Bixby Vies for Third Straight State Crown
By Mike Moguin
GTR Sports Writer
TOP QUARTERBACK: Mason Williams positions himself to throw a pass in a game for Bixby. He and the Spartans are gunning for another Class 6AII state championship.
Bixby is going after another state championship.
If it wins, it will be its third straight and sixth in seven seasons at the Class 6AII level.
The Spartans have established a dynasty and are accomplishing what Jenks and Union did at the Class 6A and 6AI levels for over two decades.
One key element will be the performance of quarterback Mason Williams (5-10, 175, senior), who has thrown for 6,716 yards and 83 touchdowns according to MaxPreps. He is now in his third season as starter.
Williams was instrumental in Bixby’s 40-36 victory over Stillwater in the Class 6AII state championship game last year. He connected with Braylin Presley (5-7, 170, junior), who also returns, on a 12-yard screen pass with 1:04 left in the game.
“It was very meaningful to come back and win the game,” Williams said. “Especially when we were down 17-3, because we hadn’t been behind like that all season, so it was kind of a shock to us. But after we came back and we started to get a lot of momentum, we definitely changed.”
The key to overcoming all that shock, Williams said, was playing as a team.
“We controlled what we did most, what we know, kind of our basic stuff. We had our heads back in the game,” he said.
VYPE Oklahoma lists Williams as one of its top 100 players in its 2020 Pigskin Preview. He is described as “…..a quarterback who knows how to win by using his football IQ to make the proper reads and then deliver on target passes with precision, producing a 75 percent completion rate….”
That is something Williams said he can agree with. “I can also use my size to my advantage,” he added.
Williams also loves taking on the role of playing quarterback. “Controlling the football gives me an assignment and I like being out there with the guys. I don’t think you can beat Friday nights either.”
Drew Brees of the New Orleans Saints is his favorite quarterback.
“He’s methodically sound, really smart and knows what he’s doing,” Williams said.
What has been the key to keeping the dynasty going?
“We just stay consistent when we work in the offseason,” Williams said. “I think we work harder than most teams in the state and we do things with a different mentality.”
Of course, one thing that is different this year compared to other seasons is the COVID-19 pandemic. But to Williams and his Spartan teammates, it hasn’t been too big of a deal.
“It hasn’t been too much different,” Williams said. “Just different changes like taking temperatures and having hand sanitizers before we go to practice and we have the face shields that colleges are wearing now. Other than thought, it’s not too much different. Practices still go the way they usually do.”
They are required to wear their face shields when they’re in the weight room and anywhere else indoors. But not during practice.
Williams hopes to play football somewhere in college but is undecided at this point.
But in the meantime, he is looking to lead Bixby to another state title.
“We have won the last five (titles) out of six, so we have that expectation,” Williams said. “We don’t change anything in how we perceive it, we just keep going out there thinking we’re going to win another one. That’s our goal for each season. That’s how we built our tradition, by winning state championships.”
Bixby opened the season at home against Union on Aug. 28. For the month of September, it remains home against Jenks on Sept. 4, then travels to Stillwater on Sept. 18 after a week off. The District 6AII-2 opener will be Sept. 25 at home against Bartlesville.
