “Looking to make a run at the top.”
- Hicks prevails for Durant’s 1st title: Durant’s Cody Hicks trailed early on, but he rallied for a 6-4 win over Glenpool’s Gage Hight. Now Hicks will forever be known as the first Durant wrestler to win an individual championship for the Lions.
And he celebrated accordingly by jumping into his brother’s arms.
“He’s eight years older than me, and he’s always worked with us,” Hicks said of his brother, Colby. “(To jump into his arms) was an amazing moment.”
-- Other 5A champions included Altus’ Kobi Gomez (138), Lawton Mac’s Christiain Maldonado (170) and Matthew Santos (195) and Duncan’s Hunter Jump (160), a former champion at Lawton Mac before moving to Duncan.
Piedmont’s Josh Heindselman, named 5A's most outstanding wrestler, also picked up his second state championship at heavyweight by pinning Lawton Mac’s Montana Phillips at 3:13.

Class 6A wrap-up

Tigers back on top with 6A crown; Mustang nabs 4 titles

If there’s ever a constant about Class 6A, it’s that the teams like to pass around the team championship. Sure enough, it was Broken Arrow’s turn again with the Tigers claiming their first crown since 2015.
Broken Arrow was the lone 6A team to crack the 100-point barrier and compiled 158 points by weekend’s end. Mustang was second with 96, and Choctaw was third at 75.
The Tigers’ Jackson Cockrell (113) and Jared Hill (120) both lost in the finals before Reece Witcraft registered Broken Arrow’s first individual title at 132. Witcraft toppled Owasso’s Zeke Washington -- for the second week in a row -- with a 6-3 decision for his second straight state championship.
Broken Arrow sophomore Emmanuel Skillings (182) nabbed his first championship with a 5-1 victory over Owasso’s Taylor Fleming, and then Zach Marcheselli (220) etched his name into the Oklahoma record book with his fourth state championship. He made history by beating Edmond North’s Jake McCoy 10-4 in his final varsity match.
For Broken Arrow, that’s now two four-time state champions after Brandon Tucker accomplished the feat from 2000 to 2003.
- Mustang crowns 4: Mustang threw the biggest party on the outskirts of the 6A mat inside State Fair Arena on Saturday night. It had been since 2005 that the Broncos snared an individual state championship, so Mustang made sure to celebrate accordingly for each of the four titles.
Tucker Owens (113) claimed Mustang’s first title with a 9-0 victory over Cockrell of Broken Arrow. Then John Wiley, the No. 4 seed out of the West Regional, picked up a 5-1 win over Stillwater’s Carter Young for title No. 2 for Mustang.
Tate Picklo followed at 160 and pinned Putnam City’s Rene Martinez to cap off an unbeaten 43-0 season. The Broncos’ final state title was courtesy of Judson Rowland and his last-second, 11-10 win over Deer Creek’s Carson Savage.
-- Choctaw claimed three individual championships. Coleman won at 170, Gabe Johnson (145) knocked off Deer Creek’s Micah Lugafet, 9-4, and heavyweight Marquonn Journey beat Jenks’ Caleb Orr, 3-1.
- Other 6A champions included:
-- Bixby’s Zach Blankenship: Won the 120 title as a freshman with a pin of Broken Arrow’s Jared Hill at 5:12.
-- Ponca City’s Spencer Schickram picked up the 138 title with a 10-0 major decision over Broken Arrow’s Blake Gonzalez.
-- Jenks junior Drake Vannoy picked up his second championship by beating Sand Springs’ Scott Patton, 5-1.

Zero Week notebook: Several coaches debut at new schools, pick up victories

8/27/2018 |  Ben Johnson

Wardogs win in Gardner's debut

It took 17 years, but a Miami coach won his coaching debut on Friday night. Zach Gardner, at the helm in Miami after going 96-32 in 11 season at Afton, guided the Wardogs to a 24-10 victory over Claremore Sequoyah.

Shawn Booth was the last Miami coach to win in his debut back in 2001.

"Sure everyone wants to win each week, but as a staff we knew it was crucial to win early," Gardner said. "We have had these kids grinding since June. This just shows their efforts are paying off."

Miami and Claremore Sequoyah were tied a 10 at halftime, but the Wardogs' Gavin Payton found Jordan Freeman for a 21-yard touchdown pass with 6:03 left in the third quarter.

Caden Folks punctuated Miami's scoring with a 2-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. Folks, Payton and Freeman combined to rush for 192 yards and two touchdowns.

