In one of the most anticipated Memphis high-school games in recent years, the MUS varsity football team defeated the tradition-rich Melrose Golden Wildcats in the feature game of the Bridges Kickoff Classic, 17-14, on Saturday night at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium.
In a defensive battle filled with penalties and turnovers, the Owls (1-0), ranked #1 by the Commercial Appeal, proved to be much more disciplined than the #2-ranked Golden Wildcats (0-1).
MUS looked stout defensively from the very start as they forced Melrose to a three-and-out on their first drive. On the Melrose punt-attempt from their own 22-yard line, junior Patrick Boyer, playing in his first varsity game, was able to get past the large Melrose line and recover punter Cortez Walton's fumble at the Melrose 8-yard line.
However, MUS could not turn the great field position into a touchdown as the talented Melrose defense forced MUS into kicking a field goal from the 5-yard line. Zach Scott nailed the 22-yarder to give the Owls a 3-0 lead with 8:04 left in the first quarter.
On Melrose’s next drive, the Wildcats were a little bit more successful moving the ball, yet Boyer once again made a big play as he picked off QB Courtney Madison's pass at the MUS 41-yard line and returned it to the MUS 49.
This time, the Owls would convert the takeaway into a touchdown.
Using a balanced offensive attack of completions from QB Michael Park and nice runs from RBs Chase Moore and Walt Wepfer, the Owls moved the ball to the Melrose 3-yard line. From there, Park needed only two sneaks to get into the end zone for the score. Scott missed the PAT as the score stood at 9-0 with 2:40 left in the first quarter.
For much of the second quarter, neither team could muster much offensively as penalties and turnovers halted drives. But Melrose demonstrated why they were picked #2 in the city on their final drive of the half.
Behind backup quarterback TraMarcus Toney, a sophomore, the Golden Wildcats moved the ball 85 yards on seven plays before a 10-yard touchdown strike from Toney to Justin Stone with :07 left in the half. Toney would also make the PAT to make the score 9-7 heading into halftime.
With all the momentum on their side, the Wildcats came out and dominated defensively in the third quarter.
On MUS’s first drive, Wildcat William Carter intercepted Park at the MUS 42-yard line on only the third play of the half.
But the MUS defense also rose up and made a key stop on fourth-and-three on their own 10-yard line to stop a Melrose drive.
For the rest of the third quarter neither team could put together a meaningful drive offensively, and the score stood at 9-7.
But Melrose would finally put together another good drive to start the fourth quarter.
Toney completed passes of 14 and 8 yards to move the ball to the MUS 17-yard line. After a crucial penalty had taken away a Boyer interception and moved the ball to the 7-yard line, Melrose RB Christopher Nash showed his great quickness and scored to give the Wildcats the lead for the first time. Toney’s PAT was good to give Melrose a 14-9 lead with 9:59 remaining in the game.
But the Golden-Wildcat score did not rattle the Owls. Just as MUS proved the last two seasons en route to back-to-back state titles, the Owls know how to come from behind for a victory.
With good field position after a Miles-Bryant 27-yard kickoff return to the MUS 38-yard line, the Owls got started.
After having garnered their first first down of the half on a crucial third-down 9-yard pass from Park to WR Stephen Bowie, MUS was halted on its next three offensive plays and was left with a fourth-and-three on the Golden Wildcat 42-yard line.
Going for the first down, Park continued the drive as he scrambled for 4 yards on an option run and a first down.
Finally in Melrose territory, MUS would pound the ball, moving it 34 yards on 6 rushes to the 3-yard line. From there, Park needed two QB sneaks to score with 3:02 left on the clock. Park would also convert the two-point conversion to give the Owls a 17-14 lead.
But Melrose didn’t quit.
Justin Holloway had returned the kickoff 84 yards before sophomore Barry Hillyer made a game-saving tackle at the MUS 15-yard line. With the end zone and a win in sight, Melrose again hurt themselves with three penalties that set up a fourth-and-26. On the fourth-down play, John Stokes tackled the receiver before he could gain the first down, giving the Owls the ball and the victory with :10 left.
Although MUS was outplayed for a long stretch of the game, they ultimately won because of discipline as they committed only 4 penalties, compared to Melrose’s 15 for 100 yards.
With the win, MUS won their third consecutive Bridges Kickoff Classic and their 23rd game out of their last 25.
Next week, the Owls travel to powerhouse Nease (FL) for the Bill Bates Charity Classic at the University of North Florida. Kickoff is set for 2:00 p.m. CST.