CPHS Football Preview: Muskogee holds lopsided record against Sand Springs

The Class 6A-II No. 9 ranked Charles Page High School football team (1-3, 0-1) will host No. 7 Muskogee (3-1, 1-0) Friday evening at Memorial Stadium. Both teams have had lackluster starts to the season and need a strong statement to build momentum for the rest of their district schedule.

CPHS Memorial Stadium
600 North Adams Road
Sand Springs, OK 74063

Last Week

Sand Springs suffered a 23-20 overtime upset at No. 14 Shawnee (1-3, 1-0), winning every aspect of the game but the scoreboard. The Sandites had more yards passing, more yards rushing, less penalties, and more first downs.

What went wrong? A fumble at their own 26, resulting in a touchdown. A turnover on downs at the Shawnee 13. A missed extra point. The first half ended with Sand Springs in the Shawnee red zone. Caden Pennington’s first interception of the season ended regulation, also in the red zone. On fourth-and-goal from the six, Pennington had a wide open lane after a collapsed pass play, but slipped on the waterlogged turf in overtime. The weather also severely limited the passing game, but Joel Mackey had a career night with thirty carries for 251 yards.

Muskogee only mustered 167 yards in a 16-7 victory over No. 15 Ponca City (0-4, 0-1). Ty Williams was 0-6-0-2 passing and the entirety of their offense came on the ground.

This Season

Sand Springs made a big second half comeback against Mansfield Summit (2-2) in the season opener but fell 41-28 at home before starting a three-game road series. The Sandites won 45-24 at No. 16 Putnam City (0-4) and were rolled 49-13 by Greenwood, Arkansas (3-1).

Muskogee won their season opener 35-14 over McAlester (1-3), gave No. 3 Midwest City (3-1) a tough battle for their only loss, 16-14, then edged out No. 13 Putnam West (1-3) 34-29.

Average Sandite Box Score
Opponent 34 CPHS 27
First Downs: Opp 17, CPHS 18.
Fumbles/Lost: Opp 1/1, CPHS 1/1.
Penaltes: Opp 8-75, CPHS 7-50.
Passing: Opp 12-17-145-0, CPHS 10-17-133-0.
Rushing: Opp 37-217, CPHS 43-258.
Total Offense: Opp 54-362, CPHS 60-391.

The Programs

Sand Springs is coming off a 5-6 season, led by twelfth year Head Coach Dustin Kinard with a 61-63 record. They are riding an all-time program best streak of six-straight seasons with playoff berths. They have been in Class 6A-II since its inception in 2014. The Sandites hold one gold ball, winning the 2A State title in 1966.

Muskogee is coming off a 5-5 season, led by fifth-year Head Coach Rafe Watkins with a 23-22 record at Muskogee and a 170-70 career record. The Roughers are coming off back-to-back post season appearances and have been in Class 6A-II since its inception. They won the 5A State Championship in 1986 and Class A titles in 1950 and 1948.

The Series (Muskogee 21-6)

1953: Muskogee won 20-0.
1954: Muskogee won 40-12.
1955: Muskogee won 24-6.
1956: Muskogee won 7-0.
1957: Muskogee won 34-6.
1958: Muskogee won 12-0.
1959: Muskogee won 40-14.
1960: Muskogee won 14-5.
1961: Muskogee won 38-6.
1994: Muskogee won 20-14 in OT.
1995: Muskogee won 28-6.
2002: Muskogee won 38-12.
2003: Muskogee won 37-14.
2004: Muskogee won 27-6.
2005: Muskogee won 47-25.
2006: Muskogee won 57-21.
2007: Muskogee won 49-21.
2008: Muskogee won 39-37.
2009: Muskogee won 37-29.
2010: Muskogee won 44-14.

2011: Sand Springs beat Muskogee for the first time ever, 7-3 in the season-opener. Darrack Harger, currently the Sandite receivers coach, passed 12-16-74-0 and Richard DeHart led the ground game with nine carries for 38 yards. Raymond McLaurin scored the lone touchdown on a seven-yard run.

2012: Sand Springs won 40-28.
2013: Sand Springs won 39-14.

2014: Sand Springs (7-1) clinched a post-season berth with their only Rougher shutout, 13-0. Connor Sitton passed 10-14-111-1 and Lane Lettich ran 27-119.

2015: Sand Springs won 34-10.

2016: No. 4 Sand Springs (5-2) won a 26-25 upset over No. 1 Muskogee (6-1) with a wild two-point conversion that made the ESPN SportsCenter Top 10 Plays of the Day. Hunter Greathouse passed 16-32-221-1 with three touchdowns and Payton Scott ran 25-116 for one score. With six seconds to play, Greathouse caught his own deflected pass and pitched it to Josh Taber. Taber broke a tackle and took it to the house for the one-point win.

2017: No. 6 Muskogee (3-4) spoiled homecoming 40-34 over No. 7 Sand Springs (4-3). Caden Pennington passed 9-21-151-0 for three touchdowns and Payton Scott ran 34-199 for two scores. The Sandites had five takeaways: four fumbles and one interception.