Week Five 6A-II rankings and predictions; a look at this weekend's games

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Photo: Morgan Miller

By: Sandite Pride Editorial Board

No. 1 Bixby Spartans (Last week No. 1) vs No. 3 Muskogee Roughers (3)

It's the marquee match-up for week six of High School football as two of the top teams in the State ride dominating performances into a district game of playoff-level intensity. 

The Spartans (2-2, 0-0) have yet to begin district play and just wrapped up the toughest pre-conference schedule of Class 6A-II. In week two they gave 6A-I No. 1 Jenks (5-0) their closest game of the year, losing 38-34. The next week they lost 44-34 to Arkansas 7A State Runners-Up Bentonville (3-1) and finally got in the win column with a dominating 56-20 performance over Putnam City (3-1, 1-0). This week they really proved just how powerful they are as they steamrolled 6A-I No. 4 Westmoore (3-1) 70-28 in an incredible performance that featured two 90+ yard kickoff returns for touchdown. Tanner Griffin's passing was off for the evening, completing only 9 of 22 for 96 yards and 1 touchdown against 2 interceptions. But the run game was dominant as Tucker Pawley carried 19 times for 268 yards and 3 touchdowns. Griffin had two touchdown runs and 46 yards on 5 carries, while Braden Roller added another touchdown and 66 yards on 5 carries.

The Roughers (4-0, 1-0) have had a fairly weak schedule thus far, with the exception of a close 16-12 win over Midwest City (2-2, 1-0), but when they go up against lesser competition, it's a blow-out. They've won their last three games by an average score of 59-11, and they notched their first district win Friday with a 63-6 shutdown of Bartlesville (1-3, 0-1). Running back Molijah Gilbert finished with 16 carries for 184 yards and two touchdowns. QB Jacob Medrano completed 11 of 20 passes for 197 yards and no interceptions.

The pick: Bixby 38 Muskogee 28

No. 2 Booker T Washington Hornets (2) vs No. 15 Sapulpa Chieftains (14)

The Hornets (3-2, 1-0) had an easy start to district play with the Ponca City Wildcats (1-3, 0-1) and rolled to a dominating 47-0 shutout victory. In the past two seasons, the Hornet offense regularly routed their opponents by massive margins, but this year it still remains to be seen just how powerful they'll be against quality opponents. They barely got the 21-14 edge on Midwest City (2-2, 1-0) and lost 26-23 to Edmond Santa Fe (4-1, 1-0). After going down 49-7 to the Nationally ranked No. 2 IMG Academy (5-0) they've since been unstoppable with a 43-6 win over Shawnee and the victory against Ponca. They won't get their first real test till they take on Muskogee next week, but first they have to get past Sapulpa. Rylan McQuarters led the run game against Ponca with 8 carries for 82 yards, followed by Tyler Holmes with 15 carries for 71 yards and a touchdown. Two other running backs scored touchdowns in the rout, and double-threat QB Phillip Wheatley was 15 of 22 in the air for 214 yards and a touchdown, with no interceptions.

Sapulpa (0-4, 0-1) still looks to get in the win column this season after dropping their rivalry game to Sand Springs 35-7. The Chieftains failed to make headway through the air as QB Cameron Elder was only 8 of 13 for 53 yards with no touchdowns and an interception, but the ground game was alive and well. Elder carried 12 times for 59 yards and a touchdown. Dayton Vann also had 59 yards from 11 carries, and Marcus Henderson carried 8 times for 67 yards. 

The pick: Booker T 56 Sapulpa 3

No. 4 Midwest City Bombers (4) vs No. 9 Deer Creek Antlers (12)

The Midwest City Bombers (2-2, 1-0) have won or lost every game this season by a touchdown or less and notched their first district win of the season 20-17 over Lawton (1-3, 0-1) Friday night at home. QB Preston Colbert was 8 of 12 for 139 yards and a touchdown. Astin Anderson was the workhorse for the Bombers and carried 38 times for 133 yards. Earlier this season they fell 16-12 to Muskogee (4-0) and 21-14 to Booker T Washington (3-2), two of the top three teams in the division. They got in the win column two weeks ago with a 28-21 victory over 5A Del City (2-2).

