Inexperienced Eagle defense could play key role against undefeated Elgin

ELGIN – Inexperience on defense doesn’t bode well for the Weatherford Eagles as they prepare to take on an undefeated Elgin team that has averaged more than 300 yards on offense in its first two games of the season.

The Class 4A Eagles started eight sophomores last week against El Reno as Weatherford pulled off a 20-19 win to level its record at 1-1. Kingfisher defeated Weatherford 38-21 in the season opener.

“Defensively, we return one starter so we’re getting experience as we play,” Weatherford head coach Reagan Roof said. “We have to be gap sound on defense and concentrate on doing our job and staying focused.”

Roof praised Elgin junior tailback Matthew Lund and sophomore quarterback Tres Lorah.

“They’re quite a bit better than last year so it’s going to be a tough challenge for us,” he said.

Offensively, the Eagles have two wide receivers who can provide some explosive plays when necessary, including CJ Nickson, who stands 6-5 and weighs 212 pounds. He’ll likely be the favorite target of Weatherford’s senior quarterback Reece Villines. Nickson caught nine passes for 121 yards and one touchdown last week against El Reno.

The duo of Villines and Nickson caught the attention of Elgin head coach Chalmer Wyatt.

“He (Nickson) is a tall receiver who can go up and catch a ball, and their quarterback is pretty polished,” he said.

Elgin offense may face its biggest challenge of the young season with an Eagle defense that shows multiple schemes.

“They have three linebackers who can play sideline to sideline,” Wyatt said. “We’ve got to be sound against their defense. It’s going to be a tough game Friday. We’ve got to improve this week and fix the issues we had against Cache.”

So far, Elgin’s biggest problem on offense has been itself with untimely turnovers. But with an effective offensive line and a strong running game, the Owls have been able to overcome those miscues. So far, Elgin has rushed for 209 yards a game and averaged 5.5 yards per carry. The passing game has aided the offense with 245 yards in two games with Lorah completing 53% of his passes while averaging 14.4 yards per completion.

Lorah’s favorite targets so far have been junior Michael Adesola and Treyvon Crabtree with six receptions each. Adesola has gained 86 yards on his catches while Crabtree has gained 41 yards. Lorah’s longest pass completion this season was a 66-yard TD bomb to sophomore Josh Adesola in the season opener against Anadarko.

Elgin begins Class 5A-1 district play next week when El Reno comes to town Sept. 23. The game is being promoted as Little League Night. The Owls finish three consecutive home games on Sept. 30 against Ardmore.

NOTES: Last season, Elgin defeated Weatherford 33-27 for one of its four wins… In that 2021 game, Villines completed eight of 17 passes for 142 yards and one interception. He also rushed for 12 yards… So far this season, Elgin is averaging 30 points a game while allowing its opponents seven points per outing.