–Stamper’s interception seals Braves’ win over Murphy
30 September 2007By Debra Foerst
Photos by Vicki McCoy
CHEROKEE - September 28, 2007 - While Halloween is still over a month away, many ghosts plagued our minds during the touted Smoky Mountain Conference Championship game between the Cherokee Braves and the Murphy Bulldogs at Ray Kinsland Stadium.
For Coach Scooter McCoy and his 19 returning starters, they are beleaguered with ghostly thoughts of the 2005 game: missing a two-point conversion and losing by one. For Murphy quarterback Luke Charles and the rest of the 18 returning Bulldog starters, pestering phantoms arrive in the form of two interceptions occurring late in the 2006 game to give the Braves the nod.
With so much to overcome—for both teams—this proved to be one for the record books . . . a nail-biter until the end where the Braves took down the Bulldogs, 27-21!
Murphy opened things up early with a 41-yard pass completion and 43 ground yards on four carries by Patrick Canizio, and at the 9:06 mark, Luke Charles topped off the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run.
Following a failed extra point kick, Langston Wood returned the ensuing kick-off for 33 yards, giving the Braves excellent field position, yet they were unable to put points on the board.
Neither team was able to orchestrate much of a drive until late in the second quarter.
Cherokee began on their own 20-yard line, working their way down the field in classic Cherokee fashion—runs by Wood, Don Craig, and Carr Crowe. With 3:53 remaining in the half, Braves quarterback Michael Stamper snuck across the goal line for a 6-yard touchdown run. Cory Walkinstick’s kick was good, giving the Braves a 1-point edge.
Murphy answered quickly with a strong desire for the coveted half-time lead. Charles completed 4 for 6 passes during the drive to set up at 20-yard Canizio run and a 2-yard touchdown run by Rickey Edwards. Charles passed to Georgie Kerber for the PAT giving the Bulldogs a 14-7 lead as they headed to the locker room.
Cherokee began the second half with an unyielding drive, sparked by a 31-yard pass completion from Stamper to senior Doug Swayney. Again, though, the Braves came up short on the score board, unable to convert on a crucial fourth down play. After exchange of possession a couple of times, Murphy’s Canizio scored what would be their final touchdown on a 53-yard run. Following a Kephart kicked PAT, the Bulldogs had what seemed like—to Cherokee’s stadium-filling homecoming crowd—an insurmountable 21 to 7 lead.
Things had to change for the Braves to overcome, and that change came in an unprecedented move for Cherokee. Their offense lined up with quarterback Michael Stamper as a wide receiver and with the 2006 SMC Back of the Year, Langston Wood, taking the snap from center Josh Taylor in shotgun formation. The change was what the Braves needed, and as time ran off the clock in the third quarter, Wood scored on a 9-yard run. Walkinstick’s kick was good, leading Cherokee into the fourth quarter only down by a TD.
The fourth quarter was tense as Murphy threatened but couldn’t convert. Cherokee continued with their up-tempo offense with Wood taking the snap, which wore out Murphy’s defense. With 5:48 remaining in the game, Stamper’s 1-yard run and Walkingstick’s PAT promoted a gridlock on the scoreboard, but not for long.
Cherokee’s defense held Murphy on a fourth and one situation, pouring fuel on Wood’s fire as he ran for 61 yards setting up a Crowe 3-yard TD run. It mattered not that the two-point conversion failed because with the Bulldogs on the Cherokee 21 yard line with 26 seconds left, Stamper intercepted a Charles pass, giving the Braves fans all the more reason to cheer.
Wood finished the game with 220 yards rushing, and Murphy’s Canizio wasn’t far behind with 181 yards. Junior Israel Rodriquez led the Braves defensively with 17 total tackles, followed by Carr Crowe and Perry Arkansas, who each had 11.
Following an open date next week, the Braves will travel to Swain County on Friday, October 12, for another conference match-up.
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