Pryor Bye Week Report

Almost half of the top ten teams in the Class 5A rankings are off this week. Because of that, we're taking a look at some of the strong starts from teams on bye.   The Pryor Tigers have gotten off to a 2-1 start, with both of their wins coming out of state. They beat Siloam Springs in the opener with ease. Then last week took down another Arkansas team, Fort Smith Southside by 35+ points. The only loss came in a week one showdown against fellow ranked team Coweta. They jumped out on Coweta 16-0 but lost a shootout 45-43. It was a match-up of two teams that captured district championships a year ago. It wouldn't be surprising if both teams end up contending for the district titles this year.    Pryor has this week off before taking the field next week against Edison. Then they go on the road to face Tahlequah in week five. But all eyes will be on their week six game at home against Bishop McGuinness. The Irish currently sit at #2 in the Class 5A rankings and they are coming off a trip to the state championship game a season ago. That's a game that Prep Redzone Oklahoma will be covering and one that we've had circled on our calendar for a while.    Ultimately, Pryor came into this season with a chip on their shoulder. It's been written about on this site for a while now how the Tigers are coming off arguably their best season in program history in 2025. But it was also one that ended abruptly in the quarterfinals. Pryor expects to not only be in the mix for another district championship, but they expect to go to the next stage and contend for the state championship.   Let's take a look at five players that have stood out to us in one way or another and should have a pretty significant impact on the rest of the season.    [player_tooltip player_id='807020' first='Cooper' last='Hooker'] - 2027 Wide Receiver   Senior wide receiver and Oklahoma State commit [player_tooltip player_id='807020' first='Cooper' last='Hooker'] was a player PRZ-Oklahoma has been covering since he was a freshman. This summer, in the Pryor preview, it was pointed out that Hooker is making a jump from 2A-2 competition to 5A competition with his move from Salina to Pryor. That jump in competition hasn't slowed him down. He's gotten off to a really good start for Pryor this season and shows no signs of slowing down. Hooker is so quick in the open field and just finds a way to get open, time after time. The connection is solid between him and the QB and the production has followed.   [player_tooltip player_id='1704643' first='Issac' last='Torres'] - 2028 Running Back   Junior running back [player_tooltip player_id='1704643' first='Issac' last='Torres'] is in a similar boat to Hooker. He made the move to Pryor this offseason from Locust Grove and he has had zero problems with the step up in competition. He's found the end zone multiple times in every game and has eclipsed 100 yards in each of his first three games and in the two games in Arkansas, he's made it look easy. Torres had a good sophomore season with Locust Grove but he's quickly establishing himself as a running back to know moving forward. In that Coweta game, we saw two fantastic running backs going back and forth, exchanging big play for big play.   [player_tooltip player_id='485894' first='Maddox' last='Young'] - 2028 Quarterback   Junior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='485894' first='Maddox' last='Young'] is coming off a really strong game against Fort Smith Southside over in Arkansas. He threw for over 300 yards and a pair of touchdowns while completing 21 of his 24 passes. Young is a 2028 quarterback that PRZ-Oklahoma has covered for a while now at various offseason showcases and 7v7 tournaments. But this is the first opportunity to really break down Young against competition on Friday nights. There's no doubt that he has some weapons around him but he's also starting to show some of the traits that were identified early on in his high school career. He's made a huge jump this fall.    [player_tooltip player_id='1208264' first='Mason' last='McAlvain'] - 2027 Defensive Lineman   Senior defensive tackle [player_tooltip player_id='1208264' first='Mason' last='McAlvain'] is an absolute force in the middle of this Pryor defense. He was a constant presence in the backfield last week in their win over Fort Smith Southside. Going back and listening to Pryor's head coach this summer, he believes that McAlvain is the best down lineman in the state. Whether it's at nose guard or a typical defensive tackle, the senior rewards his coach's belief. McAlvain not only commands double teams, he embraces them. The power, size and overall strength is there to make McAlvain a very dangerous player on the Pryor defensive line.    [player_tooltip player_id='2104925' first='Tyler' last='Belew'] - 2028 Wide Receiver   Hooker gets a lot of attention in the Pryor pass game and that's understandable but with that comes more defenders. And things will start to open up for other guys in this Pryor offense. Junior wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='2104925' first='Tyler' last='Belew'] has taken advantage of that early on this season. He's coming off a performance against Fort Smith Southside where he caught eight passes for over 100 yards and a touchdown. He led the team in receiving and with Hooker getting more coverage sent his way, things are starting to open up for Belew. He's another prospect who PRZ-Oklahoma has seen perform well at offseason events.

Almost half of the top ten teams in the Class 5A rankings are off this week. Because of that, we're taking a look at some of the strong starts from teams on bye.