Scene Setter - Jenks AT Bixby

Get 25% Off Your Subscription By Entering Knight25 In The Coupon Code Area. Enjoy!   Each week on Prep Redzone Oklahoma, we'll put a spotlight on one of, if not the very best game of the week. And this week, there's no doubt where most of the attention across Oklahoma will be. #2 Bixby will host #4 Jenks and despite this just being the district opener, it would surprise a lot of people if the winner of this game doesn't go on to capture the district championship. But while this game is no doubt the game of the week across Oklahoma, it definitely doesn't have the same kind of hype that it had before the season began.   A little over a month ago, we were talking about this game as not only a state championship rematch but a possible preview of the 2024 title game in Class 6A-1. Bixby was 1 and Jenks was 2 in our preseason rankings. Then Owasso happened. Bixby fell to the Rams in week zero and then Jenks lost to Owasso the following week. Instead of 1 VS 2, we'll see two teams with a combined record of 3-3 coming into this week. Nobody predicted that a month ago.   Following the loss to Owasso, Jenks also fell to Union in week two and after a week off, the Trojans are ready to bounce back and turn this two-game losing streak into the beginning of a winning streak. The Trojans are 1-2 but there's no debate that they have one of the more talented rosters in the state and that's not just in Class 6A-1. And Jenks also has some recent success in road games in Bixby. The last time these two met on that field, Jenks stunned the Spartans and ended their 58-game winning streak in front of a nationally televised audience on ESPN.   For Bixby, despite winning the last two 6A-1 state championships and six consecutive state titles altogether, the Spartans are in an unfamiliar place as they enter district play. With so many new starters and young faces on both sides of the ball, this is still a team that is searching to find the identity that is going to carry them throughout the 2024 football season. Make no mistake about it, we have no doubts that the Spartans will find it but the biggest question will be when? They rolled over Choctaw last week but some uncharacteristic penalties allowed the Yellowjackets to make the final score closer than what it was.   It wouldn't surprise us if either team goes on and wins the state championship. It wouldn't surprise us if this is the first of two meetings this season, with the next one coming in Edmond. But right now, it's also clear that Owasso is the team to beat in Class 6A-1 and that has put Bixby and Jenks in unfamiliar territory as the hunter. That also makes both teams incredibly dangerous moving forward.   Below, we take a look at three players on both sides of this match-up to keep an eye on this week and throughout the 2024 season.   BIXBY PLAYERS TO WATCH   [player_tooltip player_id='284114' first='Carson' last='Kirby'] - Junior Quarterback   The biggest question we have coming into this match-up is which [player_tooltip player_id='284114' first='Carson' last='Kirby'] are we going to get? The Bixby junior quarterback has been absolutely lights out in the last two weeks, throwing for over 600 yards and six touchdowns and he's also been a threat on the ground. But in the season opener against Owasso, he struggled with a pair of interceptions and a lower completion percentage. Look, it was the first game of the year with new starters everywhere for the Spartans. It's easy to overreact to one game but that's not something we typically do. Kirby has the potential to be one of the better quarterbacks in the Tulsa area and he's proven that in the last two games. If he plays like that again this week, no more questions.   [player_tooltip player_id='656680' first='Cetcher' last='DeHart'] - Junior Wide Receiver   Junior wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='656680' first='Cetcher' last='DeHart'] is going to be a name to watch for us heading into Friday night's game and for two reasons. First off, the Bixby junior is coming off the best game of his career against Choctaw. He had seven catches for 44 yards in the first two games but finished last week with eight catches for just shy of 100 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The second reason is two weeks ago Union had success throwing the ball to a shifty receiver who did damage after the catch. DeHart fits that description and he could end up having another big night this week. He's a player that we watched quite a bit over the last two off seasons and it's not surprising to see him break out this fall.   [player_tooltip player_id='402387' first='Trey' last='McGlothlin'] - Junior Linebacker   We are really starting to like the Bixby linebacker group this season. They have two outstanding players in Nolan and Parker but junior linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='402387' first='Trey' last='McGlothlin'] is very quickly turning into a player that people need to know about. McGlothlin is right behind Nolan and Parker for the team lead in tackles and last season you started to see signs of him becoming a hard-hitting problem as he made plays on special teams. Just like with DeHart, we've watched McGlothlin show steady improvement over the last two off seasons and his performance through the first few weeks is not surprising. Bixby's entire linebacker group will be a big key because Union's linebackers were able to cause problems for Jenks in week two.   JENKS PLAYERS TO WATCH   [player_tooltip player_id='402378' first='KD' last='Jones'] - Junior Running Back   Anytime Jenks junior running back [player_tooltip player_id='402378' first='KD' last='Jones'] steps on the field, he's one of the best football players on that field. Despite the loss to Union, Jones was still just that and he had to earn every yard he got as Union's defense keyed in to stopping him. It will be interesting to watch Jones against the Spartans for two reasons. One, will Bixby's defense have the same game plan where they do whatever they can to contain the Jenks star? And then after a week off, will we see another monster workload for Jones after he touched the ball nearly 40 times in week two against Union? One thing is certain heading into this game. The Jenks offense wants to find the end zone and Jones is a player that can do just that.   [player_tooltip player_id='467408' first='Ryley' last='Kester'] - Junior Offensive Lineman   Traditionally, whenever you're talking about "players to watch" heading into a match-up, offensive linemen are some of the last guys listed. Not with this match-up and not with Jenks. Junior offensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='467408' first='Ryley' last='Kester'] is one of the absolute best guys at the position in Oklahoma today. It started when he was at Sand Springs and it's continued as he's made the move to Jenks. When Kester is on the football field, he is looking to absolutely punish the person across from him. Going back and watching some of the film of the Union game, there are multiple times when Kester comes from out of nowhere to flatten a defender. Kester plays the game with a mean streak that not many other players have in this state.   [player_tooltip player_id='1096341' first='Sam' last='Stone'] - Senior Wide Receiver/Defensive Back   We didn't plan to do it this way but this breakdown is full of juniors and the only senior is Jenks two-way standout [player_tooltip player_id='1096341' first='Sam' last='Stone'] at wide receiver and defensive back. When we watched Stone in person two weeks ago, it was hard to not be impressed with what he was able to add to the Jenks offense and that's not something we'll be forgetting. Coming into this season, we knew Stone for being a hard-hitting defender that looked just as comfortable as a safety as moving up and playing more of a linebacker role. This spring, Stone was one of the better players that we watched at an absolutely loaded Santa Fe team camp. Stone and the rest of this Jenks defense will look to slow down Bixby's offense that is starting to pick up momentum.

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