Mangum Tigers OK 2023 Team 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>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 Mangum Tigers.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Mangum Tigers </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Preseason Prep Redzone Ranking: #9<br>Preseason Coaches Ranking: UR</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 2022 Mangum football season was a year full of ups and downs for sure. They started out the year with a blowout loss to Comanche, would turn around and beat Rush Springs by a point but would still start the season with a 2-3 record at the halfway mark of the regular season. That included dropping their first two district games to Apache and Walters. But the Tigers would rally the rest of the way. They would win five straight and lock up another playoff appearance by finishing third in their district. That would require the Tigers to go on the road in the first round, where they fell to Mooreland and their season would end with a 7-4 mark. But there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the 2023 football season as the Tigers look to not only improve on that 7-4 record, they want to dominate things from the start and avoid that slow start, coming out swinging on the rest of Class A. And with only three seniors on last year's team, this is a Mangum squad that went through some growing pains a year ago and are ready to do some real damage this fall.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tigers are going to be one of the more experienced teams in Class A this season with 19 starters back from last year's team. Ten starters return on the offensive side of the ball and the Tigers are shifting things around. Last year's QB1 returns but he'll be lining up at wide receiver as Mangum has an incoming freshman (more on him later) that is ready to tear things up at the varsity level from the opening snap. With ten starters back and a potential star at quarterback, we think that Mangum has the chance to put up some points. And they won't need to just win shootout after shootout. The defense brings back nine starters on that side of the ball so they'll be very experienced on both sides. One big question mark is the district. There are some tough districts in Class A but Mangum's district feels completely wide open going into this year. Apache and Walters were the top two teams last season but that could certainly change this year. Mangum is hopeful that it does and that the Tigers are contending for the district crown before going after that elusive gold ball.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>2022 RESULTS (7-4 Record - Lost In Class A 1st Round)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sept. 2 - Lost To Comanche 67-39<br>Sept. 9 - Beat Rush Springs 35-34<br>Sept. 16 - Beat Sayre 49-30<br>Sept. 23 - Lost To Apache 46-18<br>Sept. 30 - Lost To Walters 32-14<br>Oct. 7 - Beat Hobart 26-20<br>Oct. 13 - Beat Empire 45-14<br>Oct. 21 - Beat Cordell 70-0<br>Oct. 28 - Beat Carnegie 21-12<br>Nov. 4 - Beat Snyder 64-14<br>1st Round - Lost To Mooreland 64-19</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Key Loss To Graduation</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Nathan Augustine - Tight End/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":["916836"],"_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":"There's a lot of excitement around the Mangum program because of who's going to be lining up under center. But the benefit that young quarterback is going to have is an experienced offensive line and more experience at the skill positions. 2024 wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='916836' first='Ashton' last='Pride'] returning for the Tigers is a big deal because it brings back their leading receiver and overall offensive weapon from a year ago. He would account for nearly 1,700 all purpose yards a season ago as he did a little bit of everything for the Tigers. He caught 14 touchdown passes, ran for three more and even tossed a touchdown to add another to his tally. On defense, Pride finished with nearly 70 tackles and four interceptions. He's going to be one of the better playmakers in Class A this fall.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["916842"],"_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":"Mangum has a few running backs that they'll put out on the field but 2025 running back [player_tooltip player_id='916842' first='Nick' last='Lavoie'] is the team's leading rusher from last season and he's looking for more this fall. And as the Tigers work in their young quarterback, it wouldn't be crazy to see them lean on the experienced Lavoie early on in the season. Last year, Lavoie finished with over 100 carries for nearly 800 yards and 11 touchdowns on the season. He also played along the defensive line for the Tigers and racked up nearly 50 tackles on defense. Like we said, the Tigers have a few running backs they can put out there and we think that Lavoie could see his production go up this season, especially early on in the year. He proved to be a strong two-way player last fall.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["916843"],"_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":"We mentioned a few times about that incoming freshman at quarterback. Well, it's 2027 QB [player_tooltip player_id='916843' first='Remington' last='Laughlin'] and as we've seen over the last few seasons with the 2025 and 2026 classes, quarterbacks can come in and impact the game early on in their varsity careers. Mangum is hopeful that their incoming freshman can have the same kind of success. Coaches are confident that Laughlin is going to be one of the better prospects in the state's 2027 class. We have very little to go off of when it comes to his game but he does have a bit of spring film up and the athleticism is definitely there. He'll play quarterback and safety for the Tigers and when it comes to incoming freshman, he's definitely near the top of the list in terms of players we want to see.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":3,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-64bae4e09f018"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>More Names To Know</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='998360' first='Aidan' last='Warner'] - 2024 Wide Receiver/Defensive Back<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1325121' first='Avery' last='Rogers'] - 2025 Running Back<br>Cooper Earls - 2024 Tight End/Linebacker<br>Dominic Allen - 2024 Offensive/Defensive Lineman<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1403595' first='Jake' last='Green'] - 2025 Offensive/Defensive Lineman<br>[player_tooltip player_id='954200' first='Pasquale' last='Bitondi'] - 2024 Kicker<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1325113' first='Trey' last='Williams'] - 2026 Fullback/Linebacker</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>Aug. 25 - Healdton<br><strong>Sept. 1 - AT Comanche</strong><br>- This week one contest was their season opener last season but with four non-district games and Mangum taking advantage of the zero week, they'll hit the road to face Comanche for their second game this fall. Things didn't go well for the Tigers last season in this meeting as Comanche beat them 67-39 in the season opener and Mangum would go on to start the season 2-3 but as mentioned earlier, they would rally to go 7-3 on the regular season. This is going to be an important game to get the momentum going and it will also be the first game on the road for the Tigers. <br>Sept. 8 - Rush Springs<br>Sept. 15 - AT Sayre<br><strong>Sept. 22 - Apache</strong><br>- It's the first district game of the season but it feels like one that could decide the district championship. It's only July and there's a lot of things that will change between now and then but Apache and Mangum feel like the top two teams in this district. When they square off in week four, the winner very well could be in the driver's seat for the district crown and we could look back at this game as the deciding match-up. Apache took care of business in this match-up last year, winning 46-18. If the Tigers are a serious state title contender, they have to get a win here. <br>Sept. 29 - AT Walters<br>Oct. 6 - Hobart<br>Oct. 12 - AT Empire<br>Oct. 20 - Cordell<br>Oct. 27 - AT Carnegie</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Notable</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mangum is looking to extend their playoff streak as they have made six consecutive playoff appearances but they are looking for more success once they get there. During this current streak, the only playoff wins came in the 2019 playoffs before falling to Pawnee in the quarterfinal round. In fact, seven out of the last eight playoff appearances have ended with Mangum going home in the first round. With a very experienced team, a manageable schedule and a young potential star at quarterback, we could certainly see Mangum making it back to the playoffs and turning their fortune around once they get there. As we've seen from time to time and a fact that we bring up often when talking about Class A, sometimes you just need one player to make the difference for you going from a pretender to a contender.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Championship History</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><strong>0 State Championships</strong></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->