EVERETT — In the wake of last year’s heartbreaking season-ending loss, Archbishop Murphy linebacker Ben Hines taped the final score to his locker.
It’s been a constant reminder of last year’s Class 2A state semifinal, when Tumwater rallied for 17 unanswered second-half points to earn a 24-21 win and thwart the Wildcats’ championship dreams.
“When we lost, I was down and out for about three or four days,” said Hines, now a junior. “It fueled me a lot in the offseason. (It was) all I could think about.”
Hines certainly isn’t alone. Senior lineman Abraham Lucas remembers crying while walking off the field. Senior receiver and safety Anfernee Gurley, 53 weeks later, can still name the exact date the loss occurred.
The agonizing defeat remained fresh in the players’ minds, serving as motivation throughout both the offseason and this fall.
“Any time you get that close to something that you’ve worked so hard to attain, and (then) you lose, that taste that’s in your mouth — you never want to taste that again,” Murphy head coach Jerry Jensen said. “And that’s driven these kids. It’s definitely been fuel for them.”
And now, more than a year after last season’s title hopes were dashed, the Wildcats are on the doorstep of accomplishing their ultimate goal.
Top-ranked Archbishop Murphy can capture the program’s first-ever 2A state title with a win over Liberty (Issaquah) at 1 p.m. Saturday in the Tacoma Dome.
“It would mean everything,” Gurley said. “That was our goal 53 weeks ago when we lost in the semifinal game. (For) a full year, it’s been in the back of our heads.”
It’s been a year of dominance for the senior-laden Wildcats (13-0), who have outscored their opponents 407-30 in eight games.
But off the field, the path to this point has been turbulent.
After Murphy won its first three games by a combined 170-0, five of the Wildcats’ next six scheduled contests were forfeited by opponents due to player-safety concerns. The string of forfeits drew national attention and sparked debate about athletic imbalances between public and private schools.
The Los Angeles Times and Washington Post ran stories on the slew of forfeits. ESPN television show “Outside the Lines” interviewed Jensen and dedicated a segment to the issue. “Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon even referenced the Wildcats during one of his episodes.
“It’s hard to stay focused when you’ve got the media here every day (and) you’ve got cameras on campus and everything,” Gurley said. “But we really kept our mind on the one goal, and that was to get here to the state championship and win it.”
Yet being sidelined for more than a month wasn’t easy. Murphy has a number of college prospects on the team, and some were concerned that the lack of games would impact their recruitment.
“There was a point after that second forfeit where you could really feel some of those seniors,” Jensen said. “They have their dreams of college ball, and there was some dissension there.”
So the Wildcats called a team meeting.
“I was able to explain to them what my strategy was, where I’m coming from, that I had their back and that they had each other’s backs,” Jensen said. “And I think that from that meeting on, everybody kind of reunited and we had the same front and moved forward.”
After a five-week layoff, Murphy returned to action with a 48-0 non-league win over Olympic on Oct. 22. Then after another opponent forfeit the following week, the Wildcats began postseason play — where the forfeits ended and Murphy’s dominance continued.
The Wildcats have outscored their opponents 189-30 in four postseason games, including a 48-10 quarterfinal win over second-ranked Tumwater and last week’s 52-14 semifinal win over fourth-ranked Lynden.
“Our coaches did a good job of reiterating that it’s about the game of football and not about everything else,” Hines said. “So we just had to keep a constant thought (that) we’re trying to win a state championship.”
And through it all, the Wildcats formed an even tighter bond.
“I think everything that happened throughout the season — all the forfeits and such — it really brought us closer together as a team,” Lucas said.
Jensen credits the senior class for helping keep the team on track.
“You face something that you have no control over and it’s not going your way, but all you can do is control the stuff that you can control and keep working hard,” he said. “And eventually it turned. So I’m extremely proud of them for keeping their heads down and just plowing through it.”
And if the Wildcats can cap this season — one unlike any other — with a state title?
“It’d make everything worth it,” Jensen said.
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