A Way Too Early Look At Class 3A

<!-- 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>Throughout the month of January, we've been recapping the 2024 football season with All State teams, season recaps and many more player awards. But it's now 2025 and it's time to take a far too early look at the 2025 football season and we continue in Class 3A. Now again, it's January and we are seven months away from the 2025 season kicking off so there are quite a few things that can change between now and then. For instance, looking back at our way too early look at the 2024 season in Class 3A, we couldn't see what was coming with the emergency redistricting shuffle in April. At this time last year, Lincoln Christian, Heritage Hall and Holland Hall were all slated to be in Class 4A and Cascia Hall was going to be in Class 2A-1. All four teams moved back to Class 3A and Lincoln Christian, Heritage Hall and Cascia Hall all won district championships with Lincoln winning another gold ball. But nevertheless, it's time to take a look ahead and see how 2025 could shape up.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>WAY TOO EARLY TOP TEN FOR CLASS 3A</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1) LINCOLN CHRISTIAN<br></strong>- Lincoln Christian goes into the 2025 football season with the target as big as ever. They've won the last two 3A state championships and have won 28 consecutive games. And the Bulldogs don't look like they are slowing down anytime soon. 2026 quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1101281' first='Carter' last='Ricke'] returns to lead an offense that might have the best young running back group in the state with 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='602991' first='Braeden' last='Baker'] and 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='1164507' first='CJ' last='Wright'] returning. Defensively, the Bulldogs also bring back disruptive linemen like [player_tooltip player_id='1035134' first='Rain' last='Ragland'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1101282' first='Lincoln' last='Torres'] to cause problems for opponents. Lincoln is a heavy favorite for the three-peat. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2) CASCIA HALL<br></strong>- Cascia Hall is certainly going to come into the 2025 season with a feeling of unfinished business. The Commandos won the district championship but were knocked out of the playoffs in the first round by Checotah. Cascia Hall will bring back arguably the best passing attack in Class 3A and one of the best passing attacks in the state, regardless of class. 2026 quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1083187' first='Barrett' last='Mullen'] returns and he's one of the best signal callers in the state's junior class. 2027 standout [player_tooltip player_id='1067472' first='Fisher' last='Lai'] is a player that can impact the game in all three phases and he'll be back to run as well. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>3) SULPHUR<br></strong>- The Sulphur Bulldogs came up short by inches of possibly capturing the state championship in 2024. The Bulldogs are hungry to finish the job in 2025 but they have a very special senior class to replace. Sulphur will look pretty different this season and they have to find some new guys to step up on both sides of the line of scrimmage. But Sulphur will also remain a contender because of the return of 2026 standout [player_tooltip player_id='1569774' first='Maddax' last='Mobly'] after his outstanding junior season. He was one of the best all around athletes in 3A football last fall and will be dynamic again in 2025. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>4) HERITAGE HALL<br></strong>- We have no idea what to expect from Heritage Hall in 2025 but it would be unwise to think they aren't going to be one of the top teams in the class. They are about as automatic as it gets to winning the district, winning double digit games and making it to at least the semifinals over the last decade. But they lose a lot to graduation, including [player_tooltip player_id='434307' first='Barrett' last='Travis'] at running back. The Chargers will bring back [player_tooltip player_id='587270' first='Jerrod' last='Williams'] and he showed at times in 2024 that he could be a true impact player in all three phases of the game. The Chargers will once again be in the mix this fall. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>5) KINGFISHER<br></strong>- Kingfisher is hungry to return to the top of Class 3A football and 2025 might be the season that we see them get back to contending for that state championship. The first thing that stands out about the Yellowjackets is the return of 2026 quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1626587' first='Jhett' last='Birdwell'] after his fantastic junior season. He threw for over 2,100 yards and 22 touchdowns and he brings back a lot of the skill players around him. This Kingfisher team certainly has the pieces to be a serious team to watch in Class 3A. They snuck into the playoffs in 2024 but look to contend for the district crown and more in 2025. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>6) HOLLAND HALL<br></strong>- Holland Hall began the Brian Thompson era in 2024 and they look to get back to contending for state championships in 2025. Thompson took over for longtime head coach Tag Gross and went 7-5 in his first season in charge. The Dutch bring back the majority of their offensive production and some serious talent on the defensive side of the ball. 2026 quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1732959' first='Trey' last='Burleson'] and 2027 running back/linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='1637570' first='Rhett' last='Gibson'] are back to lead the way on offense. They have to replace their top three tacklers but the next nine leading tacklers all return. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>7) PERKINS-TRYON<br></strong>- We thought that Perkins-Tryon might take a step back in 2024 and that was just wrong. They finished second in the district and went 8-3 overall. So we're putting them at #7 going into 2025 and when we look at the roster and what they have coming back, it starts in the backfield. The running back duo of [player_tooltip player_id='1370665' first='Raiden' last='McLemore'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1161913' first='Wyatt' last='Atkinson'] headline the returning starters and they'll also bring back quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1708787' first='Beau' last='Gravitt'] to solidify that backfield. And like we mentioned earlier, this team exceeded expectations and it's time to consider them one of the top consistent 3A programs. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>8) MULDROW<br></strong>- We are very high on what Muldrow has coming back for the 2025 football season and think the Bulldogs could end up being a dark horse to make a run similar to what we saw from Checotah in 2024. The Bulldogs went 5-5 and missed the playoffs but they bring back almost all of their production on the offensive side of the ball. The conversation starts with 2026 standout [player_tooltip player_id='1161908' first='Teaguen' last='Collins'] on both sides of the ball. He's a dual-threat quarterback that was incredibly productive during his junior season. Muldrow started fast in 2024 and they'll look to finish fast in 2025. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>9) CHECOTAH<br></strong>- Checotah had a 2025 season to remember when they made it all the way to the Class 3A semifinals. And while they lose our PRZ-Oklahoma Player Of The Year in [player_tooltip player_id='353415' first='Elijah' last='Thomas'] to graduation, it would be unwise to think that they will fall off a cliff. They aren't going to be able to replace Thomas but there are other talented players coming back. Checotah is confident in their freshman class and that starts with quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1522515' first='Cole' last='Rolland'] after his breakout 2024 season. And underrated part of this offense was running back [player_tooltip player_id='1293008' first='Jayden' last='Ellen'] and he will return in 2025. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>10) BERRYHILL<br></strong>- Berryhill is going to go into the 2025 season looking to get off to a better start than we saw in 2024. The Chiefs would start 0-3 but would rally to actually contend for the district championship in week ten. But the season came to an end in the first round and they'll be hungry for a bounce back season in 2025. For us, the thing to watch with Berryhill in 2025 starts on both sides of the line of scrimmage. The Chiefs are going to have some next level talent returning along the offensive and defensive lines. That group is headlined by junior [player_tooltip player_id='1304608' first='Aiden' last='Martin'] and he's had a busy offseason already. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->