Breaking Down The 3A Semifinals

<!-- 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>We've reached the semifinal round across the state and Prep Redzone Oklahoma will get you ready for all of the games coming up this week. Now, as a reminder, only six classes will play their semifinal games this week. With every state championship game being played at UCO, to make that happen, half of the classes will play this week and the other half of the classes will play their semifinal games next week. Keep it locked in to Prep Redzone Oklahoma all week for in-depth looks at every semifinal contest. And we continue today with Class 3A.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#1 LINCOLN CHRISTIAN (12-0) VS #2 HERITAGE HALL (11-1)<br>Friday - 7PM - Prague H.S. </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Death, taxes and Heritage Hall facing Lincoln Christian in the playoffs are the guarantees in life. On Friday night, top-ranked Lincoln Christian will square off with #2 Heritage Hall and this will not only be a rematch of a week one clash, it's also a rematch of last year's state championship game. This will be the sixth time in the last seven years that the Bulldogs and Chargers squared off in the playoffs. And Lincoln Christian has dominated the series recently. They've won four of the previous five playoff meetings, including last year's state title game. These two teams met all the way back in week one, Lincoln Christian went on the road and took down Heritage Hall with a dominant second half performance. The Bulldogs have been perfect all season while Heritage Hall comes into Friday's semifinal with an opportunity to avenge their only loss. These two teams have been two of the very best in Class 3A over the last decade and they'll square off again with the winner punching their ticket to Edmond. Both teams are playing at very high levels. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>HERITAGE HALL PLAYER TO WATCH</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='434307' first='Barrett' last='Travis'] - Senior Running Back</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Heritage Hall senior running back [player_tooltip player_id='434307' first='Barrett' last='Travis'] has been arguably the best running back in Class 3A this season. Last week, Barrett absolutely went off and eclipsed 2,000 rushing yards on the season. He's become a touchdown machine and has been able to be an absolute workhorse in the Heritage Hall offense. Looking back at the regular season meeting in September, Heritage Hall got most of their offensive production from the passing game. But Travis was able to have an impact. But like we said with this match-up in general, both teams are completely different and Travis has been playing like one of the best running backs in the state. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>LINCOLN CHRISTIAN PLAYER TO WATCH</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='867298' first='Mason' last='Torres'] - Senior Linebacker</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We could end up picking several players from Lincoln Christian as they head into this match-up. We're going with senior linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='867298' first='Mason' last='Torres'] because the last time we watched these two teams square off, Torres was one of the best players on the field. Lincoln Christian's defense absolutely dominated the second half in that September match-up and Torres came away with two interceptions in the win, including the game-clinching pick. Torres has had a solid senior season and he leads a Lincoln Christian defense that is truly one of the best units in the state, regardless of class. Torres and the Lincoln front seven will play a big role on Friday. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#3 SULPHUR (11-1) VS CHECOTAH (8-4)<br>Friday - 7PM - Moore H.S. </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the other semifinal match-up, we'll see #3 Sulphur squaring off with Checotah and this is certainly a match-up that many would have predicted even three weeks ago. Checotah came into the playoffs as the four seed. They lost three straight games in district play but snapped that losing streak in the final week of the regular season with a win over Eufaula. They carried that momentum into the playoffs when they went on the road and stunned district champion Cascia Hall in the first round. That momentum continued last week when they stunned Bristow in the final minute. For Sulphur, the Bulldogs have been right there at the top of the list when it comes to the most dominant team in Class 3A. They lost their season opener to 2A powerhouse Washington in double overtime and have been perfect ever since. Sulphur has won each game since that loss by at least 30 points but they'll certainly get a challenge from a Checotah squad that feels red hot right now. No matter who wins this game, we're guaranteed to see one public school make it to the 3A title game and 2019 was the last time we didn't see an "all private" state championship game in Class 3A. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>CHECOTAH PLAYER TO WATCH</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='353415' first='Elijah' last='Thomas'] - Senior Wide Receiver</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Checotah senior wide receiver and Oklahoma commit [player_tooltip player_id='353415' first='Elijah' last='Thomas'] has a very good argument for being the best overall player in the state of Oklahoma this season. Thomas has been special for a while now but last week's performance in their quarterfinal win over Bristow is what separates him from just about everyone in the state. Thomas was a one-man wrecking crew and will be very important to Checotah possibly pulling off another upset and punching their ticket to the state championship game. Look for Thomas to have an impact in all three phases of the game. And the Wildcats should continue to get creative with getting the ball to him. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>SULPHUR PLAYER TO WATCH</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='353413' first='Justus' last='Gilliam'] - Senior Offensive/Defensive Lineman</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We said this a few weeks ago in one of our playoff previews but we'll repeat it again here. Sulphur senior offensive and defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='353413' first='Justus' last='Gilliam'] is one of the best guys on the line of scrimmage in the state. It doesn't matter if it's on the offensive or defensive side of the ball, Gilliam has an ability to always bring his A game on every snap and make an opponent work for every inch. As Sulphur looks to limit what Checotah can do offensively, don't be surprised to see the Bulldogs attempt to maul the Wildcats offensively and put together long drives that limit Checotah's possessions. And for that, it all starts on the line of scrimmage with Gilliam. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->