Lawton MacArthur Highlanders OK 2026 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 2026 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 Lawton MacArthur Highlanders!   RELATED   <a href="https://youtu.be/fS-BpE-X_9A" data-type="link" data-id="https://youtu.be/fS-BpE-X_9A">- Lawton MacArthur Video Preview With HC Brett Manning</a>   Lawton MacArthur Highlanders   Preseason Prep Redzone Ranking: #7 In Class 5A   Head Coach: Brett Manning - 18th Season - 151-51 Record At Lawton MacArthur   2025 RESULTS (10-3 Record - Lost In Class 5A Semifinals)   Aug. 29th - Lost To Elgin 42-21 Sept. 5th - Beat Lawton Eisenhower 58-0 Sept. 12th - Beat Lawton 46-6 Sept. 19th - Beat Ponca City 60-57 Oct. 2nd - Beat Classen SAS 61-0 Oct. 10th - Beat Duncan 51-20 Oct. 16th - Beat Midwest City 63-28 Oct. 24th - Lost To Newcastle 41-32 Oct. 30th - Beat Southeast 45-6 Nov. 7th - Beat Bishop McGuinness 35-21 1st Round - Beat Noble 57-14 Quarterfinals - Beat Del City 70-49 Semifinals - Lost To Bishop McGuinness 61-28   2025 Offensive Scoring Average: 48.2 Points Per Game 2025 Defensive Scoring Average: 26.5 Points Per Game   The Lawton MacArthur Highlanders came into the 2025 season as a top ten team once again but they were hungrier than ever after three straight years of first round playoff exits. The season opened with a tough loss on the road against Elgin but the Highlanders wouldn't lose again until late October. Lawton Mac won six straight games, all of them in dominant fashion. The closest game during that winning streak was a 31-point win over Duncan. The offense was performing at an all time high. They tripped up in week eight against Newcastle in a high-scoring affair before rallying and beating Southeast and then undefeated Bishop McGuinness in the regular season finale. That win over the Irish forced a three-way tie that the Highlanders had the edge in and Lawton MacArthur went into the playoffs as the district champion. That set them up for playoff success as they beat Noble in the first round with ease and then beat Del City 70-49 in a very memorable quarterfinal game. They would face McGuinness just a few weeks after beating them in the regular season finale. The rematch went to the Irish and Lawton MacArthur's season came to an end at 10-3, one game shy of playing for the state championship. After three straight years of first round exits, the 2025 season was definitely a step in the right direction. Now, the calendar turns and the Highlanders are looking to reload for another run in a very crowded and competitive Class 5A.    2026 OUTLOOK   Despite coming up short on the championship game, the Highlanders come into this season with some momentum with the way last year played out. Lawton MacArthur had one of the best offenses in the state a year ago, averaging just shy of 50 points per game. They bring back around half of their starters, headlined by a 2,000 yard rusher at the running back position and some key pieces along the offensive line. The Highlanders are going to have to find someone to replace a three-year starter at the quarterback position and there is a battle still going on to see who QB1 will be this fall. But whoever wins that spot will benefit from having not one, but two very talented running backs joining him in the backfield. Lawton MacArthur's coaches are very excited about the potential at the wide receiver position but there's no doubt that this team will lean on the ground game. Defensively, the Highlanders bring back six starters from last year's team. This unit will lean on the front seven to get the job done while the Highlanders work in some new starters in the secondary. They have to replace nearly every starter in the back end but their group of defensive linemen and linebackers will help them while they break in those new starters. The biggest hurdle will not be the new faces but the district once again as the Highlanders are in one of the toughest districts in the state. Three of the four semifinal teams a year ago were from this district. It wouldn't be all that surprising to see that happen again. The district title race could end up being decided in the first few weeks of the season with the way Lawton MacArthur's schedule lays out. And finishing in the top two in district will be huge for the playoff push.   