Week Five Top Performers
In this article:
Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy! Every Sunday, we’ll look at some of the top individual performances from the week that was in high school football. As always, send us your picks…
Access all of Prep Redzone
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingGet 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!
Every Sunday, we’ll look at some of the top individual performances from the week that was in high school football. As always, send us your picks for top performers after each game. Tweet them @PrepRedzoneOK or email them to Michael@PrepRedzone.com
Austin Havens
Austin
Havens
6'3" | 205 lbs | QB
Bixby | 2023
State
OK
– 2023 Quarterback – Owasso
21-33 | 310 Yards | 4 Touchdowns
It was a bounce back week for Owasso and junior quarterback Austin Havens Austin Havens 6'3" | 205 lbs | QB Bixby | 2023 State OK as they beat up on Norman North 70-28. Despite the final score looking like a blowout, this was a close game for the first two quarters. Then, Havens and the Ram offense got clicking, just one week after being held to just seven points on the road against Union. Havens torched Norman North for 310 yards and four touchdowns on 21-33 passing. Havens was off to a red hot start during non-district play but got contained in the district opener against Union. It was good to not only see the Rams bounce back but the junior QB bounce back as well.
Brett Pense
Brett
Pense
6'2" | QB
Deer Creek | 2022
State
OK
– 2022 Quarterback – Deer Creek
19-32 | 302 Yards | 3 Touchdowns | 1 Rushing Touchdown
I think it’s very safe to say that Deer Creek is for real this year in 6A-2 after the first five weeks this season. They pushed district powerhouse Stillwater to the brink in double overtime last week and then came out this week and hammered Putnam City North, improving to 4-1 on the season. Leading the way for the Antlers this year on the offensive side of the ball has been senior quarterback Brett Pense Brett Pense 6'2" | QB Deer Creek | 2022 State OK . The senior threw for over 300 yards and three touchdowns on Friday night and also added one touchdown on the ground. Deer Creek will have a few more tests coming up later this season but they look like a team that could punch their ticket to the playoffs.
Demarius Robinson
Demarius
Robinson
5'9" | 165 lbs | RB
Edmond Santa Fe | 2025
State
OK
– 2025 Running Back – Edmond Santa Fe
200 Rushing Yards | 5 Touchdowns
Edmond Santa Fe rolled to a 48-10 victory over Westmoore on Friday night but the Jags and Wolves were trading punches early on. However, Santa Fe would roll to the win behind the play of their freshman running back Demarius Robinson Demarius Robinson 5'9" | 165 lbs | RB Edmond Santa Fe | 2025 State OK . The freshman phenom finished with over 200 yards and five touchdowns on the ground. Robinson Coming into the year, Santa Fe was assumed to be a pass-first offense when you saw the talent at quarterback and at wide receiver. However, the emergence of Robinson has made this offense a balanced attack and gives Santa Fe yet another weapon. Oh, and they’ll have him for three more seasons too.
DeSean Mays
DeSean
Mays
6'0" | 160 lbs | RB
Vian | 2023
State
OK
– 2023 Running Back – Vian
28 Carries | 394 Yards | 5 Touchdowns
Perhaps the best overall performance came in Vian’s blowout victory over Roland on Friday night. Junior running back DeSean Mays DeSean Mays 6'0" | 160 lbs | RB Vian | 2023 State OK was electric in the blowout win, running for nearly 400 yards and five touchdowns on 28 carries. Mays got out to a great start in the first few weeks but Friday’s game against Roland was certainly the best performance he’s had so far this season. We’re looking forward to seeing what he can do for an encore in week six. The Wolverines welcome in Cascia Hall on Friday night, the same team that handed them a rare district loss last season. Mays and Vian will be ready to get a little revenge this week.
Emmanuel Crawford
Emmanuel
Crawford
5'10" | 170 lbs | RB
Grove | 2023
State
OK
– 2023 Running Back – Grove
258 Rushing Yards | 5 Touchdowns
This weekly feature is quickly becoming just a weekly check in to see how many yards and touchdowns Grove junior standout Emmanuel Crawford Emmanuel Crawford 5'10" | 170 lbs | RB Grove | 2023 State OK had on a Friday night. For the third straight week, Crawford is featured here after running for over 250 yards and hitting the end zone five times for the third consecutive week. For those keeping track at home, Crawford has run for 814 yards and 16 touchdowns. Read those numbers again if you just skimmed them. 814 yards, 16 touchdowns, 3 games. Not bad. Grove appears to be the real deal and Crawford is a big reason why the unbeaten Ridgerunners vaulted into the top five in the 4A rankings on Saturday.
