Mustang football coach Dombek resigns
Jeremy Dombek is ready for something different.
Dombek resigned Monday following six seasons as Mustang’s football coach to pursue opportunities outside of education, ending a career that spanned nearly two decades as a head coach in the state.
“Eighteen years as a head coach is long enough,” Dombek said. "I’ve enjoyed every second of it, but it’s time for me to pursue other options.”
Dombek had big success in his tenure at Mustang, leading the Broncos to two state semifinal appearances and a 39-28 overall record. But the Broncos fell short of the Class 6A-I playoffs the last two seasons, including this season’s 4-6 finish.
But that didn’t diminish Dombek’s tenure. For the first four seasons, Mustang won seven or more games.
“It’s been the best of my coaching career,” Dombek said. “It’s just a great place. I’m proud of what we’ve done.
“Obviously, the last two years haven’t gone the way we wanted them to, but consistently over those six years I’ve been here we’ve been one of the best programs on this side of the state.”
Previously, Dombek was the head coach at Edmond North, Plainview and Perry
Crossings Christian earns first playoff win
With its first playoff win in program history in the books, Crossings Christian coach Jonathan Keathly said his kids have had no problem refocusing this week as they prepare for undefeated Hooker.
“Not hard to keep their attention when you have a team like this in front of you,” Keathly said. “We’ve had an eye on them for awhile. They are the real deal.”
Still, the milestone of a first playoff win is one Keathly said his team took time to celebrate. CCS defeated Walters 31-15 in the first round of the Class A playoffs.
Crossings' swarming defense held Walters to just one yard rushing on 17 attempts. Linebacker Zach Stephens had 2 ½ tackles for a loss and a sack, while defensive end Trent Miller added 2 ½ tackles for a loss of his own.
Running back Jacob Snyder finished with 124 yards rushing and two touchdowns.
“We felt like we had this kind of team this year,” Keathly said. “And we have feel like we have a team that can go further.”
Blanchard playmakers make life easier
The middle of the field is Bryce Madron's playground.
The junior running back broke off a 42-yard run in the third quarter of Blanchard's 21-11 playoff victory against Cache that gave the Lions the lead for good.
Blanchard coach Jeff Craig said Madron and senior receiver Jamie Nance benefit from each other's playmaking abilities.
"Defenses have to respect Jamie on the outside, which opens things up for Bryce up the middle," Craig said.
"Vice-versa, Bryce having the year that he's had has made it harder to cover up Jamie."
Madron is now over 1,500 yards for the year and has 32 touchdowns on the ground. Nance, a Nebraska commit, has 14 total touchdowns on the year.
Blanchard will travel to Poteau for the Class 4A quarterfinals, scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday.