2024 2A-2 Title Game First Look

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><strong><em><strong><em><strong>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</strong></em></strong></em></strong></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Class 2A-2 state championship game is set! #1 Vian will square off with #6 Davis in Edmond on Saturday at 1PM. This is the first season that Class 2A has been split into two divisions and this will be the first 2A-2 state championship game. While it might be the first, it also feels like a throwback match-up to a decade ago, when Davis and Vian were two of the best teams in the old 64-team Class 2A. Vian has been atop the 2A-2 rankings since our preseason rankings came out in June and have done nothing other than look like the best team in this class. Davis has taken some lumps along the way but the Wolves have found their way back to the championship game and look to climb back on top of the mountain for the first time in a decade. Keep it locked in to Prep Redzone Oklahoma on Thursday, when we take a deep dive into the match-up by putting the spotlight on all of the players to watch for both teams.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#1 VIAN WOLVERINES (13-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sept. 6th - Beat Eufaula 37-25<br>Sept. 13th - Beat Kiefer 45-14<br>Sept. 20th - Beat Pocola 67-34<br>Sept. 26th - Beat Spiro 64-6<br>Oct. 4th - Beat Antlers 48-0<br>Oct. 11th - Beat Atoka 48-0<br>Oct. 17th - Beat Henryetta 43-14<br>Oct. 25th - Beat Wilburton 56-13<br>Nov. 1st - Beat Morris 59-0<br>Nov. 8th - Beat Valliant 48-7<br>1st Round - Beat Kansas 38-7<br>Quarterfinals - Beat Beggs 35-7<br>Semifinals - Beat Colcord 35-16</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>HOW THEY GOT HERE</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Vian Wolverines came into this season as the top-ranked team in the newly formed Class 2A-2 and they are looking to go wire to wire as the top team in this class. The Wolverines have been simply dominant all season. They started with a somewhat close game with Eufaula in the season opener and that 12-point win would actually be their closest game of the season. From there, it was domination week after week. The Wolverines rolled over the rest of their competition and finished the regular season with a perfect record. That domination would continue in the playoffs, even in the semifinal round against Colcord. They would stroll to the championship game with a 35-16 victory. Vian is now one win away from that elusive gold ball and one win away from a perfect 2024 season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY<br>1-4 Record – 6th Title Appearance</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Vian has punched their ticket to the state championship game for the sixth time in school history. For the Wolverines, they came into this season with the expectations of playing in Edmond at the end of the season and they'll get that shot on Saturday night. When you look at the Wolverines over the last two decades, there is no doubt that they have been one of the top small school programs in the state. But despite countless playoff and even championship game appearances, they haven't won a state championship since 1971. But the Wolverines came into this season as the favorite in Class 2A-2 and they'll look to go wire to wire as the top team in this class. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>OFFENSIVE PRODUCTION – 47.9 Points Per Game</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Vian's offense has been one of the best in the state this season, regardless of class. They come into Saturday's game averaging just under 48 points per game. When you look at their outcomes this season, the majority of the games were over by halftime and there were plenty of running clocks in the second halves of games. We knew that the Wolverines were going to have a chance to be dynamic on the offensive side of the ball because of the personnel and experience they brought back but they have exceeded all preseason expectations. They'll look to roll again on Saturday. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>DEFENSIVE PRODUCTION – 11 Points Per Game</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Wolverines have taken care of business against everyone this season and it's easy to focus solely on the offense, considering how explosive they've been on that side of the ball. But the Wolverines are stout on the defensive side of the ball and it's like they've taken their game up a notch over the last month. The Wolverines gave up some points in non-district action earlier in the season but flipped that switch when district play started. They gave up just 40 points in district play altogether and the defense continued to roll when the playoffs began. They are clearly playing at a high level. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>STAR POWER</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["424595"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674ca58649588"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">There is no debate about this, Vian junior [player_tooltip player_id='424595' first='Masyn' last='Wright'] has been one of the best players in the state this season. He is an absolute game changer on the offensive side of the ball. He's had multiple games where the majority of times he's touched the ball, he's scored. Really think about that last statement. He's a true threat to score every single time he touches the ball and he's done it in a variety of ways this season. As a running back, quarterback, wide receiver, defender, kick returner, wherever Wright lines up on the field, he's arguably the best player on that field. Wright has been a really good player in his first two seasons at Vian but this season, he's elevated to a truly elite talent. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#6 DAVIS WOLVES (9-4)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sept. 6th - Lost To Pauls Valley 31-14<br>Sept. 13th - Lost To Sulphur 42-7<br>Sept. 20th - Lost To Plainview 23-13<br>Sept. 27th - Beat Dibble 41-15<br>Oct. 4th - Beat Beggs 28-22<br>Oct. 11th - Beat Tishomingo 42-8<br>Oct. 17th - Beat Coalgate 56-18<br>Oct. 25th - Beat Comanche 42-7<br>Nov. 1st - Lost To Holdenville 22-15<br>Nov. 8th - Beat Community Christian 45-21<br>1st Round - Beat Hennessey 48-34<br>Quarterfinals - Beat Adair 27-24<br>Semifinals - Beat Stroud 14-6</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>HOW THEY GOT HERE</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Davis Wolves were a team that we circled as one of the top teams in this class coming into the season. They were ranked number two in our preseason rankings with the majority of their starters returning for 2024. We even mentioned this before the season but the Davis non-district schedule was absolutely brutal and it wasn't going to surprise us if they started the year 0-3. That's what happened as they started the year against three top ten teams from Class 3A and started the year 0-3. But we knew the Wolves were bound for a bounce back and that came in district play. They won five straight and had a ton of momentum going into week nine against Holdenville. They tripped up but bounced back in the playoffs. They punched their ticket to Edmond by stunning Adair and Stroud in back to back weeks, both teams were unbeaten prior to facing Davis. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY<br>6-6 Record – 13th Title Appearance</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Davis Wolves are one of the more underrated great football programs in state history. It's easy to be a prisoner of the moment and forget about just how dominant Davis was just a decade ago. The Wolves are back into the state championship game for the 13th time in school history and with a win on Saturday night, they will capture their seventh state championship. This is the sixth straight decade where the Wolves have played for a state title but it has been a while. From 2010-2014, the Wolves made four championship games in five years and won two gold balls. That 2014 state title was the last time they won it all and will look to end their "drought" on Saturday. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>OFFENSIVE PRODUCTION – 30.2 Points Per Game</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Wolves come into Saturday's game averaging just over 30 points per game. They have a run-first option offense so this is a team that is more than capable of taking six to eight minutes off the clock on a single possession. There haven't been too many high-scoring affairs for the Wolves this season but they can light up the scoreboard if it comes to that. For their match-up with Vian, ball control will be a big part of the game plan and taking advantage of all their opportunities on the offensive side of the ball. If they can get close to that scoring average, they'll be in a good spot. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>DEFENSIVE PRODUCTION – 21 Points Per Game</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Wolves have to be playing with a ton of momentum on the defensive side of the ball as they head into the state championship game. As a unit, they are giving up 21 points per game but they might have played their best game as a group in the semifinal win over Stroud. They came up with multiple turnovers and held Stroud to just six points in the win. That was a Stroud team that was unbeaten on the season and had averaged close to 50 points per game coming into the semifinal round. The Wolves will hope to carry that momentum into Saturday's game with Vian. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>STAR POWER</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1324250"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674ca5864960f"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Whenever you're talking about a run-first option offense, the quarterback is always a critical part of that unit. But for Davis, sophomore quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1324250' first='Dax' last='Owens'] has been arguably their best playmaker this season. In some of the biggest games of the year, Owens has routinely played at a high level and when it comes to playing for a state championship, Owens isn't going to back down from the challenge. Owens seems to always make the right play and while he is a run-first signal caller, you shouldn't overlook his ability to throw the ball down the field. The Davis sophomore has impressed us every time we've seen him in person and he will be one of the best players on the field Saturday. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->