“I’m proud of them,” Trojan head coach Brian Clowdis said. “They’ve played as hard as they can the last two weeks, and they’re fun to watch when they do that. Our defense has been lights out pretty much.”
Luke Murphy led the charge for the Trojans (5-3, 4-2 Class 1A, Region 6), posting 17 tackles with three sacks and three quarterback hurries in the win. He also rushed for 41 yards on 13 carries with two touchdowns and threw two touchdown passes to receiver Levi Morgan.
Morgan also had a strong night defensively with nine tackles and a pass deflection. Michael Zuber came away with 13 tackles, a sack, a fumble recovery and two quarterback hurries. Justin Jennings had eight tackles. Josh Whitaker and Brian Sanford posted six tackles apiece.
Clay Joseph, who just became eligible to play on Monday, recorded seven tackles, had an interception, recovered a fumble and blocked a kick.
John David Jennings led the Trojan ground game with 118 yards on 30 carries.
After a scoreless first quarter, Gaylesville got on the board on its first possession of the second quarter. Murphy scored on a 1-yard run to put the Trojans up 6-0.
After Valley Head (4-4, 3-3) took a 7-6 lead, the Trojans scored with seven seconds remaining before the half when Murphy connected with Morgan on an 11-yard touchdown pass. That gave Gaylesville a 12-7 lead at the break.
Murphy added a 9-yard touchdown run at the end of the third quarter to increase the Trojans’ lead to 18-7.
Valley Head cut Gaylesville lead to 18-13 on quarterback Greg Blansit’s 7-yard touchdown run with seven minutes to go in the fourth quarter, but the Trojan defense didn’t allow the Tigers to get any closer.
After a Gaylesville punt with three minutes to go in the game, Murphy recorded a pair of sacks and Zuber added another to force Valley Head to turn the ball over on downs.
Gaylesville seeks to improve its playoff position when it travels to Cedar Bluff on Friday.
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