The Antlers (1-3, 1-0) got their first win of the season with a 21-14 upset over Stillwater (2-2, 0-1) Friday night at a game in which they were the 18-point underdogs. QB Hunter Freese passed for 190 yards and the bulk of the Antler offense. The run game only accounted for 87 yards. Deer Creek may only have one win, but their losses were to quality 6A-I programs. 52-13 to Southmoore (3-1), 47-31 to Edmond Santa Fe (4-1), and 48-31 to Edmond Memorial (3-2).

The pick: Midwest City 23 Deer Creek 14

No. 6 Putnam City Pirates (7) vs No. 7 Lawton Wolverines (5)

While Bixby at Muskogee is the biggest game of District 2, Lawton vs. Putnam City is equally huge for District 1. The Wolverines (1-3, 0-1) and Pirates (3-1, 1-0) both have a lot to prove going into week two of districts. While Lawton was edged out 20-17 by Midwest City (2-2, 1-0), the Pirates got the 36-32 edge on Choctaw (2-2, 0-1). Putnam's only loss this season was 56-20 to Bixby (2-2), while Lawton's only win this season was 62-37 over in-town rival Lawton Eisenhower (1-3).

Lawton demonstrated a powerful aerial assault against Midwest City as QB Zach Hannah completed 11 of 18 passes for 228 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions. The running game was almost nonexistent, however, as Tre Curry carried 19 times for a mere 60 yards and one touchdown. Curry has proven his abilities in the past with a 201 yard performance against Eisenhower and a 311 yard performance in a 56-41 loss to 5A Carl Albert (4-0). The Wolverines are clearly a double threat team, meaning the Putnam defense will need to be sharp on their toes to keep the scoring in check. Lawton's offense averages 415 yards and 5 touchdowns per game this season. Putnam's defense is stout, however, and averages 3 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries, and 2 interceptions per game this season. 

The Putnam offense has ran up the yards this season, led by QB AJ Newsome in the air and RB Damon Jemison on the ground. Newsome is only 32 of 82 this season with 6 interceptions, exacerbated by a 6 of 24 performance against the killer Bixby defense which picked off four passes. But he holds 871 yards and 9 touchdowns to pad his resume. Jemison has rushed 78 times this year for only 259 yards. The Lawton defense isn't as tight on the run game as Putnam, but if the Pirates rely on the pass as they have for most of the season, they might find trouble in a team that averages 2 interceptions per game. 

The pick: Putnam City 28 Lawton 26

No. 5 Sand Springs Sandites (6) vs Yukon Millers

The Sandites (2-2, 1-0) won their first district game with a 35-7 rout of Highway 97 rival Sapulpa (0-4, 0-1), and will play their final non-district game this weekend against 6A-I Yukon (0-4). Sand Springs started off with a big 56-21 loss to Arkansas powerhouse Pulaski Academy (3-1) and were upset in week two 45-41 by Choctaw (2-2, 0-1), but got in the win column with a close 29-24 victory against Putnam West (3-1, 1-0). RB Payton Scott accounts for the majority of the Sandite offense with 183 carries for 687 yards and 7 touchdowns, while QB Hunter Greathouse is 42 of 90 for 601 yards and 4 touchdowns by air and 4 touchdowns on the ground. 

Yukon has yet to even come close to a win this season, falling 42-20 to Mustang (3-1), 55-7 to Norman North (4-0), 38-7 to Southmoore (38-7), and 33-9 to Broken Arrow (2-2). The Millers held a tough schedule with nothing but ranked 6A-I powerhouses and that experience could give them an edge on the Sandites who have played only one powerhouse team this year. 

The pick: Sand Springs 38 Yukon 13.

