Week Two Top Ten Games
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Every Monday, we’ll take a look at the top ten match-up’s across the state of Oklahoma. We’ll break down the two teams and tell you what to look for. This week’s slate of games is outstanding across the board and features a great blend of big games and rivalry clashes. Check back every Monday so you know where the best games will be every single week! Stay tuned to the website later in the week where we feature some players to watch in games across Oklahoma and plenty of names that will make impacts in the following ten games.
1) #3 JENKS (1-1) AT #2 UNION (2-0)
For the second straight week, the Jenks Trojans will be playing in the biggest game of the week. It should come as no surprise that the annual Backyard Bowl between #2 Union and #3 Jenks is once again the top game throughout the state of Oklahoma. Jenks is coming off a close loss to Bixby where they flipped a switch in the second half and made things very interesting after trailing 23-0. The Trojans will look to bounce back and avoid a rare 1-2 start going into a bye week. For Union, things have started off exactly how they planned with big wins over Mansfield Lake Ridge and Broken Arrow at home. The home stand continues with one of the biggest games of the year. In the last ten regular season meeting, these two teams are a dead-even 5-5 against one another. Union also has week three off before a potential 1 VS 2 showdown with Owasso in week four.
2) 6A-1 #7 MUSTANG (1-0) AT 6A-2 #4 STILLWATER (1-0)
This game was already on our radar before last week but it certainly became more interesting following week one’s results. Stillwater went on the road and took care of business against Edmond Santa Fe and Mustang absolutely shelled their rival Yukon. Both results vaulted this match-up into “must watch” territory because we’ll find out plenty about each team following Friday night. Mustang is on the verge of really contending in 6A-1. Look at some of their younger talent and you’ll see why. A road win on Friday against a really good Stillwater team could show that the Broncos are not only here but they’re ready to contend immediately. As for Stillwater, this is another chance to show that this will not be a rebuilding year after so much success over the last three seasons. They took that first step in week one by beating Edmond Santa Fe on the road. Step two comes Friday against a high-powered Mustang offense.
3) #5 BROKEN ARROW (1-1) AT #1 OWASSO (2-0)
It’s been one of the highest anticipated games since about January when Broken Arrow announced that Josh Blankenship would be their new football coach. The talk quickly focused on the September meeting between Broken Arrow and Owasso where it will feature rivals on the field but father and son coaching both teams. Similar to many match-up’s in the top ten games, we don’t have to go into all the reasons why this is one of the best games of the week. Instead, we can talk about the impact that it will have on the 2021 football season. Owasso has looked fantastic on the offensive side of the ball to start their season. The Rams have struggled on the defensive side of the ball and that could lead to another shootout on Friday. Because on the other side, Broken Arrow has done a very good job offensively in the last two weeks and we could end up seeing plenty of points and a pretty nice air show from both quarterbacks.
4) 4A #4 CLINTON (1-0) AT 3A #4 HERITAGE HALL (1-0)
Both of these teams are perennial powerhouses and both got their seasons off on the right note with big wins in week one. Clinton had to wait until Saturday to beat up on Woodward. Meanwhile Heritage Hall dominated Millwood on Thursday night. The Chargers get the benefit of having another home game and don’t have to travel to one of the tougher places to get a win on the road. These two teams are familiar with one another, even though they dominate separate classes. The Chargers have one of the more dynamic players in the state in senior Gavin Freeman Gavin Freeman 5'10" | WR Heritage Hall | 2022 State OK and Clinton will spend all week trying to limit what he’s able to do. The game plan for Clinton will be simple. Grind out drives and keep their offense on the field as long as possible. And for Heritage Hall, they have more weapons than just Freeman, as we saw in their win on Thursday against the Falcons.
5) 2A #8 VIAN (2-0) AT 3A #3 LINCOLN CHRISTIAN (2-0)
Lincoln Christian’s gauntlet against 2A’s best teams wraps up with their final non-district match-up against 2A’s #8 Vian. The first two games of the season came against top five teams in Beggs and Jones. They blew out Beggs but had to drive down for a game-winning field goal as time expired against Jones to avoid falling on the road in week one. Meanwhile, Vian has been typical Vian. They’re off to another good start and took care of Eufaula last week in a close game. But Eufaula is one of several teams in Class 2A that should make some noise so it was a good test for what’s to come on Friday. Especially against a Lincoln Christian offense that has been lights out right out of the gate. Lincoln quarterback Max Brown Max Brown 6'2" | 200 lbs | QB Lincoln Christian | 2022 State OK has put up numbers that puts him in the “Player Of The Year” category already and Vian’s defense will be keyed in on slowing him down.
