Scene Setter – Carl Albert AT Bishop McGuinness

Get 25% Off Your Subscription By Entering Knight25 In The Coupon Code Area. Enjoy!   Week two is absolutely loaded with can't miss match-ups and there are a ton of great games all across the state this week. If you missed it, you can go back and <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/09/week-twos-ten-best-games-4/" data-type="link" data-id="https://prepredzone.com/2026/09/week-twos-ten-best-games-4/">read about all of the match-ups that you need to know about</a> heading into week two. But when we were looking at what game we needed to spotlight here, as the best game of the week, this was the one. #1 VS #2 and a rematch of last year's state championship game. It's Bishop McGuinness hosting Carl Albert and the storylines going into this match-up write themselves but let's get into it.   RELATED   <a href="https://youtu.be/N0EDA68lVkA" data-type="link" data-id="https://youtu.be/N0EDA68lVkA">- Interview With Bishop McGuinness HC Ryan Stringer</a>   This is a rematch of last year's state championship game and a match-up featuring the top two teams in our Class 5A rankings. It's also a renewal of an old 5A rivalry that we've seen so many times in the last 15 years. Not to mention Carl Albert comes into this game with a 55-game win streak and they are getting closer and closer to setting the new 11-man record for Oklahoma football. So all of that is to say the following in a much simpler way. This is a big game.   Bishop McGuinness has rolled out to a 2-0 record and dominated their first two opponents. They rolled to an easy win over Putnam City North and followed that up with a 42-7 win over rival Bishop Kelley last week. But there is no doubt that the Irish are preparing for a 48-minute battle with the Titans on Friday night and it will be the first time they've had to play all 48 minutes at a high level this season. For Carl Albert, the Titans have been tested more so far in the first few weeks. They beat Newcastle 30-20 in the season opener and that was a rematch of last year's semifinal game. They had to hold off a Newcastle comeback to win. They followed that up with a win over Booker T Washington last week in a game that they were in control of for the majority of the contest. Both teams know what's coming when they square off on Friday night.   The Irish have rolled to their first two wins and that was to be expected considering the firepower they had returning on both sides of the ball. But Friday's game with Carl Albert will test the Irish where they were inexperienced coming into this season. The Irish had to replace the majority of their starters on both sides of the line of scrimmage. That's a match-up that we'll be watching because Carl Albert has a very strong group in the front seven defensively that could make things uncomfortable for the Irish offense. If McGuinness can find a way to keep the chains moving and lean on this defense and wear them down, they have the firepower to break a big play at any given moment.   Carl Albert will come into this week's game battle-tested and they'll be ready for a game that goes 48 minutes. The Titans don't have many holes in what they do. They execute at a high level and they bring back the majority of their starters from last year's team. One thing we want to see in this match-up is how this team handles the pressure. It's only a week two game in September but it's definitely a bigger stage and there will be more eyeballs on this game than many across the state. This is also a team that hasn't lost on the football field in exactly four years. September 9th, 2022 was the last time they lost a game and with each win, the pressure ratchets up just a little bit. Carl Albert has 55 consecutive wins and Bixby won 58 straight a few years ago and that's the state's 11-man record. They're less than a month away from making that record their own.   Below, we put the spotlight on three different players for each team to keep an eye on. It was difficult to limit it to three as we anticipate plenty of players making big time plays throughout the night on Friday night.   BISHOP McGUINNESS PLAYERS TO WATCH   [player_tooltip player_id='1834412' first='DreAndre' last='Bruton'] - 2027 Running Back   Senior running back [player_tooltip player_id='1834412' first='DreAndre' last='Bruton'] has gotten his senior season off to a great start through the first two games of the season. But the challenge is certainly going to be tougher this week, going against a Carl Albert defense that has done a good job in the first two weeks of containing running backs. Bruton is one of the players that McGuinness head coach Ryan Stringer brought up in our conversation on our YouTube Channel. He's off to a strong start and in Class 5A, there are a ton of really strong and productive running backs. Bruton is quickly becoming one of the names we need to follow.   [player_tooltip player_id='1689435' first='Gage' last='Chance'] - 2027 Quarterback   There might not be another player in this match-up that is more fired up for Friday night than senior [player_tooltip player_id='1689435' first='Gage' last='Chance'] at the quarterback position. Chance got hurt in the regular season finale last year and had to watch from the sidelines as the Irish made a run to the state championship game and he ultimately had to watch as they came up short against Carl Albert. So having said that, Chance comes into this week with a major chip on his shoulder and has looked good through the first few weeks. He had a solid performance against rival Bishop Kelley but he'll need to take care of the ball against a tough Titan defense.   [player_tooltip player_id='1743060' first='Malachi' last='Darby'] - 2028 Running Back/Linebacker   Junior [player_tooltip player_id='1743060' first='Malachi' last='Darby'] could end up being the X-factor for Bishop McGuinness on Friday night. Defensively, Darby is a hybrid player that can drop back in coverage or come down and hammer a ball carrier. He played incredibly well down the stretch for the Irish last season and we're interested to see how he looks against a really solid Carl Albert offense. But don't overlook Darby's abilities on offense as well. While Bruton is the main back, Darby can get some touches and has produced when he's gotten them. That two-way playmaking ability makes him a very important part to what the Irish do Friday.   CARL ALBERT PLAYERS TO WATCH   [player_tooltip player_id='693905' first='Delijah' last='Matthews'] - 2027 Running Back   Anytime we're talking about players to watch for Carl Albert, it's hard not to include senior [player_tooltip player_id='693905' first='Delijah' last='Matthews'] in that conversation. He broke records at the running back position last season and has come back stronger than ever in 2026. He had a really good game in their win over Newcastle in week zero, producing as a runner and as a receiver. In that state title game against McGuinness last season, he ran for multiple touchdowns as he's become a touchdown magnet. We're fired up to get a look at Matthews in person for the first time in 2026 and see what he can do against the Irish defense.   [player_tooltip player_id='1694441' first='Jacson' last='Webster'] - 2027 Wide Receiver/Defensive Back   Senior wide receiver and defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='1694441' first='Jacson' last='Webster'] is coming off a week one performance where he was dominant on both sides of the ball. He caught a touchdown and also had a scoop and score on the defensive side of the ball. We knew that Webster was a two-way threat coming into this season but he's exceeded all preseason expectations and we're not even to the halfway point of September. Like we mentioned earlier, the McGuinness strength on defense is in the backend. If Webster can continue to have success against a talented Irish secondary, his stock will continue to soar this fall.   [player_tooltip player_id='1637576' first='Joe' last='Thomas'] - 2027 Defensive Lineman   We mentioned earlier in the breakdown how the Irish would need to hold off Carl Albert's front seven. Senior defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1637576' first='Joe' last='Thomas'] is one of those guys that will play a major role on Friday night. Thomas is one of the more experienced starters on the defensive side of the ball and he's kicked off his senior season with some big performances already. Thomas had a breakout season as a sophomore and only continued to get better over the last two years. Facing an inexperienced McGuinness offensive line, we expect Thomas to put a lot of pressure on the Irish from the line of scrimmage.

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