No. 8 Putnam City West Patriots (8) vs No. 11 Stillwater Pioneers (10)

The Patriots (3-1, 1-0) haven't had a winning season since 2000 and they're looking to change that in 2016. After beating Duncan (2-2) 43-14 and Putnam North (1-3) 16-5, the Patriots experienced their first loss of the season 29-24 at the Sandites' (2-2) home-opener. They didn't let that hiccup slow them down, and rebounded with a dominating 35-10 district victory over Enid (1-3, 0-1). 

Stillwater (2-2, 0-1) started with one seriously tough pre-district schedule and secured a pair of high quality wins against ranked 6A-I opponents, before giving up a big upset this week. They won their season opener against Edmond Memorial (3-2) 24-7, then lost 16-7 to Moore (2-2) before netting another big win over Mustang (3-1) at 36-24. The Pioneers clearly have what it takes to win big games against big opponents, but after falling 21-14 to Deer Creek at home, they're going to need to buckle down and secure some district wins if they want a shot at their first State Championship since 1967. The Pioneers are led on the ground by Josiah Castleberry who has already ran over 600 yards thus far this season. 

The pick: Putnam West 33 Stillwater 29

No. 10 Choctaw Yellowjackets (9) vs No. 12 Enid Plainsmen (13)

Choctaw (2-2, 0-1) is still struggling to find its place in the rankings, starting strong with 52-42 and 45-41 wins over Sapulpa (0-4) and Sand Springs (2-2), respectively, but falling 17-14 to Putnam City North (1-3) and 36-32 to Putnam City (3-1, 1-0). The Yellowjackets are true to their name when it comes to offense, hammering their opponents from the air, but just can't seem to get their defense rolling. QB Dylan Weaver is 64 of 107 for 864 yards this season.

Enid (1-3, 0-1) was edged out 22-19 in the season opener by Guthrie (2-2) and got in the win column in week two with a 42-31 victory over Ponca City (1-3, 0-1), but hasn't come close since. They were dominated in week three 44-14 by Bishop McGuinness (3-1) and shut down 25-10 last week by Putnam West (3-1, 1-0). 

The pick: Choctaw 40 Enid 10

No. 13 Bartlesville Bruins (11) vs No. 14 Ponca City Wildcats (15)

Bartlesville (1-3, 0-1) and Ponca (1-3, 0-1) are both in precarious spots this season with a single win apiece and one of the two destined to be 0-2 in district play after this Friday's meet. The Bruins' lone win was a close 27-24 over McAlester (2-2) while Ponca blanked Guthrie (2-2) 9-0. 

The Bruins were utterly dominated 63-6 at the hands of Muskogee (4-0) last week, while the Wildcats were shut out 47-0 by Booker T Washington (3-2). Bartlesville has shuffled through three quarterbacks this year after starter Garrett Meidl was out with a knee injury and Will Walton and AJ Archambo both tried out the position. Meidl returned to action against Muskogee but was held to a mere 10 completions on 24 attempts for 59 yards. Ponca QB Brice McDougal has a solid record this season with 58 completions on 104 passes for 729 yards and only 3 interceptions. 

The pick: Bartlesville 21 Ponca 14

6A-II District One Standings

Putnam City West (1-0)
Deer Creek (1-0)
Putnam City (1-0)
Midwest City (1-0)

Lawton (0-1)
Choctaw (0-1)
Stillwater (0-1)
Enid (0-1)

6A-II District Two Standings

Muskogee (1-0)
Booker T (1-0)
Sand Springs (1-0)
Bixby (0-0)

Bartlesville (0-1)
Ponca City (0-1)
Sapulpa (0-1)

Payton Scott rushes for 3 touchdowns and 197 yards in 35-7 victory over Sapulpa

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Photos: Morgan Miller

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The No.6 Charles Page High School varsity football team (2-2, 1-0) secured their first district win of the season with a dominating 35-7 victory over the No. 14 Sapulpa Chieftains (0-4, 0-1) Friday night, taking a 35-0 lead in the third quarter before their rivals got on the board.

This was the 90th year of Highway 97 Rivalry and the Sandites won their third-straight installment to bring the record to 41-45-5 with the Chieftains still leading overall. The two teams, which are separated by only a few miles of Highway 97, have met consecutively since 1930 and have hated each other ever since. 

