Prep Football: Red Devils run past Dogs
Murphysboro rushed for 304 yards on Friday night and beat visiting Harrisburg, 32-13, in a key SIRR Ohio Division matchup.
Brandon Graeff led the way for the Red Devils with 133 yards on just 13 carries. His 57-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter gave the Red Devils (3-4, 2-2) the lead for good.
"I don't if they come any more hard nosed than him,'' Murphysboro coach Gary Carter said of Graeff. "To step up and play defense and special teams, too... He's just very solid."
Murphysboro grabbed an early lead with 8:49 remaining in the first quarter when a seven-yard touchdown run by Brandon Caldwell made it 6-0.
It stayed that way until the 9:12 mark of the second quarter when Jordan Bartok capped off a short drive for Harrisburg with an eight-yard TD run. Dalton Drone's extra point kick gave the Bulldogs a 7-6 advantage.
That advantage didn't last long, though, as Graeff ripped off a 57-yard scoring run at the 8:11 mark of the second period. Ethan Cook then caught a pass from Gavin Topp for the two-point conversion to give the Red Devils a 14-7 lead.
It looked like the Bulldogs would post another score just before halftime, but they couldn't get into the end zone on two tries from the two-yard line before time expired in the first half.
"Those were huge. Especially against a team like Harrisburg,'' Carter said of the goal line stops. "That's a testament to coach (Jason) LeGrand and the staff for getting those guys ready. That kept the momentum on our side."
Murphysboro created some breathing room early in the second half and went up 20-7 on a 13-yard touchdown run by Noah Barnes.
Harrisburg responded a little over two minutes later when Bartok scored on a nine-yard run to make it 20-13. That would be the last time the Bulldogs would score, though.
Murphysboro pushed its lead to 26-13 when Barnes scored from four yards out with 2:02 left in the third period. The Red Devils closed out the scoring with 1:59 remaining in the contest on a 25-yard TD run by Topp.
Harrisburg was its own worst enemy in the game. The Bulldogs had two turnovers, and two bad snaps on punts that gave Murphysboro great field position.
"We reverted back to the way we were playing earlier in the year," said Harrisburg coach Al Way. "That's been our problem all year, which is consistency. Our blocking was inconsistent, and we dropped passes. You just can't do those things and expect to beat a decent team."
The victory was one of three Murphysboro needs to have a shot at a winning record and another playoff appearance.
"The kids stepped up and executed and played well,'' Carter said. "That's what it comes down to.
"I've been in a bad mood for seven days and my wife hugged me and told me now I could smile. I didn't like where we were (after the loss to West Frankfort). We've got to be a better team and teammates. I felt like we were lacking a little bit there. We stepped up and hopefully we can maintain what we've got and have each others backs."
Scoring Summary
1ST QUARTER
M -- Caldwell 7 run (kick failed) 8:49
2ND QUARTER
H -- Bartok 8 run (Drone kick) 9:12
M -- Graeff 57 run (Cook pass from Topp) 8:11
3RD QUARTER
M -- Barnes 13 run (run failed) 9:58
H -- Bartok 9 run (kick failed)
M -- Barnes 4 run (pass failed) 2:02
4TH QUARTER
M -- Topp 25 run (run failed) 1:59
Team Statistics
H M
1st downs 11 17
Rushing 44-175 41-304
Passing 3-11-1--27 3-6-0--46
Fumbles 2-1 3-2
Penalties 5-30 7-40
Individual Statistics
RUSHING: Harrisburg -- Bartok 13-68, Doss 9-89, Upchurch 14-58, Cletcher 2-17, Smith 1-3, Ragsdale 1-3, Saulsberry 2-(-15), Vaughn 2-(-48). Murphysboro -- Graeff 13-133, Barnes 15-66, Caldwell 10-79, Topp 3-26.
PASSING: Harrisburg -- Saulsberry 3-11-1--27. Murphysboro -- Topps 3-6-0--46.
RECEIVING: Harrisburg -- Doss 1-2, Gould 2-8, Jackson 1-17. Murphysboro -- Miles 1-9, Graeff 1-9, Caldwell 1-28.