High school football: Brennan Miyake, Tyler Gillaland expected back for Deer Creek

Miyake sprained an ankle and Gillaland injured his shoulder in the Antlers' lone loss of the season against Guthrie, but should be ready to go Friday night, Deer Creek coach Grant Gower said.

“For Game 10, we are pretty healthy,” he said.

A Deer Creek victory over McGuiness would mean a three-way tie at the top of the district standings among the Antlers, McGuinness and Guthrie, assuming the Bluejays defeat Northwest Classen on Friday night.

If that's the case, Deer Creek would need to beat the Irish by six points to win the district title and get the top seed for the playoffs.

When districts were reassigned and the schedules announced 18 months ago, Gower and McGuinness coach Justin Jones discussed then how the last game of the season between the two teams likely would have playoff implications.

“We talked about it at the time,” Gower said. “We thought this game would be huge, and it is definitely that way.”

MWC'S FREEMAN COMMITS TO WASHINGTON STATE

Midwest City offensive lineman Carlos Freeman, No. 14 on The Oklahoman's Super 30 list of the state's top recruits, committed to Washington State on Monday night.

Freeman's commitment came after a conversation with first-year Cougars coach Mike Leach.

The Cougars' coaching staff has several Oklahoma connections, including Leach, a former OU assistant, and former Sooners standout Jarrail Jackson, who is Washington State's recruiting and operations assistant.

Assistant strength and conditioning coach Casey Kramer graduated from Northwestern Oklahoma State.

Washington State has also made recent offers to another pair of state players, Tulsa Washington's Dominique Alexander and Tulsa East Central's Kimmie Carson.

Alexander, who visited Norman last weekend for the Sooners' game against Notre Dame, is committed to Arkansas, while Carson is committed to New Mexico.

ELGIN FORCED TO FORFEIT GAME

After Elgin beat Piedmont 38-35 last week, Piedmont was seemingly eliminated from playoff contention.

Now, the Wildcats have a second chance, after Elgin was forced to forfeit the game.

The forfeit is due to a violation of the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association's Rule 5, which governs amateurism.

Piedmont now needs a win over Weatherford, in all likelihood, to make the playoffs. The Wildcats could be left out with a win and a Woodward win, though that would require the Boomers to beat Clinton and gain at least nine district points on Piedmont.