Eight Man Football District Previews

<h4>District B-3</h4> District Prediction 1. Morrison 2. Foyil 3. Copan 4. Prue 5. Depew 6. Yale 7. Shidler Six Players to Watch 1.

Tuesday, August 15th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

District B-3

District Prediction

1. Morrison
2. Foyil
3. Copan
4. Prue
5. Depew
6. Yale
7. Shidler

Six Players to Watch

1. Mark Nelson- Morrison- Offensive Lineman
2. Lance Novotny- Prue- Offensive Lineman
3. Tyler Redden- Foyil- Running Back
4. Matt Fitzsimmons- Copan- Offensive Lineman
5. David Spears- Morrison- Defensive Back
6. Aaron Prock- Foyil- Defensive Lineman

Six â€œCanâ€™t Missâ€ Games

1. September 8th- Morrison at Pioneer- Should be #1 vs. #2
2. October 27th- Foyil at Morrison
3. September 1st- Foyil at Oaks
4. October 6th- Copan at Prue
5. September 1st- Weleetka at Prue
6. September 15th- Weleetka at Depew

Team Capsules

Morrison
Head Coach: Joe Sindelar
Last Year: 11-2
Strength: Tons of seniors. All signs have pointed to this season.
Question Mark: Not many. May be a bit slight on the line, but thatâ€™s being extremely picky.
Outlook: One of five teams with a legitimate state title shot.

Foyil
Head Coach: Jeff Harris
Last Year: 10-3
Strength: Talented offensive backfield.
Question Mark: Graduated 15 seniors from last yearâ€™s squad.
Outlook: Redden and others will lead Foyil to the playoffs. Look out in 2001.

Copan
Head Coach: Alan Hunt
Last Year: 7-4
Strength: Offensive Line. Fitzsimmons and Blake Evans are good ones.
Question Mark: Lose five starters from last year and may be a little thin on defense.
Outlook: Playoff bound and may push for 2nd in the district.

Prue
Head Coach: Rob Carroll
Last Year: 11-1
Strength: Lance Novotny has the size of two average 8-man linemen.
Question Mark: Lose several starters, a theme throughout the district.
Outlook: Fringe playoff team. Could ride their tradition to 3rd or 4th.

Depew
Head Coach: Carl Teeters
Last Year: 4-6 (in Class A)
Strength: Heavy on seniors, including two good defensive linemen.
Question Mark: Thin in the defensive backfield.
Outlook: May push for a final playoff spot. Drop to eight-man can only help.

Yale
Head Coach: Chris Elerick
Last Year: 2-7
Strength: Junior lineman Daniel Johnson will be a top player in the state in 2001.
Question Mark: Lack of experience. Like many of their district-mates, they lost a lot of starters.
Outlook: Could be a tough year for the Bulldogs.

Shidler
Head Coach: Gerald Parker
Last Year: 2-8
Strength: Defense. Return five starters from last yearâ€™s crew.
Question Mark: Bryan Yandell must step-in at quarterback.
Outlook: Step up to Class B from Class C could be difficult on the Tigers.

District B-4

District Prediction

1. Central Sallisaw
2. Weleetka
3. Haileyville
4. Oaks
5. Bowlegs
6. Cave Springs
7. Okay
8. Porum

Six Players to Watch

1. Brent Smith- Weleetka- Defensive Back
2. Chris Loman- Haileyville- Linebacker
3. Adam Osberghaus- Weleetka- Quarterback
4. Scotty Chapman- Central Sallisaw- Offensive Lineman
5. Aaron Coker- Bowlegs- Quarterback
6. Brian Haughn- Oaks- Linebacker

Six â€œCanâ€™t Missâ€ Games

1. September 12th- Weleetka at Central Sallisaw- Early season match-up could give one team a leg up on district title.
2. September 15th- Foyil at Central Sallisaw
3. September 1st- Weleetka at Prue
4. October 13th- Oaks at Haileyville
5. September 8th- Depew at Bowlegs
6. September 7th- Watts at Cave Springs

Team Capsules

Central Sallisaw
Head Coach: Ron Winans
Last Year: 8-3
Strength: Huge Offensive line averages 270 pounds per starter.
Question Mark: Explosive offense loses several facets from last yearâ€™s squad.
Outlook: If they run behind that huge line theyâ€™ll score in bunches. Lock for the playoffs.

Weleetka
Head Coach: Tony Hawkins
Last Year: 7-4
Strength: Three seniors in the offensive backfield.
Question Mark: Thin on both lines. Derek Sands is big, 320 pounds, but others must take the pressure off of him.
Outlook: Offensive skill players will put up enough points to make playoffs. Could be a sleeper.

Haileyville
Head Coach: Mike Turney
Last Year: 2-8
Strength: LBâ€™s Loman and Willie Adams may be best tandem in Class B.
Weakness: Can they throw the ball? Josh Smith can run, but teams will key on him this year.
Outlook: Several returners make a playoff run possible. Can they put last yearâ€™s 2-8 behind them?

Oaks
Head Coach: Mike Brumley
Last Year: 5-5
Strength: Very big and experienced offensive line.
Question Mark: How will Hector Ortiz adjust to move from WR to QB?
Outlook: If he does it well, Oaks will push for the playoffs.

