3A Semifinal Preview
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For Classes 5A, 4A and 3A, it’s semifinal week! The playoffs continue and in these classes, we’re down to the final four and each team is one win away from punching their ticket to Edmond. We’re taking a look at the Class 3A semifinals in this post with a complete breakdown on Heritage Hall, Holland Hall, Lincoln Christian and Verdigris as they continue their playoff journeys this week.
#1 LINCOLN CHRISTIAN (12-0) VS #2 HERITAGE HALL (12-0)
Friday, 7PM @ Oklahoma Baptist University
The Match-Up: It doesn’t get much better than the semifinals in Class 3A this week and we start with the main event featuring the top two teams in the class. It’s top ranked Lincoln Christian facing off with their OKC rival and #2 Heritage Hall in a battle between unbeaten teams with a spot in the state title game. These two teams have been the most dominant teams in Class 3A this season and only one can play for the state title. Lincoln is looking for their third straight trip to the title game while Heritage Hall is looking for their first title game since winning it all in 2018. Both teams have absolutely dominated their competition this season with the Bulldogs winning their first two playoff games 56-6 and 35-7 respectively. And that was after dominating their district throughout the season. The closest game came back in week one on the road against Jones when they had to rally to win 31-29. Meanwhile the Chargers have never really had to rally as nearly all of their games have ended in blowouts. The Chargers rolled over Pauls Valley and then Berryhill last week to get to the semifinals. The Chargers have won all of their games this season by double digits but they will certainly be tested on Friday night against Lincoln Christian. The Bulldogs have the top scoring offense in 3A football this year and one of the top offenses in the state regardless of class. But the Chargers are right behind them at #2 in 3A for scoring. The winner here will be the favorite going into the title game.
HERITAGE HALL PLAYER TO WATCH
Gavin Freeman
Gavin
Freeman
5'10" | WR
Heritage Hall | 2022
State
OK
– 2022 Wide Receiver
He’s one of the few players in Oklahoma that you have to worry about him taking the ball the distance any time he gets it. That’s what you get with Heritage Hall senior standout and Texas Tech commit
Gavin Freeman
Gavin
Freeman
5'10" | WR
Heritage Hall | 2022
State
OK
, who has been one of the most electric players in Oklahoma over the last two seasons. He can change a game in the blink of an eye and he’s so important to Heritage Hall in all three phases of the game. The Chargers have weapons on both sides of the ball and Freeman isn’t doing it all by himself. In fact, you can make the argument that he hasn’t had to “all out” for 48 minutes this season and when that happens, we’re very curious what those numbers are going to look like at the end of the game.
LINCOLN CHRISTIAN PLAYER TO WATCH
Max Brown
Max
Brown
6'2" | 200 lbs | QB
Lincoln Christian | 2022
State
OK
– 2022 Quarterback
Lincoln Christian senior quarterback and Central Michigan commit
Max Brown
Max
Brown
6'2" | 200 lbs | QB
Lincoln Christian | 2022
State
OK
has been one of the best players in the state this year and is certainly right there with Freeman as a player on the short list for Player Of The Year in Oklahoma this season. Brown has torched defenses every single week this season and has done it throwing the ball and running. Just like with Freeman, just about every game that Brown has played in has been a blowout and he’s been done by halftime or some time in the third quarter. He will certainly have to play all four quarters against a Charger defense that has been outstanding all year. The Brown VS Freeman match-up within this game is going to be fun to watch.
The History: These two teams have become very familiar with one another over the last few years. On Friday night, Heritage Hall and Lincoln Christian will square off for a spot in the championship game for the fourth consecutive year. Lincoln has beat out the Chargers in the semifinal round the last two years while Heritage Hall got the best of Lincoln in 2018. Last year’s meeting was much closer with Lincoln edging out the Chargers 35-27. All in all, this is the sixth time that these two teams have faced off with every meeting coming in the playoffs. They also met in the 2015 state title game with Heritage Hall winning that one.
EXPERIENCE
Heritage Hall: Heritage Hall has made practicing on Thanksgiving a tradition as they’ve spent the majority of the last decade in the semifinal round. Friday night will be their 14th semifinal in school history. The Chargers have an 8-5 record in semifinal games and we just mentioned the recent history with Lincoln in those games. All in all, this will be Heritage Hall’s fifth consecutive year in the semifinals and it’s also the seventh trip to the final four in the last eight seasons. The Chargers are certainly no strangers.
Lincoln Christian: Just like with Heritage Hall, Lincoln Christian has been one of the top powers over the last several years and it’s been a safe bet to just pencil them in for a deep playoff run. This will be the seventh semifinal in school history and the fourth straight year they’ve made it to this round with all four coming against their rivals from Oklahoma City. The Bulldogs hold a 4-2 record in the semifinal round and are looking to punch their ticket to the state championship game for the third straight year.
