No. 1 Lincoln answered all of the offensive questions and more last week in the 2026 season opener.

The Bulldogs went on the road and completely controlled the game in a 25-13 win at highly-ranked Jones, pushing the win streak to 43 and moving to 1-0.

But It's time to do it again.

And they'll have to get through a familiar opponent to do so.

The Bulldogs will head to rival Heritage Hall on Friday night for another chapter in the storied history between two of the state's best programs.

It will be the 6th meeting since December of 2023 between the two programs and the fifth meeting since September 2024.

Lincoln has won eight straight in the series after losing the first three from 2015-18.

But Lincoln has had the Chargers number as of late, ending Heritage Hall's season in six of the last seven years.

The Bulldogs won twice last year, beating the Chargers at home 35-6 in September before winning in the Class 3A semifinals 28-7.

The two teams have played in the playoffs in each season besides one since 2018. 

The teams have also played nine times in the last 10 years and eight times in the last seven years.

But this year will only see one match, as Lincoln now plays in Class 2A-1 and Heritage Hall remained in Class 3A.

This matchup will be the third regular season showdown in the series, which began in 2024.

Lincoln took care of Jones behind a dominant run game and a solid defensive performance last week.

The Bulldogs ran for 297 yards as a team and held Jones' potent offense in check, limiting the Longhorns to just 168 passing yards and five yards per play.

And although Heritage Hall fell in a competitive matchup against Shiloh Christian — Lincoln's opponent next week — head coach Jerry Ricke knows another battle awaits on Friday.

"They are a program that has definitely made us better," said Ricke. "We know we are going to get a well-coached, physical, and talented football team every time we step on the field with them. These types of games have always revealed so much about our football team."

Last year's semifinal matchup was tight in the first half and 2024's two games saw Lincoln trail in the first half of each game.

The Bulldogs 43-game win streak is the second-longest in the state and the 5th-longest all-time in Oklahoma.

However, Lincoln will need to play really well, even better than last week, to move to 2-0.

"Our guys have been focused on Heritage Hall because we know it's gonna take a great effort once again on the road," said Ricke. "You typically learn a lot about yourself in the first game, and I hope we take those lessons, both good and bad, and move forward as a football team this Friday night."

Heritage Hall is 136-13 under head coach Brett Bogert, who is in his 11th season leading the Chargers. 

The Chargers have won four state titles, one runner-up and have made five state semifinal appearances.

Eight of Bogert's 13 career losses are to Ricke and the Bulldogs have accounted for eight of the Chargers' 11 losses since 2018.

Ricke is in his 10th year as head coach of the Bulldogs and has an impressive 109-13 record.

The Bulldogs are 93-4 since the start of 2019 and 104-6 since the beginning of the 2018 season.

During the 43-game win streak, all but six of the victories have been by double digits, while the Bulldogs have held opponents to eight points or less 25 times and have posted 15 shutouts.

No. 1 Lincoln Christian @ No. 2 Heritage Hall

Friday, Sept. 4 — 7 p.m.

Charger Stadium — Oklahoma City, OK

12th meeting in all-time series — Lincoln leads 8-3

WATCH HERE

OFFENSE

The Bulldogs did what many thought they would do last week and it worked most of the night, especially late, in the win at Jones.

Lincoln leaned on the run game big time, as the Bulldogs ran 49 times as a team for over six yards per carry.

The Bulldogs also got a great first half from sophomore Major Brooks in his first varsity start, while Lincoln took care of the football with no turnovers. 

"I was really pleased with our run game and our physicality. I thought we did a good job overcoming some mistakes, but I would like to see us clean those up heading into Heritage Hall," said Ricke.

Lincoln had eight first half penalties, but overcame many of them, as Brooks made some nice plays on the opening two drives to lead Lincoln to an early 12-0 lead.

Brooks finished the game 6-of-12 passing for 137 yards and a score. He also ran four times for 23 yards.

He managed the game well for the two standout sophomore running backs Max Madrid and Drake Sheffield, who broke out in a big way.

Madrid had 20 carries for 98 yards and a score, while catching two balls for 58 yards as a big weapon in the passing game.

Sheffield had a huge second half, as the speedster scored both Lincoln touchdowns on long runs to ice the game.

He finished with 171 yards on 16 carries.

"I would like to see us continue to improve in the passing game and execute our RPOs and vertical pass game," said Ricke. "We will once again need to rely on our run game to help open these things up."

Junior wideout Caleb Peterson had seven touches for 53 yards and a touchdown, as well as a big play in the kicking game on the opening kickoff.

Senior tight end Colt Monsey had a big play in his first game as a receiving weapon, catching a 34-yard pass on a big play in the first half.

