Millwood Falcons 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 Millwood Falcons.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Millwood Falcons</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Preseason Prep Redzone Ranking: #2<br>Preseason Coaches Ranking: #2</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Millwood Falcons had one of the bigger bounce back seasons in 2022. The inexperienced and young Falcons of 2021 would go through those growing pains, finishing 4-6 and missing out on the playoffs in nearly 15 years. But they came into 2022 ready to turn things around in a big way. Despite being a 4-6 team the year before, they came into 2022 as a top five team and backed up the preseason hype immediately. They nearly beat OKC rival and eventual Class 3A state champion Heritage Hall in the season opener. They fell 35-28 in week one and wouldn't lose again until the state championship game. The Falcons were absolutely dominant in district play and the closest contest was a 27-point win over OCS. They would get a test from former district foe Crossings Christian in the first round but would dominate their way to Edmond before falling to Washington in a close 17-14 game and had to walk away with the silver ball. But coming into 2023, the Falcons aren't going to settle for silver, they expect another trip to Edmond and they want to walk away with the gold ball this time around.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With nine starters back on offense and another seven starters back on defense, the Falcons are definitely a top five team once again in Class 2A and are going to be favorites not only in their district but they are going to be one of the top contenders to make it back to Edmond in December. The Falcons have some legitimate stars on the offensive side of the ball and some of their best players are in the 2025 and 2026 classes. This Millwood team is bringing up memories of the Millwood teams that dominated Class 2A in 2016 and 2017. They had a lengthy winning streak and won back to back titles. With so much young talent, it's not impossible to suggest that the Falcons couldn't do that again with this group. The Falcons will have another test early on against Heritage Hall but they could dominate their district for the second straight year. Everyone is chasing Washington right now in Class 2A but the Falcons have the athletes to run in that race.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>2022 RESULTS (13-2 Record - Class 2A Runner Up)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sept. 1 - Lost To Heritage Hall 35-28<br>Sept. 10 - Beat Douglass 45-0<br>Sept. 16 - Beat Scott City, KS. 30-20<br>Sept. 23 - Beat Alva 66-16<br>Sept. 30 - Beat Chisholm 56-6<br>Oct. 7 - Beat Perry 41-0<br>Oct. 13 - Beat Newkirk 44-0<br>Oct. 21 - Beat Oklahoma Christian School 40-13<br>Oct. 28 - Beat Hennessey 58-22<br>Nov. 3 - Beat Blackwell 58-0<br>1st Round - Beat Crossings Christian 34-29<br>2nd Round - Beat Lindsay 38-12<br>Quarterfinals - Beat Claremore Sequoyah 49-30<br>Semifinals - Beat Victory Christian 54-22<br>Championship - Lost To Washington 17-14</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>Carlos Strong - Offensive/Defensive Lineman<br>Iverson McElwee - Athlete<br>Rickey Hunt Jr. - Athlete<br>William Mays - Defensive Back</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":["571111"],"_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":"2025 linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='571111' first='Cameron' last='Carter'] was one of the breakout stars of last season's Class 2A state championship game. Carter was an absolute game-wrecker and wracked up the tackles for loss at a rapid pace. He would finish his sophomore season with over 60 tackles on the year and a good chunk of those tackles came in the championship game against Washington. He was one of the best players on the field that day and we're looking forward to seeing what he can do this season. Carter is a very disruptive linebacker that appears to be just scratching the surface on what he can be as a true prospect for the next level. And he's also part of a very talented 2025 class at Millwood that features plenty of standouts on both sides of the ball.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["434614"],"_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":"2026 quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='434614' first='CJ' last='Turnbull'] has firmly established himself as one of the top quarterbacks in a very talented 2026 quarterback class here in Oklahoma. And he's proven that over the last ten months with his work on the field. First off, he helped lead Millwood all the way to the Class 2A state championship game. And the Falcons are going to come into this season with the expectations of making a return trip to Edmond with Turnbull leading the offense. Then you look at what the Millwood product has done this offseason and it's hard not to be impressed. He was one of the top quarterbacks in attendance at our camp back in January and he had a really good spring followed by showing out on the college camp circuit already. He has a fairly high ceiling already.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["347111"],"_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":"Wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='347111' first='Jaden' last='Nickens'] is the 2025 Millwood prospect that everyone around the state is going to know coming into this season. As a freshman, Nickens was one of the top basketball prospects in his class and decided last spring to come out for football. It only took a handful of practices for Nickens to earn D1 offers in football and he became an All American candidate in a little over a year. Nickens is the next high-profile prospect to come out of Millwood and he's primed for another big year. With Turnbull coming back at quarterback, we could see Nickens' production at the receiver position absolutely explode. There aren't many in the state that can match Nickens from an athletic standpoint. He's still one of the top two-sport prospects in the state.