By Scott Hansen
MaxPreps.com
EDMOND, Okla. - Midwest City wanted nothing more than to break the eastern stranglehold on Class 6A football in Oklahoma with an upset victory over Jenks. The defending state champions would have none of it, rolling to a 35-7 domination over Bombers at Wantland Stadium in Edmond.
Jenks' victory set up a mouth-watering rematch against Tulsa Union in the state title game on Friday night at Tulsa's Chapman Stadium. Jenks' only blemish of the campaign was a 43-42 overtime thriller against those same Redskins in week two, a game many in attendance are still talking about. Jenks will get another crack at its neighbors and rivals for a shot at the gold ball. Batten down the hatches.
"We wanted another shot at Union. We were glad to come in here to get a win. We are going get a good week of practice in and our coaches will ensure that. We will be mentally focused for Union. It should be a lot of fun next week," said quarterback Mark Ginther, who completed 9-of-15 passes for 190 yards and a touchdown in freezing temperatures.
It was a typical Jenks performance. Jenks (12-1) rode its workhorse in Chris Adkins despite the running back being hampered by a virus, and sprinkled it in with an efficient passing game behind the stellar signal calling of Ginther. There is no doubt; Jenks is one of the best teams in the nation.
Adkins rushed for 140 yards and three touchdowns for the Trojans. Adkins had a difficult time getting through the contest after falling ill early in the game. In the third quarter, Adkins broke free on a 42-yard run that under normal circumstances would have been an 81-yard touchdown burst. Jenks head coach Allan Trimble was pleased with the effort of his tailback.
"We wanted to use him a little more than we did tonight. He had a horrible time keeping anything down all night. But it was a good effort from him and we hope he's healthy next week," said Trimble, who is chasing his ninth gold ball in 12 years for Jenks.
For Midwest City, it was an uphill battle from the word go. Midwest City, a traditional powerhouse until the likes of Jenks took over, had difficulty cracking the maroon whirlwind known as the Jenks defense. Especially with defensive tackle Tony Gillespie in dominant form. Gillespie opened the game by breaking through the Midwest City line and snowing Bomber quarterback Vershon Moore under for a 6-yard loss. It set the tone for what was to come.
For three and a half quarters, Midwest City was held to 67 total yards. Junior tailback Timothy Flanders, one of the top players in Oklahoma, could not get on track. Flanders hauled in a screen pass from Moore and took it 40 yards with 3:11 remaining to give the Bombers its only points of the game.
Jenks (12-1)......... 14 7 7 7-- 35
Midwest City (12-1)..... 0 0 0 7-- 7
Scoring
First Quarter
Jenks- Chris Adkins 1 run (Matt Perry kick), 8:28
Jenks- Adkins 41 run (Perry kick), 2:07
Second Quarter
Jenks- Grant Goodwin 5 pass from Mark Ginther (Perry kick), 1:10
Third Quarter
Jenks- Adkins 1 run (Perry kick), :42
Fourth Quarter
Jenks- Colton Dost 16 run (Perry kick), 5:39
Midwest City- Timothy Flanders 40 pass from Vershon Moore (Jordan Turner kick), 3:11
Statistics
Passing
Jenks: Ginther 9-15, 190, 1 TD, 1 INT
Midwest City: Moore 5-16, 66, 1 TD, 1 INT; Jase Chilcoat 1-5, 9, 0 TD, 0 INT
Rushing
Jenks: Adkins 22-140, Dost 6-51, Goodwin 5-11, Ginther 1-minus 6
Midwest City: T. Flanders 9-46, Moore 19-31, Antonio Brown 1-3, Chilcoat 2-minus 1
Receiving
Jenks: Dallas Beeler 3-80, Alonzo Adams 2-49, Tremaine Thompson 1-29, Adkins 1-21, Goodwin 2-11
Midwest City: T. Flanders 2-45, Brown 2-16, Kevin Gaddis 1-9, Eric Jackson 1-5
Tulsa Union 13, Muskogee 6
Tulsa Union fulfilled its end of the deal in setting up a potential Union-Jenks rematch in the Class 6A final, but it didn't come easy in a 13-6 victory over Muskogee.
Union (13-0) pounded Muskogee with 230 yards on the ground in the victory. Junior Jeremy Smith led the effort with 198 yards on 35 carries for the Redskins.
