Bethel Team Preview

Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy! Stay tuned to Prep Redzone Oklahoma every day as we release more individual team previews as we get closer to the start of the 2021 football season. In case you missed it, you can check out our Preseason Rankings <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2021/06/2021-preseason-rankings/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RIGHT HERE</a>. Overview The Bethel Wildcats come into the 2021 season with more hope and optimism than they have had in the past few decades. They started off 2020 hot and entered district play 3-0 with marquee wins over a pair of 3A teams in McCloud and Little Axe. The start of district play was not as kind to them though. After their win over Little Axe, Bethel would go on a 2 game skid against Christian Heritage and Washington, two of the district’s top teams from 2020. That losing streak would not deter the Wildcats though. They bounced back in a big way against Crooked Oak and Lexington with a pair of dominant wins where they outscored the two by a combined 109-19. Bethel would end their regular season on a sour note though after a loss to Community Christian and a couple of cancellations but would earn a playoff birth for the first time since 2008. The Wildcats took full advantage of their playoff opportunity and would take down Commanche in convincing fashion before ultimately hitting a wall against eventual 2A Quarter-Finalist Marlow in the second round. After a historic finish in terms of school accomplishment, which we will hit on later in the Notable section, Bethel has high hopes of pushing even further this year with an experienced team that includes only 4 new starters on offense and 3 new starters on defense. <hr /> 2020 Results (6-4 Record – Lost In 2A 2nd Round) Sept. 4 – Beat Meeker 28-8 Sept. 11 – Beat McCloud 28-22 Sept. 18 – Beat Little Axe 56-0 Sept. 25 – Lost to Christian Heritage 25-20 Oct. 2 – Lost to Washington 55-14 Oct. 9 – Beat Crooked Oak 62-13 Oct. 22 – Beat Lexington 47-6 Oct. 30 – Lost to Community Christian 27-7 Nov 6. – Game VS Purcell Canceled 1st Round – Beat Comanche 27-0 2nd Round – Lost to Marlow 70-33 <hr /> Players To Watch [player_tooltip player_id="38720" first="Corey" last="Metscher"] - 2022 Running Back/ Linebacker [player_tooltip player_id="38720" first="Corey" last="Metscher"] enters 2021 as a 4-year starter for the Wildcats and has been one of the cornerstones for the quick turnaround that Bethel has experienced recently. On offense, Metshcer is the team’s top running back. He finsished 2020 just north of 1000 total yards and recorded 11 touchdowns on the ground. On defense, Corey is also one of the top linebackers for Bethel, which is where we have him ranked as a college prospect. In 2020, he tallied an astounding 102 tackles, which puts him over 300 total tackles for his career. You won’t find many 2-way stars in Class 2A who are more impactful for their team than Metscher. John Gordon - 2022 Wide Receiver While Metscher is the most important piece in the backfield for Bethel’s rushing attack, the same could be said about John Gordon out wide in the passing game. Listed at 6’3" 195, Gordon is a tall and athletic wide receiver who is used to making big plays for this offense. Gordon recorded just under 900 yards receiving last season and finished with 10 touchdowns on 43 catches. A 1-4 touchdown to catch ratio is awesome no matter what level you play at. Additionally, Gordon does not just excel on the football field. John is also a standout for the Wildcats on the hardwood and on the baseball diamond as a pitcher. [player_tooltip player_id="57159" first="CJ" last="Compton"] - 2023 Offensive Lineman [player_tooltip player_id="57159" first="CJ" last="Compton"], along with the rest of the offensive line, maybe the most vital piece of Bethel’s offense and could easily be the decider for them when talking about their ceiling for 2021. Compton has division 1 ready size as he is listed at 6’6" 300, and he has an abundance of brute strength that will serve him well at the next level. His initial punch off the line is quite violent, he drives defensive lineman out of plays with ease, he pancakes just about any linebacker that comes in his path at the second level, and he has shown the ability to be an effective puller which is a big plus for a man of his size. More Names Dominick Contreras - 2022 Offensive Lineman Colby Thompson – 2022 Defensive Back/ Wide Receiver Gage Porter – 2022 Wide Receiver Xavier Meier – 2023 Wide Receiver John Allred – 2023 Linebacker/ Running Back Alex Tollett – 2023 Offensive/ Defensive Lineman <hr /> Notable Similar to Atoka, who we previewed last week, Bethel has not had the most decorated trophy case over the course of their program’s history. Prior to last year’s campaign, Bethel’s last winning season was their 6-5 finish in 2007, which is just one of four such seasons since 2000. From 2014-2018, they had a combined record of 6-44 with a pair of 2-8 seasons as their best finishes during that stretch. However, the 2019 and 2020 Wildcat teams made it their goal to leave their past failures in the past and to start Bethel on a winning path. The Wildcats finished 2019 at 5-5 and 2020 at 5-3 at the end of the regular season, which earned them a playoff birth as we mentioned in the Overview. Their 2020 playoff birth resulted in their first home playoff game in school history as well as their first playoff victory in school history. With their previous struggles behind them and with a team full of multi-year starters who know what it is like to have a taste of success, 2021 could be the start of a new era for the Bethel Wildcat football program. <hr /> 2021 Schedule/Games To Watch Sept. 3 – Meeker Sept. 10 – McCloud Sept. 17 – AT Little Axe Sept. 24 – AT Christian Heritage Oct. 1 – Washington - Their game against Christian Heritage the week prior to this one will also be a huge game for Bethel after losing by 5 to them in 2020 but the Wildcats will have a lot to prove in this matchup in 2021 after getting blown out by the Warriors last season. If Bethel can come out with at least 1 win between these two games then they will be setup nicely for a run through district 2A-3 leading up to their next game we have highlighted. Taking down the reigning 2A runner-up Warriors will be no easy task though. Washington comes into our pre-season rankings at #4 and returns 15 total starters from last year’s roster that gave Bethel all they could handle and then some. Oct. 8 – AT Crooked Oak Oct. 14 – Holdenville Oct. 22 – AT Lexington Oct. 28 – Community Christian - If 2A-3 plays out in 2021 as it did in 2020 then this matchup could very well be for one of the last playoff spots in the district. Last season, Bethel came into this matchup averaging over 50 points a game in their two previous wins but was blindsided by Community Christian who would hold them to just 7. The Royals return a handful of very talented playmakers such as [player_tooltip player_id="122426" first="Bai" last="Jobe"], so this one will not be a walk in the park for either team. The winner of this one will likely be a favorite of ours to make a sneaky run in the 2A playoffs this season depending on how the bracket shakes out. Nov. 5 – AT Purcell <hr /> Championship History 0 State Championships