Bethany Bronchos OK 2023 Team Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's the month of July and that means it's preview time! Throughout the month of July and into August, we are publishing well over 100 in-depth team previews to get you completely ready for the 2023 football season. This is something that began in 2021 and has continued to get bigger every single year. We're looking forward to diving deep into the top teams across the state. From defending champions, to top contenders and plenty of dark horses, we'll have complete coverage every single day with new teams from Class 6A, all the way down to the addition of 8-man coverage this year with Class B and C. In this post, we take a look at the Bethany Bronchos.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Bethany Bronchos</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Preseason Prep Redzone Ranking: #10</strong><br><strong>Preseason Coaches Ranking: UR</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bethany Bronchos are once again in the mix of contenders in Class 4A but they have some big time production to replace from last season's 9-2 team. Bethany finds themselves in our preseason rankings once again as they head into the season. And just like last season, the district is going to be a massive challenge for the Bronchos. Last season, Bethany would open up the season against 2A power Jones and they would beat the Longhorns 37-26. They began the season 3-0 and then had a showdown against 4A powerhouse Tuttle to open up district play. They lost a 40-34 shootout but wouldn't lose in district play the rest of the way. They would beat Blanchard and Newcastle in the final two weeks but would have to settle for third place in the district after a three-way tie with Blanchard and Tuttle. The season came to an abrupt end in the first round when they ran up against 2021 champion Clinton. The game would go to overtime but Clinton would prevail 34-27. Bethany would finish 9-2 but this team couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if they played deeper into November.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bronchos bring back half of their starters from last season and the strength of the team is going to come along the offensive line. Five starters are back on the offensive side of the ball but they have to replace the majority of their skill players, including both quarterbacks, their leading rusher and their leading receiver from last year's team. There's no doubt that the toughest player to replace will be Taylor Heim, who is a freshman at Oklahoma. But as those new skill players get worked into the lineup, the offensive line will definitely be the strength of that unit. On defense, they bring back six starters from last season's team, including a few of their top returning players at linebacker and within the secondary. Bethany rounds out the preseason top ten rankings at number ten in Class 4A and we think that they are definitely a playoff team once again this season. But the biggest question will surround what seed because the district is going to be brutal once again this season. The battle for playoff positioning is going to be critical week after week so Bethany can potentially have an easier path when the playoffs roll around.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>2022 RESULTS (9-2 Record - Lost In Class 4A 1st Round)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Aug. 26 - Beat Jones 37-26<br>Sept. 2 - Beat John Marshall 41-6<br>Sept. 9 - Beat Woodward 42-14<br>Sept. 23 - Lost To Tuttle 40-34<br>Sept. 30 - Beat Bridge Creek 59-0<br>Oct. 7 - Beat Classen SAS 67-24<br>Oct. 13 - Beat Tecumseh 42-0<br>Oct. 21 - Beat Harrah 48-7<br>Oct. 28 - Beat Blanchard 21-12<br>Nov. 3 - Beat Newcastle 32-31<br>1st Round - Lost To Clinton 34-27 (OT)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Key Losses To Graduation</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jaden Gilliland - Running Back/Linebacker<br>Taylor Heim - Athlete<br>Woods Harrell - Wide Receiver/Linebacker</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Players To Watch</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["402375"],"_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":"One of the strengths of the Bethany defense will be the secondary and leading the way is 2026 standout [player_tooltip player_id='402375' first='Evenson' last='Malaska'] at the cornerback position. And as we've mentioned in the past, Malaska first stood out as the younger brother of current Utah Ute Jocelyn Malaska. Just like his older brother, Evenson definitely has potential to end up at the D1 level and within the power five as long as he continues to work on his craft. He appears to be ahead of the game early on in his career and there's a lot of excitement about his potential moving forward. Malaska is going to be one of the better athletes on the field and we're curious how Bethany will use him in other areas as well. As an athlete, he could help out on offense as well as a skill position player.