Week Zero Top Ten Games
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The 2022 football season is finally upon us! While some teams have their final tune up scrimmages this week, it’s officially week zero and for a large amount of schools across the state, they open up their seasons this week. Every single Monday on Prep Redzone Oklahoma, we’ll get the week started with a look at the top ten games across the state of Oklahoma. And this week, we have some absolutely great match-ups across the state. We have state championship rematches and potential state championship previews as multiple classes will see top five teams face off. Check back every Monday as we break down the top ten games every single week during the 2022 regular season.
1) #3 BIXBY VS #4 OWASSO – Thursday @ TU
It’s been labeled as the “Battle Of The Burbs” with #3 Bixby squaring off with #4 Owasso at TU’s Chapman Stadium on Thursday night. The Spartans bring in a 49-game winning streak and begin their trek into 6A-1 while Owasso looks to immediately pop Bixby’s bubble. The Spartans will have a familiar name to Owasso fans as former Owasso starting quarterback will be one of two quarterbacks that get playing time on Thursday night. Both teams expect to be in the state championship conversation come November and December and this could very well be the first of two meetings between the two Tulsa-area powers. Either the Rams make history and snap the streak or the streak reaches 50. Stay tuned for a more in-depth look at our week zero game of the week on Wednesday!
2) #1 CARL ALBERT AT #5 COWETA
Another top five match-up that’s happening this week features 5A’s #1 Carl Albert going to the east side of the state to face off with #5 Coweta. The Titans rarely go to the east side of the state but they are familiar with Coweta. The Titans would eliminate the Tigers from the 5A playoffs last year with a 14-7 victory in the quarterfinal round. Both teams are two of the absolute best in Class 5A. It was a playoff meeting last year and it could end up being a playoff meeting later on this year. The Titans come into the season as the favorite in Class 5A but they are going to be tested right out of the gate. They’ll face a Coweta team that is experienced and has plenty of talent on both sides of the ball while the Titans have a ton of talent but it’s still very young at this point of the year.
3) #1 LINCOLN CHRISTIAN AT #7 HOLLAND HALL
This match-up was the final match-up in Class 3A in 2020 and 2021 and it’s the first marquee match-up in Class 3A this fall. Two-time defending champion Holland Hall will host Lincoln Christian in a rematch of the last two state championship games. Top-ranked Lincoln Christian will travel across town to face off with the rival Dutch. Holland Hall has become the thorn in Lincoln Christian’s side. However, this will be a completely new looking Dutch team after graduation has hit them hard. They do have some talent coming back but there are a ton of new faces on both sides of the ball. Meanwhile, Lincoln Christian brings back nearly all 22 starters from last year’s team. The biggest question surrounding this match-up is whether or not there will be a rematch in November or December.
4) #1 WASHINGTON AT #5 VIAN
The other top five match-up, featuring east and west teams that could end up facing off in the playoffs has #1 Washington going on the road to face #5 Vian. Both of these teams have been two of the better Class 2A programs and both have been knocking on the door of capturing the gold ball. The Warriors have had to settle for the silver ball in the last two years while Vian was the Class 2A runner up in the 2019 season. It goes without saying but both teams expect to be in the championship game when December rolls around. It’s only week zero and there is so much football that’s going to be played and new contenders will emerge but it’s hard not to look at this game as a measuring stick game. Both teams have serious rushing attacks that will be among the best in Class 2A.
5) 2A #3 REJOICE CHRISTIAN AT A #3 CASHION
Rejoice Christian got everyone’s attention early on last season when they knocked off Cashion, as the Wildcats were coming off a state championship in 2020. The Eagles will look to do the same as Cashion is once again coming off a state championship as they are back to back champs in Class A but they’ll look completely different in 2022 as graduation hit them hard on both sides of the ball. Despite all the new faces, Cashion is still one of the top teams in Class A and this match-up is a battle between the #3 teams in Class 2A and A. Rejoice Christian has one of the best offenses in the state and will end up being one of the highest scoring teams this fall and Cashion could be in that position by the end of the season but those young faces will have to come along.
6) #2 JENKS AT #7 EDMOND SANTA FE
This match-up has been one of the more underrated “East Vs West” rivalries over the last few seasons. These two teams have battled each other in district play over the last few years and now they square off in the season opener. Santa Fe captured back to back district titles in 2019 and 2020 but fell to Jenks in the 2020 state championship game. Last season’s district match-up got very chippy but ended with the Trojans prevailing, and they would go on to win a second consecutive state championship. Now, the #2 Trojans will open up the year in Edmond taking on a Santa Fe squad that is somewhat rebuilding with plenty of new faces on the offensive side of the ball. But one thing is for sure, both teams have very strong running games and that will definitely come into play this week.
7) 6A-2 #1 CHOCTAW AT 5A #7 DEL CITY
Similar to Edmond Santa Fe and Jenks, these two teams used to be district foes but now find themselves in different classes. 5A’s #7 Del City will host 6A-2’s #1 Choctaw. They were district opponents in 2018 and 2019 and the Eagles got the best of the Yellowjackets in both meetings. Now, they’re in different classes but both expect to be championship contenders. And this should be a great match-up that tells us a lot about each team. Choctaw has a very explosive offense with D1 athletes in several spots. That will clash with Del City’s defense that has D1 guys at almost every level of their defense, including two P5 commits. both teams are very familiar with one another, despite not meeting in the last two seasons. There will be some big boy football played in this one.
8) 2A #7 JONES AT 4A #7 BETHANY
It’s 4A vs 2A and a battle of #7 ranked teams as Bethany will host Jones. This has become the season opener for both teams over the last two seasons and they’ve split the series so far. Jones won with ease in 2020 while Bethany pulled out the 27-14 victory over the Longhorns last season, spoiling their home opener after recent renovations. Heading into this season, both teams are trying to replace legit stars from last year’s team that are now freshmen at the Power 5 level. Both teams still have high expectations of contending in their class but they aren’t among the favorites in their classes right now. However, both teams could end up being in that conversation by year’s end. Bethany has shown that they can contend with some of 4A’s elite while Jones has been one of the more consistent winning programs in the last decade.
9) 4A #3 POTEAU AT BISHOP KELLEY
4A’s #3 Poteau will hit the road to Tulsa and take on a perennial 5A power in Bishop Kelley, who’s a borderline top ten team once again and a win this week will catapult them into the top ten. These two teams have opened up the season against one another in each of the last two seasons. Bishop Kelley took care of business in 2020 while Poteau got the 35-28 victory over the Comets last season. Poteau has been one of the best teams in Class 4A over the last four seasons and Bishop Kelley is a team that’s always in the mix in Class 5A. This is a great match-up featuring two teams that are perennial playoff teams and we’ll get a good look at both. Similar to a few other match-ups this week, this one is headlined by the running games that both teams will rely on to get the week zero win.
10) 3A #6 CASCIA HALL AT VICTORY CHRISTIAN
Victory Christian has had this season opener circled for a while. The Conquerors lost both meetings with Cascia Hall last season. They lost the season opener and then were bounced out of the playoffs by Cascia in the second round. There will be no playoff meeting between these two teams this year as Cascia Hall moves up to Class 3A. But Victory Christian will still be out for a little revenge. It will be a clash of styles as Victory’s passing attack faces Cascia Hall and their dominating running game, along with their classic “Blue Swarm” defense. This will also be be a big game for the winner as both teams have some very tough games in the first half of the season and a win here will give that team some much-needed momentum going into September.