By Ron Holt
After a week of conditioning practices followed by practice in full pads, Bixby’s defending state champion Spartans will be able to assess their progress during the annual Bixby Fall Classic scrimmages scheduled Thursday and Friday (Aug. 22-23) at Lee Snider Stadium.
Bixby junior varsity and ninth grade footballers will scrimmage on Thursday, starting at 5:30 p.m. for the ninth graders and at 7 p.m. for the junior varsity squads. The varsity Spartans compete against Edmond Santa Fe and Stillwater, starting at 6 p.m. Friday. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for students.
The varsity Spartans will be challenged against the Class 6A-I Santa Fe Wolves and Class 6A-II Stillwater. All three teams enter 2024 following successful 2023 seasons.
Bixby finished last season with a 13-0 record, including a 49-21 victory over Jenks in the Class 6A-I state championship game. BHS extended its winning streak to 16 straight games while winning 74 of its last 75 games. The Spartans, however, are looking for replacements in all phases of the game this season for several graduated starters.
Edmond Santa Fe went 7-4 last season, including a season opening win at Jenks. The Wolves advanced to the state quarterfinals before falling to Jenks in the Class 6A-1 quarterfinals.
Santa Fe returns several talented players including senior running back and Arizona State commitment Demarius Robinson, who rushed for 2,139 yards and 28 touchdowns a year ago. The Wolves also return starting quarterback Daniel Newton, who passed for 826 yards and nine TDs while rushing for 776 yards and nine TDs last season.
Stillwater, a former Spartan opponent in Class 6A-II, posted a 10-3 record last season. It fell in the state championship game against Muskogee. The Pioneers went undefeated en route to the 2022 Class 6A-II state championship.
Stillwater also suffered heavy graduation losses after last season but will rely on a stable of young, talented skill players and three of the team’s leading tacklers from last season including senior linebackers Tan Booth and Athan Nickles who were credited with 106 tackles each.
“The Classic will be great to gauge ourselves against some other teams. It will also be a great coaching tool,” said Bixby head coach Loren Montgomery, who is entering his 15th season directing the Spartan program.
Bixby, which moved this week from No. 44 to No. 42 in MaxPreps national high school football rankings, worked four days last week on conditioning drills before putting on the pads last Friday. BHS held preseason workouts in the morning last week but with school starting Tuesday the Spartan practices returned to the normal afternoon schedule.
With numerous starting spots open, Bixby’s coaching staff is working to identify potential starters.
While there will be more inexperience among the starting group than in past years, there are talented prospects competing for playing time.
“Preseason practices have gone well. We have a lot of competition for positions, so guys are really competing with one another,” coach Montgomery said.
This week’s work is important since the Spartans are again involved in Zero Week, scheduled to open the 2024 season on Friday, Aug. 30, at Owasso in the Battle of the Burbs. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. at Owasso Stadium.
The BHS-OHS opener is the latest in a recent series between the two teams. Last year, Bixby defeated Owasso 42-16 in the Battle of the Burbs at the University of Tulsa and 56-14 in the Class 6A-1 state semifinals.
In 2022, Bixby topped the Rams 49-14 in the first Battle of the Burbs at TU before rolling to a 69-6 win over OHS in the state championship game.