Cougars preparing for opener with Ardmore
Sep. 1—Members of the Ada High School football team have had Sept. 2 circled on their calendar for nearly a year.
The Cougars open the 2022 season Friday night with a road trip against old rival Ardmore. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Noble Stadium.
Ada second-year head coach Brad O'Steen said his players are chomping at the bit to take the field against the high-powered Tigers. Ardmore is ranked No. 9 in Class 5A in the latest Associated Press High high school football rankings, while Ada received just a single vote in Class 4A by the AP pollsters.
"This is the game you look forward to after the last one the previous year. It's exciting to kind of find out where we're at against a very high-quality football team," O'Steen told the Ada News earlier this week.
O'Steen said you can feel the excitement in the air around the Craig McBroom Football Complex.
"The kids are ready. The excitement level is really high. With all the work that goes into this, it means a lot to them," he said. "One of the exciting things is to see the fruits of our labor."
The Tigers kicked off their season Zero Week with a 33-20 home win over Lawton Eisenhower. Ardmore trailed 13-7 at halftime. Senior quarterback Cal Swanson — who has committed to the University of Illinois — had three interceptions early in the contest.
Ardmore got a big game from senior running back CJ Williams, who rushed for three touchdowns. He scored twice in the fourth quarter on runs of 25 and 67 yards.
O'Steen said his defense is going to have to keep an eye out on Swanson at all times.
"It's going to be a typical Ardmore team. Their quarterback is very talented. He's a really good athlete who throws the ball well and is extremely fast," he said. "That's what makes him so dangerous. He can really, really run."
The Tigers have a great complement tailback to Williams in senior speedster Eric Fields.
"They have a couple of really good backs they hand the football to and have a couple of kids that can run out in space and go catch the football," O'Steen said.
Ardmore has three senior wideouts that can all do damage — Kylan Cohee, Zaden Henderson and Rudy Vargas.
"You have to be able to play fast. If you handle their speed, you have a chance," O'Steen said.
Senior Kayden Blansett, who measures up at 6-7, 310, is the anchor of the Ardmore offensive line.
"They have a big, physical offensive line. It just going to be a really good test for us," O'Steen said. "Defensively, it's kind of the same thing. They have guys that can run and up front, they have guys that are big and physical."
The Cougars aren't exactly slow. Ada coaches hope they can get some of their athletes open in space and strike for some big plays.
"We have some speed and some athletic ability. I think it's a really good matchup for us," he said.
According to O'Steen, execution and discipline will be huge factors for any success the Cougars might generate.
"We have to be disciplined. We have to show up and execute and do our job to the best of our ability," he said. "We have to take care of the football and not give up big plays on defense. If you give those guys any daylight or space, they're dangerous."
Ada hasn't scored against Ardmore since snagging a 7-0 win over the Tigers in 2019. Ardmore won 20-0 in 2020 and 27-0 last season.
Friday will be the 99th meeting between the two rivals. Ada leads the all-times series 49-47-2.
Respect for the Cougars
Ardmore head coach Josh Newby said his team must be much better Friday night than it was against Lawton Eisenhower last week.
"We definitely want to watch the film and correct our mistakes because we know Ada will play with their hair on fire," Newby told The Daily Ardmoreite. "Coach Brad O'Steen does a great job. We have to make that big jump of improvement from Game 1 to Game 2. We have to get that accomplished. We have to clean things up and protect the football to beat the good teams."
