Rangers travel to Okemah Thursday for 2A-5 clash

Roland travels to Okemah Thursday night for a District 2A-5 contest against the Panthers as the Rangers look to register their second district win of the season.

Kickoff at Okemah, which is located about 19 miles west of Henryetta just off I-40, is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Roland (1-5 overall and 1-2 in the district) lost 55-6 to Prague last week and Okemah (2-4 and 1-2) dropped a 55-14 decision at No. 5 Vian. The Panthers lost 14-12 to Pawnee in their season opener before winning by forfeit over Wewoka and falling 38-22 at Stroud. In its other district contests Okemah downed Sequoyah-Tahlequah 42-26 and lost 35-0 to Warner.

Some of Okemah‚s key players on offense are quarterback Andrew Swayze (6-foot-1, 185-pound junior), running back Colton Parish (5-11, 180, sr.), tight end Davon Johnson (6-1, 210, sr.) and linemen Wyatt Cooper (6-1, 270, sr.), Cameron Hicks (5-10, 295, sr.) and Conner Stacy (5-11, 245, soph.).

“Offensively they are in a wing-T and they hop into quads a little bit for some different things that they do offensively but mostly a wing-T,” Roland head coach Austin Cantrell said.

“On defense we‚ve just got to get lined up right and read our keys and study film obviously and know exactly what they‚re trying to do,” Cantrell said.

A few of the Panthers‚ key players on defense are defensive linemen Chris Beasley (5-10, 245, sr.), Wyatt Cooper and Davon Johnson, linebacker Blake Gaxiola (5-9, 190, soph.) and defensive backs Andrew Swayze and Colton Parish.

“Defensively they‚re in a 4-4,” said Cantrell. “I‚ve seen them in a three-man front before but mostly a 4-4.

“We‚ve got to do better offensively on execution again. It‚s kind of a weekly thing for us right now. We‚re getting there and we have bright spots but all in all it will be one person here, one person there and we‚re not able to complete drives like we‚re supposed to. A lot of it is we are a younger team and we make bone-headed mistakes at times that come with having young players out there.”