Oklahoma 4A high school football team cancels Friday's game citing injuries, absences

School's AD says program unable to provide "full and competitive team" this week

Medill High School announced on Thursday that its Friday game at Tecumseh has been canceled after injuries and absences would not allow the 0-3 Wildcats to field a competitive team this week. / Ryan Isley, SBLive Sports

The Madill Wildcats will not take the field this Friday.

The school announced Thursday morning that its Week 4 road game at Tecumseh has been canceled because of a lack of available players, marking another setback for a program that has struggled to stay afloat in recent years.

Madill Public School Athletic Director Ron Norman released a statement to the community regarding the decision:

“Wildcat family: Due to a high number of player injuries and unavoidable absences, we unfortunately will not be unable to field a full and competitive team for our upcoming football game scheduled for Friday, September 26 vs. Tecumseh High School.

"For the safety of our athletes and fairness of competition, the game has been canceled. We understand the disappointment this may cause, but the health and well-being of our players must come first.

"We appreciate your understanding and continued support of our student-athletes. Thank you for standing behind our team as they recover and prepare for the remainder of the 2025 football season.”

The cancellation comes as Madill, a Class 4A program that competes in a tough district, District 2, continues to endure growing pains under first-year head coach Wade Couch. The Wildcats finished the 2024 season at 1-9, being outscored 359-76, with their lone victory coming in Week 2 against Marietta. Their struggles have carried into 2025, where they are 0-3 with lopsided losses to Kingston, Marietta and Dickson.

The Wildcats have been outscored 160-29 to start the new season, including a 64-2 defeat against Kingston in Week 1 and a 54-20 loss to Dickson last week.

The Savages, Madill’s would-be opponent this week, are currently 2-1 and appear to be trending upward. They defeated the Wildcats 21-0 in last year’s Week 4 matchup and likely would have posed another difficult challenge Friday night.

Posted by Madill Wildcat Athletics on Thursday, September 25, 2025

But the road only gets tougher from here. Following the cancellation, Madill’s next scheduled game is a Week 5 home matchup against Tuttle. The Tigers, who finished as the Class 4A runner-up in 2024 after going 13-1, look every bit as dominant in 2025. They are 3-0 entering their Week 4 contest against Ardmore, having outscored opponents 129-20 and fresh off a 56-0 blowout of Noble. Tuttle also blanked Madill 61-0 in last year’s Week 5 meeting.

Speculation began circulating on social media Thursday about rumors of the program - guided by former Spiro coach Wade Couch, who is Madill's third head coach in as many years - potentially canceling the rest of its season, though no such announcement has been made and Norman's statement did not seem to indicate any such consideration.

Norman did not make it clear in his statement how many players are injured or absent, and it's unclear how many players are rostered at Madill, as its roster is not listed on either MaxPreps or the school's dedicated football page. Observers have noted that the team is largely comprised of underclassmen, especially freshmen, and pointed to much of its top talent having transferred to other schools in recent years to play football.

For now, Madill turns its focus to recovery and preparation for what could be its toughest test yet next week. Whether the Wildcats can rebound, and whether they will play Tuttle, remains to be seen, but their athletic department made clear that safety comes first.

---

Recommended Articles

feed