There's been a lot of bad blood over the decades and in past years fights were notorious and security was always heavier at the Sapulpa game than any other game of the year. Even this year saw an unsportsmanlike penalty on Sapulpa for an out-of-bounds shove. The week preceding the game is known as "Sapulpa Hate Week" in Sand Springs, and both schools take their rivalry trash talk to twitter where it can get pretty heated. 

This year, however, the two teams were able to come together in solidarity to honor a Sandite who passed away shortly before the game. Swift Myers, who graduated in May of this year, was battling his seventh bout with cancer when it took his life Friday evening. His wife, Abbi Myers, tweeted that "Swift made it clear to us before he left that when he died, he didn't want people saying he lost his battle. He beat the shit out of cancer."

After seven long bouts with the condition, Myers is finally at peace in Heaven, and for this year, the two football teams put aside their rivalry and met in the field after the game to honor and remember him. Swift's classmate America Higgins tweeted "I honestly I can't even consider Sapulpa a rival after their support they showed tonight." Even before the game, Sapulpa students were hanging banners throughout the school bearing the #SWIFTSTRONG motto, and brought those banners to the game as well. Wrestling National Champion Daton Fix posted that "Heaven gained an amazing person tonight. One of the toughest guys I will ever know. A fighter and a winner. #SwiftStrong forever."

The game itself was a dominating performance by the Sandites, who rushed for over 300 yards and held the Chieftains to a mere 12 first downs and forced six turnovers. Hunter Greathouse led the Sandites in passing with 5 completions for 76 yards and a touchdown, while Payton Scott led the ground game for both teams with 29 carries for 197 yards and 3 touchdowns. Dalton Morgan also played a significant factor on the ground with 11 carries for 100 yards. Sophomore Hayden Cramer led the defense with six solo tackles, followed by Tyler Delozier with five tackles and an interception.

Sandite Flag Crew members are painted with the Flash symbol, which has been adopted by #SWIFTSTRONG supporters.

Sapulpa quarterback Cameron Elder completed 8 of 13 passes for 53 yards and 1 interception. The ground game was fairly split between Elder and Dayton Vann with 59 yards each, but led by Marcus Henderson with 67 yards on 8 carries. Trevin Inks and Stanley White had four tackles each, and B.J. Dansby had the lone tackle-for-loss for the Chieftains.

Sapulpa got the ball to start but was held to fourth-and-two and had to punt less than two minutes into the game. The Sandites got on the board midway through the first quarter with a two-yard run from Scott to cap off a methodical 13-play, 72-yard drive. Kasey Bales kicked the extra point for a 7-0 lead. 

Sapulpa's next drive ate up the rest of the first quarter and two minutes of the second as they drove 51 yards to the Sandites' 29 before a tackle for loss by Jerry Lyons and fumbled snap forced them back to fourth and nineteen and they had to punt. Less than three minutes later, Scott pushed in yet another touchdown on a one-yard run to make it 14-0.

The Chieftains had yet another drive end without a first down after a third-and-seven pass was nearly picked off by Cody Motes, but was dropped. The punt gave Sand Springs the field at their 36 and they needed only five plays to score. Scott picked up a first down on a ten-yard run, and an offsides penalty put the Sandites at the Sapulpa 49. Greathouse pitched the ball to Scott, who reversed it back to Greathouse for a 46-yard pass to Bales who was barely stopped by Aaron Sechrist at the three-yard-line. Two plays later, Greathouse punched in the touchdown on a 1-yard sneak to make it 21-0 after the Bales kick.

Dansby got a huge kickoff return to the Sandite 38, and a 37-yard run from Henderson put the Chieftains at first-and-goal from the one-yard line. An illegal procedure on the Chieftains, followed by a sack from Gage Fain pushed Sapulpa back to the 7, and Tyler Delozier picked off a pass from Elder and returned it to the 47 before being forced out by Inks. 