KEY LOSSES TO GRADUATION   Adam Auston - Wide Receiver/Defensive Back (2025 All State 3rd Team Selection) Aivan Locklin - Quarterback (2025 All State Honorable Mention) Joshua Rushing - Wide Receiver (2025 All State Honorable Mention)   PLAYERS TO WATCH    The Highlanders have to replace some serious firepower at the wide receiver position heading into this season. One player they are excited about heading into this fall is 2027 wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='2257910' first='Cam' last='Manning'] as he comes into this season as arguably the most reliable receiver returning. Manning and the rest of the Lawton Mac wide receivers might have been overshadowed by their two D1 signees but there is plenty of potential for them to enjoy breakout seasons this fall. And when you combine that reliability with the fact that defenses are going to key in on stopping their run game, Manning and company are going to get opportunities to make plays in this offense.     2027 running back [player_tooltip player_id='1182029' first='Connor' last='Claborn'] enjoyed a monster junior season, becoming one of the top running backs in the state, regardless of class. Now, he heads into his senior season hungry for more. When we got a chance to watch the Highlanders in person, Claborn was their best player at a very consistent level. He ran for more than 2,000 yards and this season, he's going to have the potential to do even more. As Lawton MacArthur works in a new quarterback, they are going to feed Claborn the rock and good things tend to happen with him in the backfield. Last year, he was a breakout star. This season, all eyes are going to be on him to see what he can do for an encore.    (2025 All State 3rd Team Selection)     Lawton MacArthur has the potential to have one of the best running games in the state but it's going to start up front with their play on the line of scrimmage. 2027 offensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1830664' first='Damian' last='Mowatt'] returns as a starter on the line of scrimmage. The Highlanders bring back a few different guys but Mowatt has the potential to be the senior leader of this group. He was one of the first guys mentioned by the Lawton MacArthur coaches this summer and when you combine his starting experience along with the fact that he's a senior, it's easy to see why. Mowatt and company will be tasked to protect Lawton MacArthur's new quarterback as he gets comfortable in the offense.     Claborn isn't the only running back to keep an eye on in this Lawton MacArthur offense this fall. 2029 standout [player_tooltip player_id='2065846' first='Prince' last='Salazar'] is emerging as arguably their best two-way player heading into this season. Offensively, Salazar was playing some of his best football towards the end of the season last year. He's the perfect complement to Claborn's big play running style as Salazar is a very physical runner. It's not surprising that the physicality shows up on the other side of the ball as he's been starting for the Highlanders on defense since the start ofhis freshman season. He's a big reason why the Highlanders are excited about the potential of the front seven going into this fall.     The Highlanders have several young players in the 2029 and 2030 classes to keep an eye on as they enter the 2026 football season. 2029 linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='2257914' first='Trystin' last='Kibble'] is a name to definitely remember as we get closer to kickoff. Talking with Lawton MacArthur's coaches this summer, Kibble was a name that they brought up on defense and how his ceiling is incredibly high moving forward. There's a chance that Kibble emerges as the next heat-seeking missile at the linebacker position for the Highlanders and they've had a few of those guys over the last decade. With how talented the defensive line is, that will open the door for Kibble to make a ton of tackles.    MORE NAMES TO KNOW   [player_tooltip player_id='1836908' first='Aidan' last='Pena'] - 2027 Defensive Lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1839353' first='Braxton' last='Murray'] - 2027 Defensive Lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1841099' first='Gage' last='Jones'] - 2029 Offensive Lineman Joe Kelly  - 2027 Quarterback Zaden Jenson - 2029 Quarterback   2026 SCHEDULE   Aug. 27th - Weatherford - The 2026 football season kicks off with a Thursday night game against Weatherford in week zero. These two teams haven't played each other in a little over two decades. They met in non-district play back in 2005 but haven't played since. With Elgin moving back up to Class 5A, the Highlanders swapped that game out with the Eagles in week zero. Sept. 4th - Lawton Eisenhower - The first of back to back games against city rivals comes in week one as the Highlanders will face Eisenhower. There's no other way to put it, Lawton Mac has absolutely dominated this series for 15 years now. The Highlanders have won the last 15 meetings and the majority of those wins have been in dominating fashion.  