The Murphy Bulldogs had already proven themselves in the regular season, and didn't miss a beat now that it's playoff time. They took their matchup at home on Friday with ease, bagging a 57-21 win over Polk County. Murphy might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team's won five matches by 22 points or more this season.
Hunter Stalcup continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 321 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 16.9 yards per carry. Stalcup hasn't dropped below 100 rushing yards for three straight games. Another player making a difference was Cameron Clem, who rushed for 99 yards and a touchdown on only 11 carries.
Murphy's defense stepped up as well, laying out the QB three times. Leading the way was Kadence Leatherwood and his two sacks.
The victory (which was Murphy's third in a row) raised their record to 8-3. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 39.7 points per game. As for Polk County, they are on a four-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 4-7.
Murphy will head out on the road to face off against Bishop McGuinness at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Bishop McGuinness will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps North Carolina Rankings (they are ranked 267th, while Murphy is ranked 104th). Polk County does not have any more games scheduled as of now.
