Week One Preview: Guthrie at Duncan

Guthrie and Duncan kick the football season off for the six straight year with a 7 p.m. kick inside Halliburton Stadium. The game can be heard on Triple Play Sports Radio 105.1 FM., streamed world-wide on both the Guthrie Sports Page and Guthrie News Page websites and on the Tunein radio app.

Duncan holds the toughest 10-game schedule in the state’s second largest class with six preseason teams ranked in the top 10 on their schedule.

Duncan, who has missed the playoffs two years in a row, plays Guthrie and Carl Albert in the non-district and in district play takes on returning state champion Lawton MacArthur, Altus, Del City and Ardmore.

The Demons, coming off consecutive 3-7 seasons, averaged less than 20 points (19.4) last season, but allowed more than 20 points (25.7) per game. They will look toward their defensive leader in linebacker Hunter Kelly to turn those numbers around.

Kelly led the defense with 123 stops in 2014 in the 3-4 defensive look. Second year head coach and Duncan alum Craig Benson will look to mix up the defensive looks with six starters returning and a new defensive coordinator.

Along with Kelly, nose guard Jon McGill will be called upon as a leader for the club. Defensive end Nathan Clark and free safety Spencer Cagg give the Demons their nucleus.

The offense, who returns eight starters, got a big boost in the offseason when senior Luke Ring moved in from Mustang. Ring’s father, Glennis Ring, joins the Demons coaching staff and will lead the defense.

In five games last year with Mustang, Luke Ring completed 12-of-19 passes for 170 yards and two scores. Ring added two more touchdowns on the ground in 18 running attempts.

Luke Ring inherits a 1,000 yard rusher in junior running back Trenton Bell, who finished with 1,091 as a sophomore to go with 14 scores.

Dillon Seeberger and Aaron Haley return to the offense. Seeberger hauled in three touchdown passes while Haley averaged 23-yards per catch in 2014.

Up front, the Demons will look to free Bell with three returning starters in Hayden Moore, JW Morrow and Cole Hennessee.

Guthrie has been tough in week one, district games

The Jays have won five consecutive week one games with Duncan and six straight overall. The Demons lead the overall series 12-7, but Guthrie in the last six meetings, including a 2009 playoff game, has dominated the week one series by an overall score of 190-12.

Since 2001, the Jays have piled up a 9-5 record in week one and have won eight of their last 9 season openers. Guthrie is 32-10 in the past 14 seasons in non-district games and are winners of 12 in a row.