The 14th Annual MaxPreps Tour of Champions presented by the Army National Guard passed through Maryland on Friday, February 8 to recognize
Oakdale (Ijamsville, Md.) High School and its football team for winning a state championship and earning a high national ranking.
Photo By Precision Sports Entertainment
Having upended Glenelg 35-7 in the
MPSSAA Class 2A state championship contest, the 13-0 Bears claimed their first state football title and earned the No. 175 ranking in
MaxPreps' National Rankings! Established in the fall of 2010, Oakdale high School is located in ljamsville, Maryland near historic Frederick, and already boasts a robust athletics program in several sports.
MaxPreps and the Maryland Army National Guard were on hand to celebrate Bear Football in the school's gymnasium at halftime of the boys varsity basketball game against Brunswick. Family, friends and Bears fans gathered to watch an 80-27 Oakdale win on the basketball court and to celebrate Bear Football.
As halftime arrived, the Bears, their coaches and the managers gathered together on the basketball court. Master Sergeant William Houston of the Maryland Army National Guard presented the Army National Guard national ranking trophy to head football coach Kurt Stein, who graciously accepted the award and raised the trophy for all to see. Stein, the only football coach in Oakdale history, just completed his eighth season.
"It was just a complete team," Stein said. "They were a great group that bonded together. They were close-knit. They had a little bit of everything."
Being from the area and a fan of Bear football, MSG Houston is familiar with the team's history and efforts and he praised Oakdale for its discipline, teamwork and heart. MSG Houston recognized how close the Bears were as a team and how cohesively they worked together, shared traits of the Army National Guard and a state championship football team. Seeing Bear players and the coaches interact that evening clearly confirmed that they were a close group. As one of the players said of his teammates, "We are family." Congratulations to the 2018 Oakdale Bears for being among the very best teams on the gridiron!
Click
here to view the Oakdale TOC photo gallery and for more information about the Football TOC, please visit the
MaxPreps Tour of Champions site.
Photo By Precision Sports Entertainment
Photo By Precision Sports Entertainment