In 2020, the nation was ravaged with COVID-19, and school attendance was being done remotely.
Considering these concerns, the fall football season was canceled and rescheduled for spring 2021. It was a little strange to see football being played in February, but it happened.
Murphy and Robbinsville were cruising along, with both teams coming into the conference matchup undefeated on April 9, 2021. The game was played at Robbinsville, and Murphy would enter with a key part of its offense absent due to an injury earlier in the season.
Peyton McCracken went down in an earlier game, and he was one of Kellen Rumfelt’s main targets in the passing game. It proved to be the difference, as the Black Knights dominated the line of scrimmage and won the Smoky Mountain Conference championship 17-7.
Robbinsville’s quarterback, Nathan Collins, was named Athlete of the Week by the Asheville Citizen-Times, as he went 5-for-7 for 69 yards passing, added 64 more yards on the ground and scored Robbinsville’s opening touchdown. Both teams would make the playoffs and three weeks later the rematch was set.
The Bulldogs, who had to travel for all of their playoff games, faced two tough challenges from Thomas Jefferson, which they won 28-20; and Elkin, which they won 29-24. Robbinsville was at home for the playoffs, just getting by Winston Salem Prep 42-40 and an undefeated Mitchell 28-20.
The Mitchell game was broadcast by a local internet streaming service, and many Murphy fans on the way back from Elkin were listening to the postgame show. Collins had a stellar game against Mitchell, where he had gained 175 yards on 12 carries for three of the Black Knights four touchdowns.
The announcer on the broadcast said there wasn’t a team in North Carolina that could stop Collins and these Black Knights. Murphy didn’t need much motivation for the following week, but this did add some fuel to the fire, especially under Murphy QB Rumfelt.
Robbinsville had some injury problems of its own in that second game. Starting defensive end Rossi Wachacha injured himself earlier the day of the game during Field Day at Robbinsville High School. He tried to go, but further injured himself in the first quarter and had to leave for the rest of the game.
Murphy came out gunning, Rumfelt completed his first two passes of 15 yards apiece and Robbinsville was shell-shocked. They had to loosen up their front seven to cover the pass, and Murphy started running the ball, with Ty Laney going in for 13 yards out for the first score.
Rumfelt continued throwing the ball on Murphy’s second possession and had Murphy back in the end zone for a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. He finished the night 10-for-13 with 114 yards.
Murphy pushed the lead to 17-0 with 1:53 left in the half. Collins got into the action before halftime completing a 54-yard pass that set up a Brock Adams’ TD to make the score 17-7 at the half.
That announcer was right about Nathan Collins. He still had 120 yards on 20 rushes and added 73 yards through the air, but Murphy’s defense kept Robbinsville out of the end zone when it mattered. They held the rest of the Black Knights’ rushing attack to only 35 total yards.
Meanwhile, Murphy had two running backs who went over 100 yards, Ray Rathburn and Ty Laney. The win put the Bulldogs in the state 1A title game against Northside Pinetown.
Northside Pinetown lost its conference title to Pamlico County and had to travel in all of their games in the playoffs. Just like Murphy, they had knocked their rival out of the playoffs to advance to the title game.
Northside Pinetown had a super speedy running back, and coach David Gentry knew he must be contained for Murphy to win its 11th state title. What he didn’t count on was the ability of Northside Pinetown to shut down the Bulldogs’ running attack.
Great thing for Gentry was that he had Rumfelt at quarterback and Peyton McCracken back from injury. Rumfelt completed his first eight passes and entered the half with 207 yards passing to give Murphy a 14-0 lead.
Rumfelt went down in the third quarter and finished 12-for-15 with 254 yards and two TDs. The first came on a 14-yard pass to Cole Laney, while the second was a 55-yard bomb to Isra Smith.
Pinetown’s speedy running back. James Gorman busted loose on a 72-yard TD run to cut Murphy’s lead to 14-7 on the second play of the second half. After that run, Murphy’s defense held Pinetown to 34 yards of total offense.
McCracken received the Offensive Most Valuable Player trophy, Ray Rathburn received Defensive MVP honors and the overall MVP award went to Kellen Rumfelt. The game also brought the end of an era.
It was the last game Gentry would be at the helm of the Bulldogs, as he announced his retirement a few weeks later.
The split in the 1A division ended in spring 2021, and by fall there was just one 1A championship in North Carolina. This pitted all the schools that had been playing in the 1AA division against smaller schools in 1A and it made it tougher for schools in the SMC to reach the finals.
Fall 2021 saw a new man leading the Bulldogs. Lon time assistant Joseph Watson took over as head coach at Murphy, and a team that had been absent from the top of the Smoky Mountain Conference discussion began to ascend to that top spot.
Andrews had a special group of juniors in 2021. This group played together since they started at peewees and, unlike many other successful youth teams, this team stayed together all the way into high school.
This team only lost to their cross-county rivals twice during their football career – once in the youth leagues and that spring. They would not lose to Murphy for the next two years.
Andrews did not win the conference in 2021, but it did reach several milestones. The Wildcats had their first winning season since 2012, and they got their first win over Murphy in 43 years, downing the Dogs 22-12.
Robbinsville would win conference that year, but would be knocked out of the playoffs by Mitchell in the fourth round. Murphy and Andrews exited the playoff a few weeks earlier.
The year of 2022 was a dream season for Andrews. This same group of players had one goal on their mind, and it wasn’t just a conference crown – they wanted to take a trip to Raleigh for a state title.
Their goal was a lofty one. The new realignment the year before brought them into a league where they were not only facing the 1A teams their counterparts had to deal with in years past, but also the larger teams from 1AA to get to that title game.
Andrews breezed through the Smoky Mountain Conference, beating the big three of Murphy, Swain and Robbinsville. The Wildcats advanced to the semifinal game of the playoffs, where they ran into the first former 1AA team, Draughn, falling 42-21.
Andrews was the only former 1A member who reached the final four that year. If they had been competing under the old realignment, they very well could have attained their goal.
Robbinsville would assume a familiar position for Black Knights in 2023 – the top spot in the conference. The Black Knights went undefeated in conference play and advanced to the semifinals of the 1A state playoffs.
The Black Knights fell short, falling to eventual state champion Mount Airy 27-16. Mount Airy had dispatched Murphy a week earlier, and Robbinsville had beat Swain for a second time the week before to send the Maroon Devils home.
The SMC has a rich tradition, and the goal of members of this conference is to bring state titles back to these mountains. A new realignment will take effect in fall 2025, and if it shapes up as it appears to be there will be many more of titles coming back to far-western North Carolina.