Hollis vs Ringling – An Epic Rematch

Last night, to say the least, was a great night. My adopted hometown of Hollis, Oklahoma saw their first state championship in high school football in the schools history... and three generations of the Kelso family were able to bear witness to it in Cache last night.

A little back story for you - Hollis, Oklahoma, nestled at the corner of US-62 and Highway 30, is a town in Southwest Oklahoma that's pretty much known soley for it's sports history. Forgotten athletes of the past like MLB'ers Wilcy Moore, Von and Lindy McDaniel. NFL's Alton Coppage. KU Coach Ted Owens. And the pride of Harmon County, OU Sooner, 3-time National Championship winner, and University of Texas Coach Darrell Royal. There is a rich history of tremendous athletic talent in that one stop-light town.

Given Hollis is just under a square mile and a half big, and a county that seems to be shrinking with every census, the sports programs there always seem to catch the brackets off guard. There is no metro. There is no recruitment. There is only country boys and girls who play sports when they're not working. That's about the extent of "Things to do in Hollis." Work, and sports.

Last year, with a team mostly comprised of Juniors, the Hollis Tigers managed to make it to the playoffs, but lost to an excellent Ringling team ending their 2012 journey. Staying hungry all spring and summer, the boys came back built up as mostly seniors with some very talented underclassmen. They fought their way through their district play, steamed through the playoffs narrowly overtaking a very talented Apache team, and found themselves once again pinned against Ringling. As kickoff commenced, I sat in the stands with my pops, my grandmother, and my cousin (along with +/- 2500 of our closest Hollis friends) to watch Hollis run into the history books.

My Hollis Tigers scored early, and let Ringling know they meant business converting two points on their first attempt. That pretty much set the tone for the ballgame. Hollis scored twice more in the second quarter with an almost unstoppable running game. Ringling answered with two touchdowns that first half, but went into halftime trailing 23-12.

As Hollis kicked off the second half, we watched as a new Ringling team had come out of the locker rooms. The Blue Devils were suddenly making way with their passing game, and Hollis looked like it was having trouble keeping up as Ringling consistently moved the ball down field. On the flip side of the ball, it also seemed like Ringling had become wise to the Tigers running game, effectively battling back as both teams were forced to make the punt teams work in the second half. But Hollis adapted and eventually overcame the Blue Devil passing game... and after Ringling threw a couple of interceptions, and one unfortunate fumble in the red zone, Hollis turned it around to win the Class A State High School Football Championship with a final score 28-12. A fitting finish to a perfect 14-0 season. A season that will be remembered for a very long time.