No. 1 Lincoln cruised to its 34th straight win last night behind another defensive shutout, along with a career night from senior Hudson Farris in a 62-0 win at Locust Grove.

The Bulldogs (6-0, 3-0) had two interceptions returned for touchdowns before the offense ever stepped on the field to jump out to a fast start in the game's opening two minutes.

Meanwhile, Farris was the star of a big night for the Lincoln passing offense, as the senior receiver finished with 169 yards and three touchdowns.

It was the 46th straight district win for Lincoln and the 100th career with for head coach Jerry Ricke.

Ricke is 100-13 midway through his ninth season leading the Lincoln Christian program, as the program looks for its third straight state title and fifth overall.

"I don't really pay attention to streaks or the number of wins we have accumulated," he said. "However, I am humbled and blessed to have worked with such great assistant coaches and many great players that have helped me achieve this milestone. I am proud to be the leader of this program and blessed to have so many people that have helped me accomplish this."

Lincoln led 49-0 at halftime, as the Bulldogs were in complete control on both sides, especially defensively, holding Locust Grove to just 84 total yards in the game on just 1.8 yards per play.

"I thought our defense came out of the gates very well last night," Ricke said. "When you get two turnovers and turn both of them into scores, you know that the defense is starting fast. The defense has been playing dominantly, and we will need them to continue that in this next stretch of games."

On the 3rd play from scrimmage, Lincoln junior linebacker Parker Rogers stepped in front of a pass and returned it 22 yards for the score, putting the Bulldogs up 7-0 immediately.

The ensuing possession was like deja vu, as the Bulldogs defense delivered with another score.

This time, junior safety Brett Kaste picked off Locust Grove's Logan Smallwood and raced 38 yards the other direction for another pick six.

It was 14-0 with 10:12 left in the 1st quarter.

Lincoln forced a Locust Grove punt before the offense finally took the field with 8:30 to go in the quarter.

The Bulldogs marched right down the field, scoring in just seven plays to cover 46 yards.

Junior running back Braeden Baker walked into the end zone from 13 yards out with 6:35 to go in the 1st.

More of the same continued on the following drive, as Locust Grove went backwards and was forced to punt after a 3-and-out.

Lincoln stretched the lead to 28-0 in just four plays, as Ricke threw a missile in the perfect spot to sophomore CJ Wright's back shoulder for a 17-yard score with 3:46 left in the opening quarter.

After Lincoln forced another 3-and-out, Farris found the end zone for the first time on the night.

Ricke ripped a ball down the seam to the senior, who took a hit before crossing the goal line for a 37-yard connection.

Lincoln led 35-0 with 1:48 to go in the 1st quarter.

The Pirates went backwards again on the following possession, punting after three plays before Ricke and Farris did it again.

The seniors hooked up for 43 yards, as Farris caught a short pass and raced down the sideline to enter the red zone.

Then, on the following play, Ricke put it in the perfect spot in the back corner of the end zone, allowing Farris to score for a second time from 17 yards out.

Lincoln's lead had stretched to 42-0 with 10:18 to go until half.

Locust Grove had its best drive of the night following the Bulldogs' sixth score, as the Pirates picked up three 1st downs to move inside the Lincoln 40.

But the Bulldogs held, forcing another punt to keep the Pirates off the scoreboard.

Ricke connected with Kaste over the middle for 33 yards on a nice catch and run, before Farris completed the hat trick.

Farris caught it over the middle near midfield and outraced the Pirates' defense to the end zone for a 57-yard touchdown, making it 49-0 with 4:04 left in the half.

"Hudson is a guy who goes about his business, doing everything the right way. He never complains about touches and consistently does the little things our team needs him to do," said Ricke.

"Last night was kind of his night, and I'm really proud of the humility and character he displays when he has success. We talked this morning about how we spread the ball around and have guys consistently step up each week. Last night was Hudson's turn, and he took full advantage of it."

Ricke finished the night 10-of-16 for 264 yards and the four scores, while sophomore Brayden McMullen was 3-of-3 for 40 yards and a score in relief.

The two quarterbacks completed a pass to seven different receivers, as the passing game continues to thrive more each week.

"What you see on Friday night is a result of many hours of execution in practice," Ricke said. "Our guys try to go through every practice without letting the ball hit the ground."

"Our expectations are very high for what we do in the passing game, and our kids know that we want to be precise in it. When you run the ball the way we do, it helps open up the RPO, boot, and play-action passing games."

Lincoln ran just 13 offensive plays after halftime, but scored on both drives. 

McMullen threw a 1-yard touchdown to receiver Liam Anderson, capping off an 8-play, 62-yard drive spanning seven minutes to open the 3rd quarter.

The sophomore quarterback also ran for 54 yards on the drive.

Locust Grove picked up a couple of 1st downs on the ensuing drive, but just like the offense, the second group defensively stepped up to the challenge in the 2nd half by forcing another Pirates' punt.

"I love the way our younger guys have developed throughout the season," Ricke said. "We have taken the opportunities in our JV season to grow and develop our younger guys, and they have answered the call."

"Our JV schedule includes games with Bixby, Owasso, and Broken Arrow, so we know we are going to be tested. I'm really proud of the way those guys practice as well, because they get to go against some of the best competition they'll see every day in practice."

Lincoln's final scoring drive of the night took just five plays, as freshman Arion Stokes capped of a 53-yard drive to make it 63-0 with 5:22 to go in the game.

Stokes ran for 23 yards on the drive, while fellow freshman Max Madrid had 28 yards on his lone carry of the night to help set up the score.

Lincoln had 467 total yards and averaged 13.7 yards per play and 10.9 yards per carry.

The Bulldogs had 19 first downs and were a perfect 3-of-3 on 3rd down.

Lincoln held Locust Grove to just 2-of-13 on 3rd down and 1.2 yards per carry, while forcing eight punts by the Pirates.

Kaste had two grabs for 57 yards, while McMullen led the way rushing with 55 yards on just four carries.

Senior Gabe Huntsigner had three carries for 26 yards on the night.

Sophomore linebacker Isaac Beisel — the Bulldogs leading tackler through six games — led the way defensively again, finishing with six tackles, including three for loss.

Fellow sophomore linebacker Jax Crumbliss had five stops on the night. 

Rogers, junior defensive linemen Lincoln Torres and Rain Ragland, as well as senior linebacker Connor Rowlett each finished with three tackles and all had at least one for loss.

As a team, Lincoln had 13 tackles for loss in the win.

The Bulldogs will be back at home to host Muldrow on Thursday at 7 p.m.

Photos by Lee Talley