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John Holcomb Breaks Down The Coaching Shakeups In Oklahoma High School Football

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John Holcomb Breaks Down The Coaching Shakeups In Oklahoma High School Football


In a flurry of recent moves, several prominent Oklahoma high school football programs have seen significant changes in their coaching staffs.

Graham Leaves Owasso

One of the most notable changes involves the swap of head coaches between Owasso and Union. Antonio Graham, who had been the head coach at Owasso for just one year, is now taking over the reins at Union.

Graham previously served as an assistant under Bill Blankenship at Union and Owasso, before Blankenship stepped away last year to allow Graham to become the Owasso head coach.

Why Did Antonio Graham Leave For Union?

As for the situation involving Owasso and Union, new Redhawks head coach Antonio Graham chose to take over at Union for a variety of reasons. 

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Graham and his family continue to live in the school district, in fact just down the road from former Union head coach Kirk Fridrich, and Graham’s wife has been an administrator at a Union elementary school for a while. Graham played at Union, winning a state championship under Bill Blankenship in 2005.

  1. Union Head Football Coach Kirk Fridrich Resigns From Position

Blankenship retired from Owasso last year, welcoming Graham as the new head coach of the Rams. Now Blankenship returns to the Owasso sidelines as head coach, helping stabilize a program that went undefeated in the regular season, losing by one point to Bixby in the 6A-1 title game.

Blankenship Returns to Owasso

Now, Blankenship, a coaching icon with six state championships to his name, is returning to Owasso after a year of retirement.

Holcomb says that Blankenship’s return is about making sure you have your staff members and keeping momentum in the program in place, drawing a parallel to the stability often sought in college football programs.

  1. Owasso Rehires Bill Blankenship As Head Coach Following Graham’s Resignation

Jenks Sees New Leadership

Another significant change occurred at Jenks, where Adam Gaylor is taking over as head coach, replacing Keith Riggs. Riggs had a successful tenure at Jenks, following in the footsteps of the legendary Allan Trimble. Gaylor, who previously served as Jenks’ defensive coordinator, is now tasked with maintaining the program’s high standards.

  1. New Jenks Head Coach Adam Gaylor Introduces Himself

Broken Arrow Hires Travis Hill

The coaching carousel also reached Broken Arrow, as the program has hired Travis Hill as its new head coach. Hill comes from Muskogee, where he led the team to a state championship last year and came within a missed field goal of another title. Holcomb said Hill’s previous success and ability to unify the team will be crucial for Broken Arrow, which is the largest high school in the state and carries high expectations.

With these coaching changes coinciding with some of the most exciting playoff and championship finishes in recent memory, the upcoming high school football season in Oklahoma promises to be filled with intrigue and anticipation.

  1. Broken Arrow Announces Travis Hill As Next Head Football Coach





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Iowa State wrestling adds Brayden Thompson from transfer portal

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Iowa State wrestling adds Brayden Thompson from transfer portal


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Iowa State wrestling’s first commitment of the Brent Metcalf era will be a transfer portal addition.

The Cyclones added Oklahoma State transfer Brayden Thompson, who announced his commitment on April 18 via Instagram. Thompson is a one-time NCAA qualifier at the 2024 NCAA Championships, doing so as a true freshman. He redshirted in 2024-25, but competed in open tournaments at 184 pounds and was 9-0. He did not wrestle a match in 2025-26 and will have at least two years of eligibility remaining.

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Out of high school, Thompson was ranked the No. 3 pound-for-pound wrestler and No. 1 at 182 pounds in the 2023 recruiting class by Flowrestling. He also won Powerade and Ironman titles, two of the more prestigious high school tournaments in the nation. Assuming Thompson returns to 184 pounds where he last wrestled, he should fill in nicely as a potential replacement for Isaac Dean after his graduation.

Thompson is Iowa State’s first transfer portal addition after several departures, including Anthony Echemendia and Christian Castillo, who also entered the portal.

Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.





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Oklahoma’s Jahsiear Rogers ‘Knew It Was Time to Showcase’ His Talents In Spring Game

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Oklahoma’s Jahsiear Rogers ‘Knew It Was Time to Showcase’ His Talents In Spring Game


NORMAN — The Oklahoma Sooners liked their wide receiver room a year ago. They want 2026 to be even better.

