No. 1 Lincoln Christian will close out the regular season home slate tonight, as the Bulldogs look to remain undefeated and continue dominating in district when Chectoah comes to town.

Lincoln (7-0, 4-0) will host the Wildcats on senior night, looking for the program's 36th straight win — spanning the last two seasons and counting.

The Bulldogs have also won 56 straight home games and 47 consecutive district games.

Lincoln has rolled in district play, as the Bulldogs have allowed just a field goal through four games and are averaging 56 points per contest.

They'll take on a Checotah team that is 4-3, but sitting on the outside looking in playoff-wise with three games to go at 2-2 in the district.

"We need to continue playing inspired football," said Lincoln head coach Jerry Ricke. "Our guys know that every district game is of huge importance, so we need to continue to ready ourselves and play clean football."

It's also senior night for Lincoln, as the Bulldogs honor a class that has won back-to-back state titles and has an overall record of 46-2.

"This was the first class that we started 1st-grade football with, and so these guys are the first football players to play 12 years of tackle football with Lincoln," Ricke said. 

The head coach, who has a record of 101-13 in the middle of his 9th season, has been with this senior group every step of the way.

"On a personal note, I have helped coach most of these seniors for all 12 years, and that time has been very special for me," Ricke said. 

Ricke has had a special bond with this group, as his youngest son Carter Ricke is the Bulldogs' senior leader at quarterback.

"Having Carter in this class and being my last son to play football makes this even more special, " Ricke said. "This senior group has done so much to add to our tradition and standard."

Last week, the Bulldogs took care of Muldrow at home, wining 49-3. It was the Bulldogs' 5th win this season by six touchdowns or more.

They'll look to stay perfect in 2025 and in district play by facing a familiar foe in Checotah.

The two programs have faced off in each of the last seven seasons and eight times overall.

Lincoln has won all eight contests, including the first meeting in the first round of the 2015 playoffs.

The Bulldogs have won all eight games by 34 or more points and Lincoln has scored 54+ in each meeting.

Checotah opened this season by going 2-1 in non-district play, beating Okmulgee and Dewey while losing at Seminole.

The Wildcats opened district play with wins at Locust Grove and over Muldrow before falling at Stigler and to Holland Hall 29-26 last week.

Lincoln is looking for its' 8th straight district title.

The Bulldogs are 85-4 since 2019 and 96-6 overall since 2018. Lincoln is aiming for its 8th straight state semifinal appearance.

Checotah @ No. 1 Lincoln Christian 

Thursday, Oct. 23 — 7 p.m.

Willie George Field at Dennis Byrd Stadium - Tulsa, OK

9th meeting in all-time series — Lincoln leads 8-0

WATCH HERE

OFFENSIVE PREVIEW

Lincoln has has no trouble offensively this season, as the Bulldogs have continued to roll and will look to do so again in tonight's matchup vs. Chectoah.

The Bulldogs average 52 points per game behind 496 total yards per contest.

Lincoln has averaged 11.4 yards per play through the first seven games of the season and the first team offense has faced just 24 third downs on the year.

One of the reasons for this is the play of the senior quarterback, Ricke.

The 2-year starter under center has been outstanding in his final season as a Bulldog, especially in district play.

Through four games, Ricke is completing 73% of his passes and averaging 230 yards per game.

He's thrown 16 touchdowns in just four games and been picked off only once.

"Carter has been tremendous from a leadership perspective," said his father. "He has done a great job of taking care of the football while being able to get the ball into the hands of our playmakers."

In his career during district play, Ricke's dominance is even greater.

Through 11 district games spanning last season and this year, Ricke has completed 75% of his passes for 225 yards per game. He has an astounding 41 touchdowns in 11 games to just three interceptions.

"He really understands our offense, and I think that is what leads him to have a very high completion rate and a great touchdown-to-interception ratio," Ricke said. "The thing that you don't see on Friday nights is how well he leads and manages our team in practice Monday through Thursday. Those days of preparation are huge for us, and Carter is a big reason why they go smoothly."

This season, in seven games, Ricke has completed 81-of-113 passes for 1,373 yards and 20 touchdowns to just four picks.

In last year's 68-12 win over Checotah, Ricke was 11-of-13 for 213 yards and five scores.

His backfield mates, junior running back Braeden Baker and sophomore running back CJ Wright continue to deliver for Lincoln in a big way.

Last week, the two put on a show, as Baker touched the ball 10 times for 181 yards and four touchdowns, while Wright turned seven opportunities into 143 yards and two touchdowns.

