Union Overwhelms Jenks 38-3

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><strong>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</strong></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Backyard Bowl between Jenks and Union is always a game to circle on the calendar but this year had a little extra juice as the #1 Redhawks hosted the #3 Trojans. All of the pregame storylines combined for a highly anticipated rematch of last year's 6A-1 state championship game. A short-handed Jenks squad came out and gave Union their best shot and had some confidence early on but the Redhawks were too much and walked away with a very impressive 38-3 victory.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After forcing a Union punt, Jenks would march right down the field behind a strong running game and an accurate [player_tooltip player_id='374628' first='Ike' last='Owens'] at quarterback, who went 4-4 on the first drive. The Union defense would stiffen up with their backs against the wall and Jenks would have to settle for a 34-yard field goal and it would be their only points in the game. Union's next drive would end on a turnover on downs after a penalty wiped away a touchdown and then they had another touchdown dropped in the end zone. But Union's defense would be dialed in for the rest of the game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A bad Jenks punt would set Union up with great field position and they took advantage, along with digging in the bag of tricks. [player_tooltip player_id='376092' first='Grayson' last='Tempest'] took a reverse handoff and tossed it to [player_tooltip player_id='110747' first='Jino' last='Boyd'] for a 19 yard touchdown to go up late in the second quarter. Jenks would then throw the first of two interceptions on their next possession. Union would march 92 yards and make it look easy behind running back [player_tooltip player_id='219073' first='DJ' last='McKinney'] and Tempest in the receiving game. They would add another touchdown on a short run from [player_tooltip player_id='110741' first='Lane' last='Wood'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Union would lead 14-3 at halftime but the Trojans would put a very strong drive together to start the third quarter. But Union's defense would once again come up big and hold Jenks to a field goal attempt. Union safety and Tulsa commit [player_tooltip player_id='287383' first='Devin' last='Robinson'] would break through the line and block the field goal. Union would then add another field goal to go up 17-3. On the very next Jenks play, Robinson came up with his second interception and he would high step into the end zone to put Union up 24-3. At this point, Jenks had run out gas and the injuries mounted up once again and Union had all the momentum. The Redhawks would add two more touchdown passes from quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='188014' first='Shaker' last='Reisig'] and the Redhawks would walk away with a 35-point victory.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jenks would get several injured players back for this game but they were not close to 100 percent and a couple of them would have to exit the game. There's no doubt that the Trojans are incredibly banged up right now and they'll look much different later on this season. But you can't help but be impressed with the way Union executed on both sides of the ball. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Union improves to 3-0 on the young season and Jenks falls to 2-1 with both teams heading into a bye week before district play opens up in week four. Below, we take a look at the top five performers from Union's dominating win. Stay tuned to Prep Redzone Oklahoma throughout the weekend as we also take a look at the top performers from Jenks later on this weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator {"className":"is-style-wide"} --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide"/> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>UNION TOP PERFORMERS</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"id":"block_631cc9be027d3","name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["441599"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Union senior linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='441599' first='Bryce' last='Ashlock'] led a Redhawk front seven in tackles and really set the tone throughout the game. The Trojans had success running the football at various points in the game but Ashlock and the front seven would bend but not break in those moments. Ashlock would also routinely get into the backfield and put pressure on the quarterback, forcing rushed throws throughout the evening. Ashlock has had a great start to his senior season and this defense is playing with a lot of momentum after allowing just three points to Jenks and dominating Broken Arrow's rushing attack in week one. Ashlock is definitely a linebacker to keep an eye on in this 2023 class. He's a player that can play at the next level as he's one of the better linebackers in 6A-1 early on this season.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"align":"","mode":"preview","anchor":"acf-block-68a5813fa1916"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"id":"block_631cc9d5027d4","name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["287383"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"As dominant as Ashlock was within the front seven, right behind him was Union safety and Tulsa commit [player_tooltip player_id='287383' first='Devin' last='Robinson']. And while it's close, I think you have to give Robinson the nod for best defensive performance throughout the evening. He would finish with two interceptions, including one that he returned for a touchdown that all but sealed the game. He also blocked a field goal when Jenks put a lengthy drive together to start the third quarter. On back to back offensive possessions to start the second half, Jenks saw Robinson block a field goal and then return an interception for a touchdown to give Union a 24-3 lead. At that point, this game was all but over. Robinson is one of the most improved players in the state's 2023 class and Tulsa is getting a prospect that is just scratching the surface on his potential.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"align":"","mode":"preview","anchor":"acf-block-68a5813fa1954"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"id":"block_631cc9ea027d5","name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["219073"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Union senior running back [player_tooltip player_id='219073' first='DJ' last='McKinney'] is very quickly becoming one of the top all purpose backs in the state's 2023 class. We've seen the production he's had early on this year but watching how they use him in person, it's incredibly impressive and puts so much stress on a defense. McKinney isn't the biggest back but he uses his vision and quick lateral movement to make a small play into a big one in the blink of an eye. In their runaway win over the Trojans, McKinney was a workhorse at running back with 22 carries for 145 yards. Jenks did a good job of not giving up the big play but McKinney still gashed the Trojans throughout the night. He also added 52 yards and a touchdown on six receptions. McKinney is going to end up being one of Union's top receivers this year at the rate he's currently on.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"align":"","mode":"preview","anchor":"acf-block-68a5813fa1982"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"id":"block_631cca01027d6","name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["376092"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Union's top wide receiver so far this season has been their old quarterback in senior [player_tooltip player_id='376092' first='Grayson' last='Tempest']. After starting last season, Tempest has moved to wide receiver to make room for Reisig at QB1 and those two have developed outstanding chemistry early on this season. Tempest and Reisig connected plenty of times throughout the game on Friday night as Tempest finished with six catches for over 130 yards and a 78-yard touchdown strike from Reisig. Union also has an X-factor in Tempest that has to keep defenses honest. They ran a reverse to Tempest that turned into a touchdown pass to [player_tooltip player_id='110747' first='Jino' last='Boyd']. At any moment, the Redhawk offense can hit a defense with something like that and create a big play and plenty of momentum.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"align":"","mode":"preview","anchor":"acf-block-68a5813fa19ae"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"id":"block_631cca1c027d7","name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["188014"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"And our final top performer is of course Union quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='188014' first='Shaker' last='Reisig']. Since he made the move from Jenks to Union in May, this has been a massive storyline and plenty of articles have been written about the move and this match-up in particular. Reisig showed why he's one of the best quarterbacks in the state's 2025 class as he let absolutely none of it distract him from getting the job done. He finished 18-24 for nearly 300 yards and a pair of touchdowns and looked outstanding while navigating the Union offense. We've used the word u0022surgicalu0022 many times to describe Reisig and it fits once again. The sophomore just simply doesn't make mistakes, he doesn't get ahead of himself and he very easily could have been caught up in all of the outside noise this week. He didn't, and it was impressive to watch.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"align":"","mode":"preview","anchor":"acf-block-68a5813fa19d9"} /-->