Sand Springs 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 (Class 6A-D2 Preseason Ranking: #7) After missing the playoffs in 2018 and 2019, the Sand Springs Sandites decided to make a change in head coach and brought in Bobby Klinck to lead the program. It wasn't exactly an easy first year as he was hired just a few months before the Covid pandemic shut nearly everything down. However, after spending several seasons with Owasso as their defensive coordinator, and winning a pair of state championships, Klinck was ready to lead his own program. The Sandites got off to a good start in 2020, winning four of their first five games. The only loss came to Bishop Kelley in a late heartbreaker. However, the Sandites would lose three straight in October and fell into the fourth spot in the district. After winning three in a row, including a first round victory over Deer Creek, the Sand Springs season would come to an end in the quarterfinals against Stillwater. Coming into 2021, the second year of the Klinck era might bring better results. They bring back six starters on offense and five on defense. The offensive side of the ball has our attention as they bring back experience and talent in several players that not enough people know about yet. On the other side of the ball, the Sandites will lean on the front seven to wreck shop while new starters elsewhere start getting used to the varsity level. As you'll read later on, the Sandites are in an absolutely brutal district but they should be a playoff team once again. The next step is to become a championship contender, like they were nearly a decade ago when Class 6A was split into two divisions. <hr /> 2020 Results (7-5 Record - Lost In 6A-D2 Quarterfinals) Aug. 28 - Beat Sauplpa 21-17 Sept. 4 - Lost To Bishop Kelley 28-24 Sept. 18 - Beat Shiloh Christian, AR. 27-26 Sept. 25 - Beat Ponca City 35-10 Oct. 2 - Beat Muskogee 45-14 Oct. 9 - Lost To Booker T Washington 49-0 Oct. 15 - Lost To Bixby 51-20 Oct. 23 - Lost To Choctaw 34-9 Oct. 30 - Beat Bartlesville 21-14 Nov. 6 - Beat Putnam City West 51-13 1st Round - Beat Deer Creek 34-29 Quarterfinals - Lost To Stillwater 49-17 <hr /> Players To Watch [player_tooltip player_id="154570" first="Blake" last="Jones"] - 2022 Running Back Earlier this summer we held our first ever Showcase camp for football players in Oklahoma. Walking away with the RB MVP award was Sand Springs senior [player_tooltip player_id="154570" first="Blake" last="Jones"]. Jones ran an excellent 40-yard dash and is also a standout wrestler for Sand Springs. That combination makes for a very physical and quick runner. The Sandite standout was also the leading rusher for Sand Springs as a junior and could end up having an even bigger senior season in what should be a very balanced offense. This is a growing theme but the Sandites have some underrated players that are primed to have breakout 2021 seasons. [player_tooltip player_id="153666" first="Gabe" last="Brown"] - 2022 Linebacker Not many players had as good of an offseason as Sand Springs linebacker [player_tooltip player_id="153666" first="Gabe" last="Brown"]. The 2022 backer must have spent every day this offseason in the weight room because he’s gotten bigger and will be one of the hardest hitting guys in 6A-D2 this fall. We like several guys in Sand Springs’ front seven but Brown has the chance to become an absolute star in this Sandite defense. Led by Brown, the Sandites will be a tough team to run the ball on this fall. In a class full of some playmakers on the defensive side of the ball, don’t be surprised if Brown ends up adding his name to that list by season’s end. [player_tooltip player_id="101415" first="Ty" last="Pennington"] - 2022 Quarterback Our final player to watch will be QB1 of the Sandites in senior [player_tooltip player_id="101415" first="Ty" last="Pennington"]. The Sandite QB had a very strong junior season and he has the potential to do so much more this season. Pennington completed around 60% of his passes in their final three wins last year before they lost to Stillwater in the quarterfinals. And as you’ll see in the "More Names" section, Sand Springs brings back a couple wide receivers in Jacob Blevins and Keaton Campbell that will give Pennington some familiar faces in the huddle. After throwing for over 2,000 yards last year, we think 2021 could provide much more for the Sandite QB. More Names Drake Fain - 2023 Linebacker Jacob Blevins - 2023 Wide Receiver Keaton Campbell - 2022 Wide Receiver Landon Hendricks - 2022 Defensive Lineman <hr /> Notable This is Oklahoma so why not make a reference to OU football every now and then. During OU’s 2000 national championship run, they had a stretch known as "Red October" where they faced Texas, Nebraska and Kansas State, all of which were highly ranked. Well, the Sandites will be experiencing a "Yellow October" when they have to face the top three teams in our 6A-D2 preseason rankings. Starting in week six, they host #3 Booker T Washington. The following week, on a fall break Thursday, they’ll travel to #1 Bixby. And then finally in week eight, they’ll host #2 Choctaw. Now, one of those three teams might not be in the top three by the time October 8th rolls around but chances are they will be. Maybe not in that same order, but they are the top three teams in the class as of right now. The schedule set up happened last year and the Sandites lost to the three opponents by a combined 105 points. Those three losses put Sand Springs in the fourth spot in the district and made them have to face the opposing district champion in the quarterfinals. Every now and then, this just happens where one district is top heavy and that’s the case here. If Sand Springs can’t get at least one win during that three week stretch, they’ll have to not only battle for their playoff lives down the stretch but they’ll more than likely finish in the fourth spot again, meaning a road playoff game against the other district champion. <hr /> 2021 Schedule/Games To Watch Aug. 27 - Sapulpa Sept. 3 - AT Bishop Kelley Sept. 17 - AT Shiloh Christian, AR. Sept. 24 - Ponca City Oct. 1 - AT Muskogee Oct. 8 - Booker T Washington - Here's the start of one of the toughest three weeks for any team in the state. Sand Springs will host Booker T Washington in week six and if the rankings are the same at that point, will face the top three teams in the class in three straight weeks. If the Sandites are to avoid the fourth spot or possibly missing the playoffs all together, they'll need to get a win in one of these games. They open the brutal stretch against a Booker T Washington team that's facing strange times with limited numbers. They only had 26 players suited up during spring ball. However, you shouldn't feel sorry because those 26 feature some of the best athletes in the state. Oct. 14 - AT Bixby - After hosting the Hornets, Sand Springs will travel to three-time defending champion Bixby on a short week to renew their rivalry with the Spartans. When the class was first split into two divisions, it was Bixby and Sand Springs that were two of the best teams in the class, along with a few others. The Sandites are determined to get back to that level and this is another opportunity to prove that. It's been a one-way series, in favor of the Spartans, but Sand Springs has some serious firepower on offense that could keep up with the Spartans in a shootout. We could see some points in this one. Oct. 22 - Choctaw Oct. 29 - AT Bartlesville Nov. 5 - Putnam City West <hr /> Championship History 1 State Championship 1966 - Beat El Reno 14-7