2021 Breakout Stars

<em><strong>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</strong></em> 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 began our postseason coverage. In today’s post, we take a look at ten players who were somewhat unknown outside of their own locker room and then became some of the best players in the state at their position this season. Keep it locked in to Prep Redzone Oklahoma this week as we have more postseason content dropping on the site. On Tuesday, we announce the winner of our Prep Redzone Oklahoma Player Of The Year award. Later this week, we also announce the All State teams. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="219071" first="Aiden" last="Walker"] - 2023 Linebacker - Booker T Washington</strong> Our first breakout star is yet another standout to come out of Booker T Washington. The Hornets certainly had a bright spotlight on them coming into this season but specifically on a very talented secondary. But junior linebacker [player_tooltip player_id="219071" first="Aiden" last="Walker"] ended up being one of the top players on that Booker T Washington defense. With well over 100 tackles, Walker established himself as one of the better linebackers in 6A-2 and will go into 2022 trying to lead the Hornets to a state championship. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="206777" first="Canon" last="West"] - 2022 Running Back - Tuttle</strong> We thought that Tuttle would have a two-headed monster at the running back position and that was the plan. However, junior running back [player_tooltip player_id="54485" first="Tyler" last="Woodson"] would go down with an injury and the Tigers turned to senior [player_tooltip player_id="206777" first="Canon" last="West"] to not only be the main ball carrier in the Tiger offense, but he would help carry the Tigers to the state championship game. West ended up being one of the best running backs in Class 4A and certainly enjoyed a breakout season after being somewhat unknown coming into the year. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="197183" first="Connor" last="Kirby"] - 2023 Quarterback - Bixby</strong> As if Bixby needed another weapon on offense. That’s what they got with junior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="197183" first="Connor" last="Kirby"]. The quarterback position was a big question mark coming into this season and they had two breakout players at that position. [player_tooltip player_id="193013" first="Christian" last="Burke"] was the starter and [player_tooltip player_id="197183" first="Connor" last="Kirby"] would come in and actually ended up leading the team in rushing touchdowns. The Spartans got creative with how they used Kirby and he was a reason they went from averaging 50+ points last season to 60+ points this season. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="229870" first="Darius" last="Hampton"] - 2022 Defensive Lineman - Del City</strong> Del City had several standout recruits on the defensive line coming into this season but it was senior [player_tooltip player_id="229870" first="Darius" last="Hampton"] who enjoyed the breakout season and was arguably the best of the bunch in terms of numbers. Hampton would finish off his senior season with over 20 sacks and was one of the absolute best in the state at getting to the quarterback. While offenses were trying to slow down junior [player_tooltip player_id="57157" first="Jaedon" last="Foreman"] and sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="110735" first="David" last="Stone"], it was Hampton that they couldn’t stop and he wrecked shop all year. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="215196" first="Dax" last="Collins"] - 2024 Athlete - Poteau</strong> Poteau came up short on making a run to the state championship game but the future is bright after watching the emergence of sophomore sensation [player_tooltip player_id="215196" first="Dax" last="Collins"]. The Pirates had one of the better running backs in 4A football with [player_tooltip player_id="207530" first="Todd" last="Mattox"] but he graduates and the Pirates will turn to Collins to be their main playmaker for the next two seasons. Despite backing up Mattox, Collins still showed what he could do with the ball in his hands and gave Poteau fans a glimpse into the future after making plenty of plays this season. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="199075" first="DeSean" last="Mays"] - 2023 Running Back - Vian</strong> After several years of having some running backs who were better categorized as "power runners", Vian enjoyed having an electric player in the backfield with junior running back [player_tooltip player_id="199075" first="DeSean" last="Mays"]. In fact, the Wolverines had a great 1-2 punch at running back and still had some power running but anytime Mays got the ball in his hands, he could make something special happen with it. He ended up having a breakout season and put up some monster numbers. He’ll go into next year as one of the best running backs in 2A football. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="219244" first="Isaiah" last="Gray"] - 2022 Running Back - Lawton MacArthur</strong> Lawton MacArthur made a run to the 5A semifinals and were a close loss in week ten away from being 12-0 going into that semifinal round. The top thing that led the Highlanders to the semifinal round was senior running back [player_tooltip player_id="219244" first="Isaiah" last="Gray"]. Yet another running back enjoyed a breakout season but we’re stunned we didn’t know about Gray before this season. This kid is the real deal and it didn’t take long to figure that out. He finished with over 2,000 yards on the ground and rewrote the rushing record book at Lawton Mac. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38787" first="Parker" last="Jenney"] - 2023 Linebacker - Holland Hall</strong> We go back to the defensive side of the ball with a standout from Holland Hall who could be the next big thing for the Dutch. Holland Hall has had some excellent players, especially on defense in the last two seasons and [player_tooltip player_id="38787" first="Parker" last="Jenney"] might be that next guy. The junior is incredibly explosive and just flies all over the field making plays. The jump he made from his sophomore to junior season was outstanding and if he makes a similar jump next year, he’ll be one of the best linebackers in the state. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="204031" first="Tias" last="McClarty"] - 2023 Quarterback - Norman</strong> We knew about Norman junior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="204031" first="Tias" last="McClarty"] coming into this season but we’ll admit that we didn’t see his junior year coming. The Norman signal caller turned himself into one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the state this season and was a legit weapon in the Norman backfield. While he was certainly at his best when he tucked it and ran, he also made defenses pay when they tried to cheat up to stop the run. McClarty will go into 2022 as one of the better quarterbacks in the state. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="231981" first="Tre" last="Stevenson"] - 2024 Running Back - Perkins-Tryon</strong> Perkins-Tryon was a team in Class 3A that was certainly a sleeper in a class that has been dominated by just a few teams. The Demons could have ended up playing spoiler in 2021 but they shouldn’t go anywhere for the next few seasons. They enjoyed a breakout season from sophomore running back [player_tooltip player_id="231981" first="Tre" last="Stevenson"], who was one of the better breakout stars in Class 3A. Like many of 3A’s best players, Stevenson also plays both sides of the ball but he was an outstanding ball carrier this season for Perkins-Tryon.