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Pin the ears back and let fly.
That’s the defensive trademark of the Bixby Spartans, who will try to put a snafu in Shawnee’s Class 5A state championship dreams.
Bixby, which blitzes from the game’s outset to the final gun, invades Jim Thorpe Stadium tonight (7:30) for a quarterfinal playoff test.
“They are well-coached, they play hard and they do things right,” Shawnee head coach Billy Brown said. “Defensively, they have multiple blitzes and they blitz every down.
“We have been working on the blitz and should be able to counter it. It just comes down to who executes the best. That’s all you practice on when you play them because the blitz is their basic defense.”
No 2009 defense has been able to really slow down second-ranked Shawnee, one of three 5A playoff members sporting 11-0 records on the season. Top-ranked El Reno and fifth-ranked Tulsa Kelley are the other 11-0 clubs.
The Wolves have been the most productive rushing unit in 5A, averaging 243.1 yards per game. Shawnee is also second in the passing department, averaging 262.2 yards.
Bixby, 7-4, is 12th in 5A in rushing, averaging 176 yards, and fourth in passing at 158.
A big key could be how well Shawnee quarterback Brayle Brown, a junior, holds up in the pocket against Bixby’s relentless blitz. The Spartans have allowed just 75 passing yards per game.
Brown, with a wealth of talent in his receiving corps, has experienced a banner season. He has completed 127 of 201 passses for 2,244 yards and 28 touchdowns. Brown has been intercepted nine times.
Heading the receivers is elusive senior Saulyer Saxon with 48 receptions for 1,015 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Gabrion Frazier has 342 yards on 16 catches, including one touchdown, while Nick Berry’s 21 receptions have resulted in seven touchdowns and 316 yards.
Leon Davis has caught 18 passes for 272 yards and six touchdowns.
When called on, Brown can also tote the mail. He has 11 rushing touchdowns among his 745 yards on 100 carries.
Jordan Acock is Shawnee’s rushing leader. In 10 games, the six-foot, 205-pound senior has accumulated 996 yards on 154 carries, including 20 touchdowns.
Jeremy Barrientos of Shawnee has 223 rushing yards, including three touchdowns.
Bixby counters with quarterback Kevin Lamb, whose 101 passing attempts is exactly 100 fewer than Brown. Lamb missed several games with an injury at the end of the regular season but returned last weekend and guided the Spartans to a 17-13 playoff win over Tulsa Central.
Lamb has been very accurate, completing 61 passes for nine touchdowns and 1,062 yards. He has been intercepted four times.
Both squads have secondary personnel with noses for the ball. Shawnee’s Hunter Holley has
pilfered six passes while Isaiah Mitchell and Saxon claim three apiece.
Kameron Kipczynski of Bixby matches Holley with six interceptions. Kopczynski has also caught 15 passes for 212 yards and one touchdown.
Lamb’s favorite receiver has been Austin White with 38 receptions for 597 yards and seven touchdowns. Teammate Zac Alvastad has 13 receptions for 195 yards and two touchdowns.
Shawnee, which has surrendered 100 yards rushing per game, will receive a test from DeWitt Jennings, Bixby’s No. 1 player — according to Billy Brown.
Jennings has rushed for 1,066 yards in 167 carries — a 6.3 yard average — and registered 13 touchdowns.
“He’s a three-year starter who is a big, strong, fast, physical runner,” Brown said.
Jennings, who has already committed to play football at Tulsa, accumulated 853 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2008 as Bixby went 8-4..
Linebacker Keldin Choat is Shawnee’s top tackler with 97, followed by Leif Lena with 76, Tanner Heatley at 71 and Beau Davis with 67.
Senior Taylor Schuyler is Bixby’s leading tackler with 110.
The Spartans returned 13 starters — eight on offense and five on defense — from last year’s squad.
“We expect a big crowd like we had against Altus,” Billy Brown said. “I hope they will be yelling a lot.”
