Bulldogs Gut Out 21-17 Win Over A.C. Reynolds

MURPHY — This one felt like Murphy football.

It wasn’t always pretty. It wasn’t easy. But when the Bulldogs needed to make plays in the fourth quarter Friday night, they made them.

Murphy erased a late deficit with 14 points in the fourth quarter and knocked off A.C. Reynolds, 21-17, giving the Bulldogs their second straight win.

And a familiar face was right in the middle of it.

Senior Cameron Clem returned to the Bulldog backfield and immediately reminded everyone what he brings to this offense. Clem carried the ball 29 times for 166 yards and a touchdown, helping Murphy grind away at a Reynolds defense that made the Bulldogs earn just about everything they got.

Murphy took a 7-3 lead into the second quarter before the Rockets began to turn things in their favor. Reynolds eventually grabbed an 11-7 lead in the third and took the lead into the 4th quarter.

That put Murphy in a spot where it had to respond.

Murphy punched in two fourth-quarter touchdowns, while the Bulldog defense continued to make life difficult for the Reynolds offense. By the time the clock hit zero, Murphy had completed the comeback and walked away with a 21-17 win.

The biggest difference may have been what happened in the trenches.

Murphy rushed for 260 yards on the night while holding A.C. Reynolds to just 62 yards on 32 carries. The Rockets averaged less than two yards per attempt against a Bulldog defense that refused to give them much room between the tackles.

Murphy didn’t need much through the air. Quarterback Peyton Bain completed 2-of-5 passes for 24 yards as the Bulldogs leaned heavily on their running game.

Reynolds finished with 193 yards of total offense, including 112 yards passing from quarterback Brooks Gutch.

For Murphy, the win continues what has been an impressive response to a difficult opening night.

The Bulldogs were handed a 42-7 loss by Franklin to begin the season. Since then, they’ve gone on the road and beaten East Surry and now come back home and taken down A.C. Reynolds.

Two straight wins against quality football teams, and Friday night’s victory showed the Dogs can fight through adversity.

Now sitting at 2-1, Murphy hits the road again Friday night and heads across the state line to Anderson, South Carolina, for another big test against Westside. The Rams are the 20th ranked team in all of South Carolina, and quarterback Bear Woods along with Defensive End Christian Webb-Scott are two of the top recruits in the country.

Needless to say, the Dogs are up against a giant on Friday night, and it will be interesting to see how they compete.

Tune in to FYNTV.com for a free livestream of the game Friday at 7:30pm.