Claremore Christian has unfinished business.
After falling short in last year’s Frontier Christian Athletic Association championship, the Warriors return with one of the most explosive offenses in eight-man football and a roster hungry to prove it can finish the job this time around.
“Everybody’s just dialed in and ready,” CCS coach Steve Robinett said. “They’ve been working hard this summer and are ready for Friday night.”
OVERVIEW
CCS enters the 2025 season with optimism and confidence.
Coach Steve Robinett is encouraged by the growth of his team, both in size and skill, over the summer. Players bought into agility and strength training, with several younger athletes adding weight and improving their impact potential.
The Warriors averaged 44.8 points per game last fall, and Robinett expects that production to continue thanks to the return of key offensive weapons like junior receiver Malachi Zehder, junior quarterback Grant Schulze and senior running back Troy Frank.
Schulze, entering his third year as the starter, provides stability and experience in the backfield.
“I expect big numbers out of our offense,” said Robinett, whose team put up 50 points or more in five games in 2024. “We put up some big scores last year. We had a couple graduate, but I think some young kids coming up are going to make a pretty big difference and give us a little more versatility.”
Defensively, however, CCS faces more uncertainty.
The graduation of standout linebacker Jesse Hargis, safety Seth Smith and versatile contributor Isaak Soap leaves the unit — which surrendered 19.7 ppg last season — with big shoes to fill.
Robinett acknowledged that while the offense should hum, but replacing those defensive stalwarts will be the team’s biggest challenge.
“We’re getting there,” Robinett said. “We we graduated a lot of key players on our defense and some major contributors, so trying to fill those gaps is a little harder than they were on offense this year. We’ll be ready, but I’m still not quite sure what we’ll look like there yet.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
The spotlight starts with Schulze, who has been under center since his freshman season.
Now a veteran, Schulze’s poise and ability to orchestrate the offense makes him the steady hand guiding the Warriors’ fast-paced attack.
“Grant hooked up with Zehder quite a bit on those deep balls, and that helps,” Robinett said. “It’s great having them back, of course. Having one more year is even more exciting with them because they just keep getting better every year.”
At running back, Frank will be asked to carry an even larger load after tallying between 10-12 touchdowns on the ground a year ago.
His physical running style balances Schulze’s passing game, giving CCS multiple ways to score.
“He’s a good, big short-yardage back, so if we got down there close, he’s definitely getting the call,” Robinett said.
Zehder and Derek Smith add versatility at the skill positions, with both capable of stretching defenses vertically or working the short game. Robinett also expects his son, freshman Jaxon Robinett, to provide another dimension to the offense.
Although the offensive firepower is well-documented, the development of the younger defenders will determine how far this team goes.
Coach Robinett noted that several players made significant strides in the offseason, and he said he believes the unit will eventually find its footing.
“I don’t expect any less numbers out of them this year than we had last year, so it should be a good offensive showing for them,” coach Robinett said.
SCHEDULE OUTLOOK
The Warriors’ path to a quality regular season won’t be easy.
They will see stiff competition from Wichita HomeSchool and Welch, and a matchup with perennial power Destiny Christian looms large as a true litmus test. Elsewhere, Foyil is a rivalry matchup that seems to always produce a good game.
However, CCS loses Wesleyan Christian, which it has played the past three seasons, from the schedule after the school announced last week it didn’t have enough players to field a team.
The FCAA landscape has also changed significantly.
With Wichita Faith Academy and Cross Christian folding their football programs, the league now features only three teams: CCS, Life Christian and Cornerstone Christian (Joplin). That reality has forced coach Robinett to scramble for opponents, filling out the schedule with a mix of challenging nonleague matchups.
“We’ve had to, in the last month, try to find filler games and bounce around,” coach Robinett said. “We had to pick Destiny Christian up for Homecoming when Cross canceled. We’ve yet to fill the game against Wesleyan because we just found out about it Friday.
Despite those hurdles, optimism runs high.
National outlet MaxPreps has predicted the Warriors as the favorite to win the FCAA title, though coach Robinett stresses that his team is focused on daily improvement rather than preseason accolades.
“MaxPreps does a great job of trying to gather up information and put the best info out there,” coach Robinett said. “I know they’ve done a little bit of homework on it, but for us, it’s still day-by-day, week-by-week. We’ve got to win before we get there.”