Mark Kirk
Not trying to bring up bad memories, but does anyone recall how overcrowded the Class 3A Regional Tournaments were last year? Hopefully, that is now a distant memory, as the OSSAA made changes to Classes 3A, 4A and 5A to address the problem. Classes 4A and 5A increased from 32 schools each to 38 schools each, which helped move 10 schools out of Class 3A. Schools moving from Class 3A to 4A are: Anadarko, Bristow, Cleveland, Inola, Jay, Mannford, Pauls Valley, Perkins-Tryon, Plainview and Sulphur. Â
With that being said, the team race in Class 3A still appears to be a Blackwell-Marlow or if you prefer, a Marlow-Blackwell battle. Both teams are loaded, and based solely on returning State Tournament points, Marlow has the slight edge. Marlow returns 95.5 State Tournament points, with Blackwell returning 84.5. That, of course, settles nothing, but is just a good starting point for the upcoming season. Both teams have strong feeder programs and will reload with talented wrestlers that will determine what happens in February.
Blackwell, the 2023 state champions, graduated several key wrestlers and lost state champion Jake Miller to Broken Arrow (Dad is coaching there). Don’t worry, they still have more than enough firepower to win it all. Led by 2X state champion Kruz Goff, Blackwell has five returning state placers. Goff, only a junior and on track to be a 4X state champion, was 39-1 last season and has a 76-5 career record. Junior Jason Osgood is a 2X state finalist with a 63-20 career record, while junior Louden Wolfe is a 2X 3rd place medalist with a 61-17 career record. Senior Jaxson Brown was a 3rd place medalists at 106 lbs. and sophomore Grant Rowe earned a 3rd place finish at 144 lbs. last season. Senior Lawson Lusk is a 2X state qualifier for Blackwell…
