By Ryan Buck

sports@vindy.com

Howland vs Harding

Gallery

Warren

Merely an hour after he gingerly slumped down on the Warren Harding bench — sans shoulder pads — for the start of the second half, Raiders running back Keemari Murry brought everyone in Mollenkopf Stadium to their feet Friday night.

Murry’s 43-yard touchdown run with 1:44 left in the fourth quarter was the game-winner in Harding’s 14-7 slugfest victory over Howland.

After the Raiders stymied the Tigers deep in their own territory with 2:45 remaining and the game tied 7-7, Raiders coach Steve Arnold knew he needed the ball in the hands of his best playmaker.

Murry had just re-entered the game and had one second half carry after departing with an apparent injury.

“He got dinged up,” said Arnold of Murry. “Overheated? Dizzy? He took a shot to his head so we had to watch him.”

When it mattered, the senior RB — who led all rushers with 140 yards — was in the game.

On second and six at the Tigers’ 43, Murry took the handoff from freshman quarterback Samari Dean on a well-designed draw play, squeezed through a hole parted by his overpowering linemen, broke to his left and raced down the sideline.

“Keemari doesn’t need a lot [of room] to break it and take it to the house,” Arnold said.” It’s a gift that he has and he found a way to break it. He crossed them up there and made some guys miss.”

On the ensuing kickoff, Tigers standout runner Jaquore Marrs nearly broke free past the Raiders’ kickoff coverage. With one man to beat, a fortuitous slap of the ball knocked it out and ahead from Marrs’ grasp to the Tigers’ 35. Elijah Cofield pounced on it to seal the win for Harding (1-1).

It was the Tigers’ second miscue in fourth quarter and just as damaging as the first.

With the Tigers riding Marrs on an improbable drive after losing starting quarterback Victor Williams to an undisclosed injury — he was taken off the field by paramedics on a stretcher — Raiders linebacker Kane Murray dropped backup quarterback Jacob Smith in the backfield for a two-yard loss on third down-and-five.

On fourth-and-seven from the Raider 35, the snap skipped past Smith all the way to the Tigers’ own 47. Murry’s game winner came two plays later.

“We came up short tonight and kind of gave it away,” said Howland coach Dominic Menendez. “We get a couple of things to go our way and then the nail in the coffin when we needed something good to happen. The ball didn’t bounce our way.”

Williams broke a scoreless tie with a 4-yard touchdown run in the third off a fumbled punt from Harding.

Dean, making his first start, picked up a key first down with his legs on fourth-and-seven to keep the tying drive alive before finding 6-foot-4 receiver Mark Herron in one-on-one coverage on another fourth down play in the Howland end zone to tie the game with 10:40 remaining.

There were eight total fumbles in the game.

“They’re taking years off my life,” Arnold said.