North Murray High School's most successful football season ended Friday night with a 41-14 loss to Jenkins in a GHSA Class AAA quarterfinal at Savannah's Memorial Stadium.
The host Warriors (12-1) scored 27 points in the third quarter to break open a tight game, using big plays to subdue the Mountaineers (11-2).
Ladd McConkey had given North Murray the game's first lead with a 53-yard run on his team's first possession, but Ronald Cooper III's 52-yard gain for Jenkins on a short pass set up quarterback Patrick Blake's 10-yard run to tie it midway through the second quarter.
It was still 7-7 in the third when Blake connected with Darius Bush on a 65-yard touchdown pass off a perfect play-action fake, and then 1,500-yard rusher Damozzio Davis ripped off a 57-yard run, leading to Blake's 16-yard keeper for a touchdown and a 20-7 lead.
The momentum was stemmed later in the quarter when North Murray linebacker Dylan Flood returned a fumble 45 yards for a touchdown. The Mountaineers quickly got the ball back and were inside the Jenkins 20 when Cooper intercepted a McConkey pass at the 9.
Two plays later, Harris broke off a 74-yard touchdown run for a 27-14 lead and Joah Cash ended the dominating quarter for Jenkins with a 55-yard fumble return for touchdown to seal the Region 3 champions' first semifinal round appearance. The Warriors will face Crisp County, a 22-20 winner over Jefferson.
North Murray, which began playing in 2010, had never won more than eight games in a season until this year. Coach Preston Poag's team also won the school's first region title in football by ending a streak of 18 straight league crowns for Calhoun.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6296. Follow him on Twitter @youngsports22.