Scene Setter: Bixby-Carl Albert

<em><strong>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</strong></em> We can all agree that the pandemic has completely changed everything and this has been a season unlike any other. Most of the news has been negative and we can’t help but wonder when we’ll go back to normal. However, because of two cancelled games, we get a fantasy match-up that we never would have gotten otherwise. Bixby’s game with Putnam City West was cancelled and Carl Albert’s game with Guthrie was cancelled. So Bixby and Carl Albert have agreed to play each other on Friday night in Midwest City. And just like that, we have one of the best match-up’s we’ll see all year as we see two active dynasties square off against one another. Bixby’s dynasty consists of five of the last six state championships in Class 6A-D2. They also bring in the longest active winning streak among 11-man schools in Oklahoma with 28 straight victories. On the other side, Carl Albert has won four straight state titles in Class 5A and have won 49 of their last 50 games. They had a 40-game winning streak snapped last year during the regular season. Coincidentally, that loss came in week five. Fast forward a year and the Titans could end Bixby’s winning streak, in week five. It’s time to break down the match-up with some noteworthy items and then five players to watch for both teams. Also be sure to follow us on Twitter on Friday night as we’ll have updates throughout the night. @PrepRedzoneOK <hr /> <span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>NOTABLE</strong></span> <strong>DUELING QUARTERBACKS</strong> When it comes to football, the quarterback position is without a doubt the marquee position in the sport. It gets a lot of shine and man do we have a great quarterback match-up with this one. Bixby senior [player_tooltip player_id="38531" first="Mason" last="Williams"] going head to head with Carl Albert senior [player_tooltip player_id="38534" first="Ben" last="Harris"]. Williams is 28-1 as Bixby’s signal caller and has 97 passing touchdowns for his career. Harris is 44-1 as Carl Albert’s QB1 and also has a chance to reach the 100 touchdown club later on this season. It’s not often we get a match-up like this, let alone a match-up that feature two quarterbacks that simply do not lose games. While Williams doesn’t have to worry about Harris play defense and vice-versa, how these two play on Friday night will be something to watch. <strong>RIVALRY RENEWED</strong> These two teams are absolute dynasties right now but 15 years ago, they were both battling for 5A supremacy. Friday’s match-up is the first time these two teams square off since 2009. And it’ll be the first time that they play in the regular season. During the late 2000’s, the Spartans and Titans met in three straight years in the playoffs. Bixby got the best of Carl Albert in the 2007 quarterfinals. They met again in the quarters in 2008 with Carl Albert winning. The grudge match came in 2009 with the 5A state title on the line and the Titans won that as well. Before Bixby dominated 6A-D2, they kept running into road blocks in Class 5A. And a lot of times, the road block was Carl Albert. <hr /> <span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>BIXBY PLAYERS TO WATCH</strong></span> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38679" first="Braylin" last="Presley"] - 2022 - Running Back</strong> Bixby is off to a 3-0 start and the offense has looked outstanding and there are a lot of pieces that go into that. However, we can’t help but look at the production that [player_tooltip player_id="38679" first="Braylin" last="Presley"] has had early on. Last year, he was absolutely dynamic in the running game. However, this year, he’s combined that with the ability to be a threat in the pass game and it has torn defenses apart. Presley has put up big numbers and he’s well on his way to becoming one of the top offensive weapons in the 2022 class. He’s becoming a complete running back. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38578" first="Caleb" last="Townsend"] - 2021 - Offensive Lineman</strong> One of the bigger question marks coming into this season would be how the offensive line came along. Bixby generally has a strong unit when it comes to the offensive line and one of the few returning players is senior [player_tooltip player_id="38578" first="Caleb" last="Townsend"]. If the first month is any indication, it seems like Bixby once again has a strong O-Line. You can credit Townsend for that as he’s the anchor to this line and the offense has been able to put up some big numbers. He doesn’t have prototypical O-Line size but he’s very technical in his game and that’s why he’s successful. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="55157" first="Jack" last="Puckett"] - 2022 - Linebacker</strong> We’re spotlighting a total of ten players here going into Friday’s big match-up but the biggest surprise player is Bixby junior [player_tooltip player_id="55157" first="Jack" last="Puckett"]. This linebacker has been outstanding to start the 2020 season and he’ll have a big opportunity to shine on Friday. Puckett leads the team in sacks by a big margin and he’ll be critical in Bixby’s defense trying to slow down Carl Albert’s outstanding run game. Puckett and the Bixby defense has seen strong O-Line’s and running backs before but this combination from Carl Albert might be the toughest so far. