Tipton Tigers 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 defending Class C state champion Tipton Tigers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Tipton Tigers</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Preseason Prep Redzone Ranking: #1</strong><br><strong>Preseason Coaches Ranking: T1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tipton Tigers are back on top of Class C heading into the 2023 football season. At this time last year, the Tigers were moving back down to Class C after two seasons in Class B. While the Tigers were still a playoff team during their two years in Class B, they were definitely looking forward to getting back into Class C and competing immediately as one of the top Class C programs over the last decade. They immediately showed their dominance with a perfect regular season. The majority of their games were over early behind an explosive offense and a stout defense that had five shutouts or six if you include the forfeited game against Temple in week ten. That dominance continued in the playoffs with two easy wins in the first two rounds. They would face off with Timberlake in the semifinals and won in a shootout. They did the same thing the following week when they beat Waynoka for the Class C championship. While they gave up a combined 68 points in the semifinals and championship game, they also averaged 63 points per game in each. The Tigers captured their eighth state championship in school history and the fourth title in the last seven seasons. And now that they've had a taste of gold, they won't want to give it up.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After the Tigers captured the state championship in 2022, all eyes will be on them to see if they can do it again this fall. They come into this season as the top-ranked team in Class C and the bullseye is going to continue to get bigger each week. The schedule is going to be manageable once again as they should be dominant like we saw last season. But the Tigers are going to have plenty of company at the top when you talk about the contenders in Class C. They lost a bit to graduation but they also bring back plenty of experience on both sides of the ball and they also got a few move-ins that should give them a boost. And that's not only for this season but for the next few years. They have some very experienced players returning that have multiple years of starting and they'll lean on those players to help bring the new players along that are in the starting lineup. We're curious if the Tigers will be just as dynamic on the offensive side of the ball. They scored 60+ points in six games last season, including at least 60 points in their last three playoff games. Nobody could slow down the Tigers and the defense was stout as well. If they are able to replicate that production on both sides of the ball this fall, don't be surprised if the Tigers are lifting another gold ball.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>2022 RESULTS (14-0 Record - Class C State Champion)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sept. 2 - Beat Alex 66-16<br>Sept. 9 - Beat Central 52-14<br>Sept. 16 - Beat Cyril 48-14<br>Sept. 23 - Beat Bray-Doyle 64-0<br>Sept. 30 - Beat Ryan 62-0<br>Oct. 7 - Beat Geary 50-0<br>Oct. 13 - Beat Grandfield 46-0<br>Oct. 21 - Beat Mt. View-Gotebo 46-0<br>Oct. 28 - Beat Corn Bible Academy 40-6<br>Nov. 4 - Beat Temple 15-0 (Forfeit)<br>1st Round - Beat Medford 54-6<br>Quarterfinals - Beat Maysville 66-8<br>Semifinals - Beat Timberlake 64-32<br>Championship - Beat Waynoka 62-36</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":["902519"],"_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":"Tipton has a few new starters on this year's team and 2024 standout [player_tooltip player_id='902519' first='Arlen' last='Taplin'] is one that we'll be keeping an eye on this fall. Taplin has been waiting for his opportunity to provide a massive impact on both sides of the ball. The Tigers anticipate using Taplin in a variety of ways. Whether it's offense or defense, it also doesn't matter what position, if Taplin plays it, he's going to play it at a high level. Taplin is the perfect example of an 8-man standout that can really provide a difference in a variety of ways. Taplin also has the bloodline to be one of the breakout stars for the Tigers this season. His brother was an All State selection and we're looking forward to seeing how the Tigers use Taplin on both sides of the ball this season as they look to repeat.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["902518"],"_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":"The Tipton standout that we're fired up to see this season is 2024 standout [player_tooltip player_id='902518' first='Keon' last='Wade'] along the offensive and defensive line. Simply put, you don't see a player that's 6'5 and over 300 pounds at the 8-man level very often. And when you do, there's a really good chance that he's absolutely dominant on the field. That's the case with Wade as he heads into his fourth season as a starter for the Tigers. Wade is going to have the potential to be one of the more disruptive players in all of 8-man football and not just in Class C. Whether he's tossing defensive linemen like rag dolls as an offensive lineman or flipping to defense and terrorizing the opposing backfield, Wade is an absolute brute. So needless to say, Wade is going to be one to watch for sure.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":2,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-64ae12c47b593"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>More Names To Know</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cameron Ramirez - 2024 Tight End/Defensive Back<br>Johnny Fernandez - 2025 Running Back/Defensive Back<br>Ryken Shallenburger - 2024 Running Back/Defensive Back</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>2023 Schedule/Game To Circle</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sept. 1 - AT Alex<br>Sept. 8 - Central<br>Sept. 15 - Cyril<br>Sept. 22 - Bray-Doyle<br>Sept. 29 - AT Ryan<br>Oct. 6 - AT Geary<br>Oct. 12 - Grandfield<br><strong>Oct. 20 - AT Mt. View-Gotebo</strong><br>- As we mentioned earlier in the preview, Tipton could very well go unbeaten in the regular season once again. The non-district schedule is manageable and then they are the favorites to capture another district crown. The toughest test is going to be in week eight when they have to go on the road and face Mt. View-Gotebo. They finished second behind Tipton in the district race last season and as we look ahead to the 2023 football season, Mt. View-Gotebo is a consensus top five team in our rankings and the coaches rankings. The district championship will more than likely be decided here and the Tigers will look to dominate again after winning 46-0 last fall. <br>Oct. 27 - Corn Bible Academy<br>Nov. 2 - Temple</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Notable</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As mentioned earlier, with Tipton moving back down to Class C last season, the Tigers benefitted immediately. They would capture their eighth state championship in school history and got back to what we have seen from this dominant 8-man program over the last decade. Starting in 2011, the Tigers would be arguably the best Class C team and was right there in the conversation for top 8-man program overall. They would make the state title game every year from 2011-2014 and won two gold balls during that stretch. After a “down” year in 2015 where they lost in the quarterfinals, the Tigers would go on to win three consecutive state championship games from 2016-2018. After a semifinal appearance in 2019, the Tigers moved up to Class B for two seasons and they would make the playoffs but fell short each year. Now that they are back in Class C, the Tigers are back on top and there's no reason to think that they'll be slowing down anytime soon. The only thing that could potentially cause a stumble is a move back up to Class B. But we won't know about that until the updated ADM numbers come out in August.&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>8 State Championships</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2022 - Beat Waynoka 62-36<br>2018 - Beat Southwest Covenant 50-34<br>2017 - Beat Pond Creek-Hunter 56-8<br>2016 - Beat Pond Creek-Hunter 28-26<br>2014 - Beat Cherokee 58-12<br>2012 - Beat Forgan 30-12<br>1997 - Beat Balko 14-7<br>1952 - Beat Greenfield 12-0</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->