Sapulpa nearly got the ball back as Greathouse nearly threw an interception in the endzone, but intended-receiver Kasey Bales managed to swat the ball away from the Chieftain defender. A few plays later, Greathouse connected from eleven yards out to Mack Thompson for the score. With 29 seconds left in the half, Bales sent in the point-after to make it 28-0.

The Sandites were only two minutes into the second half when they scored once more on a five-yard run from Scott to make it 35-0.

Sapulpa finally got on the scoreboard on the corresponding drive. Henderson picked up a fifteen-yard run, Elder connected with Dansby for thirteen yards, then went 36 yards on a keeper to score. Bobby Schmidt sent in the extra point to make it 35-7 where the score would remain for the duration.

The Sandites put together a big drive on their next possession, starting at their 15. Scott found a first down in a twelve-yard run, then Bales snagged a lateral and ran it eleven yards. A facemask penalty put the Sandites at the Sapulpa 42, and a run by Morgan took them to the 35. A handoff to Scott should have been a loss of two, but the running back was bolstered by offensive lineman Lincoln Adams who pushed it into a three yard gain and a first down.

Morgan picked up nine yards on a run and Bales hauled in a screen to put the Sandites at the 16. Morgan ran another seven yards while carrying four Sapulpa defenders before he went down, and Scott went five more for the first down at the four-yard line. Sapulpa brought the drive to an end, however, with an endzone interception by Sechrest who ran it all the way back to the Sandite 46 before being ran down by Cameron Lierly. 

The two teams exchanged possessions from there and with five minutes left, the Sandite backups went in to play. Sophomore Caden Pennington took over at quarterback, but didn't get to make any plays. Sophomore running back Garrett McCallie picked up 14 yards on 4 carries before Sapulpa put a stop to the drive and took over possession shortly before time expired.

The Chieftains are still looking for a win this season and will host No. 2 Booker T Washington (3-2, 1-0) next Friday at 7:00 p.m. The Sandites will look to improve to a winning record as they host 6A-I Yukon (0-4) in a non-district home game Friday at 7:00 p.m.

Week Four 6A-II rankings and predictions; a look at this weekend's games

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Photo: Morgan Miller

By: Sandite Pride Editorial Board

No. 1 Bixby Spartans (Last week No. 1) vs. 6A No. 4 Westmoore Jaguars

The 6A-II back-to-back defending State Champions (1-2) bit off the second-toughest pre-conference schedule in the division and paid the price, starting with an 0-2 record. They also reaped the reward of experience and dolled out that experience on the Putnam City Pirates (2-1) Friday night. The Pirates stood little chance and what few scores they managed were the result of opportunistic slips in the Spartan defense. The whole of their offense was ineffective against the Spartans and the Bixby tide rolled to a 56-20 victory. Bixby held Putnam to a mere six first-downs and 187 yards against twenty-nine first downs and 473 yards of total offense. QB Tanner Griffin connected on 31 of 44 passes for 303 yards and four touchdowns and the run game was alive and well with Tucker Pawley who needed only two quarters to run 28 times for 167 yards and four touchdowns.

Westmoore (3-0) received a nice bump in the 6A-I rankings after upsetting in-town rival No. 3 Southmoore 34-28 in overtime in week two for their second ranked win after beating rival No. 10 Moore (2-1) 51-41 in week one. This past Friday they handled unranked Edmond North (0-3) 21-7. Their offense was slow and only scored one touchdown with five drives ending on downs. The defense saved the game with a pick six and a forced fumble, and the third touchdown came on a punt return.

The Pick: Bixby 38, Westmoore 34

No. 2 Booker T. Washington Hornets (2) vs No. 15 Ponca City Wildcats (15)

Booker T Washington (2-2) has had two close ones and two blow outs this season. They lost a close one to 6A-I No. 8 Edmond Santa Fe (2-1) when the Wolves were still ranked No. 3, and followed it up with a close 21-14 win over Midwest City (1-2) in week two. The next week they played the number two team in the country and it might as well have been a college team. IMG Academy (4-0) features 29 NCAA Division One-commits and the Ascenders topped the Hornets 49-7. This past weekend it was time for the Hornets to bring the rain, powering through 5A Shawnee (1-2) 43-6.

