Respect Felt Across The Field Between Broken Arrow, Jenks

Some of the top football teams in the state fought it out on the gridiron to become State Champions.

One of the games many people waited for was also one of the biggest rivalries, as Broken Arrow and defending champions, Jenks took the field.

Jenks has won the championship for the past three years while Broken Arrow has never won it. Friday night, both coaches said they were happy to be there, but both wanted to walk off with the win.

Excitement was what you felt on both sides of the field.

Jenks fans were looking for their fourth straight championship victory, and Broken Arrow fans were hoping for their first.

"It's exciting. We've had a great group of senior men here, they've bought into everything we want to do, they love each other, they play for each other, and we have one more game, but I'm really proud of what they've done," said Broken Arrow coach, David Alexander.

Alexander said being the fourth BA team in the school's 100-plus year history to ever make it to the championship is a big deal, but it wasn’t quite time to celebrate.

"We are going to have to be very good if we are going to win tonight. There will be no underestimating what Jenks has done," he said.

Respect is felt all around; even as reigning champions, Jenks coach Allan Trimbel said he wouldn’t count out the Tigers squad.

"There's a lot of respect. Anytime you have the blessing and opportunity to play in the last game of the year, both teams are playing well," he said.

In the matchup between Jenks, a team that's been there before, and Broken Arrow, a team longing to be first-time champs, Trimbel said it wasn’t the time to change up the game plan.

"We do have a veteran team that have been in a number of big games. I don't think it changes anything, you gotta go out there and perform in this one shining moment," Trimbel said.

It was a hard fought win, but Jenks came out on top in the end with a 35 to 14 victory, marking their 15th championship victory in school history.

12/4/2015 Related Story: 4-Peat: Jenks Seizes 4th Consecutive Title With Win Over Broken Arrow