QB STATON KING READY TO TAKE OVER FOR SPARTANS

Probably no one is more excited about the start of another high school football season than Bixby senior Staton King. “I can’t wait,” he said. King will be starting at quarterback for the first time, after watching Tanner Griffin pass the Spartans to three consecutive Class 6A Division II championships. No one feels more like he’s under the microscope. “It’s different this year. Everybody’s kind of looking at you,” King said. “You have to carry yourself differently. You’ve gotta be doing the right thing at all times. It’s tough, but most of the time, it’s not a bad thing. It’s pushed me to be better.” King transferred from Stillwater before his freshman season and didn’t sit idly while waiting his turn. He played receiver last year and had a leaping, twisting TD reception in the opener at Jenks. He calls it his greatest football thrill so far. He also played well for the Spartans basketball team, something you’d expect from the grandson of former University of Tulsa basketball great Jim “Country” King. Bixby football coach Loren Montgomery predicts the 6-foot-2, 185-pound Staton will do fine. “He’s a great athlete. He probably would have started (at quarterback) before now if he was anywhere else,” Montgomery said. “We have confidence in him.” King will be surrounded by big-time teammates. Tackles Bryce Bray and Josh Owens — committed to Oklahoma State and Tulsa, respectively — and guard Isaiah Lakin return from a dominating offensive line. Last year, the linemen paved the way for returning tailback Tucker Pawley to rush for 2,096 yards and 30 TDs, and helped the Spartans average 460 yards per game. Brennan Presley, electric as a freshman when he scored the first two times he touched the ball, returns as King’s likely No. 1 receiving target. Bruising linebacker Coby Tillman had 192 tackles last year, including 20 vs. Lawton in the championship game. With that intriguing mix of players, Bixby is rightly favored for the District 6AII-2 title. But history has shown that nothing is a given in the ultra-competitive league. The Spartans finished fourth during an injury-plagued 2015 regular season before regrouping to beat Sand Springs in the championship game. Last year, Muskogee edged Bixby for the district title and four teams took a turn at No. 1 in the 6A Division II rankings. “It was kind of a curse,” B.T. Washington coach Brad Calip said. “One week, you were No. 1 and the next week, you were getting knocked off.” Injuries compromised the Hornets in Calip’s first season, but many of the same players return. Speedy Rylan McQuarters rushed for eight TDs last year, averaged 7.3 yards per carry and doubled at cornerback, netting three takeaways. Jason Harris II is a run-stopping linebacker with attitude, and Phillip Wheatley provides a steady hand at quarterback. He threw 11 TD passes last year, but played sparingly after getting knocked out by Muskogee’s Roughers in the seventh week. Under coach Dustin Kinard, Sand Springs has gone to the semifinals or beyond the past three years. Again, the Sandites will be strong defensively. And again, they will rely on tailback Payton Scott. He averaged nearly 30 carries per game while rushing for 1,902 yards and 20 TDs last season. Muskogee soared to a 9-2 mark last season, completing its three-year turnaround under coach Rafe Watkins. The Roughers were two quarters from the Division II title game before faltering to Lawton in the semifinals. Marvelous Rougher receiver/defensive backs Kamren Curl and Joe Combs are gone, but quarterback Jacob Medrano threw for 2,506 yards and 23 TDs last year and Mike Edwards, Karrington Ashley and Michael Buckhanan return to spearhead a stingy defense.

QB STATON KING READY TO TAKE OVER FOR SPARTANS

Photo Credit: Cory Young

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