Bulldogs rout Hayesville, Robbinsville up next
Murphy – After all the excitement and giddiness on the Bulldogs sideline during the game, it didn’t take head coach Joseph Watson long to turn the page.
The postgame huddle didn’t even talk about what just took place, a 56-14 annihilation of Hayesville. He talked about having a good week to get ready for Robbinsville, the Bulldogs’ biggest rival in recent years. The win over the Yellow Jackets had been a foregone conclusion since the second quarter, as Murphy took care of business against a young team.
“It feels like it’s supposed to feel,” Watson said. “That’s we’ve been doing for the last 10 to 12 years.
“But it feels good. I’m proud of the kids. They played hard and continued to play hard throughout the game.”
After Andrews’ offense punished it a few yards at a time, Hayesville (2-5, 0-2 Smoky Mountain Conference) struggled more against the more dynamic and explosive Bulldogs’ offense. Murphy (5-2, 2-0) finished with 558 yards and scored on all but one of its possessions. In five wins this season, the Bulldogs have scored 260 points.
“Every week, we think we can have a big week offensively,” quarterback Kellen Rumfelt said. “Especially against Hayesville, honestly, we could’ve scored anyway we wanted to.”
Hayesville entered the game wanting to attack Murphy through the air, which is unusual to say in the Smoky Mountain Conference. The Yellow Jackets were able to move the ball at times, but couldn’t capitalize on all their opportunities.
Hayesville turned the ball over twice, which both led to Bulldogs touchdowns, then came up short on fourth down three times in Murphy territory. The Bulldogs also had their best tackling performance of the season, something Watson emphasized in practice last week.
“We had a good week of practice,” Watson said. “We’re still working, we’re still getting better, we’re still trying to find people. As long as we can continue to do that, we’re going to be all right.”
After Hayesville punted on its first drive, Murphy took control and never looked back. A 10-play drive ended when Rumfelt hit a wide open Cole Laney near the right sideline, and he finished the job for a 21-yard touchdown. On Hayesville’s next play from scrimmage, Logan Caldwell botched a read with his running back and lost the ball, which was picked up by Will Johnson for a 5-yard scoop and score.
Though Caldwell got Hayesville on the board on the ensuing drive, the Bulldogs always had control of the game. Juan Allen answered Caldwell’s touchdown with a 25-yard run of his own, pushing the lead back out to 21-7 with 10:17 left in the second quarter.
The Yellow Jackets fumbled on their next drive, and Murphy cashed in with Allen making an incredible catch on a Rumfelt deep ball for a 42-yard touchdown. Allen would add his third score of the half with 53 seconds left in the quarter on a 5-yard run.
A 3-yard touchdown run by Ty Laney in the third quarter put the running clock into play. Hayesville wouldn’t score again until Murphy put its second string in in the fourth quarter.
The Bulldogs enter their most crucial stretch of the season this week, starting with Senior Night against Robbinsville (2-3, 0-1) this Friday. The two teams have battled for conference and North Carolina 1A supremacy for nearly a decade. The Black Knights bested the Bulldogs 17-7 during the regular season last spring before Murphy ended their 24-game win streak in the 1A Western Regional final 24-14 on its way to a state championship.
“Robbinsville is always a game that you have to come out and play your best,” Allen said, “or you’ll be surprised.”