6A-1 Quarterfinal Preview

<!-- 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 Class 6A-1 quarterfinal round kicks off this week and we're taking a look at all four match-ups. For the first time since the split in Class 6A, we had a 12-team playoff in 6A-1 and 6A-2. Which meant we had four teams with bye weeks last week and all four home teams this week will be taking the field after taking last week off. Keep it locked in to Prep Redzone Oklahoma throughout the week for more quarterfinal previews in the various classes. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#8 ENID (6-5) AT #3 BIXBY (9-1)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The first of two regular season rematches in this week's quarterfinal round features Bixby hosting Enid. These two teams met back in week six and the Spartans would score a first round knockout on the road, beating Enid 77-14. This was a game where the Spartans would go up 28-0 on the Plainsmen and only ran one snap on offense. They returned the opening kick for a touchdown. They returned an interception and a fumble for a touchdown and on their first offensive play of the game, they scored. But as the Spartans come into this week, they'll be unfamiliar territory after losing for the first time since the start of the 2018 season. Despite that loss to Jenks in week ten, there was a lot of positives from that game. Senior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='197183' first='Connor' last='Kirby'] played the best game of his career and will look to build on that this week. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For Enid, they have some momentum after winning their first playoff game since the Austin Box days when they made it all the way to the 2006 state championship game. They would go on the road to knock off Edmond Memorial 32-27 and they were led in that game by senior running back [player_tooltip player_id='464613' first='Luke' last='Rauh']. The Enid offense has a few seniors that have enjoyed fantastic seasons and put up some impressive numbers. In addition to Rauh at running back, senior wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='133793' first='Tykie' last='Andrews'] has also enjoyed a season in which he has rewritten the record book at Enid. But Friday's task is no doubt a tall one. Bixby begins their playoff journey against Enid, as they look to make their ninth consecutive state championship game appearance. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#2 JENKS (8-2) AT #5 MUSTANG (8-2)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This isn't a rematch from the regular season but it is a rematch of last year's semifinal round. Jenks would knock off the Broncos 17-10 before going on to win their second consecutive state championship. That's definitely in the memories of a Mustang team that came into this season with some unfinished business. The Broncos nearly upset the Trojans, who were without their star running backs but survived. Coming into this season, Mustang certainly feels like they have some unfinished business. After earning a bye week for finishing second in their district, the Broncos and their high-powered offense will open up their playoff journey at home. The Broncos have been averaging over 50 points per game in their last three games following the loss to top-ranked Union.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There might not be another team that has more momentum going for them than Jenks right now. Before the playoffs began, the Trojans got everyone's attention across the state when they knocked off Bixby in week ten, ending Bixby's 58-game winning streak. They continued that momentum last week against Edmond North when they beat the Huskies 68-14 in the opening round. The Trojans are getting back to full strength after a bumpy regular season just full of injuries to key positions. But now that they're getting back to full strength with some of their best players on both sides of the ball, you're seeing the two-time defending champions playing like it. We mentioned this in our 6A-1 preview but it's bad news for the rest of the class as the Trojans are peaking at the perfect time. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#7 BROKEN ARROW (4-6) AT #1 UNION (10-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The other regular season rematch in this week's quarterfinal round features top-ranked Union hosting Broken Arrow. Union went on the road back in week one and beat the Tigers 28-7. This will also be the third consecutive year these two have met in the playoffs and the fifth in the last six years. During that stretch, Union holds a 4-1 advantage, including two straight wins. Union is the only unbeaten team left in 6A-1 and they've held on to the top spot in the class since our preseason rankings back in June. Back in week one, Union used a strong running game and stout defense to knock off the Tigers. They held Broken Arrow's offense to under 200 yards of total offense. Senior running back [player_tooltip player_id='219073' first='DJ' last='McKinney'] accounted for over 200 yards of offense and two touchdowns in the win. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both teams are much different than that week one meeting, but Union has had Broken Arrow's number. The Tigers look to turn things around against Union on Friday night and punch their ticket to the semifinals. Broken Arrow knocked off Norman 47-20 in the first round last week. They jumped out to a 26-6 lead at halftime and cruised from there. Norman lost star quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='204031' first='Tias' last='McClarty'] but the Cowboys were on a roll on the offensive side of the ball. Lately, it's been all about the Joneses in the Broken Arrow backfield. Quarterback Owen Jones and running backs [player_tooltip player_id='380233' first='Nate' last='Jones'] and [player_tooltip player_id='402378' first='Kaydin' last='Jones'] have been playing lights out. [player_tooltip player_id='402378' first='Kaydin' last='Jones'] is a freshman running back that has enjoyed a breakout season this year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#6 OWASSO (6-4) AT #4 NORMAN NORTH (8-2)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Our final quarterfinal features Norman North hosting Owasso. Before this season, these two teams met every year in district play since 2014. The match-up did not go well for the Timberwolves as Owasso has won five straight and seven of the last eight meetings. But this is a Norman North team that is right there in the conversation for being the best team on the west side of the state and they've earned their spot in the 6A-1 championship race. Norman North suffered back to back losses in late September but have been perfect ever since. The first was a puzzling loss to Yukon and then a blowout loss to Bixby. From there, the Timberwolves scored back to back losses over Broken Arrow and Jenks and that opened a lot of eyes that Norman North needed to be taken seriously this year in 6A-1. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On the other side of the match-up, you have an Owasso team that finally has things going in the right direction. We knew that Owasso was going to have a tough first half of the season with the schedule they were playing and that, combined with injuries to key positions put Owasso at 1-4 halfway through the season. But Owasso has won six consecutive games and they are looking really strong as they come into the quarterfinal round. The Rams opened up the playoffs with a 41-7 win over Westmoore last week and now they shift their focus to slowing down a Norman North offense that has some serious talent in their backfield. The Rams have been led by their senior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='38821' first='Mason' last='Willingham'] and a breakout star [player_tooltip player_id='427388' first='Anthony' last='Hills'] at wide receiver. On paper, this looks like the best quarterfinal match-up in 6A-1 this week. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->