Hickory – It all comes down to Saturday. The culmination of the 2025 football season as the top two teams in the 2A classification will meet on the gridiron with a lot at stake and a lot to prove.
Murphy will make their first state championship appearance since the 2020-21 COVID-19 season where they claimed the 1A title.
Tarboro is making their ninth straight state championship appearance, setting the state record more most Regional championship in a row. In their past eight appearances, they have won five state titles.
The Vikings of Tarboro are also coming into the game with a chip on their shoulder as they are riding a 24-game win streak. Their last loss came at home to Havelock on Sept. 26, 2025.
The Bulldogs are coming into the game riding the momentum of a 10-game win streak and are hoping to be the team to break Tarboro to claim the state 2A title Saturday evening.
Murphy has also won their last four state championship appearances. In 2013 and 2016, they defeated Plymouth, in 2018 they defeated Pamlico and in 2020-21 they defeated Northside-Pinetown.
In their 13 total state title appearances, they hold a 9-3 record. Tarboro is 10-6 in state championship games.
In 2024, the Vikings defeated Corvian Community, which Murphy defeated 49-40 in the fourth round of this season’s playoffs. Prior to claiming the 2024 title, they were humbled in back-to-back years by Mount Airy as they scored a combined 10 points across the 2022 and 2023 state championships.
Grinding it out
In Saturday’s game, there is one thing that is guaranteed – Tarboro will run the heck out of the ball.
In their 14 games leading up to the state championship, Vikings running back K McDowell-Moore rushed for 2,002 yards on 164 carries. C Everette also rushed for 1,211 yards on 141 carries.
Quarterback T Powell only attempted 30 passes in the 14 games they played.
The Viking offense can run the ball, but they can also take it away as their defense has had 18 interceptions and nine fumble recoveries this season.
One thing is for certain – they haven’t seen a defense like Murphy’s. The Bulldogs’ defense has had a knack for shutting down opposing offenses.
Tackling and turnovers has been the name of the game for the red hot Bulldogs defense led by Brody Orton, Camden Breazeale and Laden Lape. Orton leads the team with 137 tackles, with Breazeale getting 125 and 118 for Lape.
The Bulldogs’ defense has also been very proficient at taking the ball away from their opposition. This season they have intercepted 21 passes and recovered 11 fumbles.
On offense, quarterback Brady Grant can sling the ball, but the Dogs can also run it down their opposition’s throat. Grant has thrown for more than 1,000 yards with double-digit touchdowns, while also rushing it into the end zone on multiple occasions.
The deadly Dogs’ backfield has been splitting offenses all season. Running backs Cameron Clem, Blake Davis, Michael Brown and Brody McFaddin have had teams on their heels this season, and they will look to do the same to Tarboro.
Tarboro hasn’t seen true mountain football, but on Saturday they will learn.
Dogs ready for big game
In the midst of their preparation for the state championship, the Cherokee Scout spoke with Bulldogs head coach Joseph Watson.
Watson spoke on how their non-conference games against teams such as A.C. Reynolds and Heard County, Ga., helped them prepare for playing strong teams far away from home, as well as how much the community support has meant to him and the team.
Talking about this week’s prep, Watson said that it is going well.
“We obviously have an extra day of prep, which is good. They (Tarboro) do some stuff a little different than what we’ve seen, and it’s good to be able to watch a little extra film and get a little extra prep on it,” Watson said.
“The kids are excited, so they’re a little more focused this week than usual.”
Since they have an extra day, Watson said by midweek they have most of what they’re working on, but will use the extra time to fine tune what they need to. He added that an extra day of recovery is good too.
Since they are playing Saturday, Watson said it was good since they don’t have to worry about school or the players getting out early.
Earlier in the season, the Dogs made multiple long trips during their non-conference schedule.
“We’ve played so many away games this year,” Watson said. “You’re never going to say that you’re going to be in a state championship or travel, but it’s a huge benefit for those kids that have made some long travel before, and know how to act or what to do or our routine in that as well.”
Watson added that the three-hour trip to Hickory isn’t too bad. He compared it to when they travel to Rosman.
‘We learned a lot’
During their non-conference games, the Bulldogs traveled to Asheville to play A.C. Reynolds and Heard County, Ga. Watson said those games were beneficial in terms of both travel as well as playing good teams.
“The kids know what we expect of them travel-wise, but even more so playing those teams that are really good and the speed that they play at and the speed that we’re going to see this week will be comparable to how those guys play, especially Heard County… but we learned a lot from that game,” he said.
“We also learned a lot from A.C. Reynolds. We schedule those games for a reason, scheduling those games that make us better late in the year and hopefully it’s doing that.”
Watson’s message to the team this week has been that it’s a great opportunity to play in the state championship.
“It’s going to be a lot of those guys’ last football game. You don’t have to really say too much this week. They understand the assignment. They have to play hard and they have to keep doing what they’ve done the whole year and just to finish this thing off,” he said.
Watson said getting to Bulldogs to the state championship means a lot to him. He added that it also means a lot to Murphy High as well as Watson’s family. It’s a fun and hectic week that goes by really quick, so he’s glad for the extra day.
“Anytime you get a chance to play for a championship at any level, it’s a special day, and it’s something that you’re going to remember for a long time,” he said.
The support from the community means a lot to Watson and the team, he said, especially the flags in town.
“That was pretty cool. The kids were really excited about seeing that, and that’s just the things that the town and community does,” Watson said.
“Anytime you see somebody they’re yelling ‘Go Dogs!’ at you, you know it’s great to have that type of energy back into town and energy back at the stadium and people are excited again and we want to make sure that we maintain that excitement,” he said.
“The kids are excited about it … We have a really good town, and it’s not just because we’re winning. They’re willing to help at any time, and we’re just really thankful for that.”
Bulldog Country on road
The Murphy Bulldogs and Tarboro Vikings will go head to head at 5 p.m. Saturday at Moretz Stadium on the campus of Lenoir-Rhyne College.
Gates open at 4 p.m. Spectators will enter through the East side of the stadium, which is opposite of the press box side.
Tickets are $20 and free for ages 5 and under. Parking is $10 and cashless only. Fans are not allowed to re-enter the stadium if they leave and no spectators are allowed on the field after the game.
Spectators are not allowed to bring in coolers, thermos bottles or any outside food or drink. Concessions will cashless transactions. They will also have a clear bag policy in effect and all bags are subject to search.
Fan parking will be located at Lot F, 768 Stasavich Place, as well as Lot J at 637 Eighth Ave. N.E. ADA-accessible parking is at Lot F. Street parking will be along Eighth Avenue Northeast.