Pin the ears back and let fly.
That’s the defensive trademark of the Bixby Spartans, who will try to put a snafu in Shawnee’s Class 5A state championship dreams.
Bixby, which blitzes from the game’s outset to the final gun, invades Jim Thorpe Stadium tonight (7:30) for a quarterfinal playoff test.
“They are well-coached, they play hard and they do things right,” Shawnee head coach Billy Brown said. “Defensively, they have multiple blitzes and they blitz every down.
“We have been working on the blitz and should be able to counter it. It just comes down to who executes the best. That’s all you practice on when you play them because the blitz is their basic defense.”
No 2009 defense has been able to really slow down second-ranked Shawnee, one of three 5A playoff members sporting 11-0 records on the season. Top-ranked El Reno and fifth-ranked Tulsa Kelley are the other 11-0 clubs.
The Wolves have been the most productive rushing unit in 5A, averaging 243.1 yards per game. Shawnee is also second in the passing department, averaging 262.2 yards.
Bixby, 7-4, is 12th in 5A in rushing, averaging 176 yards, and fourth in passing at 158.
A big key could be how well Shawnee quarterback Brayle Brown, a junior, holds up in the pocket against Bixby’s relentless blitz. The Spartans have allowed just 75 passing yards per game.
Brown, with a wealth of talent in his receiving corps, has experienced a banner season. He has completed 127 of 201 passses for 2,244 yards and 28 touchdowns. Brown has been intercepted nine times.
Heading the receivers is elusive senior Saulyer Saxon with 48 receptions for 1,015 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Gabrion Frazier has 342 yards on 16 catches, including one touchdown, while Nick Berry’s 21 receptions have resulted in seven touchdowns and 316 yards.
Leon Davis has caught 18 passes for 272 yards and six touchdowns.
When called on, Brown can also tote the mail. He has 11 rushing touchdowns among his 745 yards on 100 carries.
Jordan Acock is Shawnee’s rushing leader. In 10 games, the six-foot, 205-pound senior has accumulated 996 yards on 154 carries, including 20 touchdowns.
Jeremy Barrientos of Shawnee has 223 rushing yards, including three touchdowns.
Bixby counters with quarterback Kevin Lamb, whose 101 passing attempts is exactly 100 fewer than Brown. Lamb missed several games with an injury at the end of the regular season but returned last weekend and guided the Spartans to a 17-13 playoff win over Tulsa Central.
Lamb has been very accurate, completing 61 passes for nine touchdowns and 1,062 yards. He has been intercepted four times.
Both squads have secondary personnel with noses for the ball. Shawnee’s Hunter Holley has
pilfered six passes while Isaiah Mitchell and Saxon claim three apiece.
Kameron Kipczynski of Bixby matches Holley with six interceptions. Kopczynski has also caught 15 passes for 212 yards and one touchdown.
Lamb’s favorite receiver has been Austin White with 38 receptions for 597 yards and seven touchdowns. Teammate Zac Alvastad has 13 receptions for 195 yards and two touchdowns.
Shawnee, which has surrendered 100 yards rushing per game, will receive a test from DeWitt Jennings, Bixby’s No. 1 player — according to Billy Brown.
Jennings has rushed for 1,066 yards in 167 carries — a 6.3 yard average — and registered 13 touchdowns.
“He’s a three-year starter who is a big, strong, fast, physical runner,” Brown said.
Jennings, who has already committed to play football at Tulsa, accumulated 853 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2008 as Bixby went 8-4..
Linebacker Keldin Choat is Shawnee’s top tackler with 97, followed by Leif Lena with 76, Tanner Heatley at 71 and Beau Davis with 67.
Senior Taylor Schuyler is Bixby’s leading tackler with 110.
The Spartans returned 13 starters — eight on offense and five on defense — from last year’s squad.
“We expect a big crowd like we had against Altus,” Billy Brown said. “I hope they will be yelling a lot.”
