Stigler football is this week's Oklahoma Team of the Week, presented by the Oklahoma National Guard.
Photo courtesy of Diana Shores
Coach Chris Risenhoover and his
Stigler (Okla.) Panthers keep knocking on the door.
After a 48-14 win over Roland last week, they appear prepared to knock it down.
The Panthers piled up 513 yards led by senior quarterback
Seth Sandlin to improve to 4-2 on the season. This after they’ve piled up seasons of 10-2 and 11-3 the last two years, including a trip to the Oklahoma State 3A semifinals.
They lost to eventual champion Kingfisher.
On Friday, Stigler rushed for 330 yards and 10 different players carried the ball led by Sandlin, who had 12 attempts for 133 yards and two touchdowns.
Seth Sandlin, Stigler
Photo courtesy of Diana Shores
He also completed 14 of 20 for 228 yards and two more scores, receptions from
Trace Jackson, a sophomore, and senior
Austan Drewry.
For their big win, steady improvement and fast start, Stigler has been selected as the MaxPreps Oklahoma Team of the Week, presented by the Oklahoma National Guard. Risenhoover has been seeing the improvement all season.
"Slowly each week we are getting a little better," he said. "In all phases of the game. The time of our offense is exceptional and our defense has been what has helped all season. We have matured and developed and will continue to try to perform well and stay healthy."
Against Roland, Jackson also rushed 10 times for 84 yards and two scores and
Shane Quick took his only carry to the end zone on a 34-yard run.
Sandlin, a 6-1, 200-pound senior who also stars at strong safety, ranks second in the state with 1,968 yards — 1,246 through the air and 722 on the ground. Last year, Sandlin was second on the team with 1,191 yards and 13 touchdowns as a running back.
"He is an exceptional high school athlete who is the total package," Risenhoover said of Sandlin. "He has been around football for awhile. He played on varsity as a freshman, so he has been under the Friday night lights for some time. ... He has the physical attributes — great speed and a great arm. He is an experienced player, who has learned a lot. He's able to remain calm and poised and he knows how an offense is orchestrated."
Stigler played superbly on defense on Friday, while getting 10 tackles from sophomore
Jim Quontez and nine each from senior
Ty Mitchell and sophomore
Tekoda Moore.
The secondary, led by Quontez and
Blaine Thompson, held Roland to just five completions in 11 attempts for 45 yards.
Stigler has a big jump in competition next week when it travels to undefeated
Checotah (6-0) on Thursday. Checotah went on the road to beat Stigler last season 22-13.
"We know that we will have to win that game in order to preserve our district championship," Risenhoover said. "The kids are really excited about this game and really want that district title. Hopefully we can pull an upset and beat an undefeated team."
MaxPreps editorial assistant Kirstin Beal contributed to this report.Do you know a team that deserves
consideration for Oklahoma Team of the Week? Email us with your
nominations at OKteamoftheweek@maxpreps.com.
