Through five weeks: receiving corps of the midseason

Through five weeks of Prep Redzone Oklahoma football, the receiving groups listed below have been among the best I have seen: <table style="width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #fdffd6;"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width: 100%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Booker T. Washington </strong><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Hornets</span></span></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table style="width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #e8e3e3;"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width: 50%; text-align: center;">Team record: 4-1 (1-1)</td> <td style="width: 50%; text-align: center;">Next opponent: at Sand Springs, Oct. 8</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <ul style="list-style-type: square;"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38668" first="Gentry" last="Williams"]</strong> | BTW ’22</li> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="47959" first="Micah" last="Tease"]</strong> | BTW ’23</li> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="125508" first="Jordan" last="Drew"]</strong> | BTW ’22</li> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="98173" first="Demitrius" last="Prudom"]</strong> | BTW ’23</li> </ul> It would be hard to have a group this talented and <em>not</em> be productive. Sure as the Oklahoma heat, the Hornets receiving corps has made opposing defenses miserable on a weekly basis this season. [caption id="attachment_193954" align="alignleft" width="300"]<img class="wp-image-193954 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/08/Gentry-Williams-5-crop-5340x3507-1630420812-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="38668" first="Gentry" last="Williams"][/caption]Boasting two top-two state prospects and another pair not far behind, the Hornets and quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="69271" first="Lathan" last="Boone"] enjoy a plethora of options. For opposing teams, there’s only so much defensive talent to go around as it is rare to have a group of defensive backs that can effectively limit two four-star athletes, let alone all four of these pass-catchers. Williams <span style="font-size: 8pt;"><em>(pictured above)</em></span>, who will announce his commitment <a href="https://twitter.com/gentrywilliams5/status/1445411725805690880?s=21">Oct. 18</a> between Southern Cal., Missouri, Oklahoma and Florida, is among the best athletic prospects in recent memory. His second-highest gear is sufficient to be significantly faster, generally, than anybody else on the field. The Hornets like to run Williams on bubble screens often to allow him to feel the defense and create his own lane to run, with his fellow receivers collecting an auspicious block or two to further clear the path for him. To this point in the season, Williams has accrued 13 catches for 135 yards and a touchdown while playing both sides of the ball. [caption id="attachment_170940" align="alignright" width="300"]<img class="wp-image-170940 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/07/Jordan-Drew-6-crop-5987x3931-1626320389-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="125508" first="Jordan" last="Drew"][/caption]Tease, ranked as a true wide receiver, has tallied 13 catches for 309 yards and four touchdowns to this point in the season. A heavy-hitter, Tease’s 23.8 yards-per-reception leads his team. He has all of the skills you need from a dynamic receiver; for one, he may be the only person on the field harder to get a hand on than Williams, if not a close second. Tease is great on deep routes, often purely outrunning any would-be defenders, which consequently prompts defenders to play him loose. Unfortunately for them, that’s just the lesser of both evils, as Tease often can take a hitch or spot route for scores of yards down the field. His counterpart, Drew, has scored twice on nine receptions this year. Drew is a quick-off-the-line receiver upon whom the Hornets staff can rely to haul in the ball and create yardage after the catch. Prudom, a junior, has caught nine passes for 158 yards. The strong H-back is difficult for defenders to bring down, while his speed out of the slot makes him difficult to cover. He also stars as a defensive lineman for the Hornets. <table style="width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #fdffd6;"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width: 100%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Norman North </strong><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Timberwolves</span></span></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table style="height: 21px; width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #e8e3e3;"> <tbody> <tr style="height: 21px;"> <td style="width: 50%; height: 21px; text-align: center;">Team record: 3-2 (0-2)</td> <td style="width: 50%; text-align: center; height: 21px;">Next opponent: Moore, Oct. 7</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <ul style="list-style-type: square;"> <li><strong>Brayden Dorney</strong> | NNHS ’23</li> <li><strong>Cason Cabbiness</strong> | NNHS ’23</li> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38737" first="Hayden" last="Hack"]</strong> | NNHS ’22</li> </ul> Quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="108886" first="Gavin" last="Frakes"] has his variety to pick from, as the Timberwolves have a plethora of offensive options in their deep playbook. Thanks in part to Frakes’s arm, Norman North has not been shy to airing the ball out, but thanks to a diverse group of receivers, that’s not <em>all</em> they can do. Three players, Dorney, Cabbiness, and Hack have averaged over 20 yards-per-catch to this point in the season. [caption id="attachment_182179" align="alignleft" width="300"]<img class="wp-image-182179 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/08/Hayden-Hack-5-crop-5468x3590-1628545569-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="38737" first="Hayden" last="Hack"][/caption]Dorney, an agile and shifty receiver, has caught 15 passes for 409 yards with four touchdowns -- an astounding 27.3 yards-per-catch. Dorney has serious track speed and often catches defenders on their heels with a sharp break out of a flag, out, post, or something similar, and Frakes does a great job of finding him when he’s available. Dorney also does a great job of creating yardage after-the-catch, where he can really show off his talents. He’s the heavy-hitter of this team, but indicative in the paragraph above regarding Norman North’s <em>average</em> per-catch yardage, he’s not Frakes’s only trustworthy deep option. Cabbiness is a bit taller and not quite as fast as Dorney, but he still has speed to him and can compete against taller defensive backs as he is more frequently split wide near the boundary. He’s technically sound, with developed knowledge of route-stemming and how to beat a pressed defender with timing. Cabbiness is able to do this, in part, because he has great acceleration. So far this season, the junior has caught 10 passes for 202 yards and four touchdowns. Hack, the veteran of this group, is certainly not the least of it. He’s taller, like Cabbiness, and like