Sophomore Kade Wilson also had a big 17-yard grab on 4th down on the opening drive.

The big guys up front, led by linemen Lincoln Torres, Nate Uyetake, Landon Campbell, Josiah Faulkner and Sam Severtson, as well as Monsey and fellow blockers Isaac Beisel and Ran Ragland, helped pave the way for a controlled ground game that totaled 297 yards and ended with almost 30 minutes of possession.

Most importantly, Brooks and the backs took care of the football, which will need to happen again in a hostile road environment at Heritage Hall.

"We need to play mistake-free football," said Ricke. "We cannot turn it over or have poorly timed penalties."

The Chargers allowed 38 points in last week's loss at Shiloh Christian.

Heritage Hall has many returning starters from 2025, including senior linebackers Carson Phelps (6-foot-3, 225 lbs.) and Walker Wedel (6-foot-2, 192 lbs.), along with senior defensive back Porter England (5-foot-11, 180 lbs.).

The Chargers entire starting defense is made of upperclassmen

Lincoln has scored 27 or more in each of the eight straight wins and is averaging 34.5 points per game during that stretch.

Last week, the Bulldogs had 20 first downs and were 6-of-14 on third downs, while the Bulldogs attempted just three passes in the entire second half.

DEFENSE

Lincoln stymied one of the top offenses in the state last week in the season opener, as the Bulldogs frustrated a potent Jones attack all night long in the 25-13 win.

Lincoln held highly-rated sophomore quarterback Jeymon Reed to just 168 yards passing on 35 attempts and forced an interception, as defensive coordinator Jeff Comfort and his bunch frustrated the Longhorns all night long.

"I thought we did a good job putting pressure on the QB and making him uncomfortable," said Comfort. "We were able to get him moving in the pocket and pressure him throughout the game. I also thought we did a good job in coverage. Jones had some really good WRs and our back end rose to the challenge and limited a good passing attack."

The Bulldogs held Jones to just 4-of-11 on 3rd down and 1-of-3 on 4th downs, nearly shutting out the Longhorns in the opening half if not for a touchdown on the final play of the second quarter.

"I thought we tackled well overall and played a physical brand of football and that needs to continue," said Comfort. "We pride ourselves on playing that style of defense and that needs to show up every week."

Peterson led the way for Lincoln from his free safety spot, recording a team high nine tackles and an interception, along with two pass breakups.

Beisel was outstanding from his outside linebacker spot, finishing with seven tackles and a tackle for loss.

Monsey wrecked the game in the first half before playing limited in the 3rd and 4th after cramping issues.

The senior was constantly in the backfield and four tackles had two sacks in the win.

Fellow senior Parker Rogers made plays all over the field from his outside backer spot, finishing with seven tackles on the night.

"Our seniors have been extremely steady. I thought the older guys did a great job last week setting the tone and getting us settled in," said Comfort. "They've been there before and know how to handle quality opponents and get ready for big games."

Sheffield and Madrid were also great on defense, as Sheffield finished with seven tackles, a tackle for loss and a half sack, while Madrid had four stops and a tackle for loss.

Senior corner Eli Summerlin had four stops and a pass breakup, while junior linebacker Braxton McGinnis had four tackles and some big plays in the second half.

Ragland consistently battled double and triple teams in the middle of the trenches for Lincoln all night, but still had three tackles.

"The younger group passed their first big test," said Comfort. "They didn't let the moment get too big and made some big plays in key situations. We're going to have to do similar things Friday against another quality opponent."

Junior safety Maverick Rea had five tackles and Uyetake had three stops and a forced fumble in the win.

Heritage Hall is led by a host of seniors on offense, as all but one starter is an upperclassman.

"Heritage Hall is well coached and they have a great program," said Comfort. "They have a great mixture of talent in their offense and are able to find creative ways to get guys the ball. We are going to have to be ready for a four quarter battle and a physical game. We are going to get their very best and we are going to have to be ready to go right out of the gate."

Junior receivers Max Everett (5-foot-8, 165 lbs.) and Tripp Thomas (6-foot-3, 205 lbs.) are the top weapons for senior quarterback Teagan Lawson (6-foot-1, 165 lbs.).

"They are always looking to start fast and try to overwhelm teams early. We are going to have to have great discipline in doing our job," said Comfort. "They do a great job of scheming for their guys to get them the ball in advantageous positions. They're going to have new things weekly that you haven't seen and our guys have to rely on their keys and discipline to go play fast and do their job."

Senior right guard Andrick Golden (6-foot, 235 lbs.) and senior left tackle Caleb Blue (6-foot-5, 255 lbs.) lead the way up front for the Chargers.