Murphy Leads Tigers Attack On Defense

 Player of the Year Jon Halbert, Prairie Grove (right)...FBH-DEF MURPHY -- Defensive Player of the Year -- Jared Murphy, Prairie Grove...Portraits taken Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2012 at Springdale Morning News Office.
Player of the Year Jon Halbert, Prairie Grove (right)...FBH-DEF MURPHY -- Defensive Player of the Year -- Jared Murphy, Prairie Grove...Portraits taken Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2012 at Springdale Morning News Office.

— Prairie Grove’s season literally hung on the outcome of one play late in the Tigers’ second-round playoff game against Pottsville.

A perfect season to that point, the Tigers trailed 28-26 with a little more than two minutes left, and the clock was ticking away in front of a packed home crowd.

AT A GLANCE

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

JARED MURPHY OF PRAIRIE GROVE

POSITION: Nose Guard CLASS: Senior HEIGHT: 6-2 WEIGHT: 250 NOTABLE: Anchored the heart of the Prairie Grove defense from his nose guard position. ... Recorded 100 tackles on the season, including 33 solo stops. ... Had nine tackles for loss. ... Tigers allowed just 29 points during the regular season with seven shutouts. ... Team was 12-1 with two come-from-behind wins in the playoffs before bowing out in the Class 4A semifinals to state champion Stuttgart. ... Also started at tight end, where he caught nine passes for 150 yards.

“It was so loud,” Prairie Grove senior nose guard Jared Murphy said. “People were just crazy.”

Pottsville called a timeout facing a fourth-and-3 from the Tigers 43. A fi rst down would likely have ended Prairie Grove’s season. The team that posted seven shutouts, won a 4A-1 Conference title and had allowed just 29 points in the regular season was facing elimination.

“Coach said just don’t let them cross the line,” Murphy said. “I crashed down and both the guards and center took me. Brandon (Nodier) and (Dalton) Faulk slung through and Perry spun. It was like a miracle. Brandon just punched it out. It was crazy.”

The Tigers’ defense came through again, like it had done all season. The swarming, attacking defense set the tone for Prairie Grove’s 12-1 season, and Murphy was the centerpiece of the smothering unit. Over the 13-game season, the 6-foot-2, 250-pound senior recorded 100 tackles and nine tackles for loss in earning the All-NWA Media Defensive Player of the Year award.

“Jared is a special player with his size, speed and his capability with his hands,” Prairie Grove coach Danny Abshier said. “He has great desire to improve himself and the team.”

Murphy, who was fi rst called up to the varsity team at the end of his ninthgrade season and made an immediate impact in the playoffs, has been a defensive leader for the Tigers’ throughout his career.

He overcame a broken ankle as a sophomore to have a stellar junior season, and backed that up this season by leading the Tigers to the Class 4A state semifi nals.

“It was a fun season,” he said. “We had one goal and we all worked hard for one goal. I could not have asked for a better season.

“Our class stuck together and waited for our moment. It was kind of like it was meant to be.”

Murphy, who also started a tight end and had nine catches for 150 yards, is strongly considering Pittsburg State to continue his football career. He plans to take his oft cial visit in January. He has also been contacted by Missouri State.

He said the college coaches plan to use him as a three-technique on defense, where he can utilize his hands and quick feet.

“Jared is a guy that just wants to play,” Abshier said. “He is a physical guy with great hands.”

Murphy was quick to credit the entire defensive unit, especially the secondary, for allowing just three of their first 10 opponents to even get on the scoreboard. Of the 29 points Prairie Grove allowed in the first 10 games, 21 were scored by Farmington. The Tigers allowed just six points to state runner-up Ozark.

“We had a lot of Tiger pride,” Murphy said. “We had a lot of people standing behind us and coaching us.”

Especially on that key play against Pottsville.

Upcoming Events