Class 5A Preview

Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!   We are now less than two weeks away from the opening games kicking off as the 2023 football season in Oklahoma is right around the corner. And Prep Redzone Oklahoma will have you covered from start to finish. Since July 1st, we've been in preview mode and we've been pumping out a ton of preview content with over 100 team previews. If you missed any of them, you can check them out <a href="https://prepredzone.com/oklahoma/team-previews/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">RIGHT HERE</a>. Last week, it was all about the individuals with Preseason All State teams as well as comeback players and freshmen to watch. Now, it's time to take a big picture approach with class by class previews.   In this post, we're taking a look at Class 5A. From our preseason rankings (including links to each team's preview) to our All Class teams and much more, we're getting you ready for the 2023 football season in Class 5A. Carl Albert is your defending champion here and they are once again on top of the preseason rankings heading into the season. The Titans are the favorites to repeat but this class features plenty of very talented teams ready to knock them off.   PRESEASON RANKINGS   1) <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/carl-albert-titans-ok-2023-team-preview/">CARL ALBERT</a>   2) <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/del-city-eagles-ok-2023-team-preview/">DEL CITY</a>   3) <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/guthrie-blue-jays-ok-2023-team-preview/">GUTHRIE</a>   4) <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/elgin-owls-ok-2023-team-preview/">ELGIN</a>   5) <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/sapulpa-chieftains-ok-2023-team-preview/">SAPULPA</a>   6) <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/piedmont-wildcats-ok-2023-team-preview/">PIEDMONT</a>   7) <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/mcalester-buffaloes-ok-2023-team-preview/">McALESTER</a>   8) <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/bishop-kelley-comets-ok-2023-team-preview/">BISHOP KELLEY</a>   9) <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/lawton-macarthur-highlanders-ok-2023-team-preview/">LAWTON MACARTHUR</a>   10) <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/el-reno-indians-ok-2023-team-preview/">EL RENO</a>   OTHER TEAM PREVIEWS   - <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/bishop-mcguinness-irish-ok-2023-team-preview/">BISHOP McGUINNESS</a>   - <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/claremore-zebras-ok-2023-team-preview/">CLAREMORE</a>   - <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/collinsville-cardinals-ok-2023-team-preview/">COLLINSVILLE</a>   - <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/07/durant-lions-ok-2023-team-preview/">DURANT</a>   - <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/08/grove-ridgerunners-ok-2023-team-preview/">GROVE </a>   - <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/08/lawton-eisenhower-eagles-ok-2023-team-preview/">LAWTON EISENHOWER</a>   - <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/08/midwest-city-bombers-ok-2023-team-preview/">MIDWEST CITY</a>   ALL 5A TEAM   OFFENSE   QB - [player_tooltip player_id='215198' first='River' last='Warren'] - Senior - Del City   RB - [player_tooltip player_id='336358' first='Jeremy' last='Hutcheson'] - Senior - Lawton MacArthur   RB - [player_tooltip player_id='393974' first='Rodney' last='Fields'] - Senior - Del City   RB - [player_tooltip player_id='360239' first='Xavier' last='Robinson'] - Senior - Carl Albert   WR - [player_tooltip player_id='633072' first='Corey' last='Rowland'] - Senior - Edison   WR - [player_tooltip player_id='633074' first='Kylen' last='Edwards'] - Senior - Sapulpa   OL - [player_tooltip player_id='321855' first='Ben' last='Jordan'] - Senior - Claremore   OL - [player_tooltip player_id='376564' first='Colten' last='Christian'] - Senior - Collinsville   OL - [player_tooltip player_id='429797' first='Darreyl' last='Thomas'] - Senior - Del City   OL - [player_tooltip player_id='851670' first='Javion' last='Antai'] - Junior - Nathan Hale   OL - [player_tooltip player_id='215204' first='Tucker' last='Dry'] - Senior - Durant   DEFENSE   DL - [player_tooltip player_id='353419' first='Caden' last='Davis'] - Junior - Carl Albert   DL - [player_tooltip player_id='876669' first='Jermaine' last='Veu'] - Senior - Lawton Eisenhower   DL - [player_tooltip player_id='846614' first='Josiah' last='Hammond'] - Junior - Will Rogers   DL - [player_tooltip player_id='344123' first='XaDavien' last='Sims'] - Senior - Durant   LB - [player_tooltip player_id='584540' first='Brogan' last='Hardy'] - Senior - Piedmont   LB - [player_tooltip player_id='487628' first='Kingston' last='Tito'] - Senior - Lawton Eisenhower   LB - [player_tooltip player_id='377954' first='Marcus' last='James'] - Junior - Carl Albert   DB - [player_tooltip player_id='722170' first='Jalen' last='Jones'] - Senior - Lawton Eisenhower   DB - [player_tooltip player_id='215200' first='Ladainian' last='Fields'] - Senior - Del City   DB - [player_tooltip player_id='294260' first='Santanna' last='Landon'] - Junior - Midwest City   DB - [player_tooltip player_id='598824' first='Trystan' last='Haynes'] - Junior - Carl Albert   KICKER/ATHLETES   K - [player_tooltip player_id='403974' first='David' last='Arriaga'] - Senior - Midwest City   ATH - [player_tooltip player_id='215197' first='Cannon' last='Wood'] - Senior - Piedmont   ATH - [player_tooltip player_id='479394' first='Rashaud' last='Hurt'] - Junior - Lawton Eisenhower   ATH - [player_tooltip player_id='360241' first='Sam' last='Rhoades V'] - Senior - Bishop Kelley   ATH - [player_tooltip player_id='294261' first='Trey' last='Washington'] - Junior - Carl Albert   MARK YOUR CALENDARS   September 8th - Carl Albert AT Muskogee   We mentioned this in the Class 6A-2 Preview but we'll repeat it here. When we look at some of the top non-district games on the schedule this season, this week two match-up featuring top-ranked Carl Albert and 6A-2's #1 Muskogee might be at the very top of the list. Carl Albert will hit the road to Rougher Village to face off with Muskogee in a battle of top-ranked teams in the state. Muskogee was one of just two teams that beat Carl Albert last season so the Titans will certainly be looking for a bit of payback. There will be talent everywhere when they face off.   