The thriller between McCracken County and Murray High came down to the final play of regulation, but a defensive stand by the Mustangs gave them their best win of the season over the defending 3A State runner-ups, finishing with a final of 48-42.
“We’ve been in these moments a lot this year, and in every one of them, our kids have battled,” McCracken County head coach Tyler Brooks said after the win. “We talked about some of those battles. They’re learning moments, not a loss. You gotta learn from it. Finally, one came our way, and they stood up and made a big stop on fourth down.”
The fourth quarter alone was a thrilling watch, as the Mustangs fell behind 35-28 after Gage Chapman rushed in for his fourth touchdown of the game, racking up 116 yards on the ground as well on 22 carries.
On the next drive, Jakari Matchem made two spectacular catches on back-to-back plays, the first a 30-yard strike where he caught the ball diving parallel to the ground all while being interfered with, which set up a jump ball touchdown catch that evened the score at 35.
“The first one I saw they threw the flag, so I just had to go get it,” Matchem said postgame. “The second one, I called for it. I knew it was coming, and I came down with it.”
“Jakari is that dude,” Coach Brooks said. “Sometimes it’s get him the ball and get out of the way. He showed that tonight.”
With just over eight minutes to go, the Mustangs had forced a stop and were driving when Cole Presswood hit Corterrion Turner on a quick slant, and he took it 17 yards for a walk-in touchdown to give the Mustangs the 41-35 lead.
Murray had a chance to tie it or even take the lead, but the Mustang defense forced and recovered a fumble, a huge momentum swing in a crunch-time moment.
McCracken capitalized when Elijah Pullen broke one through the middle for a 14-yard score, seemingly securing the win for the Mustangs.
The Tigers had other plans, as Kenyon Cunningham took a pass 70 yards to the house with 1:17 on the clock, Murray down by six. Somehow, the onside kick with the third-string kicker took a favorable bounce, landing in the hands of the Tigers, bringing new life to the squad.
From there, the McCracken defense held strong, as on a 4th and 1 situation, they were able to trip Willis up in the backfield, and after the chain gang rushed onto the field to check the spot, it was determined the Mustangs held strong, securing the 48-42 win.
“We talked all week about how their strength is their offensive line, and to get a stop on 4th and 1 to end it, that’s huge for our guys to step up and do that.”
Cole Presswood passed for 269 yards and a whopping five touchdown passes. Matchem, Turner, and Pullen all scored a pair of touchdowns for the Mustangs as well in rout to the victory.
Bruce Willis tallied unofficially 339 total yards and three touchdowns, rushing for 155 of those yards. Kenyon Cunningham led the Tigers in receiving, hauling in two catches for 74 yards and a touchdown.
Now 4-2 on the season, McCracken will take on Brighton on the road next week.
Murray drops their first regular-season game in 693 days, and will regroup next Friday when they take on Webster County.