When and Where:
3A #1 Heritage Hall (12-1) vs. 3A #2 Sulphur (12-1)
November 30 (Fri) 7:30 PM
Western Heights High School • Championship
No ChargerVision due to OSSAA media contracts • Watch pay-per-view online at NFHSNetwork.com

Game Notes:
The 2018 3A State Championship is set to be a great one, as both Heritage Hall and Sulphur have consistently been apart of the class' elite all year long. The Chargers have sat atop the 3A rankings every week of the season, while Sulphur has always followed shortly behind. On Friday, the proven top teams in 3A will leave it all out on the field to take home the gold ball.

Heritage Hall and Sulphur have actually gone through eerily similar seasons up to this point. Each team suffered a tough loss in the opening week, and have since strung 12 wins in a row. In that period, the Chargers are defeating their opponents by an average margin of 26 points per game. Sulphur has won their last 12 games by an average of 28, and have scored more than 40 points eight times. Both teams are led by a standout senior running back, and have a multitude of weapons alongside to help carry the load. These two squads have put up similar numbers all year long, but Friday will decide whose 2018 campaign was ultimately a history making success or a disappointing pill to swallow.

Friday's contest also features two of the most prestigious teams in Oklahoma. The Chargers will be playing for the seventh state Championship in school history, and the fourth in the past five years. This senior class, who now sits at a career record of 52-2, has just one game left to play in their amazing careers and will be looking to close it out the only way they know how. Sulphur has won two state championships, coming in 2002 and then in 2004. The most notable accolade about the Bulldogs is their head coach, Jim Dixon, who has been at the helm since 1975 and has coached this Sulphur for 44 years. Dixon has totalled over 300 wins at Sulphur and led them to both of their championships, although he was out for much of the 2004 season due to medical problems. The veteran coach has been through everything on a football field, meaning Friday's high stakes matchup will be nothing new. Dixon's experience and wisdom surely leaks into his players. When a coach is prepared and collected for anything, their players typically are as well. Neither team will be unfamiliar to the spotlight or the stage on Friday, and just a few mental slip ups or errors could be the deciding factor in the game.

Player Spotlight:
As mentioned earlier, Sulphur's best player is far and away running back Trey Kiser. The senior has been a statistical anomaly in 2018, racking up 2179 yards and 36 touchdowns on 243 carries. Those impressive numbers are good for over 167 rushing yards along with nearly three scores per game, a line considered above average just for a single game, rather than over the course of an entire season. Kiser is listed at 6'2 and 200 lbs., and is a very physical runner with the ball. He breaks a lot of tackles, especially in the secondary, and uses a vicious stiff arm to tear off a lot of long plays. It will be important for safety Phillip Smitherman and the rest of the Charger secondary to be ready to make tough tackles and prevent those long runs from happening. The only real negative part of Kiser's game is that he has coughed the ball up four times on the season. Heritage Hall has struggled forcing turnovers thus far, therefore it could be essential for the defense to take advantage of Kiser's loose handling and force the ball out onto the ground.

Cole Johnson quarterbacks this methodical Bulldog offense. Johnson is not asked to throw the ball often, as the team clearly relies on Kiser for most of the their yards, but he still has a strong presence on the game, as he is a senior and controls his team well. The quarterback always needs to be the leader on the field, and Johnson fills that role perfectly, keeping his team disciplined in all situations and dominating the tempo of the game. Johnson makes good decisions with the ball and rarely turns it over, which is important for an offensive style that does not receive many possessions in a game. Perhaps the senior's best skill is an often undervalued one, which is the ability to effectively sell the play action pass. Sulphur constantly pounds the ball down their opponent's throat, however, every once in awhile, they fake the handoff and take a shot down field over fooled defenders for a big gain. Johnson is good at selling that play action fake, and throws the ball downfield relatively well.

The Bulldogs have also found a solid second punch in running back Tavius McDonald. The junior started the year off slow, but has really come into his own as of late, recording nearly 600 total yards and six touchdowns in his last 5 games. McDonald has great agility and speed, a stark contrast from Kiser's strength and downhill running ability. Watch for McDonald to provide a spark on the Bulldog sideline is the Hall is able to slow down Trey Kiser early in the game.

Injury Report:
There is not really any developing stories in the injury realm, which is a welcomed sight for the Charger coaching staff. Two way player Phillip Smitherman was banged up in last week's win over Lincoln Christian, but it appears he will be good to go on Friday. Knowing the competitive spirit Phillip has, there is almost no injury that would hold him out of a State Championship game. Last week, Phillip logged 180 yards on the ground and through the air, including a pair of long scores.

Omari Smith and AJ Sirls are still out on the offensive line, but Edwin Lorne and Gavin Wilson have been more than serviceable in their absences. The O-line was stellar against Lincoln Christian, allowing Conner Carey and others to run like mad men all over the defense while racking up their highest total of the year with 69 points.

Overview:
In last week's semifinal matchup against Lincoln Christian, the Charger offense had their best performance of the year, blowing up the scoreboard for nearly 70 points. Conner Carey was as tremendous as ever, leading the attack with 238 rushing yards and finding the endzone four times. The breakout senior has totalled nearly 2000 total yards of offense on the year. Conner's matchup against Trey Kiser will be a fun one to watch, and whoever ends with the better performance may give their team a huge advantage in the game. Jackson Jobe continued to mature at quarterback as well, completed ten of his 14 passes for 264 yards and another four touchdowns. The sophomore's ability to throw the ball downfield to guys like Billy Ross or Phillip Smitherman has done wonders for this offense, and he is a big reason for the offensive success the team has found late in the season.

The Charger defense may be facing their toughest task of the year on Friday. Sulphur boasts a vicious rushing attack, and are extremely physical up front. The Bulldog offensive line does a good job at creating holes for their backs to run through, and the team is coached to be disciplined and under control. A key to the victory for the Chargers will be a consistent push up front from the defensive line. Star defensive end Jaden McDaniel has been nothing short of amazing in 2018, but it could be a difficult night for him, as the Bulldogs like to power straight up the middle, rather than around the edge. Look for the Heritage coaching staff to mix up their looks in order to get McDaniel more involved. Linebackers Hardy Bowers, Connor Keith, Preston Nelson, along with others, will play an important role in bringing down Trey Kiser and ensuring he doesn't break loose into the secondary.

This is the night the Chargers have been working towards since last May. Heritage Hall is just now a single victory from repeating and bringing home the school's seventh gold ball.

Written by Jake LeForce '19
Photos by Kirsten Griffin