Bixby football is this week's winner of the Oklahoma Team of the Week, presented by the Oklahoma National Guard.
Courtesy photo
It's been a long and hard process for coach Loren Montgomery and his
Bixby High School football team.
The
Spartans have fought through three straight losing seasons, but
following a terrific 45-38 win over Springdale they are off to a 3-0
start.
For their fast start, they've been selected
the MaxPreps Oklahoma Team of the Week, presented by the Oklahoma
National Guard.
The Spartans haven't exactly blown
anybody out while outscoring opponents 112-86, but they've found a way
to win and that's been something that hasn't happened much the last
three seasons.
"All the credit goes to the players in the locker room, said Montgomery. "They believe in what we are doing, and believe in our core values: Discipline, Integrity, Selflessness and Confidence. Those are the reasons that we were able to come back from a 24-point deficit on Friday."
On Friday they also got a huge
contribution from senior quarterback
Marshall Ray (27 of 56, 406 yards and five touchdowns) and then the
wealth of help was widespread and evenly divided.
Sophomore back
Nic Roller rushed for two touchdowns,
Kyle Rhine had six catches for 183 yards and a touchdown, and four
others caught scoring strikes: juniors
Zach Reynolds,
Kale Mulkey,
Blake Cooper and
Justin Williams.
"Nic Roller is just a sophomore, but he is a tough load, and there are
many Rollers from Bixby who have been great players before him," said Montgomery. "He has
high expectations for himself."
On defense, three Spartans
recorded at least 10 tackles: junior
J.J. Cantrell with 15, senior
Jon Kuhn with 11 and junior
Casey Saide with 10. Saide had four tackles for loss and Kuhn 3.
Junior
Austin Grotts and Kuhn had two of the team's six sacks.
Bruce Williams contributed an interception.
The
team's Player of the Game award, presented by Montgomery, went to 6-1,
215-pound offensive and defensive lineman
Matt Dreyer, who had six tackles on defense.
Ray, the state leader in passing yards, was picked
as the team's Offensive Player of the Game and Cantrell the Defensive
Player of the Game. Ray has completed a state-best 67 passes in 146
attempts for 1,013 yards and 11 touchdowns. Rhine is third in the state
with 369 receiving yards on 15 catches, a whopping 24.60 yards per
catch.
"Marshall (Ray) had a great junior season, but now has an even better understanding of the offense with most of his receivers back and with experience," said Montgomery.
Bixby, No. 14 in the MaxPreps computer state
rankings, hosts No. 6
Westmoore (Oklahoma City) (3-0) in a big state showdown 7 p.m. Friday.
Do you know a team that deserves
consideration for Oklahoma Team of the Week? Email us with your
nominations at OKteamoftheweek@maxpreps.com.
