Catoosa Indians OK 2024 Team Preview

Get 25% Off Your Subscription By Entering Knight25 In The Coupon Code Area. Enjoy!   It's the month of July and that means it's preview time! Throughout the month of July and even into August, we are publishing well over 100 of the most in-depth team previews that you'll find anywhere to get you completely ready for the 2024 football season. This is something that began for us at PRZ-Oklahoma in 2021 and it continues to get bigger and better every single year. We're looking forward to diving deep into the top teams across the state in every class. From defending champions, to the top contenders and plenty of dark horses and other teams to know, we'll have complete coverage every single day. There will be multiple previews dropping every single day! In this post, we take a look at the Catoosa Indians!   Catoosa Indians   Preseason Prep Redzone Ranking: UR In Class 4A Preseason Coaches Ranking: UR In Class 4A   Head Coach: Sal Guerrero - 2nd Season - 4-6 Record At Catoosa   2023 RESULTS (4-6 Record - Missed Playoffs)   Sept. 1st - Lost To Stigler 43-20 Sept. 8th - Beat Verdigris 33-22 Sept. 15th - Beat Edison 24-6 Sept. 21st - Lost To McLain 46-10 Sept. 29th - Lost To Cushing 48-14 Oct. 6th - Lost To Oologah 34-10 Oct. 12th - Lost To Miami 49-14 Oct. 19th - Beat Skiatook 49-13 Oct. 27th - Lost To Wagoner 54-23 Nov. 3rd - Beat Cleveland 59-23   2023 Offensive Scoring Average: 25.9 Points Per Game 2023 Defensive Scoring Average: 33.8 Points Per Game   The Catoosa Indians came into the 2023 season ready to start over. After going 2-8 during the 2022 season, Catoosa brought back almost all of their starters on both sides of the ball. They were ready for a fresh start and they also had a new (kinda) head coach. After leading Catoosa for two seasons, Christian Hood stepped away and the Indians promoted offensive coordinator Sal Guerrero to the man in charge of the Catoosa program. Overall, the first season was an improvement but they are still hungry heading into 2024. The 2023 campaign began with a 2-1 start in non-district play. They lost the season opener to Stigler but beat Verdigris and Edison. However, Catoosa would drop their first four games in district play and that really put them in a bad position for making the playoffs. They would end the losing streak with a week eight win over Skiatook. But in week nine, all playoff hopes were dashed when they fell to Wagoner. Catoosa could have packed it up but they finished the season strong with a week ten win over Cleveland to finish the season with a 4-6 record. They doubled their wins and now they look to do it again as they head into 2024. The Indians went 2-5 in district play and that will be the big key for a turnaround in 2024. If they can find more success in a competitive district, Catoosa could find their way back to the playoffs this season.   2024 OUTLOOK   Catoosa brings back the majority of their starters and they are very excited about the senior class that is coming up. These guys have been through the fire and have come out on the other side ready to take this team back to the playoffs this season. The offense is going to be a mix of experienced skill players and new guys along the line of scrimmage. Catoosa returns six starters on the offensive side of the ball. We really like the personnel they have coming back at wide receiver but they will have mainly new starters on the offensive line. They have to replace a talented and productive running back but they are confident that they have guys ready to take the position and run with it. Defensively, Catoosa brings back seven starters and it's a similar story here as they are going to lean on that senior leadership from the guys that have been there and have experienced playing at a high level. The line of scrimmage is the biggest question mark on defense as well. They have guys returning at linebacker and also in the secondary and if they can figure out the guys up front, they'll have a shot to be successful this season. The schedule will test Catoosa but we think it also sets them up to potentially make a run. The last four games are going to be huge and hopefully Catoosa knows their identity and is playing good football in the final month.    KEY LOSSES TO GRADUATION   Kanen Britol - Offensive Lineman Luke Beauchamp - Running Back   PLAYERS TO WATCH    On a team full of experienced seniors, junior linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='1351745' first='Aiven' last='Robbins'] is going to be one of the more productive returning starters from last year's team. Robbins was an absolute tackling machine and he will bring a lot of intensity to the field. Last season, in just ten games, Robbins finished with nearly 140 tackles. He led the team in tackles and he was over 40 tackles ahead of the second-leading tackler on the team, who was also a sophomore last season. And Robbins was also a beast at getting into the backfield and causing problems. He led the team with 20 tackles for loss and no other player had 10. Robbins is definitely a name to know at the linebacker position.     