2021 Player Of The Year Finalists

Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy! The 2021 football season has come and gone. Once again, the football season has just flown by. A little over a week removed from the final football games of the 2021 season, we officially begin our postseason coverage. We continue things today with announcing the eleven finalists for the 2021 Prep Redzone Oklahoma Player Of The Year award. These eleven players are the absolute best of the best. From state champions to stat sheet stuffers and iron men, we have a great group of finalists. A couple of these players have made this list for the second straight season. On January 4th, we will announce the winner of the 2021 Prep Redzone Oklahoma Player Of The Year award. Coming up later this month and into January, we’ll also have season in review posts, All State teams and much more throughout the next three and a half weeks. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="52273" first="Ben" last="Harman"] - 2022 QUARTERBACK - CASHION 243-366 (66%) | 4,148 Yards | 52 Touchdowns | 10 Interceptions 137 Carries | 755 Yards | 8 Touchdowns The first of several state champions to make the list is Cashion senior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="52273" first="Ben" last="Harman"]. Once again, the Cashion QB has put up monster numbers and led a Cashion offense that ended up being one of the best in the state, regardless of class. Harman threw for over 4,000 yards and 52 touchdowns and also had plenty of numbers on the ground. However, the touchdown that meant the most came in the state title game with less than 20 seconds left as Harman found [player_tooltip player_id="53312" first="Mason" last="Manning"] in the corner of the end zone to give Cashion the 21-14 win over Ringling. Harman’s career numbers are also some of the best passing numbers in state history. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="38679" first="Braylin" last="Presley"] - 2022 RUNNING BACK - BIXBY (TWO-TIME FINALIST) 109 Carries | 1,105 Yards | 17 Touchdowns 56 Catches | 665 Yards | 7 Touchdowns 1,915 All Purpose Yards | 27 Total Touchdowns Not only was Bixby running back [player_tooltip player_id="38679" first="Braylin" last="Presley"] a finalist a year ago, he won our first ever award in 2020. He’s back again as a finalist after leading Bixby to a fourth consecutive state title and 49 consecutive wins. Presley didn’t put up the kind of numbers he put up last year but he didn’t need to as the Spartans were beating teams by an average margin of 50 points per game. He only played in a handful of games after halftime. And as always, Presley was at his best in the biggest games of the year. Despite not playing near as much, Presley still finished with 27 total touchdowns and was Bixby’s leading rusher and leading receiver on the season. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="38610" first="Caden" last="Powell"] - 2022 QUARTERBACK/LINEBACKER - CLINTON 52-110 (47%) | 945 Yards | 13 Touchdowns 155 Carries | 936 Yards | 21 Touchdowns 170 Tackles | 5 Interceptions Our third consecutive state champion finalist is Clinton senior [player_tooltip player_id="38610" first="Caden" last="Powell"]. He helped lead the Red Tornadoes to their 17th state championship in school history. He’s been the heart and soul for this Clinton football program for over two seasons and went out on top with one of his best performances in the title game. On offense, Powell was incredibly efficient leading the Clinton rushing attack. He led the team in touchdowns, scoring three of them in the title game alone. On defense is where Powell was at his best at the linebacker position, finishing with 170 tackles and five interceptions. Committed to play baseball at OU, Powell went out on top in football. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="38715" first="Camden" last="Crooks"] - 2023 WIDE RECEIVER/DEFENSIVE BACK - CUSHING (TWO-TIME FINALIST) 93 Catches | 1,624 Yards | 20 Touchdowns 81 Tackles | 5 Interceptions (1 TD) | 4 Fumble Recoveries The only other player that has made it on this list for the second consecutive season is Cushing standout [player_tooltip player_id="38715" first="Camden" last="Crooks"]. Not only is Crooks a finalist for the award for a second straight season, he’ll have a shot at being a three-time finalist as he’s only in his junior season. This year, Crooks was just as dynamic on both sides of the. ball and took his game to another level as a wide receiver. He was one of the best receivers in the state and finished with nearly 100 catches and 20 touchdowns. He still put up plenty of numbers on the defensive side of the ball and continued to be a two-way threat for the Tigers before they were stunned in the first round of the playoffs. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="157515" first="Chance" last="Wilson"] - 2023 QUARTERBACK - REJOICE CHRISTIAN 202-297 (68%) | 2,857 Yards | 40 Touchdowns | 5 Interceptions 150 Carries | 1,281 Yards | 22 Touchdowns Maybe we should have known from their season opener that Rejoice Christian and junior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="157515" first="Chance" last="Wilson"] was going to be a serious threat this season as they upset eventual Class A champion Cashion. Wilson led a dynamic Rejoice offense that was one of the best in the state and the numbers he put up were also some of the best. He threw for 40 touchdowns and also had 22 touchdowns on the ground while combining for over 4,000 yards of total offense. Wilson was definitely one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in Oklahoma this season. The Wilson-led Rejoice Eagles will be one of the top teams to watch during the 2022 football season. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="57158" first="Emmanuel" last="Crawford"] - 2023 RUNNING BACK - GROVE 255 Carries | 2,438 Yards | 39 Touchdowns 20 Catches | 407 Yards | 4 Touchdowns It seemed like every week, Grove junior running back [player_tooltip player_id="57158" first="Emmanuel" last="Crawford"] was putting up insane numbers that found him on the weekly Top Performer list. Crawford ended the season as one of the best running backs in the state and helped lead Grove to the district championship. Crawford finished the season with nearly 2,500 yards on the ground and was one rushing touchdown shy of 40 for the season. Crawford was also a threat to catch the ball out of the backfield as a receiver. The combination of Crawford at running back and fellow junior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="38818" first="Carson" last="Trimble"] will make the Ridgerunners an immediate threat as they move up to Class 5A next season. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="91049" first="Erik" last="McCarty"] - 2023 RUNNING BACK/DEFENSIVE BACK - McALESTER 202 Carries | 2,004 Yards | 38 Touchdowns 13 Catches | 234 Yards | 1 Touchdown 104 Tackles | 6 Blocked Kicks | 1 Interception McAlester came up just short of a state championship, losing an absolute classic to Collinsville in the 5A title game. Leading the Buffaloes and having one of the best individual performances that we saw all year was junior running back and defensive back [player_tooltip player_id="91049" first="Erik" last="McCarty"]. This junior is truly special and showed it all season with over 2,000 yards and nearly 40 touchdowns on the ground. But McCarty was much more than a dynamic running back. He put up monster numbers on defense with over 100 tackles and also had an impact in the special teams department unlike any other player we’ve seen this year. He finished the year with six blocked kicks. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="48668" first="Gavin" last="Freeman"] - 2022 WIDE RECEIVER/DEFENSIVE BACK - HERITAGE HALL 73 Catches | 1,434 Yards | 18 Touchdowns 50 Tackles | 4 Interceptions 25 Total Touchdowns Similar to players like Presley and McCarty, every time Heritage Hall’s [player_tooltip player_id="48668" first="Gavin" last="Freeman"] got the ball in his hands, you just knew he was going to make something special happen. The Texas Tech commit was one of the top playmakers in Oklahoma this season and helped lead the Chargers back to the semifinals. He put up monster numbers as a wide receiver but also made an impact on defense and in special teams. Freeman is certainly at the very top of the conversation when you talk about true game-changing athletes. Very few players were as dynamic as Freeman was this season and he was one of the easier picks to be a finalist for this year’s award. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="38755" first="Jace" last="Gilbert"] - 2022 QUARTERBACK/KICKER - MARLOW 123-157 (78%) | 2,227 Yards | 28 Touchdowns | 2 Interceptions 149 Carries | 853 Yards | 17 Touchdowns 9-12 Field Goals Few players can say they are responsible for just about every point scored during the season but that’s what you can say about Marlow senior [player_tooltip player_id="38755" first="Jace" last="Gilbert"]. One of the state’s best kickers, Gilbert showed he’s just an overall athlete by helping lead the Outlaws to their first state championship in decades. Gilbert was outstanding at quarterback with a 28-2 TD-INT ratio and also added 17 touchdowns on the ground. Gilbert was about as automatic as it got when it came to PAT’s and he was 9-12 on field goals. He was also a weapon on kick offs and as a punter. As a punter, Gilbert was special in their state championship victory over Washington. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="52787" first="Max" last="Brown"] - 2022 QUARTERBACK - LINCOLN CHRISTIAN 167-235 (71%) | 2,750 Yards | 41 Touchdowns | 4 Interceptions 173 Carries | 1,343 Yards | 20 Touchdowns Another dual-threat quarterback who put up ridiculous numbers was Lincoln Christian quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="52787" first="Max" last="Brown"]. In the passing game, Brown threw for over 2,700 yards and 41 touchdowns while completing over 70 percent of his passes. On the ground, Brown was lights out with over 1,300 yards and 20 touchdowns on the ground. He was right there with [player_tooltip player_id="157515" first="Chance" last="Wilson"] from Rejoice Christian for best dual-threat quarterback in the state this season. Brown helped lead Lincoln Christian back to the state championship game for the third consecutive season, where they would fall short to Holland Hall. Brown’s growth from his junior to senior year featured one of the biggest jumps that we saw from any individual during the 2021 season. <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="38774" first="Zane" last="Woodham"] - 2022 RUNNING BACK/LINEBACKER - HOLLAND HALL 204 Carries | 1,831 Yards | 23 Touchdowns 97 Tackles | 23 TFL | 5 Sacks | 1 Interception Our final state champion on the list is Holland Hall senior [player_tooltip player_id="38774" first="Zane" last="Woodham"], who helped lead the Dutch to their second consecutive state championship this fall. After winning it all in 2020, Woodham and a cast of several others returned in 2021 and were among the favorites in Class 3A. It was very clear from the start of the season that Woodham was one of the best players in the state this season when it came to two-way stars. At running back, Woodham ran for nearly 2,000 yards and 23 touchdowns. On defense, Woodham led a fantastic Holland Hall defense with 166 tackles, 23 tackles for loss and five sacks. He was underrated last year and one of the best in Oklahoma this season. <hr /> Stay tuned to Prep Redzone Oklahoma over the next three and a half weeks for more postseason content looking back on the 2021 football season. And be sure to join us on January 4th as we announce the winner of the 2021 Prep Redzone Oklahoma Player Of The Year. PREVIOUS WINNER 2020 - [player_tooltip player_id="38679" first="Braylin" last="Presley"] - Running Back - Bixby