Sept. 11th - AT Lawton - The following week, the Highlanders will face Lawton High and if they continue their success against Eisenhower, they'll have a chance to sweep the city series for the fourth straight year. They've beaten Lawton three straight seasons, including last year's 46-6 victory. But the Wolverines definitely have some momentum heading into 2026. Sept. 18th - AT Booker T Washington - The non-district slate wraps up with a rare trip to Tulsa as the Highlanders will face Booker T Washington in week three. Despite these two teams being Class 5A powerhouses for the majority of the 2000's, they've only met one time and that came over two decades ago in the 2004 semifinals. Booker T Washington prevailed.  Sept. 25th - Elgin - The district schedule kicks off with arguably the toughest game on the slate as they will host Elgin in week four. The Owls are back in Class 5A after dominating Class 4A the last two years. In fact, they are 38-2 in the last three years alone. This will be the fifth straight year these two have played and Elgin has a 4-0 record in those games. Oct. 2nd - AT Newcastle - One week after playing Elgin, the Highlanders go on the road to face Newcastle in week five. There's no other way to describe it, this is a make or break stretch in the schedule for the Highlanders. They've lost to Newcastle by single digits in the last two years. They need to avoid going 0-2 in this early district stretch.  Oct. 8th - Southeast - The Highlanders return home to host Southeast on a Thursday night in week six. These two have met in district play the last two seasons and neither game has been very competitive. Lawton Mac has won both games by 39 points. Southeast will also come into this season after losing their head coach and some of their top players in the offseason.  Oct. 15th - AT El Reno - On a Fall Break Thursday night in week seven, Lawton MacArthur goes on the road to face El Reno. These two teams haven't played the last two years after they were district opponents for a decade from 2014-2023. During that stretch, the Highlanders had a 7-3 record against the Indians. They'll look to pick up where they left off this fall.  Oct. 23rd - Altus - The Altus Bulldogs are back on the schedule after they were in different districts the last two years. These two were constant district foes for decades but that wasn't the case the last two seasons. The Highlanders will go into this season with a five-game winning streak against the Bulldogs. Altus will have a first year head coach.  Oct. 30th - AT Shawnee - The regular season for Lawton MacArthur actually comes to an end in week nine as they have a bye week in week ten to (hopefully) get ready for a big playoff push. They travel to Shawnee in week nine and will face the Wolves for the first time in nearly two decades. They last met in the 2008 playoffs and before that, the Highlanders fell to Shawnee in the 2003 title game.    NOTABLE   The Manning family has deep roots all over this Lawton MacArthur football program. Head coach Brett Manning is heading into his 18th season as head coach of the Highlanders and he's coming off a 17th season that featured a special milestone. His dad Ernie Manning was the head coach at Lawton MacArthur from 1993-2008 and then Brett took over prior to the 2009 season. A few years ago, he passed his dad in the win category and last year, he reached win number 150 as Lawton MacArthur's head coach. He's had the Highlanders as that consistent threat in Class 5A for the majority of the last two decades. They climbed to the mountain top in 2014 when they captured the school's first and only state championship. Prior to that, they had countless trips to the state title game, having to settle for silver each time. That wasn't the case in 2014 and a little over a decade later, the Highlanders once again come into the season as one of the top teams in Class 5A. But it has been a little over a decade and they are hungry for more gold.    LAST FIVE SEASONS   2025 - 10-3 - Lost In Class 5A Semifinals 2024 - 7-4 - Lost In Class 5A 1st Round 2023 - 8-3 - Lost In Class 5A 1st Round 2022 - 6-5 - Lost In Class 5A 1st Round 2021 - 11-2 - Lost In Class 5A Semifinals   CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY   1 State Championship   2014 - Beat Skiatook 39-12

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