Top Five Teams in Class 5A

Oklahoma Sports presents its selections for the top five teams in the 5A playoffs.

Thursday, July 28th 2011, 5:54 pm

By: News On 6

Originally Published: Nov 10, 2010 9:35 PM CDT

Corey DeMoss
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY – Class 5A has seen parity in recent years, with four different state champions in the last five years. All four of those champions are back in the playoffs this season.

The class is largely top heavy, with seven different teams recording eight or more wins, but none of them going undefeated. All four No. 1 seeds will likely have no problem in the first round, since none of them will be facing teams that finished better than .500 in the regular season.

Oklahoma Sports now presents its top five teams in Class 5A:

1) Booker T. Washington Hornets (9-1, 7-0)
The Hornets stormed through their district schedule and dominated opposing offenses all year. In their first six games of district play, they recorded five shutouts and defeated their opponents by an average score of 50-3. BTW’s only loss of the season came in Week 2 against Broken Arrow, one of the best teams in 6A.

2) Guthrie Blue Jays (9-1, 7-0)
Guthrie also breezed through district play, and only one game was ever in doubt – a 13-7 victory over Ada. Kentrell Brothers leads the Blue Jays on both sides of the ball, and has been one of the best performers in the state. He has more than 1,000 receiving yards – and more than 20 yards per catch – and is a disruptive force on defense. He has the game-changing ability to lead Guthrie deep into the playoffs.

3) East Central Cardinals (9-1, 7-0)

East Central might as well be called the “Cardiac Cardinals” this season after playing through several close calls. Three of their wins – against Bartlesville, Coweta and Grove – came by a combined total of seven points. If the results against Coweta and Grove had flipped, East Central would be looking at a very different playoff picture. But the Cardinals managed to pull out wins in all three of those games, and that experience will come in handy in close games down the stretch. East Central also gave Booker T. a run for its money in a 27-24 loss.

4) Carl Albert Titans (8-2, 6-1)

The defending state champions have a difficult road ahead of them, but have proven capable of overcoming it. They have one of the most dangerous offenses in 5A, having scored 42 or more points in six games this season. Like East Central, the Titans also came close to taking down Booker T. Washington in the first game of the season, which the Hornets won 12-10. Carl Albert has one black mark on its record this season, a 32-14 blowout against Guthrie. But the Titans have experience and playmakers, two of the most important ingredients in a postseason run.

5) MacArthur Highlanders (8-2, 7-0)

This spot was a difficult choice, coming down to MacArthur and McAlester, and the decision between them is splitting hairs. Both had dominant runs through district play, but MacArthur gets the edge thanks to its undefeated district record and No. 1 seed. The Highlanders will have a slightly easier path through the playoffs, and are led by an explosive offense. They scored 36 or more points in six of their final seven games, but their defense is not as strong as BTW or Guthrie. That could lead to some fun-to-watch playoff shootouts.