The Broken Arrow football program requires the following wins:

The 2024 Tigers, who may have the strongest junior class in Class 6AI, have a chance to pull off a decisive victory.

On September 6, defending Arkansas Class 7A champion Fayetteville High will visit BA's Memorial Stadium. In 2016, Bill Blankenship led the Fayetteville Bulldogs to a state title.

On September 13th the Tigers visit Mustang.

On September 27, Broken Arrow will play in the District 6AI-2 opener at Owasso.

And on October 25th, the annual meeting between Broken Arrow and the rival Redhawks will take place in Union.

“I actually think any win would be important,” said Josh Blankenship, who has coached at Broken Arrow for four years. “It's important for our kids to have success. They're excited. They've put in a lot of work. This is truly one of the best springs I've ever been a part of.”

After three seasons with Josh Blankenship, the BA program is 16-19.

During the 2021 regular season, Bill Blankenship's Owasso Rams defeated Josh's Tigers 42-3. In a 6AI quarterfinal rematch, Broken Arrow pulled off a surprise win 41-40.

This game was played on November 12, 2021 and is now considered Broken Arrow's most recent significant win.

Over the course of the 3-8 2023 season, the Tigers used 26 sophomores and six freshmen in the starting lineup. It certainly wasn't ideal, but that was Josh Blankenship's situation.

These 26 sophomores are now in their third year and have been hardened by their college experience. The six first-year students are experienced sophomores.

Among the juniors is quarterback Jeramiah Ssepttimba, who Blankenship expects to be in the starting lineup when Broken Arrow hosts Springdale Har-Ber in its opening game on Aug. 30.

“I think he's special,” Blankenship said of his quarterback. “His teammates love him. A phenomenal leader. His attitude has always stood out to me. He doesn't let himself get rattled. He always stays calm and is very teachable.”

Broken Arrow's junior class also includes three starters in Blankenship's best position group – a huge offensive line. Right tackle Jerod Brashears is 6'6″ and 295 pounds. Left tackle Kaden Moody weighed 185 pounds during the 2023 preseason, but is now 6'6″ and 255 pounds.

How many prep teams have a 6'6″ center? Very few, but BA has the 6'6″, 250-pound Tristan Silva.

The left guard is the 6'3″ and 275lb sophomore Carter Archer, while the only experienced starter in the O-line is the 6'1″ and 250lb Ricardo Fernandez.

“He's a guy, man,” Blankenship said of Fernandez. “He's going to start for us in (Class 6AI) for three years. That speaks for itself.”

Barrett Blankenship, the son of Josh Blankenship, who is in ninth grade, and grandson of Bill Blankenship, will play on both the offensive line and as a defensive end.

According to Kayleb Barnett's X/Twitter profile, the fastest football player from Broken Arrow has transferred to Jenks and will become the fastest football player on the Trojans.

Barnett was a playmaker and receiver for the Tigers football team and just a few days ago represented Broken Arrow while becoming 6A champion in the 100-meter dash.

After being a freshman starter for Broken Arrow last season, Octavian Roberson is Blankenship's go-to guy in the Tigers' running game. In the passing game, junior Jayden Love has a chance to become a key target.

Love was involved in two memorable plays in Thursday's practice game. After taking a pass in a slant pattern and looking poised to gain a ton of extra yards after the catch, senior safety Nicolas Miles made a hurried play – cleanly taking the football for a spectacular gain.

A few snaps later, Love leapt up despite tight double coverage to catch a high ball at the 2-yard line.

The most influential Tiger rookie may not be a player. That person could be Clarence Holley, a dynamic defensive coordinator.

In 2022, during Stillwater's run to the 6AII title, Holley coordinated the Pioneers' defense. In 13 games that season, Stillwater was undefeated, totaling 52 sacks and 29 interceptions. There were no pass interference penalties all season.

Holley is really entertaining to watch and listen to on the practice field.

For over 40 years, Bill and Josh Blankenship had a father-son dynamic in football. In the 2021-23 season, it was father versus son, with family-straining clashes between Bill's Owasso teams and Josh's Tigers.

That stress has disappeared since Bill Blankenship retired in December.

“I'm relieved,” Josh said. “I'm happy for him. It's a mixture of all kinds of emotions.”

During Broken Arrow's perfect season leading to the 2018 state title, the Tigers were 5-0 in key games. During the regular season, BA beat Union 33-10, Owasso 47-20 and Jenks 28-13. In postseason rematches, the Tigers defeated Jenks in the semifinals and Jenks in the title game.

That is Josh Blankenship's daily goal: to rebuild the Tiger program piece by piece and bring it to a level where these significant victories happen on a regular basis.

“These kids have learned how to work and they've developed into a really strong team,” he said. “We give it our all. Nobody bats an eyelid.”

Painted on one of the walls of the Broken Arrow locker room is a quote from Abraham Lincoln that seems to fit Blankenship's offseason rebuild: “Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I'll spend the first four hours sharpening the axe.”