6) #8 NEWCASTLE (1-0) AT #2 TUTTLE (2-0)
Tuttle is right there in the conversation for most difficult September schedules. In addition to this week’s game against #8 Newcastle, they played a top five 3A team in Plainview last week and then open up district play in week four against #1 Cushing. The Tigers are rolling right now and have a fantastic defensive unit. They’ll need them to be on their A game on Friday against a high-powered Newcastle offense that has a chance to be pretty special not only this year, but for a few years behind young QB Jackson Bergt Jackson Bergt 6'3" | 195 lbs | QB Newcastle | 2024 State OK . Tuttle can’t afford to be looking ahead to their potential 1 VS 2 showdown with Cushing or they might not be #2 if they lose to Newcastle this week. The Racers are 1-0 and had the benefit of a bye week in week one after playing in week zero. Two weeks to get ready for a big test in the 4A title race.
7) 4A #9 WAGONER (0-1) AT 5A #8 TAHLEQUAH (1-0)
We might have raised some eyebrows when we had Wagoner ranked at #9 in our 4A preseason rankings but with only two or three starters returning, that seemed like the right spot. We still feel like the Bulldogs are the favorite in their district but they have to bounce back quickly after getting handled by Coweta in week one. They get another ranked 5A team this week as they travel to face Tahlequah. And this is a Tahlequah team that gave Wagoner one of their closest games of the year last year when the Bulldogs were dominating their way to a championship. Tahlequah also has championship aspirations and are off to a good start and a win over Wagoner on Friday night could give them plenty of momentum going into the rest of September.
8) 6A-2 #8 DEL CITY (0-1) AT 5A #3 CARL ALBERT (0-1)
A lot of what we wrote about with Wagoner in the previous game can be replicated right here with Carl Albert. The Titans kicked off their 2021 season with a loss and that hasn’t happened very often in recent memory. And we’re not talking about the season opener specifically but just a loss in general. The Titans now have to regroup and get ready for another rivalry game and this one is against Del City. Titan head coach Mike Dunn knows the Del City program as well as anyone after leading it as their head coach for several years. Despite both teams coming off tough losses last week with Del City dropping a game to Booker T Washington, this is still a marquee match-up and both teams are still contenders in their respective classes. Like several of the higher rated games, the storylines speak for themselves here.
9) #9 BISHOP KELLEY (0-2) AT #6 BISHOP McGUINNESS (0-1)
One of the biggest cliches in football and in sports really is “throw out the record books when these teams get together”. Well we’re saying it. Because the records aren’t ideal for the annual Bishop Battle between Kelley and McGuinness. Bishop Kelley has played a tough schedule to start with a road loss at Poteau and a loss at home to Sand Springs. Both teams that are ranked high in their respective classes. McGuinness had week one off after losing to Coweta in week zero. So it’s a rare situation with both teams are winless going into their annual rivalry clash. But as you can see when you look back at the history of this series, these games usually are decided by a touchdown or less and these games are always entertaining. Not to mention that McGuinness will be hungry to take the Shillelagh back from Bishop Kelley after losing to the Comets in Tulsa last year.
10) 3A #10 ANADARKO (0-1) AT 2A #7 MARLOW (1-0)
Our final game of the breakdown is another one that features two ranked teams. It’s bounce back time for Anadarko after a stunning shootout loss to an Elgin team that was winless in 2020. That result was certainly one of the bigger upsets from week one but Anadarko did some things that they can build on. First off, they were in a massive hole and kept chipping away and put up over 40 points. But the challenge is great this week as they go on the road and take on a very talented Marlow squad. The Outlaws are much more than just their All State standout Jace Gilbert Jace Gilbert 6'2" | 205 lbs | K Marlow | 2022 State OK and that’s a big reason why they’re a legitimate title contender in 2A. They beat up on a Chickasha team that was expecting to be a dark horse in 4A and the Outlaws had no problems getting out of week one with a win.