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Photo by Todd Thompson/Rivercat Photo
Clay-Chalkville's defense bottles up Muscle Shoals' Tarre Hampton (0) for a loss during the Class 6A second round playoffs against Muscle Shoals on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Muscle Shoals, Ala.
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Photo by Todd Thompson/Rivercat Photo
Clay-Chalkville's Deon Callins (7) breaks up a pass intended for Muscle Shoals' Jaquess Greene (5) during the Class 6A second round playoffs against Muscle Shoals on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Muscle Shoals, Ala.
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Photo by Todd Thompson/Rivercat Photo
Clay-Chalkville's swarms to Muscle Shoals' Ezra Fowler (13) during the Class 6A second round playoffs against Muscle Shoals on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Muscle Shoals, Ala.
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Photo by Todd Thompson/Rivercat Photo
Clay-Chalkville's Jaylen Melton (8) outruns Muscle Shoals's Carter Berryhill during the Class 6A second round playoffs against Muscle Shoals on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Muscle Shoals, Ala.
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Photo by Todd Thompson/Rivercat Photo
Clay-Chalkville's NaKarius Allen (13) drops Kade Clemmons for a loss during the Class 6A second round playoffs against Muscle Shoals on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Muscle Shoals, Ala.
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Photo by Todd Thompson/Rivercat Photo
Clay-Chalkville's Jacari Johnson (83) hauls in a pass from Aaron Frye during the Class 6A second round playoffs against Muscle Shoals on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, in Muscle Shoals, Ala.
MUSCLE SHOALS – It was a bit of a revenge game.
Clay-Chalkville won’t be repeating as the Class 6A state champion, as the Cougars fell 31-21 at Muscle Shoals in the second round of the playoffs Friday night. Clay-Chalkville won at Muscle Shoals a season ago en route to the state championship.
=Nataurruean Hampton scored the go-ahead touchdown with 3:14 in the fourth quarter, and Christian Prichard returned a fumble 78 yards six plays later.
Hampton’s 5-yard run capped an 11-play, 75-yard drive that was the final of three straight possessions that led to a lead change in the fourth.
Jaquess Greene’s 9-yard run gave Muscle Shoals a 17-14 advantage with 9:54 remaining only for Clay-Chalkville quarterback Aaron Frye to answer with a 45-yard touchdown run two-and-a-half minutes later.
Frye ran 10 times for 62 yards and two scores. He also completed 14-of-30 passes for 231 yards, 184 of which went to Jacorie Marshall. But Frye also turned the ball over twice that led to 10 points for Muscle Shoals. His second-quarter interception led to a 28-yard field from by Jorge Garcia, while his 13-yard run on fourth-and-19 in the fourth led to Prichard’s fumble return.
“We had some spurts where we played good offensively and defensively,” said Cougars head coach Stuart Floyd. “Then there were spurts where we didn’t.”
Cougars running back Aaron Osley rushed for 70 yards and a first-quarter touchdown, while Joshua Woods added 60 rushing yards. Penalties, like they have been consistently this season, were a problem again for Clay-Chalkville (9-3).
“We had about four pass interference calls that were costly,” Floyd said, noting that the calls were questionable. “Feet get tangled, that’s a no-call.”
Hampton finished with 79 yards on 25 carries, while Anderson Flippo caught a 5-yard touchdown from Kade Clemmons in the first quarter.
Muscle Shoals (9-2) moves on to the Class 6A quarterfinals at Parker (11-1) next week.
“We couldn’t get out of our own way,” Floyd said. “It’s been every game. Still had a good year. I told the kids, it’s been a long 11 months, especially when you’ve got a lot of change with coaches. You’ve got a lot of new players that are playing. It’s a learning curve. We’re a relatively young football team.”
David Glovach contributed to this story.
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