When Andy Claborn returned to the northwest Oklahoma area last spring, maybe it wasn’t a coincidence the winningest active coach in the area reappeared in 8-man football.

Claborn, who has Seiling in playoff contention in District C-3 in his first season, has been one of several legendary coaches in the birthplace of 8-man football in Oklahoma.

This is the 50th season since Oklahoma began crowning 8-man state champions in 1959. And, for a majority of that time, the 8-man game was exclusively played in northwest Oklahoma.

But now 8-man football has grown significantly in Oklahoma. According to a 2004 article in The USA Today, Oklahoma had the third-most schools playing 8-man football in the United States.

“A lot of it has to do with the fact that there is tradition involved,” said Claborn, who has 210 career victories. “In some of these longtime 8-man schools, the parents and their kids have played.”

While the game has expanded throughout the state over the past three decades, northwest Oklahoma has continued to produce some of the strongest 8-man programs.

Balko was one of the first dynasties, claiming three consecutive state titles from 1965-67. Bob Kramer, who was the head coach at Balko, said his 8-man teams benefited from the smaller enrollments.

“I was very fortunate,” said Kramer, who guided Balko to four state titles and eight state championship appearances. “There would be 30 boys in school and we’d have 28 of them out for football.

“We were a real team. Whether you were 25th on the list of 25, you knew you were part of the team.”

Turpin won four of its six state titles in the 1970s. In 1986, Oklahoma broke 8-man into Class B and C. Since then former Medford coach Chuck Goodner led the Cardinals to seven state championship game appearances in his 14 years in Class C. Pioneer claimed five Class B state crowns in a six-year period from 1996-2001.

Shattuck is the latest dominant program currently in 8-man. The Indians have won the last five Class C state championships and hold a 77-game on-field winning streak.

Football is big on Friday nights in most Oklahoma communities during the fall. But, in a small town like Shattuck, which is tucked away near the Texas boarder, it is the top draw for entertainment.

“It’s Friday night in a small town, what else is there to do?,” said Troy Bullard, who has a record of 96-8 in his eighth season as Shattuck’s head coach. “There’s either football or cow tipping.”



Growing the game



Ray Troutt is considered one of the original 8-man coaching legends in the area. Troutt coached 28 years at Helena-Goltry before retiring after the 1980 season.

Troutt, who is the namesake for Timberlake’s high school field, said the 8-man game gave small towns like Helena the chance to play despite a sparse population.

“In 1953, these smaller schools were finding something they could play,” said Troutt, who won two state titles. “In 8-man, you could have smaller boys and they would do a good job.”

Troutt and former Jet-Nash coach Ray Watson were two of the pioneers who helped grow the game with the advent of the 8-man all-star game in 1973 in Alva.

The all-star game, which continues today, gave 8-man football more credibility, according to Watson.

“A lot of local schools were hanging on to play 11-man,” said Watson, who coached at Jet-Nash from 1969-72. “They thought it was kind of a disdain to move down to 8-man. They didn’t think it was real football.

“(The all-star game) gave it some more recognition and prestige. Now these kids had something to look forward to. I think the administrators and coaches started to pick up on that.”



Evolution of the game



Another important change in 8-man football came in 1980 when coaches and administrators voted to lengthen the field from 80 to 100 yards.

Since then, Oklahoma put a limit of the number of schools allowed to play 8-man football. Even at 72, only Nebraska and Kansas had more schools playing 8-man football in the United States as of 2004.

The game has continued to change. Claborn said he sees more programs incorporating spread offense schemes than in the past.

“You see a lot of the younger coaches adapting some of the things they see on TV or in the 11-man game,” Claborn said.

But, for the number of changes that may occur in 8-man football, the game itself has remained an ideal fit for northwest Oklahoma.

“In small towns like Jet and others, football was the big game in town,” said Cecil Reinhart, who coached at Jet-Nash for four years in the late 1970s. “They played basketball, ran track and played football. But football was the only think that truly held the small towns together.”