Week Seven 6A-II rankings and predictions; a look at this weekend's games

No. 1 Booker T. Washington Hornets (Last week No. 1)* District 2

The Hornets (6-1, 3-0) got a big obstacle out of the way in Muskogee (2-4, 1-2) and will have a bye week to recover before taking on Sand Springs in Week Eight. 

On Friday they handily doubled down on the Roughers 42-21. Thomas Grayson rushed for 192 yards and four touchdowns while Philip Wheatley was 10-19-226 passing. They picked off two passes and held the Roughers to 295 yards, forcing seven punts. Still battling the refs, they ended the night with 9 penalties for 98 yards. 

No. 2 Midwest City Bombers (2) vs. No. 12 Putnam City West Patriots (12)* District 1

Midwest City (5-1, 3-0) continued to show off their defensive might with a 27-3 beatdown of Choctaw (4-2, 1-2). Oklahoma-commit Jalen Redmond had four tackles-for-loss as the Bombers held Choctaw to 171 offensive yards. 

Putnam West (1-4, 0-2) suffered a blowout against undefeated Stillwater (5-0, 2-0) falling 49-7. The Patriots attempted only three passes and didn't complete any. They were 44-246 on the ground, but gave up three fumbles and 159 yards in penalties. 

The pick: MWC 49 PCW 7.

No. 3 Bixby Spartans (3) vs. No. 14 Ponca City Wildcats (14)* District 2

The three-time defending State Champions (3-3, 2-0) notched another district win 48-10 in Sapulpa (0-6, 0-3). Staton King passed 11-17-198-0 while Braden Roller and Vic Griffin combined for 198 yards on the ground. Defensively they held the Chieftains to 30-22 rushing yards and only eight first downs. They were up 48-0 to start the fourth quarter before sending in the backups. 

Ponca City (1-5, 1-2) had their homecoming sabotaged 42-7 by Sand Springs (4-2, 2-0). Double-threat sophomore quarterback Justin Andrews was 12-25-102-1 passing and 24-83 rushing to account for 65% of the Wildcat offense. He scored the lone touchdown for his team with three minutes remaining against the Sand Springs reserves. 

The pick: Bixby 55 Ponca 9.

No. 4 Lawton Wolverines (5) vs. No. 11 Enid Plainsmen (10)* District 1

Lawton (4-2, 2-1) is out to prove themselves after falling to Midwest City three weeks ago, knocking undefeated team in back-to-back weeks. After topping Putnam City (5-1, 2-1) 27-21 two weeks ago, they handled the Stillwater Pioneers (5-1, 2-1) 43-29. The Wolverines led 28-3 early in the third quarter before allowing the Pioneers to battle back.

Enid (3-3, 1-2) averaged 45 points per game over the first four weeks before being shut out 37-0 by Choctaw (4-1, 1-2). They fared better last week against Deer Creek (3-3, 1-2) but still fell 38-24 and will need a few upsets to have a shot at the playoffs.

The pick: Lawton 42 Enid 18.

No. 5 Stillwater (6)* vs. No. 9 Choctaw Yellowjackets (9)* District 1

The Pioneers (5-1, 2-1) saw their undefeated season come to an end in a 43-29 drubbing at Lawton (4-2, 2-1). The Pioneers were down 28-3 in the third quarter before staging a comeback attempt. Turnovers plagued the visitors, however, and Gunnar Gundy was 15-31-235 with three interceptions. 

Choctaw (4-4, 1-2) had their worst offensive output of the season. After steamrolling Enid 37-0 the week before, karma repaid them and they fell 27-3 to Midwest City (5-1, 3-0). The Yellowjackets struck first with a field goal but Midwest City scored two touchdowns by air, one by run, and one on an interception return. Choctaw gave up two interceptions and one fumble while failing to secure any turnovers of their own. They were 8-12-69-2 passing and 53-102 rushing.

The pick: Stillwater 42 Choctaw 28.

No. 6 Muskogee Roughers (4) vs. No. 7 Sand Springs Sandites (8)* District 2

Muskogee (2-4, 1-2) is coming off back-to-back losses and will be out for blood when they visit Sand Springs (4-2, 2-0) for the Sandite Homecoming. Jacob Medrano was 18-35-208-2 in a 42-21 loss to Booker T. Friday and the Roughers were held to only 87 rushing yards on 32 carries. The Roughers gave up 80 yards in penalties.

Sand Springs is coming off their biggest win of the season, 42-7 at Ponca City (1-5, 1-1). The Sandites were up 35-0 to start the fourth when they sent in the JV. Braden Foster hit Daren Hawkins for a 45-yard touchdown on his first varsity pass and the coaches cleared the press box and called it a night with eight minutes to go. 

Caden Pennington was 3-3-53-0 passing and 6-46 rushing, while Payton Scott was 25-284 with five touchdowns. Jaden Weiser was six-for-six on extra points, Tre Finch accumulated four tackles-for-loss including two sacks, and Braden Askew had a 20-yard interception return.

Virgil says: Muskogee 31 CPHS 21.
Scott says: CPHS 35 Muskogee 21.

No. 8 Putnam City Pirates (7) vs. No. 10 Deer Creek Antlers (11)* District 1

Putnam City (5-1, 2-1) got back in the win column with a lackluster 21-11 performance against Putnam West (1-5, 0-3). West led by as much as 9-0 before the Pirates got on the board. The favorites trailed 11-7 at halftime before winning the second half 14-0. Deer Creek (3-3, 1-2) notched their first district victory 38-24 against Enid (3-3, 1-2). 

The pick: Putnam 24 DC 16.

No. 13 Bartlesville Bruins (13) vs. No. 15 Sapulpa (15)* District 2

It's a battle of defeateds as both Sapulpa (0-6, 0-3) and Bartlesville (0-5, 0-2) are looking for their first wins of the year. At least one of these teams will avoid an 0-10 season. The other will have a far tougher time getting in the win column in the coming weeks.

Bartlesville is coming off a bye week following a 14-10 upset by Ponca City (1-5, 1-2), who will be the Chieftain's best hope for a win if they don't pull it off against the Bruins. The Bruins won their season opener 30-25 against McAlester (1-5) on the field, but later forfeited due to an ineligible player. Sapulpa put up a decent fourth quarter effort against Bixby (3-3, 2-0) finishing with 10 unanswereds to avoid the 48-0 shutout. 

The pick: Bartlesville 26 Sapulpa 17.

Scott Emigh
Editor-in-Chief
Overall: 41-15 (.732)
Last Week: 6-1 (.857)
Last Year: 48-21 (.695)

Virgil Noah
Staff Writer
Overall: 30-14* (.681)
Last Week: 6-1 (.857)
Last Year: 43-26 (.623)

*Virgil missed the first week of picks.