#3 HOLLAND HALL (11-1) VS #5 VERDIGRIS (11-1)
Friday, 7PM @ Owasso High School
The Match-Up: While the first semifinal might be the main event because it features the top two teams, this semifinal is right there in the same conversation and has plenty of intrigue going into it. #3 Holland Hall will square off with #5 Verdigris in a battle of district foes. Defending champion Holland Hall had their winning streak snapped back in week nine when they went on the road and lost to Verdigris. Meanwhile, the Cardinals want to win head to head with the Dutch when the game matters most with a spot in the state title game on the line. Since losing to Verdigris, Holland Hall has been dominant, outscoring their last three opponents 155-17. Other than their loss to Verdigris, the Dutch have been one of the best teams in 3A all season by blowing out every other team in a district that has to be one of the toughest in the state. On the other side, you have a Verdigris team that is hungry to make it to the state title game. The Cardinals have been knocking on the door of the title game and they’re looking to finish the job. The Cardinal have had one of the best defenses in 3A football this season and will lean on that once again on Friday night. The Cardinals have had to go on the road in the first two rounds, despite being a top five team but it hasn’t slowed them down. They beat Seminole and then handled Plainview in the quarterfinals. This match-up was outstanding in the regular season and we can’t wait to see what happens now with the stakes much higher than a regular season meeting.
HOLLAND HALL PLAYER TO WATCH
Ethan Roush
Ethan
Roush
6'3" | 180 lbs | WR
Holland Hall | 2022
State
OK
– 2022 Athlete
He was already considered a player to watch but late in the season, senior standout
Ethan Roush
Ethan
Roush
6'3" | 180 lbs | WR
Holland Hall | 2022
State
OK
became much more important to the success of this Holland Hall team. When sophomore quarterback
Kordell Gouldsby
Kordell
Gouldsby
5'11" | WR
Bixby | 2024
State
OK
went down, the Dutch would turn to their senior standout, who was a wide receiver and defensive back to become the starting quarterback for the Dutch. Roush and the Dutch offense have been lights out and it’s like they aren’t missing their starting quarterback. But Roush and the Dutch will certainly have their work cut out for them going against a Verdigris defense that was outstanding during the regular season meeting. Based on their last few weeks, Roush is ready for the test on Friday night.
VERDIGRIS PLAYER TO WATCH
Reese Roller
Reese
Roller
6'0" | 210 lbs | LB
Verdigris | 2023
State
OK
– 2023 Linebacker
One of last year’s breakout stars was Verdigris linebacker
Reese Roller
Reese
Roller
6'0" | 210 lbs | LB
Verdigris | 2023
State
OK
. The junior linebacker got our attention with a two-week stretch where he had ten sacks and was one of the state leaders in sacks by the end of the season. We were curious if Roller was going to be able to match that production from his sophomore year with the rest of 3A knowing all about him coming into this season. That has been answered as he’s once again one of the state’s leaders in sacks this season and will once again be very important when the Cardinals line up to take down the Dutch for the second time this season. Roller and the Cardinal defense did a great job limiting Holland Hall offensively in week nine.
The History: It’s time for the grudge match between these two district rivals and to raise the stakes, a spot in the state title game is on the line. Defending champion Holland Hall faces off with Verdigris after losing on the road to the Cardinals in week nine this season. This will be just the third time these two teams have faced off after playing in district play the last two seasons. Holland Hall absolutely dominated Verdigris in the regular season meeting last year with a 52-7 victory. This year, the Cardinals avenged that loss with a 12-7 victory over the Dutch. Now, they face each other again and the winner punches their ticket to Edmond.
EXPERIENCE
Holland Hall: Holland Hall has only been a member of the OSSAA for a few years and because of that, the playoff history is certainly not as deep as some other teams in Class 3A. On Friday night, the Dutch will be playing in just their second semifinal game in school history. As defending champs, obviously the other semifinal went well as they blew out out Stigler 49-14 in the semifinal round last year before beating Lincoln Christian to capture the state championship. They look to make it back to Edmond to defend that title.
Verdigris: Just like with Holland Hall, Verdigris has punched their ticket to the semifinal round for just the second time in school history. The Cardinals are still searching for their first state championship game appearance in school history. The Cardinals last made the semifinals two years ago in 2019, when they lost to Plainview. Verdigris was able to avenge that loss last week in the quarterfinals by going on the road to beat the Indians. Now they shift their focus to taking down the defending champs for the second time this year.