Holland Hall Dutch 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 Holland Hall Dutch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Holland Hall Dutch</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Preseason Prep Redzone Ranking: #8</strong><br><strong>Preseason Coaches Ranking: #6</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Holland Hall Dutch are back in the mix in Class 3A and are looking for a much different 2023 campaign after the roller coaster 2022 season. The Dutch would capture back to back state championships in 2020 and 2021. But coming into last fall, it was known that the Dutch weren't as strong because they were hit hard by graduation. But I don't think anybody expected them to start the season 0-5. Granted, they played arguably their five toughest games all year in the first five weeks and when you look at it that way, an 0-5 start isn't as alarming as most would think for a two-time defending champ. But because they lost their first two district games, the Dutch would have to rally the rest of the way and couldn't afford too many more losses or they could have missed out on the playoffs all together. Holland Hall won their last five games and would finish third in the district. They went on the road to face Stigler in the first round and they lost in an absolute heartbreaker. As the Dutch were driving for a potential game-winning touchdown, Stigler got an 85-yard pick six with less than a minute to play to dethrone the 3A champs. But as we head into the 2023 season, the Dutch are in a good position to get back to contending and it's going to start in their district.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last year, the Dutch would finish third in the district but all four playoff teams from 3A-4 (Bristow, Cascia Hall, Holland Hall and Verdigris) got hit hard by graduation and this year it feels like it's completely up for grabs. It wouldn't be surprising to see any of those four teams walk away with the district crown. Three of the four teams are in the preseason top ten rankings and when you look at Class 3A as a whole, this district really is the hardest to predict. That could play into Holland Hall's favor as they look for some new faces to become household names this season. Five starters return on the offensive side of the ball while the defense has to be rebuilt with only three starters coming back on that side of the ball. But just like last season, you can make the argument that the first half of the season is going to be the toughest stretch of games for the Dutch. We don't anticipate another 0-5 start but they proved last season that they can overcome just about anything. But with a district that's completely up for grabs, the Dutch plan on contending for the district crown and then they'll worry about climbing back to the top of Class 3A.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>2022 RESULTS (5-6 Record - Lost In Class 3A 1st Round)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Aug. 26 - Lost To Lincoln Christian 56-7<br>Sept. 2 - Lost To Will Rogers 14-2<br>Sept. 9 - Lost To Fort Worth All Saints, TX. 38-0<br>Sept. 23 - Lost To Cascia Hall 21-14<br>Sept. 30 - Lost To Verdigris 28-6<br>Oct. 7 - Beat Dewey 41-6<br>Oct. 13 - Beat Central 21-0<br>Oct. 21 - Beat Inola 55-0<br>Oct. 28 - Beat Bristow 28-3<br>Nov. 4 - Beat Jay 33-8<br>1st Round - Lost To Stigler 34-27</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>Jalen Thompson - Wide Receiver/Defensive Back<br>Parker Jenney - 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":["911962"],"_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":"The first Holland Hall player to watch is the one we know the least about, at least on the football field. 2026 athlete [player_tooltip player_id='911962' first='Julius' last='Wilson'] is a prospect we know more for what he can do on the basketball court. But there's no doubt that he is one of the better athletes in the state's 2026 class because he earned his way to valuable minutes on a state tournament team and he's listed as one of Holland Hall's top 2026 prospects at the wide receiver and defensive back positions. We know what to expect from an athletic perspective from Wilson, we're just looking forward to seeing what kind of production he ends up having and whether or not he ends up being just as good in football as the player that we've seen tear up the basketball court.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["911961"],"_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":"A big key to Holland Hall's resurgence in the second half of the regular season in 2022 was the emergence of 2025 quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='911961' first='Matthew' last='Underwood'] in the final month. He was outstanding as he led the Dutch to five consecutive wins and put them in a position to get a home playoff game and even had a long shot of capturing the district championship. Underwood had several games where he put up some big numbers in the passing game and we're looking forward to seeing what kind of production he has this season. Underwood will have some new faces at the skill positions but he also brings back some reliable hands as well. And as we mentioned, this district is up for grabs so having an experienced quarterback leading the offense is going to be a major key.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":2,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-64b71fd193640"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>More Names To Know</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ben Korn - 2024 Offensive/Defensive Lineman<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1622859' first='Cole' last='Muir'] - 2025 Linebacker<br>Gary Teal - 2024 Running Back/Linebacker<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1083768' first='Kainon' last='Gibson'] - 2026 Wide Receiver/Defensive Back<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1045561' first='LJ' last='McGhee'] - 2026 Running Back/Linebacker<br>Parker Myers - 2024 Linebacker<br>Reese Myers - 2024 Tight End<br>Ryan Rampey - 2025 Running Back/Defensive Lineman<br>Ty Mabrey - 2025 Defensive Back</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 Lincoln Christian</strong><br>- We'll know exactly where Holland Hall stands in the first week of the season when they go across town to face Lincoln Christian. The Bulldogs are once again one of the top teams in Class 3A and this will be a measuring stick game right out of the gate. These two teams are very familiar with one another after the Dutch beat the Bulldogs in the 2020 and 2021 state championship game. Then they met to kick off the 2022 season and the Bulldogs handed Holland Hall a 56-7 loss. That's definitely a sour taste that the Dutch want to get rid of to kick off their 2023 campaign. <br>Sept. 1 - AT Will Rogers<br>Sept. 8 - Fort Worth All Saints, TX.<br><strong>Sept. 22 - Cascia Hall</strong><br>- After taking week three off to prepare for district play, arguably the toughest district contest comes in week four when they host rival Cascia Hall in the annual “Hall Brawl.” This annual rivalry has turned into a district contest and despite it being just week four, this match-up is going to have massive playoff implications. We've mentioned how wide open this district is going to be so teams definitely can't afford early district losses. And the Dutch are looking to get a little revenge after losing to their rivals in a close one last season. They have to feel like they owe one to Cascia this fall. <br>Sept. 29 - AT Verdigris<br>Oct. 6 - Dewey<br>Oct. 12 - Central<br>Oct. 20 - AT Inola<br>Oct. 27 - AT Bristow<br>Nov. 3 - Jay</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Notable</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After years and years of being a non-OSSAA member school, Holland Hall finally joined the state's association in 2016 and five years later, they were raising the gold ball in Edmond. In fact, they started out in Class 2A and after a few seasons, they moved up to Class 3A in 2020. Holland Hall is now looking for their third state championship appearance in the last four seasons after winning back to back titles in 2020 and 2021. While the Dutch will have their work cut out for them this fall, don't overlook them potentially making a trip back to Edmond. They've had plenty of success since moving up to Class 3A and since joining the OSSAA. And in fact, they've had so much success since leaving the Southwest Prep Conference that they've inspired another move from the SPC to the OSSAA. Last year, Casady announced that they would be following Holland Hall's lead out of the Texas-heavy SPC and into OSSAA play starting in 2024.&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>2 State Championships</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2021 - Beat Lincoln Christian 24-16<br>2020 - Beat Lincoln Christian 35-7</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->