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["917666"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"One of the biggest question marks around Bethany this season is how they replace all of the production on the offensive side of the ball and specifically from the quarterback position. The frontrunner for that position is 2025 [player_tooltip player_id='917666' first='Jackson' last='Payne'] who has good size at 6'3 and saw some action last season as the third string quarterback. While Bethany worked with two quarterbacks at various times last season, we won't be surprised to see them just stick with one quarterback this season. Last year and the year before that was a unique position as they had an athlete in Heim that gave them plenty of versatility at multiple positions. If Payne ends up winning the job and is QB1 this season, we'll be interested in seeing what kind of production he has this fall.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["917665"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"The quarterback position is a big question mark but the Bronchos are looking for a few new players to step into new roles at running back and wide receiver. The leading receiver that is returning is 2025 [player_tooltip player_id='917665' first='Wyatt' last='Geissler'] at the wide receiver position and he also will turn around and play defense within the secondary. Geissler would finish his sophomore season with over 300 yards and four touchdowns. Having at least some legitimate varsity experience returning at the receiver position is going to help out this Bethany offense. One thing we want to see from Geissler is him step into that role as the go-to wide receiver in the offense. He definitely has the potential to be the leading receiver on this team and his production should skyrocket.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":3,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-64bc076e4bbe8"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>More Names To Know</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Abel Salcedo - 2024 Offensive/Defensive Lineman<br>Alex Strotter - 2024 Linebacker<br>[player_tooltip player_id='403574' first='Ben' last='Sailer'] - 2025 Offensive/Defensive Lineman<br>Christian Sigler - 2024 Offensive/Defensive Lineman<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1348269' first='Judson' last='Gilliland'] - 2026 Linebacker<br>Will Strawn - 2024 Offensive/Defensive Lineman</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>2023 Schedule/Games To Circle</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Aug. 25 - AT Jones</strong><br>- These two teams have opened up the season against one another in the last three seasons. Both teams have consistently been ranked in the top ten in their respective classes and we get a rare showdown of top ten teams from 4A and 2A. Bethany will hit the road and face Jones to open up the 2023 campaign. They've won the last two meetings with the Longhorns, including a 37-26 victory over Jones last season. They also beat Jones 27-14 on the road in 2021. The Longhorns have state title aspirations this fall and it will be the toughest non-district test for Bethany. <br>Sept. 1 - John Marshall<br>Sept. 8 - Woodward<br><strong>Sept. 22 - AT Tuttle</strong><br>- After two seasons of not being district opponents, Bethany and Tuttle were in the same district once again last season and again this year. They were district foes from 2016-2019 and also met in the 2018 state championship game. Bethany hasn't had the best luck against the perennial powers from Tuttle. They're 2-8 in their last ten meetings against the Tigers. That includes a 40-34 loss in last season's district opener. Bethany will take advantage of having week three off to prepare for a massive district opener. It's only week four but this will have major playoff implications. <br>Sept. 29 - Bridge Creek<br>Oct. 6 - AT Classen SAS<br>Oct. 12 - AT Tecumseh<br>Oct. 19 - Harrah<br>Oct. 27 - AT Blanchard<br><strong>Nov. 3 - Newcastle</strong><br>- You can make the argument that the week nine game at Blanchard is bigger but we're circling the week ten clash at home against Newcastle in the regular season finale. Coming into this week, we're going to know exactly where Bethany stands in the district race and they could be locking up a district title or fighting for playoff seeding when this week ten clash rolls around. They were able to beat Newcastle last season by one point and the Racers are one of the main contenders in the district. They've met in district play in each of the last three seasons and Bethany is 2-1 in that stretch. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Notable</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There is no doubt that the toughest district in Class 4A this season is 4A-2 and that was the case last season. For the second straight year, four teams are in the preseason top ten and in the case of this season, they have three teams in the top six. Bethany is no stranger to seeing just how competitive and deep this district can be. They went 6-1 in district play but they ended up having to settle for the 3-seed when the playoffs rolled around. And as we've mentioned a few times already, district play is going to be an absolute gauntlet week after week. Bethany is determined to contend for the state championship this season and join the other perennial powerhouses within Class 4A. Teams like Clinton, Poteau, Tuttle and defending champion Wagoner have dominated this class. Bethany is hungry to join that group this season. District play will certainly get them ready for another tough journey when the playoffs roll around.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Championship History</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>1 State Championship</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2003 - Beat Davis 40-6</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->