Back on track

By Staff
Hartselle's rushing game piles up 305 yards, 5 touchdowns in easy win over Muscle Shoals
Justin Schuver, Hartselle Enquirer
MUSCLE SHOALS – Hartselle's offense got a boost Friday night from a pair of Murphys – one expected and one a bit of a surprise.
The Tigers' offense exploded for a 54-14 win over Muscle Shoals as Hartselle racked up 305 yards rushing and senior running back Montrell Murphy scored two touchdowns. But it was another senior, offensive lineman Caleb Murphy, who might have had the most memorable score.
With 24 seconds left in the first half, Hartselle quarterback Luke Bole spiked the ball on the Muscle Shoals 3-yard line to stop the clock. As the Tigers ran in the next play's formation, a player also arrived with a No. 90 jersey, which Murphy promptly slipped on over his usual No. 61 jersey.
With his new number, Murphy was now eligible as a receiver, and he made the most of his opportunity by catching a pass for a touchdown to make the score 33-7 after Tyler Bennich's extra point.
"Ever since 7/8 (year-old) I've been dreaming of catching a touchdown pass," Murphy said. "That was my first one ever."
The win was the first of the season for Hartselle (1-3, 1-2 in Region 8), whose first three losses came to teams who currently have a combined record of 9-3. Muscle Shoals fell to 2-2 and 1-2 in region play.
"I'm just really proud of these guys," Hartselle coach Bob Godsey said. "It's been tough, but they battled through it. It's good to get a win. It's hard to fight your guts out and not feel rewarded, so it was really nice to see these guys get a win."
The Tigers scored early and often Friday night, rushing out to a 13-0 lead just 7:11 into the first quarter. Hartselle's first touchdown came on a 28-yard pass from Bole to Tony Weaver and the second score was a 65-yard run by Marquez Jones. The play appeared designed for Jones to run to the left, but he reversed direction to the right and followed his blockers for the long touchdown. Bennich made the first extra point but missed the second.
Muscle Shoals responded with its first scoring drive of the game to cut Hartselle's lead to six points when Evan Mansell hit Matt Creel for a 9-yard touchdown pass with 1:46 remaining in the quarter.
But the Tigers came right back with a 64-yard drive that finished with a 3-yard run by Montrell Murphy. Bole's attempted two-point conversion pass was intercepted but Hartselle increased its lead to 19-7 with 9:27 left in the second quarter. Murphy finished the game with 112 yards on 13 carries.
"We scored on the next drive after each of their scores and you always want to do that," Godsey said.
An 8-yard touchdown run by Jones and Caleb Murphy's 3-yard touchdown reception gave Hartselle a 33-7 lead at halftime. Jones' run came two plays after Muscle Shoals botched a snap on an attempted punt, giving the Tigers the ball in great field position.
Hartselle's lone turnover of the game set Muscle Shoals up for its last touchdown. A fumble gave the Trojans the ball on the Hartselle 22-yard line and Collin Bradford scored on third-and-goal from the 7 as Muscle Shoals cut Hartselle's lead to 33-14 with 6:25 remaining in the third quarter.
Once more, Hartselle responded with a scoring drive of its own. The drive started in great field position following a 38-yard kickoff return by Montrell Murphy, who scored on a 7-yard run four plays later – all running plays by Murphy. Dylan Stephensen added the first of his three extra points and Hartselle led 40-14 with 4:40 left in the third.
After stopping the Trojans on fourth down, the Tigers started to put in their reserves. Malcom Fosset scored on a 1-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter and Josh Slaten returned an interception 35 yards for Hartselle's last score of the game.
Hartselle's running game was remarkably efficient in the win, as seven different Tigers recorded carries. Hartselle amassed 305 yards on 36 carries, for an average of 9.44 yards per rushing play.
"We worked this whole week on going from whistle-to-whistle," said Caleb Murphy when asked about the attitude of the offensive line. "As a matter of fact, the refs kept telling us to watch the whistle because we kept going and going and didn't stop at all."
Hartselle remains on the road to face Cullman Friday night in a non-region game at 7 p.m. The Bearcats are 4-0 and won the last meeting at Cullman's Woodard Stadium by a score of 37-10 in 2005; Hartselle won last year's contest 28-14 at J.P. Cain Stadium.