Mike Taffe
Mike
Taffe
6'0" | 190 lbs | RB
Bishop McGuinness | 2023
State
OK
– 2023 Running Back – Bishop McGuinness
28 Carries | 244 Yards | 5 Touchdowns
Speaking of weekly check in’s, it’s another week showcasing Bishop McGuinness and their junior phenom Mike Taffe Mike Taffe 6'0" | 190 lbs | RB Bishop McGuinness | 2023 State OK . On a wet Friday night in western Oklahoma, not even mother nature could slow down Taffe and the McGuinness offense out in Woodward. The junior finished with 244 yards and five touchdowns in the week five win. Like Crawford, Taffe has put up some monster numbers in the last few weeks and this week will feature a massive test for Taffe and the Irish offense. The Irish will welcome in rival Carl Albert on Friday night. This will without a doubt be one of the best games of week six and a tough test for the Irish.
Ravian Larry
Ravian
Larry
6'1" | RB
Idabel | 2025
State
OK
– 2025 Running Back – Idabel
19 Carries | 337 Yards | 3 Touchdowns
That’s right, we have not one, but two freshmen making the list for this week and another running back doing it as well. Joining Robinson from Santa Fe is Idabel youngster Ravian Larry Ravian Larry 6'1" | RB Idabel | 2025 State OK . The young running back from southern Oklahoma is well known in the area and fans have been waiting for him to make his debut this year as a freshman. They knew he would be an impact player and that’s exactly what we’ve seen. Idabel rolled to a win on Friday and Larry finished with 337 yards and three touchdowns on just 19 carries. Larry has Idabel as a serious contender within their district in Class 2A.
River Faulkner
River
Faulkner
5'11" | 205 lbs | ATH
Heritage Hall | 2023
State
OK
– 2023 Running Back – Heritage Hall
27 Carries | 246 Yards | 5 Touchdowns
Heritage Hall got an absolute scare from Perkins-Tryon on Friday night but the Chargers remained undefeated with a 35-20 victory over the Demons. Carrying the Chargers to the win was their breakout star in junior running back River Faulkner River Faulkner 5'11" | 205 lbs | ATH Heritage Hall | 2023 State OK . The junior standout finished with nearly 250 yards and all five Heritage Hall touchdowns on 27 carries on the night. Coming into the season, all eyes were on Gavin Freeman Gavin Freeman 5'10" | WR Heritage Hall | 2022 State OK for the Chargers but Faulkner has been a constant and reliable playmaker for the Chargers week after week. We thought Heritage Hall would be tested on the road in week five. They were tested and Faulkner had them passing with flying colors.
Ty Pennington
Ty
Pennington
6'1" | QB
Sand Springs | 2022
State
OK
– 2022 Quarterback – Sand Springs
14-18 | 192 Yards | 2 Touchdowns | 94 Rushing Yards | 2 Rushing Touchdowns
Sand Springs improved to 5-0 for the first time in a while as the Sandites went on the road and knocked off Muskogee in somewhat of a shootout. The Roughers made Sand Springs work for it and senior quarterback Ty Pennington Ty Pennington 6'1" | QB Sand Springs | 2022 State OK had no problems leading the Sandite offense and putting points on the scoreboard. He finished with nearly 200 passing yards and a pair of touchdowns while only throwing four incompletions. He also added nearly 100 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns. However, all eyes are on the Sandites for the next three weeks as they play Booker T Washington, Bixby and Choctaw in three straight games.
Virgil Yates
Virgil
Yates
5'10" | ATH
Del City | 2022
State
OK
– 2022 Quarterback – Del City
26 Carries | 210 Yards | 2 Touchdowns
Del City got week five started on Thursday by making headlines in 6A-2, crushing Stillwater on the road. The Pioneers had dominated not only Del City, but they’ve dominated this district for the last three years. It’s obvious that this district is much more competitive than we thought back in August. Leading the way for Del City was senior quarterback, who does almost all of his damage on the ground and he was at it again on Thursday night. Yates finished with just over 200 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries. Yates has been an absolute breakout star for the Eagles this year and has Del City as a true contender in the district title race.