The first look at the 2023 versions of Elk City and El Reno came on Friday night in El Reno. Each varsity squad ran 10 plays on offense in the first period. That number was trimmed down to 8 plays a piece in the second period. The final period consisted of each offense starting a drive on the opponents 40 yard and attempting to find the Endzone.

El Reno got the better of the Elks in the first two periods of play. The Indians were much more physical and ready for the challenge. Coach Zac Maynard was disappointed in the energy he saw early on, “Our guys came out flat and got punched in the mouth early.”

In the final portion of the scrimmage, El Reno stopped Elk City on their first set of downs then scored on offense. The final drive saw Elk City move the ball 40 yards on 3 plays capped off by a Cooper Garbarino 16 yard run for the Big Elks only score of the night. Elk City’s defense stiffened on the last Indians’ drive of the night. Alonzo Geno made a tackle in the backfield on 4th and 1 to earn a split between the teams.

Overall I thought El Reno got the better of the Elks throughout much of the night, but there was definite improvement as the scrimmage wore on from the guys in the Brown and White. With as many new faces as there are on the defensive side of the ball, it’s going to be a work in progress throughout the Non District portion of the schedule. The talent is there it’s just a matter of young guys putting it together by the time District play rolls around.

No movement in the QB Battle:

Both Catch Geno and Logan Webb saw time under center for Elk City. Geno was noticeably more efficient using his legs to create yardage while Webb looked more comfortable in the passing game. This battle looks like it’ll carryover into the Non District games, if not all the way into District Play.

New Faces to Watch

A trio of young linebackers showed up throughout the 3 portions of the scrimmage. Juniors Alonzo Geno, Reece Burton, and Collin Church all made plays from the linebacker position. These 3 guys will be thrown into the fire early and often with the loss of 3 Senior linebackers from a year ago.