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="55156" first="Luke" last="Hasz"] - 2023 - Wide Receiver</strong> The only sophomore for both teams that we’re featuring here is Bixby wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id="55156" first="Luke" last="Hasz"]. He’s had an outstanding start to the season and appears to be the big play threat at wide receiver. That was going to be a big question for Bixby coming into this season in regards to who would replace Brennan Presley, who is now at Oklahoma State. Hasz certainly has shown that ability to step up. He’s a bigger body than Presley but he’s certainly been a big play threat so far this season. Hasz is a 2023 name to circle for the future as a player with a high upside. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38531" first="Mason" last="Williams"] - 2021 - Quarterback</strong> We already dove into some of the stats for Bixby senior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="38531" first="Mason" last="Williams"]. There’s a strong possibility that Williams, with a good game Friday, will join an exclusive club as a QB with 100 career passing touchdowns. And we’ve written about Williams several times this season already when it comes to his recruitment. It’s a crime that Williams doesn’t have more opportunities when it comes to playing at the next level. A big performance Friday will be yet another reason why Williams is a QB prospect that shouldn’t be overlooked. <hr /> <span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>CARL ALBERT PLAYERS TO WATCH</strong></span> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38534" first="Ben" last="Harris"] - 2021 - Quarterback</strong> With Bixby’s players, we finished up with the quarterback, with Carl Albert, we start there. Senior [player_tooltip player_id="38534" first="Ben" last="Harris"] has been in every position and has seen literally everything you could see at this position. Friday night will be his 46th start for the Titans and he appears to be well on his way to leading this team to another title. Similar to Williams, Harris has been overlooked when it comes to recruiting and it’s very frustrating. He has a good arm, he doesn’t make mistakes and he knows what it takes to lead a winning program. In our opinion, he’s another can’t miss QB prospect. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38684" first="Buddy" last="Bizzell"] - 2022 - Running Back</strong> While we’ll certainly have a lot of attention around the quarterback match-up, we have a great running back match-up as two of the best junior running backs in the state are in this clash. On one side you have Presley, who is certainly more of a speedster. On the Carl Albert sideline, you have [player_tooltip player_id="38684" first="Buddy" last="Bizzell"], who loves contact. However, look at what he’s been able to do so far this season and he’s adding more speed to his game. He’s not just having success with running up the middle, but getting to the outside and beating opponents in a foot race. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38584" first="Cobe" last="Crews"] - 2021 - Athlete</strong> Offense, defense and special teams. Check, check and check. Carl Albert senior [player_tooltip player_id="38584" first="Cobe" last="Crews"] is an impact player in all three phases of the game. On offense, he’s arguably the top weapon for Harris and the Titan passing game. On defense, he can be moved around to where he’s needed to make an impact there. And on special teams, nobody can change a game quicker than Crews when it comes to blocking kicks. In a game like this between two great teams, one special teams play could provide the difference and Crews is a stud in that department. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38487" first="Javion" last="Hunt"] - 2021 - Running Back</strong> When you look at both teams, arguably the most talented player in the match-up is Carl Albert senior [player_tooltip player_id="38487" first="Javion" last="Hunt"]. Whether it’s at running back or corner, the Arkansas commit is one of the best players in the state of Oklahoma. Hunt certainly has help in the backfield on offense with Bizzell able to take some of the load. So we’re interested to see how Hunt does on Friday going against Bixby’s passing attack. It’s been well documented how good Williams is as Bixby’s QB. Can Hunt and the Titan defense cause some rare errors on Friday night? <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38517" first="Noah" last="Dobson"] - 2021 - Offensive Lineman</strong> Similar to several other players for Carl Albert, senior offensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id="38517" first="Noah" last="Dobson"] has seen just about all you can see in high school football. He has all the experience you want from an offensive lineman. It’ll be important for Carl Albert to establish the run, like they always want to do and keep Bixby’s high-powered offense off the field. Dobson and the Titan O-Line will be critical in how this game is going to be played on Friday night. As a player, Dobson is an absolute monster and is one of the more underrated O-Line prospects in the 2021 class.