LIGHTS OUT

Having won the District 2A-8 title for the second consecutive year, Kingston’s 2019 playoff campaign opened up much like the 2018 playoffs, hosting the Community Christian School Royals at home.

The Royals, a private school from Norman, looked to get a victory in the second playoff game in the school’s history, but ultimately, despite a power outage which caused a move to Madill, the Redskins won and advanced 42-0.

The Redskins set the tone for the night early.

On Kingston’s first play from scrimmage, junior quarterback Jase Hayes hit senior receiver Tyler Blanchard for a 26-yard gain to put the Redskins in business at the Community Christian 30.

Three plays later, a sack by Royals junior Josh Vordenbaum and a holding penalty had backed the Redskins up to the Community Christian 40 where it was fourth and 20 to go.

Kingston head coach Tommy Bare left his offense out on the field, and Hayes delivered another strike to Blanchard for 28 yards for another first down.

Two plays later, junior running back A.J. McKinney scored from seven yards out to give Kingston the early lead. Continuing the theme of things going well for Kingston even when they didn’t, a bad snap on the extra point resulted in junior placekicker Tanner Carr throwing to McKinney for a two-point conversion, and Kingston took an early 8-0 lead.

Community Christian went three and out, and Kingston’s running game went to work. Mixing runs by Hayes, McKinney, senior running back Tanner Showalter, and sophomore Brandon Watson, the Redskins bulldozed down the field until Watson found the end zone from two yards out, and Kingston led 15-0.

The situation went from bad to worse for the Royals on their next drive, as sophomore quarterback Boyce McIntosh’s third-down pass was picked off by Kingston junior Matthew Flesher at the Royals’ 32.

Four plays later, Blanchard took a fourth-down pitch on a jet sweep 23 yards for Kingston’s third touchdown of the night, and the Redskins led 22-0 at the end of the first quarter.

As the first quarter ended, the Royals finally put together their first sustained drive of the night.

Marching down the field on a series of passes and runs from McIntosh, the Royals moved the ball 60 yards on 13 plays, taking nearly 7 minutes off the clock.

Unfortunately for the Royals, they needed 75 yards, and senior receiver Jackson Bush was tackled at the Kingston 15 by junior linebacker Bryant Watts to turn the ball over on downs.

The defenses stiffened, and while Kingston junior Colton Robinson picked off McIntosh on the Royals’ only remaining drive of the half, Kingston’s drives resulted in only Kingston’s first punt of the night, and then the half ran out on Kingston’s final drive, and Kingston went into halftime still leading 22-0.

As the third period got underway, things took an incredibly unexpected turn.

Community Christian was marching after the second half kickoff, and with 9:23 left in the third quarter, the Royals faced third and six from the Kingston 16.

Suddenly, the stadium lights went dark, and for about 20 minutes, fans from both schools sat in a darkened stadium, waiting for them to come back up.

However, Kingston officials announced that there had been an equipment failure, and OG&E would not be able to restore power that night.

In the meantime, they had made arrangements to borrow the football field in Madill, and the game would transfer over there.

The teams, bands and fans loaded up and caravaned over to Madill, and play resumed just after 10 pm on the artificial turf at Blake Smiley Field.

When the Royals resumed on offense after an hour delay, they were clearly discombobulated by the relocation.

Trouble lining up led the Royals to call a timeout before their first play, then Kingston junior Jesse Rose ruined the rest of the drive, tackling Community Christian junior Alex Hoselton for a loss on third down, and sacking McIntosh on fourth down to give the Redskins back the ball.

Despite the dropping temperatures, Kington’s offense had warmed back up.

McKinney, Showalter and Watson headlined a 7-play, 73-yard drive which ended with Showalter rumbling into the end zone from ten yards out, and the Redskins led 28-0.

Kingston’s Robinson picked off McIntosh for the second time on the night on the Royals’ next offensive play.

The Redskins then drove 54 yards with Showalter and Watson carrying the load, with Watson taking a pitch 26 yards for a touchdown against the fading Royals, extending the lead to 35-0.