Ponca City (1-2) took a bye week after netting their first win 9-0 over 5A Guthrie. The first two weeks weren't nearly as pretty as Edmond Memorial and Enid both hung 42 points on the Wildcats. Enid was somewhat close at 42-31, but Edmond was a 42-6 blowout.

The pick: BTW 54, Ponca 9

No. 3 Muskogee Roughers (3) vs No. 11 Bartlesville Bruins (9)

The Muskogee Roughers (3-0) are the only undefeated team remaining in the division and look to continue that streak into district play. They've only notched one win against a ranked opponent, 16-12 over Midwest City, but scored blowouts in the following games. After topping McAlester (1-2) 51-13, they did even worse to Bentonville West (0-3). The Wolverines are the bottom-ranked team in Arkansas Class 7A, and the Roughers had little difficulty in a 62-13 victory. 

The Bruins (1-2) are in a rebuilding year after graduating most of their top performers in last year's powerful season. They won a close one 27-24 over McAlester in week one and were blown out 59-14 and 27-7 by 6A-I No. 7 Owasso (1-2) and 4A No. 4 Cascia Hall (2-1), respectively. 

The Pick: Muskogee 43, Bartlesville 18

No. 4 Midwest City Bombers (4) vs No. 5 Lawton Wolverines (7)

The marquee matchup of the week in 6A-II, the Bombers (1-2) and Wolverines (1-2) will kick off district play with much to prove. The Bombers have held their top-five ranking thanks to strength of schedule after falling 16-12 to Muskogee and 21-14 to Booker T. Last week they notched their first win 28-21 over 5A No. 6 Del City (2-1) while the Wolverines got in the win column with a 1000+ yard total offensive beat down on 5A Eisenhower (0-3). Lawton has also had a tough season thus far with some of the top dogs in 5A. They dropped a 56-41 shootout with 5A No. 3 Carl Albert (3-0) and 5A No. 1 Lawton MacArthur (3-0).

Lawton's pass game has been average at best, but Tre Curry is already at 589 yards rushing with only 79 carries for 6 touchdowns. The Bombers, however, are well prepared for the run game after holding Booker T to under 100 yards on the ground. 

The Pick: No consensus. Scott Emigh calls it 24-21 to MWC, Virgil Noah calls it 27-21 to Lawton.

No. 6 Sand Springs Sandites (6) vs No. 14 Sapulpa Chieftains (14)

One of the greatest rivalries in Oklahoma football is renewed this Friday in Sand Springs. The Chieftains (0-3) lead the Highway 97 Rivalry 44-42-3, but the Sandites have won the past two years by substantial margins, including a brutal 44-10 beat-down last season. The series is tied at 8-8 since 2000.

The Sandites are coming into the game with a lot to prove after dropping their first two games and barely winning the third. Last years' State Runners-Up scheduled a big dog in 5A Arkansas State Champions Pulaski Academy and were handily defeated 56-21. In week two they were unable to shut down the Choctaw air raid and gave up a 45-41 come-from-behind upset. They struggled offensively against Putnam West, but key defensive and special teams plays gave them the close 29-24 win.

The Pick: Sand Springs 46, Sapulpa 22

No. 7 Putnam City Pirates (8) vs No. 9 Choctaw Yellowjackets (5) 

After scoring a surprising upset over the Sandites (1-2) in week two, the Yellowjackets were in-turn upset in week three. 6A-I Putnam City North (1-2) lost both in-town rivalry games 16-7 to Putnam City and 16-5 to Putnam City West, but got in the win column with a huge upset 17-14 over Choctaw. 

Choctaw relied on its powerful air-raid offense to win close 90+ point shootouts with Sapulpa and Sand Springs, but when it met Ryan Laverty's newly established Panther defense, they were useless without a substantial ground game. The Panthers forced seven turnovers, including six interceptions for the win.

Putnam City (2-1) already proved themselves against the Putnam North defense, then steamrolled El Reno 52-6 in week two. They suffered their first loss last week to the top-ranked Spartans, but still managed to score 20 points on big home-run plays. The Pirates have a versatile offense, transitioning smoothly to the ground after the Putnam North pass-defense held them to 90 yards, but managed to throw well against both El Reno and Bixby. 