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["111959"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"It was only a matter of time before Millwood 2024 standout [player_tooltip player_id='111959' first='Micho' last='Lavine'] had the kind of season we saw from him in 2022. During 2021, Lavine had to sit out the majority of his sophomore season with an injury. And there was no doubt that he was hungry to get back on the field and be an impact player for the Falcons on both sides of the ball. On offense, Lavine shared running back duties with Hunt and would turn around and be a terrorizing defensive end or linebacker hybrid. He finished the year with nearly ten sacks on the season and he's going to look to up the production on both sides of the ball this fall. But with Hunt graduating, that's going to leave a void on offense and we anticipate Lavine to have more duties at running back and he might not be alone in that.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["360157"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"Another 2025 standout is two-way star [player_tooltip player_id='360157' first='Xzavier' last='Thompson'] and honestly he impacts all three phases of the game. Thompson was one of Millwood's leading receivers last season with over 700 yards receiving and 11 touchdowns. He also turned around and played defense and would return punts. He took two punts back for touchdowns last season. Thompson is a speedster that is incredibly dangerous in the open field. We mentioned how Turnbull is primed to have a massive season in terms of his production. Because with Nickens as a threat in the passing game as well in addition to Thompson, this Millwood offense has the potential to be one of the top units in Class 2A. We're interested to see what Thompson's all around production looks like this fall.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":5,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-64a22b740cabc"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>More Names To Know</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>DJ Shaw - 2024 Defensive Back<br>Jordan Johnson - 2025 Offensive/Defensive Lineman<br>Kylan Sirls - 2024 Offensive/Defensive Lineman<br>[player_tooltip player_id='600088' first='Prince' last='Gabriel'] - 2025 Offensive/Defensive Lineman<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1109318' first='Terrance' last='Taffee'] - 2024 Defensive Back<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1109322' first='Zyhir' last='Fisher'] - 2025 Athlete</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. 31 - AT Heritage Hall<br></strong>- Ever since this match-up began kicking off the season back in 2018, this has turned into a nice non-district rivalry featuring north OKC football programs. But the Chargers have certainly had Millwood's number. The Falcons won that first meeting in 2018 but it's been all Heritage Hall ever since. The Chargers have won the last four in the series, including a 35-28 victory over Millwood last season to kick off their state championship season. The Chargers are once again favorites to win Class 3A and this could once again be a match-up between two teams that make their way to Edmond in December.&nbsp;<br>Sept. 9 - Douglass<br>Sept. 15 - AT Scott City, KS.&nbsp;<br>Sept. 22 - AT Alva<br>Sept. 29 - Chisholm<br>Oct. 6 - Perry<br>Oct. 12 - AT Newkirk<br><strong>Oct. 20 - Oklahoma Christian School<br></strong>- It was the closest game during the district slate last season and it could be the closest game this year. OCS expects to get back to contending in Class 2A with a new head football coach. And by the time week eight rolls around, this could be an OCS team that is right there with Millwood in terms of contending within the district. The Falcons dominated this match-up with a 40-13 victory last season and if the Falcons are able to get a win here, they should be in the driver's seat for the district championship. It could be their last tough test before the playoffs.<br>Oct. 27 - Hennessey<br>Nov. 3 - AT Blackwell</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Notable</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Millwood head coach Darwin Franklin is closing in quick on a milestone that's going to be very special to the Millwood alum. Franklin is just one win away from his 100th victory while being the head coach of the Falcons. He's going to get it at some point during the 2023 football season and before he inevitably gets that 100th victory, we want to look back on what Franklin has accomplished. Back in 2013, Millwood hired Franklin to be their next head football coach just a few weeks before spring practice began. In his first season, he led the Falcons to the state championship game before they lost to the Davis dynasty. Just a few years later, he would win back to back state championships in 2016 and 2017. But the Falcons haven't just dominated every season under Franklin. In 2021, they had a rare losing season and their streak of 13 consecutive playoff appearances came to an end. But the Falcons came back stronger than ever in 2022, going all the way to the state championship game before losing a heartbreaker to Washington. Franklin has continued the winning tradition of Millwood football and a few more championships and 100 more wins seems likely for their future together.&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>7 State Championships</strong></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2017 - Beat Washington 42-7<br>2016 - Beat Victory Christian 56-33<br>2006 - Beat Vian 21-20<br>2002 - Beat Pawnee 40-18<br>2001 - Beat Cascia Hall 31-7<br>2000 - Beat Davis 26-25<br>1990 - Beat Oologah 33-10</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->