Comeback Player Of The Year – Holden Thompson

<!-- 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>The 2023 football season is in the books and throughout the last few weeks, we've been taking a look back at some of our favorite moments and some of the top storylines in Oklahoma. Earlier this week, we announced the ten finalists for this season's <strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/12/2023-player-of-the-year-finalists/">PRZ-Oklahoma Player Of The Year award</a></strong>. Today, we're announcing the PRZ-Oklahoma pick for Comeback Player Of The Year. Later today, we'll also have a breakdown on some of the other athletes who missed some, or all of the 2022 season and came back with a vengeance in 2023.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Stay locked in to Prep Redzone Oklahoma for more postseason content! On Monday, we'll be announcing our All State 1st Team selections!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Stillwater senior running back [player_tooltip player_id='215207' first='Holden' last='Thompson'] is this year's PRZ-Oklahoma Comeback Player Of The Year. After tearing his ACL prior to his junior season in 2022, Thompson had to watch from the sidelines as the Pioneers would go on to go 13-0 and capture a state championship. So coming into his senior season, Thompson was determined to make up for the lost time and it's hard to argue that he didn't accomplish just that. Thompson was one of the best running backs in the state this season and helped lead the Pioneers back to Edmond and they walked away with a 6A-2 runner up finish after an 0-2 start.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thompson ran for nearly 2,200 yards and 23 touchdowns and was an absolute workhorse throughout the season for Stillwater. He had five games this season where he finished the day with at least 30 carries. And that includes a combined 69 carries in the semifinal and championship game. When Stillwater needed Thompson the most, he was there for the Pioneer offense. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thompson had a breakout season as a sophomore and emerged as one of the top running backs in the state's 2024 class. His junior season ended before it could even start with the torn ACL and Thompson was hungry to get back on the field. After an 0-2 start, Stillwater traveled to Norman to face the Tigers back in week three. That was the first of his five games where he had at least 30 carries. He finished with nearly 250 yards and three touchdowns. When we talked to him after that game, he thought he had a little over 100 yards. Thompson showed that night that he could shoulder the load of this Stillwater offense and he backed that up throughout the season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He put his name in the Stillwater record book in week nine when the Pioneers beat Tahlequah 55-14. He had 32 carries for nearly 350 yards and three touchdowns. He wasn't done there. The following week he helped his team claim the district championship on senior night when he ran for just over 150 yards on 24 carries in a win over Muskogee. That was a memorable performance to witness because it was also Stillwater's first game without Holden's twin brother Heston, who had his senior season cut short because of an injury. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Thompson twins didn't have the best injury luck in their high school careers but they were still two of the best players in 6A-2 football over the last three seasons. The twin brothers will be continuing their football careers together at Oklahoma State. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->