The Pick: Choctaw 33, Putnam 32. 

No. 8 Putnam City West Patriots (11) vs No. 13 Enid Plainsmen (10)

The Patriots (2-1) gave the Sandites a run for their money last weekend, falling 29-24, but still hold solid wins over 5A Duncan 43-14 and 16-5 over in-town rival Putnam North (1-2). QB Trey Gooch was 16-25-1-172 passing against the Sandites and also carried 14 times for 72 yards and was in on every touchdown. 

The Plainsmen (1-2) won a 42-31 shootout with Ponca City in week two, but were edged out by Guthrie 22-19 in week one and were utterly floored 44-14 by 5A No. 7 Bishop McGuinness (2-1) last week. 

The Pick: PCW 26, Enid 17.

No. 10 Stillwater Pioneers (13) vs No. 12 Deer Creek Antlers (12)

The Pioneers (2-1) made a big statement last week with a 34-26 upset of 6A-I No. 9 Mustang (2-1). The Broncos had previously won 42-20 over Yukon and 44-3 over Norman, so if Stillwater's victory is any indicator of their season to come, they could be a serious contender for at least the district title, if not the State Championship. 

The Antlers (0-3) had strength of schedule boosting their ranking the first two weeks, but after losing 48-31 to unranked Edmond Memorial, they're going to have to put in work against Stillwater to prove themselves at the 6A level. That Memorial is a rival and rivalry games are often unpredictable lends the Antlers some credibility still, but going into districts 0-3 doesn't look good for the team's first year out of 5A. 

The Pick: Stillwater 37, Deer Creek 19

Sandite defense overcomes Patriot surge for 29-24 victory at home

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Photo: Morgan Miller

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

SCORING SUMMARY

1Q 6:07 Gooch 23 yard pass to Robinson. Castillo PAT. 7-0 PCW.
2Q 11:51 Greathouse 9 yard run. Bales PAT. 7-7.
2Q 2:41 Greathouse 1 yard run. Bales PAT. 14-7 SS.
2Q 2:39. Greathouse 26 yard pass to Morgan. Bales PAT. 21-7 SS.
2Q 0:05 28 yard field goal by Castillo. 21-10 SS.
3Q 5:42 Scott 1 yard run. PAT missed. 27-10 SS.
3Q 5:33 Safety. 29-10 SS.
4Q 10:21 Gooch 5 yard pass to Potts. Castillo PAT. 29-17 SS.
4Q 2:20 Gooch 14 yard pass to Robinson. Castillo PAT. 29-24 SS.

The No.6 ranked Charles Page High School varsity football team (1-2) scored their first win of the season in their home-opener against No. 11 Putnam City West (2-1), dealing the Patriots their first loss of the season. The Sandites were the favorite to win, but penalties and turnovers made the game far closer than it should have been. 

The Sandites received the opening kickoff and started the game with some fireworks as senior quarterback Hunter Greathouse received a double reverse and fired a pass downfield to junior tight-end Dash Fleischman for a 26 yard gain. The rest of the drive fell flat, however, and the Sandites turned the ball over after a failed fourth and 8 pass attempt at the Patriots' 34. 

The Patriots were simple and methodical in their first drive, taking four minutes to drive 66 yards to be the first team on the scoreboard. Putnam quarterback Trey Gooch connected with Nick Robinson from 23 yards out and Pablo Castillo sent in the point-after to take the 7-0 lead.

The Sandites' second drive also fell short due to penalties and solid Patriot defense. Payton Scott picked up a pair of first downs on the ground and landed the home team at the Patriot 14 thanks to a big run with a facemask penalty tacked on the end. From there, everything went in the visitors' favor. Greathouse dropped the snap for a loss of five, and Scott took a tackle-for-loss on the corresponding play. It looked like Scott might get a shot at the endzone on the next handoff, but the play was blown dead due to a holding penalty on the Sandites. A third-and-nineteen pass attempt was broken up in the endzone by Arich Ansley, and on fourth-down, Greathouse was sacked at the 32 by Jordan Ealy.

