#1 McAlester Dominates #4 Coweta 33-2

<strong><em>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</em></strong> It was a battle of top four teams with unbeaten records as top ranked McAlester came into Coweta to take on the fourth ranked Tigers. The Buffaloes came in with a strong offense and a defense that has the tag "Black Death Defense" and it lived up to the hype as McAlester rolled to a 33-2 victory. The only points Coweta got was a special teams blunder in the second quarter when a McAlester snap went over the punter’s head and out of the back of the end zone for the safety. Coweta won the toss and wanted the ball and would drive into McAlester territory before a fumble on 3rd down would back them up and they would eventually turn the ball over on downs. That would be the story for the Tigers on offense on Thursday night. Of their seven possessions, not including the end of the first half or end of game, they would turn the ball over on downs six times. The other possession ended with an interception. The Buffaloes held Coweta’s offense scoreless and they finished with 120 rushing yards and 120 passing yards. Coweta had averaged nearly 50 points per game coming in. McAlester’s first possession ended with a fumble in Coweta territory but the Buffaloes would start rolling on offense from there. Star junior running back [player_tooltip player_id="91049" first="Erik" last="McCarty"] would break a 27 yard run and they got into Coweta territory. After Coweta would jump offsides on a fourth down, the Buffaloes would score on the next play when Caden Lesnau would take an end-around 22 yards for the opening score. McAlester would score again right before halftime when McCarty would score from a couple yards out to make it 15-2 at halftime. The Buffaloes picked right up in the second half and marched down the field for another McCarty touchdown. The Buffaloes converted on third down on three occasions, including on the 41-yard touchdown run from McCarty. On the first play of the fourth quarter, McCarty would take a direct snap and run towards the line of scrimmage, only to jump up at the last moment and hit Cale Prather for a 71-yard touchdown. That put the Buffaloes up 27-2 in the fourth quarter and with their defense playing lights out, that was more than enough. Ethan Watkins added a touchdown later in the quarter as the Buffaloes would improve to 7-0 on the season and show why they’re the top ranked team in Class 5A right now. <table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 49.2568%;"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width: 17.9043%;"><strong>McAlester (7-0)</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.14692%; text-align: center;"><strong>0</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.27068%; text-align: center;"><strong>15</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.02312%; text-align: center;"><strong>6</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.39444%; text-align: center;"><strong>12</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.51823%; text-align: center;"><strong>33</strong></td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width: 17.9043%;"><strong>Coweta (6-1)</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.14692%; text-align: center;"><strong>0</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.27068%; text-align: center;"><strong>2</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.02312%; text-align: center;"><strong>0</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.39444%; text-align: center;"><strong>0</strong></td> <td style="width: 6.51823%; text-align: center;"><strong>2</strong></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <hr /> <span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>TURNING POINT</strong></span> The turning point could have come at a few different spots but we’ll go with Coweta’s first offensive possession of the second half. The Tigers put together a great drive after McAlester opened the third quarter with a touchdown, going up 21-2. Coweta would get into McAlester territory again and would score, but a penalty would negate the touchdown. Quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="38687" first="Gage" last="Hamm"] would throw several incompletions in a row and the Tigers would turn the ball over on downs for the fourth time in five possessions. Had the touchdown not been wiped away by the penalty, Coweta chips away at the lead and had a shot going into the fourth quarter. Instead, they turn it over on downs and then on the first play of the fourth quarter, McAlester puts the dagger in the Tigers with the McCarty jump pass. <span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>PLAYER OF THE GAME</strong></span> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="91049" first="Erik" last="McCarty"] - 2023 Running Back - McAlester</strong></span> The top prospect coming into Thursday night’s match-up showed why he’s just that. McAlester’s [player_tooltip player_id="91049" first="Erik" last="McCarty"] was a star in McAlester’s 33-2 victory over Coweta on Thursday. With the passing game struggling at times, McCarty became the go-to player when the Buffaloes needed a big play. He finished with 144 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries. He also had one of the best moments of the game when he started the fourth quarter taking a direct snap and instead of powering ahead like he had done several times before, he jumped up and stunned Coweta with a jump pass that went 71 yards for another Buffalo touchdown. <span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>QUOTABLE</strong></span> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>McAlester Running Back [player_tooltip player_id="91049" first="Erik" last="McCarty"] On The Win</strong></span> "Man they disrespected us bad last year. This game had a different meaning to it and we came into tonight with a different mindset. You could tell all week at practice that it was just different. It was a different atmosphere, everyone had a chip on their shoulder. Man, I’m so proud of these guys. This isn’t the end, but it’s a big step." <span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>UP NEXT</strong></span> <strong>Coweta: AT Shawnee -</strong> Coweta will look to bounce back after Thursday night’s loss but it won’t be easy as they have to go on the road to take on a red hot Shawnee squad. The Wolves started this year 0-3 after non-district play but they have won 4 consecutive games since district play began, including Thursday night when they beat East Central on the road. <strong>McAlester: VS Edison -</strong> The Buffaloes return home to take on an Edison squad that has struggled this year. The struggles continued on Thursday night when Edison lost to a Durant team that was winless coming into the week. The only win on Edison’s record was a rivalry win over Memorial. The Buffaloes should have no problem remaining unbeaten.