"Our skill guys played very well throughout the night," Gardner said. "I strongly felt we were winning in the trenches through the way our kids took over in the second half."

Miami will host Jay on Friday night, and Claremore Sequoyah will be at Hilldale.

Guthrie wins big

Guthrie's defense made life miserable for Enid in the Bluejays' 57-19 rout at D. Bruce Selby Stadium on Friday night.

Guthrie jumped out in front early on Campbell Leach's 46-yard fumble return for a touchdown. Then Cale Coffman cashed in a 70-yard fumble return for a score, after Leach stripped Enid's Will Phillips of the ball.

Leading the way for Guthrie (1-0) was strong safety J.D. Coonfield, who had a 74-yard interception return for a touchdown to go along with one sack, one tackle for loss, two pass break-ups and 16 tackles.

On offense, Brody Hinkle had six catches for 121 yards and a touchdown for Guthrie.

"Good team win," Guthrie coach Kelly Beeby said. "But you can't read too much into week zero non-district games."

Riggs, Trojans take down Bixby

Keith Riggs became the second Jenks head coach to lead the Trojans since 1996. After Allan Trimble's 22-year run of going 251-42, Riggs took over for his mentor and led Class 6A No. 4 Jenks to a 28-14 victory over Bixby at Lee Snider Stadium.

The Trojans (1-0), who started 0-4 last season, scored the game's first two touchdowns on a 65-yard score by Dreysen Watters and a 25-yard TD strike from Ian Corwin to Braden Phipps.

Bixby (0-1) answered with Mason Williams' 34-yard touchdown pass to Cade Cavender, and the Spartans were with 14-7 at halftime.

But Jenks struck again for two more score to increase its lead in the second half.

Noah Hernandez had a 15-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, and he followed with a 13-yard TD scamper in the fourth.

Bixby's final score came on Williams' 17-yard TD strike to Cavender.

Watters and Hernandez combined for 163 yards on 25 carries for the Trojans.

Pirates double up El Reno

Poteau and El Reno were in desperate need of a game to fill out their 2018 schedule. And just like that, a matchup was born.

Turns out, Class 4A No. 3 Poteau benefited the most with a 38-19 victory over El Reno at Costner Stadium.

"We both had scheduling issues and we both needed a game so I said what the heck, might as well play," Poteau coach Forrest Mazey said. "I would rather do that then play nine games."

The Pirates (1-0) claimed a victory thanks to quarterback Jace Pitchford going 13 of 24 for 259 yards and three touchdowns. He had touchdown throws of 62, 37 and 17 yards to Todd Mattox, Easton Francis and Cameron Duncan, respectively.

"I think our kids found a way to win with guts," Mazey said. "We didn't play great in all facets of the game, but they found a way to get it done when it counted."

Poteau made El Reno (0-1) pay by forcing three Indian turnovers on fumbles.

"Very impressive," Mazey said of his defense. "They always have a good game plan, and they did a great job executing it."

Sirleaf, Conquerors coast past McLain

Josh Sirleaf knows how work. Victory Christian coach Dub Maddox can easily verify that.

Sirleaf, a senior wideout for Victory Christian, caught three passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns in the Conquerors' 52-6 win over McLain on Friday night.

"Josh showed up every day in the summer for workouts, and then went to work every day with his family landscaping and cleaning business," Maddox said of Sirleaf, who also recorded three interceptions on defense. "He knows how to work and that carries over on the football field. He's pound for pound one of the strongest players I have coached."

With 10 seconds left in the first quarter, Sirleaf scored Victory Christan's first touchdown on a 54-yard pass from Garrett Williams. Sirleaf would later score on a touchdown grab of 98 yards late in the second quarter.

Williams finished with 355 yards and five touchdowns while completing 7 of 11 passes.

"Have a week zero game can pose some challenges with losing an extra week of practice," Maddox said. "I thought our players handled it well."

The victory is Maddox's first after he left his offensive coordinator job at Jenks to replace Ron Smith in south Tulsa.

"I never focused on that going into the game," Maddox said of getting his first head-coaching victory. "I was just excited to see some of our hard work and preparation come to life on the field."

Pauls Valley prevails

With time running down, Pauls Valley's Tyce Davidson came up with an interception to secure the Panthers' 19-18 win over Lindsay on Friday.

The win was Pauls Valley's first under first-year head coach Dusty Raper.

Quarterback Jack Grimmett paced Pauls Valley's offense with 28 carries for 205 yards and a touchdown. The Panthers rushed for 329 yards as a team on 56 carries.