The Patriots didn't keep the ball for long, however, turning it back over just a minute later and this time the Sandites hit pay-dirt. 

In the last minute of the first quarter, the Sandites drove their way down to the Patriot nine-yard-line for fourth-and-one. In the opening play of the second quarter, the offense piled behind Greathouse on a keeper to try and get the down, and ended up going all nine yards to the endzone for a touchdown. Kasey Bales sent in the point-after and the game was tied up.

Once again the Patriots failed to find traction and punted without a first-down. The Sandites ate up the clock on their corresponding 90-yard drive, and ultimately took the lead. The first play was a fifteen-yard screen to Caleb Wash. Greathouse added another first-down with a 30-yard pass to Bales, Scott picked one up on the ground, and Greathouse hit Bales again for 12. A run from Scott with a facemask at the end put the Sandites in the red zone at the 15-yard line. Greathouse hit Bales at the 1-yard line and scored on a sneak to take the 14-7 lead after Bales's PAT.

The next Sandite drive needed only two plays. Cade Looman sent the kickoff into the back of O'Neal Cotton and Brett Freeman was there to recover it for the Sandites at the Patriot 26. A repeat of the opening play of the game found Greathouse connecting with Dalton Morgan for the touchdown and a 21-7 lead.

The Patriots mustered up a solid drive, aided by some Sandite penalties, and marched to the 11-yard line before settling for a 28-yard field goal by Castillo.

The Sandites tried to score on a deep pass with less than a second remaining, but it was intercepted by T'Mahjai Scales who was tackled by the intended receiver, Bales, to end the half 21-10.

Freeman made yet another great play in the second half, picking off a pass to give the Sandites the ball at the Patriot 16. After being pushed back to a fourth-and-fourteen attempt, Greathouse connected to Mack Thompson at the 2-yard-line and Payton Scott punched it in a few plays later. Bales' PAT missed, but the Sandites led 27-10.

The Sandites scored yet again less than 10 seconds later. Looman's kick pinned the Patriots in at their 19, Delvin Jordan tackled Ealy for a loss of 3, and an unsportsmanlike penalty pushed the visitors back to their 8. A high snap over the quarterback's head traveled all the way into the endzone for a safety, and the Sandites took the ball once again.

From there it was the Patriots' game. The Sandites drove all the way to the visitors' 24 before Greathouse's pass was intercepted. The Patriots retained the ball into the fourth quarter and soon scored on a 5-yard pass to Chris Potts to cut the lead to 29-17.

 The Sandites' next drive was another turnover on downs after a pair of passes were broken up to give Putnam the field at their 32. Putnam marched downfield in yet another successful drive to score on a fourteen-yard pass to Robinson for a touchdown. Castillo's PAT sailed true and cut the deficit to 29-24. 

The Sandites held on to the ball for the remaining two minutes and picked up a first down run the clock out and secure the victory. 

Greathouse finished the evening 10-24-2-172 with one touchdown passing and was 6-(-7) with two touchdowns rushing. The Sandites split receiving duty fairly equally between five players, but Bales led with four receptions for 59 yards. Scott led the ground game with 37 carries for 147 yards and one touchdown. Jordan, Tre Finch, and Gage Fain led the defense with 5 unassisted tackles each, and Freeman was the star of the show with two tackles, an interception, and a fumble recovery.

Gooch led the opposition with a 16-25-1-131 passing record and 14 carries for 72 yards. He was in on all three touchdowns of the evening. 

The Sandites will play their first district game at home next Friday when they take on their Highway 97 rivals from Sapulpa. The Chieftains are ranked fourteenth in Class 6A-II with an 0-3 record after dropping this weekend's game 35-7 to 5A No.8 Bishop Kelley (2-1).

The Patriots will kick off district play at No. 10 Enid Friday (1-2) who just dropped a 44-14 loss to 5A No.7 Bishop McGuinness (2-1).