We watched Catoosa at one of the team camps back in May and senior [player_tooltip player_id='1293002' first='Braxton' last='Repschlaeger'] was one of the top standouts at the whole camp. First off, he looks the part and checks just about every box you want from a physical standpoint. Then he was making plays on both sides of the ball and taking advantage of his length and overall athleticism. We also found out he's a standout on the track and we liked him even more as a prospect. Four months ago, we didn't know anything about Repschlaeger and now he's one of our favorite underrated prospects in the 2025 class. He's still flying under the radar but is ready to have that breakout moment this fall.     [player_tooltip player_id='322496' first='Deandre' last='Hamilton'] is another senior wide receiver and defensive back to know and he's been a name that's been on our radar for a while now. It feels like we've known about Hamilton before he even entered high school but he stood out to us very early on in his career. Hamilton, combined with Repschleager give the Indians a very valuable 1-2 threat at the wide receiver position. Whatever Catoosa ends up doing at the quarterback position, they are going to have two outstanding players to get the ball to this season. Hamilton is also very valuable to what Catoosa does on the defensive side of the ball as a lockdown player at the cornerback position.     Earlier in the preview, we talked about Catoosa replacing production at running back. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='1351747' first='Mike' last='Blendowski'] is the guy for the job this season. They lose a 1,000 yard rusher but Blendowski was actually a very valuable part of their rushing attack last season. He essentially split carries with Beauchamp and was actually tied with the graduating running back with ten touchdowns on the ground. Blendowski is another player that really stood out to us when we watched Catoosa in person back in May. He's a hard runner that is looking for contact and looking to make defenses pay every time he touches the ball. This could be a big season for him in terms of production.    MORE NAMES TO KNOW   Boomer Lovins - 2025 Tight End/Defensive End Bryson Jimenez - 2028 Wide Receiver/Linebacker/Kicker Devin Johnson - 2027 Running Back Jayc Robertson - 2025 Running Back/Linebacker Tranel Love - 2026 Offensive/Defensive Lineman   2024 SCHEDULE/GAMES TO CIRCLE   Sept. 6th - AT Pryor - The 2024 football season begins with two games on the road for Catoosa and the season opener is a tough one. They travel to face a Pryor team that is in a similar position as Catoosa but up in Class 5A. They bring back the majority of their starters and are looking to be a dark horse that causes chaos. Catoosa and Pryor played in back to back seasons in 2020 and 2021 but haven't played the last two years. Pryor won both meetings and it's been a little over a decade since Catoosa's last win. Sept. 13th - AT Verdigris Sept. 20th - Inola Sept. 27th - Grove Oct. 4th - AT Skiatook Oct. 11th - Wagoner - To be the best, you have to beat the best. And there is no debate that when it comes to Class 4A and the best teams on the east side of the state, Wagoner is that team. There is no change to that this season as the Bulldogs are one of the serious contenders to win the state title. Wagoner has owned the series with Catoosa. They've won 14 in a row over the last 15 years. Catoosa wants to start making the playoffs and contending and Wagoner is the ultimate measuring stick in 4A football. Oct. 17th - AT Oologah Oct. 25th - AT Fort Gibson Nov. 1st - Miami - In week nine, Catoosa is going to know exactly what they need to do in order to make the playoffs and get a favorable seed. They'll host a Miami team that is going to be one of the better teams that is flying under the radar right now in Class 4A. And the Wardogs have gotten the best of Catoosa over the last several seasons. They've won the last three in the series, including last year's 49-14 victory. Before this three game skid, Catoosa had won ten straight games and will need a win here. Nov. 8th - Cushing   NOTABLE   With the amount of returning starters and seniors coming back in 2024, Catoosa has to be considered a dark horse team in Class 4A. And one thing we're looking forward to watching is this program getting back to winning big games. A little over a decade ago, this team was one of the heavy hitters in Class 4A. They made back to back semifinal appearances in 2010 and 2011. There's no reason to think that they can't do it again. But there's no doubt that Class 4A is an absolute gauntlet this season and arguably deeper than it's been in recent memory. So we'll start the expectations with just getting back to a winning season. 2018 was the last time Catoosa had a winning record and if they can start with that in 2024, that could set them up for success in the playoffs.   LAST FIVE SEASONS   2023 - 4-6 - Missed Playoffs 2022 - 2-8 - Missed Playoffs 2021 - 4-7 - Lost In Class 4A 1st Round 2020 - 0-7 - Missed Playoffs 2019 - 3-7 - Missed Playoffs   CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY   0 State Championships

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