September 29th - Collinsville AT Bishop Kelley   In week five, we'll see Bishop Kelley play host to a Collinsville team that is hungry to return to Edmond this season after capturing the 2021 state championship. The Comets are the highest ranked team from this district so it's not crazy to think that the district title could be on the line here. Bishop Kelley feels confident coming into this year with the majority of their starters returning from last year's team. We are coming into this season taking a look at this district and we feel like it's wide open. But when these two square off in week five, it will definitely have playoff implications.   October 6th - Del City AT Sapulpa   Sapulpa will host Del City in week six and this will be a head to head clash featuring top five teams in the preseason rankings. This match-up also features two of the best 2024 quarterbacks in the state and we think both teams are going to have some of the most balanced offensive attacks in Class 5A this season. Both teams are playing challenging non-district schedule and that will prepare them for a district that will be incredibly competitive. While this match-up could decide the district title, other teams like Coweta and McAlester will have something to say about it.   October 19th - Carl Albert AT Guthrie   The district rivalry gets renewed in week eight as defending champion Carl Albert heads to "The Rock" to face off with Guthrie. One week after facing another rival in Bishop McGuinness, the Titans will face the Blue Jays in a battle of top three teams in the preseason rankings. Carl Albert is coming into this season as a massive favorite to repeat with all the talent they have returning this season. But Guthrie doesn't care about any of that and they are going to make Carl Albert earn everything when they face off. The winner of this match-up should be in the driver's seat for the district crown.   November 3rd - Elgin AT Midwest City   In the final week of the regular season, we could end up seeing another head to head match-up that decides the district championship. Midwest City will host an Elgin team that has district and state title aspirations this season with everyone back. In last year's match-up, Midwest City went on the road and stunned Elgin in the final minute to win the district championship. Now, other district teams like El Reno and Lawton MacArthur will certainly have something to say about the district race. But if last year's meeting was any indication, this should be a good game.   NOTABLE STORYLINES   Gauntlet Districts   Class 5A had one district in particular last season that was one of the toughest in the state. 5A-2 featured four teams that would all win at least one playoff game and Carl Albert would end up capturing the state championship. That district is going to be tough once again this season but they are going to have company for the title of "toughest district" in Class 5A this season. Joining 5A-2 in the conversation this season is going to be 5A-3. Six of the top seven teams in our preseason rankings are all in the same two districts. Carl Albert, Guthrie and Piedmont highlight 5A-2 while Del City, McAlester and Sapulpa are headlining 5A-3. There's a good chance that we see at least one, if not two teams from these districts playing for the state championship when December rolls around. Whoever wins these two districts is going to have to earn it throughout the season as well. It will be interesting to see how far those teams go and how much competition they face from the other two districts in Class 5A this fall.   Strong Running Back Class   We said this at the start of last season and nothing has changed one year later. Class 5A has the best group of running backs in the state and it's not even close. When we put out our Preseason All State Teams last week, we had a total of eight running backs featured among the first, second and third teams. Four of the eight running backs were from Class 5A and that includes reigning PRZ-Oklahoma Player Of The Year [player_tooltip player_id='360239' first='Xavier' last='Robinson'] from Carl Albert. Piedmont has a two-way star in [player_tooltip player_id='215197' first='Cannon' last='Wood'] that was incredibly productive last season. Guthrie's [player_tooltip player_id='448519' first='Jaylen' last='Harper'], Lawton MacArthur's [player_tooltip player_id='336358' first='Jeremy' last='Hutcheson'] and Sapulpa's [player_tooltip player_id='360245' first='Marco' last='Smith'] all enjoyed breakout seasons last fall and are hungry for more. East Central's [player_tooltip player_id='315548' first='Larontae' last='Clayton'] is a very underrated prospect that should be on more radars and Lawton Eisenhower's [player_tooltip player_id='479394' first='Rashaud' last='Hurt'] and Del City's [player_tooltip player_id='393974' first='Rodney' last='Fields'] are legitimate D1 prospects. Anywhere you look in this class, you'll find one of the best backs in the state. And this doesn't even include 5A running backs that we don't even know about yet.   West Side Strong Side   Carl Albert has been at the top of the mountain when you're talking about 5A football for the majority of the last decade. But for the most part, this has been a class that has been dominated by the west side of the state. Whether you see teams from the OKC-area make runs to title game or from somewhere else, Class 5A has been a tough egg to crack for east side programs. 2021 saw a break in that dominance with Collinsville and McAlester facing off for the gold ball. McAlester would make it back to back trips to Edmond last season. But for the most part, the two teams that play for the gold ball have been from the west side of the state and there's a decent chance we see that trend continue this fall. Carl Albert is the heavy favorite coming into this season, but they have plenty of company near the top from fellow west side programs. Del City, Guthrie and Elgin round out the rest of the top four in the preseason rankings. Bishop Kelley, McAlester and Sapulpa are the only east side teams in the top ten.

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