Union got on the board in the first quarter with a 20-yard touchdown strike from quarterback Brandon Rogers to Anthony Foster. Oklahoma-bound kicker Tress Way tacked on two field goals for the Redskins from 27 and 32 yards for Union.
Muskogee brought the tally to 10-6 in the third quarter as Trae Cook linked up with Shjuan Richardson on a 51-yard touchdown pass. Cook threw for 246 yards on the night, but his three interceptions were the difference.
Class 6A State Championship Game
Friday Nov. 30- University of Tulsa at 7:30 p.m.
Jenks (12-1) vs. Tulsa Union (13-0)
Class 5A: Guthrie, Bixby to Meet in Final
Guthrie 45, Tulsa East Central 14
Guthrie moved one-step closer to winning its first gold ball since 2002 with a 45-17 victory over previously unbeaten Tulsa East Central at Putnam City H.S. in Oklahoma City.
Clinging to a 17-14 halftime advantage, Guthrie stepped up in the second half. Josh King ignited the second half flurry with a 68-yard punt return, before Kye Staley took over with two rushing touchdowns from 10 and 37 yards in the third quarter. Keaton Callins capped off the scoring with a 12-yard run for the Bluejays.
East Central went toe-to-toe with Guthrie in the first half. Kenny Session and DeLon Profit both had touchdown runs of 4 yards apiece to give the Cardinals a 14-10 lead before the floodgates opened. Guthrie pounded out 323 rushing yards in the victory, led by 160 and three touchdowns from Staley.
Bixby 20, Lawton MacArthur 7
Bixby sprinted out to a 20-0 halftime lead thanks to a dominating performance on the ground in the bone-chilling cold and moved on to the Class 5A title game against Guthrie with a 20-7 victory over previously unbeaten Lawton MacArthur.
Dewitt Jennings, Dalton Irvin, and Michael Abernathy all reached paydirt on touchdown runs in the first half as the Spartans built its insurmountable lead. Irvin, a sophomore, led the Spartans with 102 rushing yards.
Bixby (11-2) held Lawton Mac to five rushing yards on a 21 carries. Highlanders quarterback Austin Giles managed to throw for 215 yards, including a 77-yard pass to Neicko Williams in the third quarter.
Class 5A State Championship Game
Friday Nov. 30- University of Oklahoma (Norman) at 7:30 p.m.
Bixby (11-2) vs. Guthrie (13-0)
Class 4A: McGuinness Seeks Second Straight Against Glenpool
Glenpool 7, Broken Bow 6
Sophomore running back Marco Nelson rushed for 111 yards, but it was his 10-yard touchdown run in the first quarter that was the difference as Glenpool ousted Broken Bow, 7-6.
Nelson has been the catalyst behind Glenpool's resurgence this season, rushing for nearly 2,000 yards for the Warriors. It will be the third appearance in the state title game in six years for Glenpool, who claimed the gold ball in 2002. Glenpool clearly rode Nelson once again, having not completed pass in the contest.
Broken Bow scored in the second quarter on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Jody Shomo to Mitchell Manning, but missed the point after. That would come back to haunt the Savages. Shomo threw for 135 yards in the loss.
Bishop McGuinness 35, Wagoner 13
Another dominating performance, another semifinal victory over Wagoner, and another trip to the Class 4A state final. Bishop McGuinness moved one-step closer to another gold ball in the trophy case with a 35-13 victory over Wagoner in Sapulpa to punch its ticket to the Class 4A title game against Glenpool.
The 2007 season for the Fighting Irish has had unbelievable parallels to its 2006 season, its first state title in football in school history. Fullback Joey DeGuisti, a key component in last season's title run, rushed for 154 yards and touchdowns for the Fighting Irish.
Junior quarterback Ryan Randolph completed 5-of-6 passes for 76 yards and two touchdowns. Randolph hit junior tight end Gabe Ikard on an 11-yard strike to open the scoring as part of a 21-point first quarter. Randolph later hit sophomore Kyle Ahmad on a 31-yard scoring strike.
Wagoner was held to 200 yards of total offense. Quarterback Durrell Parker rushed for a 3-yard touchdown in the second quarter to close the gap to 21-7, and later hit Jermaine Sherman on an 8-yard pass for the Bulldogs.
Class 4A State Championship Game
Saturday Dec. 1- University of Oklahoma (Norman) at 1:30 p.m.
Bishop McGuinness (13-0) at Glenpool (12-1)