Racer Felter scrambles to avoid an El Reno tackler. The sophomore quarterback finished with 551 total yards and 5 touchdowns. (Glen Miller/El Reno Tribune)
EL RENO — MacArthur coach Brett Manning said he knew his team’s offense would put up points, but he didn’t anticipate the amount of success it enjoyed.
The Highlanders could seemingly do no wrong, racking up 826 yards of offense on the way to a 64-35 win over El Reno in District 5A-1 action at Memorial Stadium on Friday night.
“I don’t think you ever really think you can do that against a quality team,” Manning said. “The biggest thing is our offensive coaches did a good job of mixing stuff up. We were in and out of different personnel groupings with the run and the pass — we even had a few trick plays in there.
“I felt like we had them on their heels all night long with how we mixed up all of our stuff.”
Leading the way for No. 6 Mac (3-2, 2-0) was quarterback Racer Felter.
Felter completed 17 of 25 passes for 395 yards and three touchdowns in a game that featured 1,388 combined offensive yards. He also rushed for 156 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries, bringing his total yardage to 551.
The sophomore said he woke up with a feeling he and the Highlanders would have a remarkable night, and that hunch came to fruition.
“I thought everything was going to click, and that’s exactly what it did,” Felter said. “My offense really did something special tonight and helped me to have a great game.”
Felter’s touchdown passes came on throws of 73, 40 and 65 yards — all to Jarious McKnight. The 73 yarder came on a flea flicker on only the second play of the game.
Despite the preseason hype surrounding the receiver, McKnight managed only 180 yards receiving and one touchdown on 19 receptions through the first four games. Most of those yards came in a 107-yard outing against Eisenhower in the season opener.
Unfortunately for the Indians, his breakout performance finally came.
The senior finished with 270 yards receiving on only seven catches — a whopping 38.57 yards per catch.
McKnight said he knew if he kept working hard despite his early struggles, the desired results would come.
“I felt like I was running my routes harder this week,” McKnight said. “I’ve been practicing really hard, and I just want to thank my quarterback for throwing good passes.
“I thought we threw the ball a lot tonight. The past few games, we were throwing the ball too, but tonight was just a big night for me.”
Felter said he trusts McKnight and his ability to make big catches, which is why their connection remained in sync for the duration of the contest.
"It was really good to connect with someone who is that experienced and started last year," Felter said. "We were both on the same page tonight, and we showed up to play."
Running back Nick Mahan had another standout showing, rushing for 246 yards and four touchdowns on 33 carries. Mahan is averaging 160.2 yards per game this season.
Manning said he continues to be impressed with Mahan’s tenacity when running the ball.
“I think he did a great job, like he has all year,” Manning said. “He’s been over 100 yards every game so far, and he’s just a tough kid who knows our offense well, runs hard and takes care of the football. I’m really proud of him.”
However, with the offensive success came defensive struggles.
The Highlanders were locked in a shootout with El Reno (2-3, 0-2) in the first half, leading 43-35 at halftime. The teams combined for 979 yards in the opening two quarters — 555 belonging to Mac.
The Indians seemed to have an answer for every Mac score, tallying 424 yards in the first half behind star running back Hunter Cometsevah.
Cometsevah ran for 251 yards on 19 carries in the first half, scoring on touchdowns runs of 34, 66 and 59 yards. Two of the scores came in the explosive final 2:42 of the second quarter — a timeframe where five touchdowns were exchanged between the teams.
“A lot of his yards were just untouched,” Manning said of Cometsevah. “He did a good job, though. He was fast, and when he got to the second level, we had a hard time bringing him down.”
The Indians’ offensive fireworks ceased in the second half, though.
Cometsevah, who finished with 335 yards rushing on 32 carries, was held to only 84 yards in the latter quarters, which proved to have a negative impact on El Reno’s offensive scheme. The Indians could muster only 138 yards in the second half, going scoreless in the process.
Quarterback Gage Arnold accounted for El Reno’s other scores, tossing touchdowns passes of 26 and 56 yards to cap off a 222-yard night, completing 11 of his 25 throws.
Manning said he was frustrated with the defensive unit giving up so many big plays in the first half, but he was pleased with how it rebounded and ended the game in a strong way.
The Highlanders forced four turnovers on the night — three fumbles and an interception — holding the Indians to 1-of-6 on third-downs attempts and 0-of-3 on fourth downs in the meantime.
“I don’t know why it’s more comfortable to be in a defensive struggle than an offensive struggle, but when you get scored on like that, it’s not fun,” Manning said. “We just needed to figure some stuff out, and I’m proud of our defensive coaches and our defensive front for stepping up and rising to the occasion.”
Mac will try to improve to 3-0 in District 5A-1 when the Highlanders face Del City (2-3, 1-1) at Cameron Stadium on Thursday night. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.