The Panthers' other two touchdowns were courtesy of runs by Jacob McElhaney.

Pauls Valley was forced to punt with a minute left in the game, but Lindsay picked up only one first down before the Panthers logged back-to-back sacks before Davison's interception.

Hipp, Hominy hold on

Jacob Bruce was a one-man wrecking crew for Hulbert at Rider Field on Friday night. The senior tailback rushed for 321 yards and four touchdowns on 24 carries, in addition to two touchdowns on kickoff returns.

But Class A No. 4 Hominy managed to hang on and beat Hulbert 58-41 in a high-scoring affair.

"Hulbert is a good football team," Hominy coach Caleb Christian said. "We are blessed and fortunate to leave with a win."

Luckily for Hominy (1-0), it had Blake Hipp leading the way. The senior quarterback completed 7 of 14 passes for 290 yards and five touchdowns, plus 84 yards and three touchdowns on 11 carries.

"Blake Hipp is a coach's dream at quarterback," Christian said. "Tough player that knows the offense and leads the team at a high level."

Bruce scored on a 6-yard touchdown run with 1:13 left before halftime to trim Hominy's lead to 32-29, but that's as close at Hulbert (0-1) would get the rest of the way.

Hipp responded 57 seconds later with a 51-yard touchdown pass to Clifford Hayes to give the Bucks a 40-29 halftime lead.

In the end, Hominy had 583 yards on offense.

"Our offensive line is the backbone of our offense," Christian said. "They hang their hat on being physical and being in shape."

Class 4A preview

7/6/2018 |  Ben Johnson

Look back at 2017

2017 district champs

4A-1: Heritage Hall - Everyone should have seen it coming from the start. Heritage Hall took down John Marshall -- who went on to win the Class 3A title -- in the first week of the season, and the Chargers just stampeded their way through 4A-1, as well. Clinton came the closest to knocking off Heritage Hall, 28-24, in week four but Heritage Hall ended up polishing off a 14-0 campaign with a title game victory over Ada.

4A-2: Ada - The Cougars endured some brutal losses to Ardmore and Carl Albert in non-district play, but it prepared Ada for what was up ahead in 4A-2 play. The Cougars' only blemish in district competition was to Tuttle, but Ada ended up knocking off Blanchard for the tiebreaker at the end of the year when both finished atop the standings. Then Ada went on to knock off Oologah in the quarterfinals, and the Cougars marched all the way to the title game, where Heritage Hall ended up prevailing.

4A-3: Wagoner - Few figured there'd be many teams to stand between Wagoner and Heritage Hall ultimately meeting in the 4A title game. The Bulldogs owned the state's longest winning streak (48) after another unbeaten run through 4A-3 and a first round playoff victory over Poteau. But trouble arrived in the form of Blanchard, who ended the Bulldogs' unbeaten run at Odom Stadium.

4A-4: Hilldale - The Hornets were another east power that figured to challenge the likes of Wagoner and Heritage Hall late in the playoffs. After all, Hilldale breezed through 4A-4 for the district crown, but Bethany rallied and took down Hilldale in the quarterfinals.

 

Talking title game: Heritage Hall 14, Ada 0

Quarterback Blake Adams found Conner Casey for a 10-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter, and from there the Chargers' defense secured Heritage Hall's sixth state championship and third in the four seasons. Adams added a 3-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, and it was plenty with the Charger defense forcing two Ada interceptions while limiting the Cougars to 193 total yards.

On to 2018...

Players to watch

- Bryce Madron (Blanchard): Even as a sophomore, Madron was instrumental for the Lions on offense in 2017. Blanchard finished 11-2 and it was Madron who shouldered a bulk of the load on offense with 1,316 yards and 21 touchdowns on 200 carries.

- Jaxon Ratterree (Weatherford): Ratterree will head into his junior season after completing 87 of 153 passes for 1,274 yards and nine touchdowns last year.
- Schyler Adair (Wagoner): Partnered with Nikia Jones on offense, Adair did his work on the ground for the Bulldogs in 2017. He rushed for 1,231 yards and 14 touchdowns on 158 carries.

- Sam Brandt (Bethany): Taking over the quarterback reins, Brandt became a star for the Bronchos. He passed for 1,290 yards and 16 touchdowns with a 57 completion percentage, and he tacked on 964 yards and nine touchdowns on 174 carries. And for good measure, he piled up 76 tackles and six interceptions on defense.