Baker leads the way for Lincoln through seven games, totaling 598 rushing yards on 10.1 per attempt. He's scored 13 touchdowns on the ground, along with 165 yards receiving and four scores in the passing game.

Wright has 499 rushing yards and averages a stunning 14.3 yards per carry. He's scored five touchdowns on the ground, and has added five more as a receiver, along with 205 yards in the passing game.

Both Baker and Wright went over 100 yards and had a touchdown in last year's win at Checotah.

Top receiver and senior Hudson Farris leads the Bulldogs with 20 catches for 421 yards and four touchdowns.

Sophomore Caleb Peterson has come on as of late, including a 58-yard touchdown catch and run in last week's win over Muldrow.

The Bulldogs running game has been dominant all year, as Lincoln averages 278 rushing yards per game and 10.8 yards per rush behind the group of Lincoln Torres, Carson Elix, Kaden Claybrook, TH Harrell and Colt Monsey.

Chectoah is led defensively by sophomore middle linebacker Cole Rolland (6-2, 195), senior defensive end Elijah Muhammed (6-2, 240) and senior corner Carter Sisson (5-10, 180).

"Defensively, they play very sound up front and in their coverage," said Ricke. "We will have to make sure we get our running game going against their big, physical box."

The Wildcats are allowing 23 points per game defensively. 

DEFENSIVE PREVIEW

As good as the Bulldogs have been on offense, Lincoln has been just as good, if not better, defensively. 

Lincoln has allowed just three points in four district games, as the Bulldogs continue to suffocate opposing offenses early and often.

Lincoln allows just a 23% conversion on third down and outside of the Shiloh Christian win last month, the Bulldogs have allowed only 736 total yards (122 per game) in the other six contests.

The Bulldogs allow just six points per game and have allowed just one touchdown outside of the Shiloh game.

It starts up front for Lincoln, as last week, Muldrow managed just six rushing yards against the Bulldogs.

The junior group of Torres, Monsey and Rain Ragland lead the way for Lincoln on the defensive line, constantly stuffing the run and creating pressure on the quarterback when offenses get behind the sticks.

Torres has 27 tackles, including six for loss, along with three sacks. Monsey has 23 tackles through seven games, including eight for loss, two sacks and a fumble recovery. 

Ragland has played in just two games, but has seven tackles, three for loss, and a forced fumble.

The linebackers behind them have also played extremely well, as leading tackler sophomore Isaac Beisel has been outstanding for Lincoln.

Beisel leads the team with 40 tackles through seven games. He has five tackles for loss, a half sack and a fumble recovery. 

Senior middle linebacker Connor Rowlett has 21 tackles, four for loss, and a sack in his final season with the Bulldogs.

Junior Parker Rogers has stepped up in the other linebacker spot, totaling 22 tackles, four for loss, as well as an interception each of the last two games.

Ricke spoke about the impact the guys up front have and what it does for his defense.

"I'm really proud of the way those guys have played so far this year, and they just take so much pride in shutting down opposing teams' run games," Ricke said. "What impresses me most about them is the way they approach practice and the physicality they bring to our team each day."

In the secondary, Lincoln is led by several familiar faces. 

Baker starts at safety for Lincoln as has totaled 22 tackles on the year, including three for loss, as well as a pass breakup and a forced fumble.

He's joined by senior safety Gabe Huntsinger, who has 12 tackles on the season.

Farris and Peterson have played great at corner for Lincoln, as the two have been great against the run and pass game.

Farris has 19 tackles, as well as a sack, while Peterson has 21 stops, as well as a team-high six pass breakups and a team-leading four interceptions.

The Bulldogs will have several key players to focus on this week for Checotah, including returning starter in senior running back Jayden Ellen.

He's run for 767 yards and seven touchdowns in just five games, averaging 8.2 yards per carry  and 153 yards per contest.

Ellen is joined in the backfield by Rolland, who is in his second year as a starter at quarterback.

Rolland has completed 51% of his passes for 845 yards. He's thrown 11 touchdowns to just three picks.

He's also rushed for 480 yards on 4.8 per carry, and has totaled nine touchdowns on the ground.

"Checotah is a team that likes to control the game on offense by running the ball behind their big offensive line," Ricke said. "They have a really good running back, and their quarterback runs and throws it really well. They use their rushing attack to set up their passing game and have very capable receivers."

Those receivers are two juniors — Jayden Lake and Landynn Thomason.

Thomason leads the way with 399 yards on just 21 catches. He's scored four touchdowns on the yer.

Lake has 313 yards on 24 catches, along with two touchdown grabs in seven games.

Chectoah averages 31 points and 355 yards per game offensively.

Photos by Lee Talley