Isaiah Sategna’s return helps that desire. Earning experienced pass catchers Trell Harris and Parker Livingstone via the transfer portal gives you added play makers. But after the Sooners Spring Game on Saturday, an unlikely hero emerged.

When Jahsiear Rogers flipped from Penn State to Oklahoma last December, he drew the usual excitement that comes with a new commitment. But few expected him to climb the depth chart this quickly, even with the injuries that hit Emmett Jones’ room.

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Rogers did just that and more on Saturday. He led all pass catchers with five receptions for 70 yards in Oklahoma’s annual Red/White game.

“I knew it was time to showcase,” Rogers said after the game. “It was amazing to see the fans and get used to the OU way. I’m a playmaker. They really want to put the ball in playmakers hands. I pretty much knew I had to lead the white team.”

Rogers got the ball rolling early. On the second offensive play for the white team, backup quarterback Whitt Newbauer rolled to his right wide, then stopped and looked towards the middle of the field where he saw Rogers running open. Newbauer connected with Rogers for a 39-yard gain.

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With Rogers on the white team, he is running against (most of) Oklahoma’s starting defense. As fate would have it, on that 39-yard reception, Rogers beat his favorite teammate to compete against — Reggie Powers.

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“He is just a leader, good guy,” Rogers said of Powers. “Me and him go after it every day in practice. Reggie is strong. When I come at him, I have to really come at him.”

Rogers’ big play over Powers was the second-longest catch of the spring game — Sategna’s 50-yard reception that appeared to be a touchdown before coaches pulled it back to set up a red-zone rep. The other four catches weren’t flashy, but they were important in their own way, and Rogers looked like he belonged on the field.

“I love it. As long as I can get the ball, I can be me. I love it,” Rogers said. “When I am on the field, I am ready to go. I am ready to be a playmaker.”

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The season is still months away, and Rogers hasn’t earned a spot high on the depth chart yet. A strong spring and an encouraging Red/White Game can only lead to early playing time if he carries that momentum into summer and fall camp.

More experienced players will return from injury and receivers who’ve been in the program for a few years will have an extra leg-up.

But Rogers is taking everything in stride and leaving no stone unturned in his development.

“Just learning from the older guys,” Rogers said. “Manny Choice, Isaiah Sategna, Trell Harris, Mackenzie Alleyne. Really all of them. We lean on each other, learn from each other. That is kind of how our room is.”

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Oklahoma knocks off Missouri in series opener

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Oklahoma knocks off Missouri in series opener


The Oklahoma baseball team is back in the mix and trending upward.

After a rough few weeks in Southeastern Conference play, the 14th-ranked Sooners have won three of their last four games to get to .500 at just beyond the halfway point of the league slate. Friday’s 9-6 win over Missouri allowed Oklahoma to move to 8-8, tied with three other teams for eighth in the standings.

Friday’s win wasn’t truly that close, even. OU took a 9-3 lead into the ninth before Mizzou made it somewhat interesting with three runs in the frame. Two of them came with two outs, though, and Mason Bixby induced a groundout with the bases empty to hold on.

The large edge came via a home run-happy night. The Sooners popped four over the wall at Kimrey Family Stadium, including three in a four-run seventh inning that gave OU a four-run lead.

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Jason Walk, who hit one of the four homers, had the best day at the plate. He went 2 for 5 with the shot, three RBIs and a run. Camden Johnson, who also homered, went 2 for 3 with a walk, a double and two runs, and Dasan Harris went 2 for 4 with a home run, two RBIs, and three runs. Trey Gambill hit the Sooners’ other jack.

Oklahoma jumped out to a four-run lead in the second behind four hits and a walk. Missouri helped the Sooners out with an error that resulted in a bases-loaded situation and three unearned runs registered to Tigers starter Josh McDevitt.

The runs were more than enough for Oklahoma’s LJ Mercurius, who pitched six strong innings, giving up three runs on six hits with no walks and nine strikeouts.

Game 2 in the series is set for 4 p.m. Saturday and the finale will be played Sunday at 2 p.m., weather permitting.



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