the others with great speed, although perhaps better at getting open than any receiver on this roster. The catch-22 with Hack is that if you play him loose, he’ll burn you after the catch, but if you play him tight, he’ll burn you deep. Norman North loves to utilize his footwork on a quick curl, allowing him to catch the ball in space and freelance for yards-after. This often allows the Timberwolves to later exploit tighter coverage on the deep ball, with Hack using his speed to burst off the snap and deal damage to defenders who can’t keep up. So far, Hack has caught the ball eight times for two touchdowns. <table style="width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #fdffd6;"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width: 100%; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Mustang </span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Broncos</span></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table style="width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #e8e3e3;"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width: 50%; text-align: center;">Team record: 3-2 (2-0)</td> <td style="width: 50%; text-align: center;">Next opponent: at Union, Oct. 8</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <ul style="list-style-type: square;"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38777" first="Jacobe" last="Johnson"]</strong> | MHS ’23</li> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38795" first="Keegan" last="Bass"]</strong> | MHS ’23</li> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38670" first="Andre" last="Dollar"]</strong> | MHS ’22</li> </ul> The Broncos have raided the air this season en route to a scoring average of 49 points-per-game. [caption id="attachment_199916" align="alignright" width="300"]<img class="wp-image-199916 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/09/Jacobe-Johnson-5-crop-5240x3441-1631399186-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="38777" first="Jacobe" last="Johnson"][/caption]Mustang quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="200526" first="Tristen" last="Russell"] has enjoyed the talents of two power-five prospects -- Johnson and Dollar, an Oregon-commit -- and Bass, a rising star in his own right. Johnson is a superb athlete who also stars as a highly touted prospect for the Broncos basketball team. Needles to say, his athletic skill-set is developed and versatile; he’s quick, strong, can accelerate, and is highly competitive. His best utility, as the Broncos have revisited time after time this season, is on the jump ball. On numerous occasions this season, the Broncos have isolated a defender on the weak side and allowed Johnson to go to work on the <a href="https://twitter.com/kotablickyuh/status/1434008567154102272?s=21">fade</a>, frequently with Johnson rising to make a highlight touchdown play. Dollar, who plays the "Bronco" back for Mustang, has all of the tools you want in a great H: strength, size, speed, blocking talents, and great hands. [caption id="attachment_170888" align="alignleft" width="300"]<img class="wp-image-170888 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/07/Andre-Dollar-2-crop-5899x3874-1626317450-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="38670" first="Andre" last="Dollar"][/caption]The Broncos use Dollar’s talents in just about every way you could think of. The big target is just as comfortable running an out from the line as he is splitting out and going deep for a post. Dollar has been stellar for Mustang this year in catching the ball with defenders draped on him and using his strength against smaller defensive backs. Bass has been the shining star of the season for the Broncos, however. The speedy junior, who has also lent the Broncos his shifty athletic prowess as a kick returner, has created space for himself on angular routes and found his way into the end zone on numerous occasions already. The key to Bass’s success is his route-running talents. He stems defensive backs and sells any quick sharp cut the opposite way or puts on a swift double-move to get defenders off-balance. Once he does, he breaks and accelerates quickly, allowing Russell to find him in space. Should this offense continue to fire on all cylinders the second half as well as it did the first, this three-headed monster should be a team to beat as Mustang closes out the regular season with district play. <hr /> <em><strong>Other standouts:</strong></em> - <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Bishop McGuinness</span></strong> Fighting Irish (3-2, 2-0) <ul style="list-style-type: square;"> <li><strong>Andrew Smith</strong> | BMCHS ’22</li> <li><strong>Tyrrell Bruner</strong> | BMCHS ’23</li> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="51871" first="Michael" last="Taffe"]</strong> | BMCHS ’23</li> </ul> <p style="padding-left: 40px;">→ Smith, Bruner, Taffe and the Irish have had a great passing game going so far this year under the arm of quarterback of River Warren. Smith is a great receiver for short-to-medium gains, one who rarely drops the ball and handles pressure well. Bruner, who’s now down with an injury, had a great first half of the year, burning defenders on longer plays. Taffe, McGuinness’s rushing leader adds a great touch to run on flares out of the backfield or similar small-chunk plays.<img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-48667" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/09/Gavin-Freeman-2.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></p> - <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Heritage Hall</strong> </span>Chargers (5-0, 2-0) <ul style="list-style-type: disc;"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="48668" first="Gavin" last="Freeman"]</strong> | HH ’22</li> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="157524" first="Orie" last="Walker"]</strong> | HH ’23</li> </ul> <p style="padding-left: 40px;">→ Freeman, an all-purpose standout for the Chargers, has caught 28 passes for 534 yards this season, blistering opposing defenses while hanging on-track for 1,000 yards receiving. Walker, a bigger target utilized by the Hall for smaller gains, has caught 21 passes for 263 yards and two touchdown receptions.</p> [caption id="attachment_182234" align="alignright" width="300"]<img class="wp-image-182234 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/08/Mason-Ford-7-crop-5526x3629-1628547452-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="57163" first="Mason" last="Ford"][/caption]<span style="font-size: 14pt;">-<strong> Coweta</strong></span> Tigers (5-0, 2-0) <ul style="list-style-type: square;"> <li><strong>Na’Kylan Starks</strong> | CHS ’23</li> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="57163" first="Mason" last="Ford"]</strong> | CHS ’23</li> </ul> <p style="padding-left: 40px;">→ Both agile smaller receivers, the quick-footed tandem of Starks and Ford has created an electric offensive dynamic for quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="38687" first="Gage" last="Hamm"] to enjoy this season. Ford leads the Tigers with 21 catches, 332 yards and four touchdown while Starks trails closely in all categories with 16 catches, 260 yards and three touchdowns. Both star for Coweta’s defense, as well.</p>