Victory Christian Team Preview

<em><strong>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</strong></em> 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"><strong>RIGHT HERE</strong></a>. <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Overview</span> </strong>After a down 2019 season, Victory Christian decided to make a change at the head coaching position. They brought in Ben Palmer to lead the Conquerors in 2020, and even with their shaky start, they were able to improve drastically from their 3-7 finish the season before. They kicked off their season with three tough losses to out-of-district opponents that included Verdigris and the oh-so-dangerous Pawhuska team that broke the state scoring record in 2020. However, they were able to recover in a big way and secure a playoff spot after going 4-2 in district play with a cancelation in week 8 against Okmulgee. Despite a week 10 loss to Beggs, the Conquerors were able to regroup again and make their deepest playoff run since their 2016 state championship appearance. They dominated their first and second-round matchups against Salina and Sperry but were unable to keep up with Eufala in the 3rd round. Coming into 2021, the consensus around the program is that the Conquerors are ready to live up to their name once again. They look to be right on track to pick up where they left off a season ago with 7 starters returning on offense and 6 returning on defense. <hr /> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>2020 Results (6-6 Record – Lost In 2A 3rd Round)</strong></span> <strong>Aug. 28 – Lost to Cascia Hall 48-20 </strong> <strong>Sept. 4 – Lost to Pawhuska 60-47 </strong> <strong>Sept. 18 – Lost to Verdigris 55-14</strong> <strong>Sept. 25 – Beat Morris 55-6</strong> <strong>Oct. 2 – Beat Kiefer 42-40</strong> <strong>Oct. 9 – Beat Haskell 60-6</strong> <strong>Oct. 15 – Lost to Metro Christian 49-21</strong> <strong>Oct. 23 – Game VS Okmulgee Canceled</strong> <strong>Oct. 30 – Beat Henryetta 56-20</strong> <strong>Nov. 6 – Lost to Beggs 46-14</strong> <strong>1st Round – Beat Salina 46-7 </strong><strong>2nd Round - Beat Sperry 60-28 </strong><strong>3rd Round - Lost to Eufaula 45-21</strong> <hr /> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Players To Watch</strong></span> [player_tooltip player_id="48987" first="Triton" last="Chandler"] <strong>- 2022 Quarterback </strong>Victory Christian was able to put up a large number of points in most of their games in 2020. A lot of that production came from quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="48987" first="Triton" last="Chandler"]. Chandler passed for over 3200 yards and 35 touchdowns in 2020 and he could be in for an even bigger year as a Senior. We did not get to see many Victory Christian games live last year, but after seeing Triton in person throughout the off-season with Sooner 7v7 it is clear that he is one of the top signal-callers in class 2A. He currently holds an offer from Bowdoin College in Maine and figures to add a couple more schools to that list before the season is over. [player_tooltip player_id="160659" first="Luke" last="Freeman"] <strong>- 2022 Wide Receiver/ Defensive Back </strong>[player_tooltip player_id="48987" first="Triton" last="Chandler"] was the most productive player on this team in terms of stats in 2020, but [player_tooltip player_id="160659" first="Luke" last="Freeman"] still remains the top college prospect on this roster. We have Luke ranked as an athlete right now because he splits time pretty evenly on both sides but his best fit at the next level may be in the secondary. Listed at 6’2" 190, Luke has the size, speed, and instincts to be a key contributor defensively at the college level. He sees the field very well and is excellent as a run supporter where he is never shy to crash down the alley and lay the wood on ball carriers. On offense, Freeman will be one of the Conquerors’ top playmakers in the passing game once again in 2021. He currently holds offers from Trinity, Bucknell, and Lehigh. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>More Names</strong></span> <strong style="font-size: 1rem;">Marvin Okotie</strong><span style="font-size: 1rem;"> </span><strong style="font-size: 1rem;">- 2022 Wide Receiver/ Defensive Lineman </strong><strong>Solomon Byrams</strong> <strong>– 2022 Running Back </strong><strong>Landon Cichon – 2022 Linebacker/ Defensive Back</strong> <strong>Judah Byrams</strong> <strong>– 2023 Running Back</strong> <strong>Greg Iser – 2023 Offensive/ Defensive Lineman</strong> <strong>Jalid Brown – 2023 Linebacker/ Tight End</strong> <strong>Jalen Baker – 2023 Linebacker</strong> <strong>Tot Chandler – 2024 Linebacker</strong> <hr /> <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Notable</span> </strong> After a dominant run of Victory Christian football from 2014-2018, the 2019 season where they finished 3-7 was a tough pill to swallow for the Conquerors. They only lost a total of 12 games during that 5-year span and were perennial playoff contenders with multiple trips to the second round and a state championship appearance in 2016. However, with new head coach Ben Palmer coming into his second season, Victory Christian is ready to build on their 2020 success and make that 2019 season a distant memory. They believe that they have built a strong foundation and culture that will bring them a few district titles and eventually a return to Wantland where they won’t settle for silver as they did in 2016. They bring back most of their squad from last year, but they have quite the road ahead of them once again in 2021 with multiple state semifinalists and the defending 3A champion to go through if they want to win a district title this year. <hr /> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>2021 Schedule/Games To Watch</strong></span> Aug. 27 – AT Cascia Hall <strong>Sept. 3 – Pawhuska </strong>- They were unable to take down Pawhuska in 2020, but the Conquerors gave them quite the run in their week 2 game last year. They scored 47 points on the Huskies which was more than any other team on Pawhuska’s schedule was able to put up, and they were the only team to come within 2 scores of the Huskies outside of Class A Champion Cashion. Pawhuska loses many key starters from 2020 such as North Texas signee [player_tooltip player_id="38509" first="Bryce" last="Drummond"], so they may not be breaking the scoring record again. But with Pawhuska’s new QB, Bryce’s younger brother [player_tooltip player_id="157511" first="Todd" last="Drummond"], who is rumored to be better than Bryce, this one will likely be another shootout. Sept. 17 – Verdigris Sept. 24 – AT Morris Oct. 1 – Kiefer Oct. 8 – AT Haskell <strong>Oct. 14 – Metro Christian </strong>- Outside of their non-district opponents, Metro Christian was one of two teams that gave Victory Christian a lot of trouble in the 2020 regular season. The Patriots put up 49 points on them and held the Conquerors' offense to just 21 points. Though Victory returns most of their team from 2020 and will be much improved by this point, they will still have their work cut out for them once again this season. Metro returns a lot of key playmakers from their lethal passing attack that won them another state title, led by quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="38790" first="Kirk" last="Francis"] who is one of the most talented passers in the state. Once again, expect a high-scoring affair in this one if Victory can get out to a hot start and keep pace with the high-flying Patriot offense. Oct. 22 – Okmulgee Oct. 29 – AT Henryetta Nov. 5 – Beggs <hr /> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Championship History</strong></span> <em><strong> 0 State Championships</strong></em>