Bowlegs
Head Coach: Richard Worley
Last Year: 0-10
Strength: Defensive backfield. Coker and Nick Baker are a good duo.
Question Mark: 0-10!! What does that do to the teamâ€™s psyche?
Outlook: May push for the fourth playoff spot, but likely a year away.

Cave Springs
Head Coach: Kenny Littlefield
Last Year 3-7
Strength: Offensive Line. Three starters average 270 pounds.
Question Mark: Lack of tradition. Last years 3-7 was good for this traditional second division team.
Outlook: Littlefield comes highly recommended and could have the program in line soon.

Porum
Head Coach: Brad Matlock
Last Year: Did Not Play:
Strength: Excitement. Imagine being on the first ever team at your school.
Question Mark: Imagine having zero games of high school experience on the starting team.
Outlook: First year program should win a game or two. Thatâ€™s all thatâ€™s realistic.

Okay
Head Coach: James Kinman
Last Year: 0-10
Strength: Offensive line. Big and experienced.
Question Mark: Last year was a mess. Two eight-man games and eight eleven-man games had playerâ€™s heads spinning.
Outlook: Finally having a home could be good for the Mustangs.

District C-4

District Prediction

1. Webbers Falls
2. Welch
3. Bluejacket
4. Watts
5. South Coffeyville
6. Midway
7. Kinta
8. White Oak
9. Gans

Six Players to Watch

1. Bill Shelby- Webbers Falls- Offensive Lineman
2. Kentley McCullar- Midway- Linebacker
3. Olin Holland- Welch- Defensive Lineman
4. Cody Roberts- Watts- Quarterback
5. Mike Nair- Bluejacket- Running Back
6. Jeremy Reece- Webbers Falls- Running Back

Six â€œCanâ€™t Missâ€ Games

1. October 27th- Webbers Falls at Welch- Late-season match-up could be for district champs.
2. October 19th- Bluejacket at Webbers Falls
3. October 19th- Welch at Watts
4. September 1st- Copan at Welch
5. September 22nd- Copan at Bluejacket
6. September 1st- Central Sallisaw at Watts

Team Capsules

Webbers Falls
Head Coach: Darren McCord
Last Year: 10-1
Strength: Offensive Line. Bill Shelby returns for third year as a starter. Heâ€™s flanked by two 200+ pounders.
Question Mark: Replacing QB Joe Spears. Bradley Terrell has good size (6-3, 185) and a lot of potential.
Outlook: Tons of returners from last yearâ€™s district champs. You do the math.

Welch
Head Coach: Craig Hood
Last Year: 5-6
Strength: Another big offensive line. Starters average 240 pounds.
Question Mark: Not Many. Need to break trend of early round playoff losses.
Outlook: Loaded. Will make a run at district and maybe even state.

Bluejacket
Head Coach: Tim Gibson
Last Year: 6-5
Strength: Offensive backfield. Mike Nair and Bryan Shaffer each rushed for at least 500 yards last year.
Question Mark: Light on both lines.
Outlook: Playoff run will be likely if they can stop opponents running game.

Watts
Head Coach: Tony Mitchell
Last Year: 4-7
Strength: Skill Players. Cody Roberts has tons of experience at QB.
Question Mark: Defensive Backfield. Buddy Harlin is the only experienced player at the position.
Outlook: Roberts will keep them in games and the playoff hunt. Late season game with Welch is a big one.

South Coffeyville
Head Coach: Ron Coppedge
Last Year: 0-3
Strength: Offensive backfield. James Hampton has two good backs to hand to.
Question Mark: Young on defense.
Outlook: Good young talent. Could be a year away.

Midway
Head Coach: Larry Chidlers
Last Year: 2-8
Strength: LB-FB Kentley McCullarâ€™s nickname is â€œStudâ€ and itâ€™s appropriate.
Question Mark: Offensive line. Two starters suffered through knee injuries last year.
Outlook: If the line plays well theyâ€™ll put up points.

Kinta
Head Coach: Gerald Fishinghawk
Last Year: 0-5
Strength: Linemen average 245 pounds per starter.
Question Mark: Second year of football for the school. May be still feeling their way through.
Outlook: Lost head coach after one year. Might need a few years of stability to contend in this district.

White Oak
Head Coach: Jeff Jones
Last Year: 3-7
Strength: Offensive line is the only position not ravaged by graduation.
Question Mark: Must replace seven departed seniors.
Outlook: Good, young players could be contenders in 2002.

Gans
Head Coach: Trent Holt
Last Year: 1-9
Strength: Speedy receivers. Whoever plays QB will like that.
Question Mark: Lost several starters from last yearâ€™s 1-9 team.
Outlook: If the youngsters get playing time the future is bright.

High School Football Preview Schedule

Ever Green Country high school football district will be previewed leading up to opening day of the season. Here is the schedule of districts:

Class A districts: Thursday, August 17
Class 2A districts: Friday, August 18
Class 3A districts: Monday, August 21
Class 4A district 4: Tuesday, August 22
Class 4A district 3: Wednesday, August 23
Class 4A district 2: Thursday, August 24
Class 5A district 4: Friday, August 25
Class 5A district 3: Monday, August 28
Class 6A district 4: Tuesday, August 29
Class 6A district 3: Wednesday, August 30