After the Royals went three and out and lost 14 yards on their next drive, Community Christian senior Cole Snowden’s punt was downed at the Royals’ 35, and Kingston took that drive back to pay dirt again, with McKinney scoring from the two to make it 42-0 Kingston with just over 6 minutes left.

The reserves mopped up, and Kingston headed out from Madill celebrating a shutout victory in the first round.

Hayes led all passers with 116 yards on 5 of 8 passing and a touchdown. Watson led on the ground, with 103 yards on 11 carries and two scores. Blanchard had 78 yards on 3 catches for 3 touchdowns. On defense, Rose led Kingston with 9 tackles and the Redskins’ only sack of the night. Overall, Kingston’s offense ran up over 400 yards, while its stingy defense held the Royals to a total of 74 yards on offense and forced 3 turnovers on the night.

Coach Bare praised another Aoutstanding performance in all three phases. The change in fields due to the power outage led to what he called a Awacky night. “[This is] the first time in my coaching career that we had to move to a different facility to finish a game. He offered Abig thanks to Madill Public Schools, Madill’s athletic director Bink Stafford, and the Madill administration for allowing Kingston to use the Wildcat’s field Friday night. Coach Bare also looked forward to the Redskins’ next opponent, an Aoutstanding Hugo Buffaloes team.

The Redskins (7-0, 10-1) continue to reap the benefits of their district championship, and will host the Hugo Buffaloes (6-1, 8-3) for their secondround game Friday night. The Redskins whipped the Buffaloes 44-21 in the season opener, but Hugo has put together an 8-2 record since and finished second in its district. Week two of the postseason kicks off at 7:30 p.m. at Harold “Bulldog” Henry Field (assuming the lights work) Friday night.

Extra Points

There was a scary moment in the 4th quarter, when Community Christian junior Dillion Acton caught a screen pass and then took a hard shot to the head as he was being tackled. Acton’s helmet flew off, and he laid on the turf for several minutes, apparently unconscious. Acton eventually was able to walk off, and hopefully will recover from whatever injury he sustained. But it was definitely worrisome for everyone in the stadium, both in the home and visiting bleachers.

The advantages of winning your district were plain throughout Class 2A this weekend. In the 16 playoff games this weekend, the home teams were a perfect 16-0. The closest games were Lindsay’s (6-1, 9-2) 49-46 win over Lexington (5 2, 6 5), and Millwood’s (6-1, 9-2) 14-10 win over Davis (5-2, 5-5). The other 14 games were decided by an average margin of over 35 points.

Now that the 3rd and 4th place finishers in each district have been eliminated, the games can be expected to be tighter, but it’s plain why coaches emphasize winning their district and getting those two home games to start the playoffs.

In a Facebook post just after midnight Saturday morning, Kingston officials were quick to thank Stafford and the Madill Public Schools for allowing the Redskins to use their field to conclude the game.

While Madill and Kingston have a long-standing rivalry, it was great to see the two Marshall County schools work together so that the game did not have to be rescheduled.

While no one wants another equipment failure like what happened Friday night, the situation proved to be a powerful reminder of how our small towns can stand together and support each other when needed.

Kudos to Stafford and the Madill administration for their courtesy in allowing the Redskins to use their field, and in efficiently getting the field ready so that the game could resume. Including travel time, there was only about an hour delay from when the lights went out in Kingston to where the game resumed in Madill. It’s hard to imagine a situation like that being handled more efficiently.

quarterfinals, the rematch would take place in Kingston.

While it is premature to look ahead to Sperry, after the win over Lindsay, the Redskins look primed for a great run in the playoffs.

A powerful running game, a rugged defense, and good passing at key points will make Kingston a tough out for anyone.

Hayes finally threw two interceptions against Lindsay after 5 weeks of not throwing any, but his clutch passing was on point against Lindsay. If the Redskins can control their mistakes, they can contend for a state title.