Game of the Week: Murphy vs. Theodore

THEODORE, Ala. (WALA) - Week two's Game of the Week match-up features the Murphy Panthers (1-0) paying a visit to Theodore for a showdown with the Bobcats (1-0).

Attend a football practice at Murphy High School and you might hear a word teams don’t always toss around, "underdog."

Head Coach Ronn Lee says that's the way the Panthers want to go into every game, and this one against rival Theodore is no different.

"At Murphy we feel like that we're always an underdog, that we’ve got to go out and play our best game, and we can’t take any plays off, that there’s no time for us to take off," said Lee. "So, we like to approach it in that matter instead of assuming that the game is going to turn out alright. We would rather go into every game knowing that we’ve got a battle on our hands."

Junior linebacker Justin Lett buys into his coaches' philosophy.

"It's going to be a big game; we’re going to play it like any other game," said Lett. "We’re going to execute like Coach Lee taught us, to play as a team.”

You’ll find a similar philosophy in Theodore under Bill Meredith. The Bobcats wish to ground and pound their way to a region win.

“We’ve played Murphy the last few years and they’ve all come down close at the end, except for last year. It’s going to be a fun and exciting game again this year," Meredith said.

The Bobcats only have one starter returning on defense, junior outside linebacker Jamey Mosely.

Jamey's big brother C.J., a Theodore graduate, is now a linebacker for the Alabama Crimson Tide.

“I’ve been seeing him play since park ball and it has been the same," said Jamey Mosely. "It doesn’t feel any different. He teaches me a lot of things; he helps me.”

Jamey says watching C.J. play on the big stage evokes a feeling that transcends this game and football in general.

“It’s pretty humbling," Mosely said. "It teaches you that no matter what you can do whatever you want to do, play whatever you want to play.”