WCS, Copan games highlight crucial Week 9 slate in Bartlesville-area football
Trying to select just one Bartlesville-area football game of the week is like trying to floss a shark’s teeth.
No matter how carefully one goes about it, they’re bound to be bitten.
I mean, you have a 2A-8 battle of titans at Pawhuska between the Huskies (4-1) and visiting Adair — with the district title on the line.
Drive about 15 miles southeast from Pawhuska and you’ve got a titanic eight-man clash in B-7 between visiting Drumright (3-0) and host Barnsdall (2-1) — again, a contest with direct district crown implications.
In C-3, the Copan Hornets (3-2) are looking to erase more than a decade of bitter struggles when they travel Friday to Coyle (4-1) for eight-man action. A win would lock up Copan’s first five-win season and playoff spot since 2009.
"Drumright's strength is its quarterback," Barnsdall head coach Kylee Sweeney said. "He's a big kid, about 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds. … He runs the ball a lot. They also have a center who is 6-foot-5, 300 pounds. … We look very similar offensively. I think we are a great matchup. I think across the board we match up much better with Drumright than we did with Regent Prep."
Meanwhile, on Thursday, Wesleyan Christian (4-1) can stay in the hunt in defending its C-3 title with a win at Watts (3-2), also in eight man play.
"I think we can beat them. I think we'll just have to execute on offense," said WCS head coach Curt Cloud. "I think if we go there on Friday night and play like we have been playing we'll have a good chance."
The final area big game is an elimination playoff showdown on Friday between the Caney Valley (Kan.) Pups (5-3) and Council Grove (Kan.) (5-3), in Caney, Kan. Caney Valley eliminated Council Grove in the 2022 playoffs, 16-3.
With all that is at stake in each of the five matchups mentioned above, we'll just label them all co-games of the week.
Rounding out this week’s area slate is:
District 3A-4 — Dewey (0-5) at Verdigris (3-2)
District 2A-8 — Rejoice Christian (3-2) at Caney Valley (0-5)
District 2A-8 — Salina (2-3) at Nowata (1-4)
District A-5 — Pawnee (3-2) at Oklahoma Union (0-5)
Following is a closer look at some of the matchups.
WCS at Watts
Talented receiver Kael Siemers will be out again for the WCS Mustangs, but the emergence last week of Mason Jensen as an explosive receiving threat, to complement Carson Tennison, is encouraging.
Drumright at Barnsdall
Third-year starting tailback Easton Malone should return to the lineup and valuable weapon Maverick Lanphear continues to round into football conditioning after coming off the injury list, Sweeney said. Seven different players ran for touchdowns in Barnsdall's win last week.
Bartlesville area, football, Barnsdall E-E's list of top area high school football games in 2023, No. 12
Copan at Coyle
The past couple of weeks Copan has welcomed back starters Shooter Brewington and Jaxon White from the unable-to-play list. Their return has been a big boost to what already is a highly-talented Hornet squad.
This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Bartlesville-area football slate features 5 crucial games this week
