'Very skilled athlete': Why Wagoner's Alexander Shieldnight committed to OU football

The OU football program got another in-state commitment as Wagoner junior edge rusher Alexander Shieldnight announced Friday he’s choosing the Sooners.

Shieldnight is a three-star prospect, according to 247Sports.

Shieldnight, who also plays tight end for Wagoner, has offers from Arkansas, Houston, Kansas, OU, Oklahoma State, Tennessee, Texas Tech, Tulsa and Vanderbilt.

OU was the first among those schools to extend an offer in December, and the 6-foot-4, 230-pound Shieldnight has now joined many other in-state players who have committed to the program.

“I think one of the first things that stands out to me was the relationship built between him and (defensive ends) Coach (Miguel) Chavis,” Wagoner coach Dale Condict said. “He did a tremendous job of developing a relationship over the course of the time — from the moment they offered him until now. Not only with Alex but also with his parents, with me. You can definitely get a sense for what to expect from him once you got there.”

More: The Oklahoman's Class 6A-I to C high school football rankings for Week 12

Shieldnight announced his decision on X (formerly Twitter), and his commitment video was shown on the big screen at Wagoner’s stadium at the Bulldogs’ first-round playoff game against Broken Bow. Wagoner won 57-7.

Although Shieldnight is just a junior, he already has some great accomplishments at the high school level and is Wagoner's career sacks leader.

He helped Wagoner claim the Class 4A state title last season and finished with 83 tackles (21 for a loss), 12 sacks and two forced fumbles.

“For a guy with his height and weight, he’s a very skilled athlete,” Condict said. “But then he’s also a guy that is going to be the hardest worker in the room. He’s very diligent to the weight room, to even his training, his diet — he’s already doing all those things. He takes it very serious.”

This season, Wagoner is 11-0 and ranked No. 1 in Class 4A.

The Bulldogs will host fifth-ranked Tuttle in the quarterfinals at 7 p.m. Friday.

More: Oklahoma high school football: Four downs on first-round playoff upsets & more

Norman, Norman North both advance in playoffs for first time since 2012

T.D. O’Hara has two reasons to celebrate this year’s Class 6A-I first-round playoff outcomes.

Of the eight state quarterfinalists, two belong to his school district. For the first time since 2012, Norman North and Norman each hosted and won playoff games.

O’Hara, the athletic director over Norman Public Schools, praised Norman North coach Justin Jones and Norman coach Rocky Martin for the accomplishment.

“Multi-high school districts, they face unique challenges in 6A-I,” O’Hara said. “(Winning playoff games) is a tribute and a compliment for what both programs and both coaches have done this year.”

For Norman’s high schools, one of those previously mentioned challenges is sharing a venue. Plans are underway for Norman North to get its own stadium, but the Timberwolves and Tigers continue to compete on the same field until then. Since both schools earned the opportunity to host this year, Norman played last Thursday, and Norman North followed on Friday.

The Tigers defeated Broken Arrow, 21-18, before the Timberwolves advanced with a 30-17 victory against Edmond North. While Norman North has recently experienced consistent success, Norman is enjoying a breakout season featuring its first playoff victory since 2012.

Next, both Norman programs travel to the east side of the state. Norman faces Bixby on Friday night, while Norman North meets Owasso. The chances of anyone defeating Bixby are slim, but if both Norman teams somehow pull off the upsets, then they would meet each other for a Crosstown Clash in the state semifinals.

“It’s a really good time to be a part of Norman Public Schools, watching our programs have success,” O’Hara said. “And I know the community of Norman is proud as well.”

‘Tiger Kings’: Norman exacts revenge, advances to second round with win over Broken Arrow

Millwood football hosting 3rd annual turkey giveaway

The Millwood football program has made it a mission to give back to their community year-round.

The Falcons will host their third-annual turkey giveaway ]Saturday from 1-3 p.m. in Millwood's Multi-Sport Facility. The football team will be present for the event, which aims to give back to underprivileged families during the holiday season.

Like in the previous two years of the giveaway, the program will give away 100 turkeys at no cost to those who register for one on their Google form for the event.

“Our goal is to try and impact the community as much as possible in the most positive fashion,” Millwood coach Darwin Franklin said. “We want to bless the community somehow to help show out for them in the same way they always bless us. We plan to keep this tradition and bless others for the next years to come.”

The turkey giveaway started in 2021 when Franklin was trying to brainstorm a Thanksgiving plan for his team. After missing the postseason for the first time in over a decade, Franklin and staff mulled ideas to keep the team morale high despite an underwhelming season.

Since its inaugural event two years ago, the giveaway has seen an outpouring of support from the community. Friends, family, and churchgoers have donated money year after year to purchase the turkeys for the giveaway on Saturday afternoon.

“It’s great to see how many people in the community volunteer to help others in need with an event like this,” Franklin said. “And most of them usually just say, ‘Hey, I don't want anybody to know who I am; I just want to do this.’ People are doing this out of the kindness of their hearts and it goes to show how caring the people of Millwood are.”

However, Millwood’s intention to give back to the local community won’t stop at Thanksgiving. The Falcons will also host a Christmas toy drive next month. In the coming weeks, the high school will collect toys to donate to younger kids at the district elementary school.

Millwood (10-1, 7-0 District 2A-1) plays Purcell (9-2, 6-1 District 2A-3) in the second round of the Class 2A state playoffs Friday. Franklin plans for the Falcons to watch film on Saturday morning before the turkey giveaway in preparation for a potential quarterfinal match next Friday.

“To tell the truth, there is no magical elixir to what we're doing on the field,” Franklin said. “Winning 10 straight games isn’t easy but our playoff path will be even tougher. Right now, we’re focused on staying the course of what we've been doing and trying to keep the guys moving in the right direction toward winning a championship.”

More: The Oklahoman's winter high school sports media day set for Nov. 15 at Bishop McGuinness

Extra points

• Brad Ballard claimed his 100th win as Tuttle’s head coach last Friday. The Tigers defeated Weatherford, 48-21, to reach the Class 4A state quarterfinals.

• The OKC Patriots and Tulsa NOAH are two of four contenders in the National Homeschool Football Championship, which takes place Thursday and Saturday in Panama City Beach, Florida. The Patriots have turned around from last year’s 1-11 record to reach this year’s national homeschool Final Four.

• Ryan freshman Noah Torrez had one of the top first-round playoff performances in the state. He scored on a 66-yard fumble recovery, returned an interception for an 84-yard touchdown and compiled 278 all-purpose yards in a 42-28 win over Tyrone in the Class C playoffs.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Wagoner's Alexander Shieldnight committed to OU football. Here's why.