DAPHNE – The Daphne Trojans’ defense used a second-half shutout of the Davidson Warriors while the offense poured on the points to secure a 40-21 win Friday night at Jubilee Stadium to move to 2-0 in region play.

Trojan senior Cam Long had an impact in all three phases. He ran for a 30-yard touchdown in the second quarter, blocked a field goal in the third quarter then grabbed a pick-six in the fourth quarter where he intercepted the pass near the goal line and walked in for the final touchdown.

“When I first came off the ball, I read his eyes and he was looking right at me,” Long said. “We made eye contact and the ball came home.”

“He’s a great athlete, he comes in works hard. He plays several positions and we ask him to do a lot, we put a lot of pressure on him but he does a good job of continuing to work and doing great things for us,” head coach Kenny King said of Long. “Proud of his effort – and not just on the game field, he works at practice and that’s what I love.”

It was the cherry on the cake that was Daphne’s second regular-season win in a row to erase its winless start to the season

“Starting 0-2, the guys were down on themselves but we kept telling them to keep believing and keep working they’ll start to see some success,” Trojan head coach Kenny King said. “I’m excited for the boys, I’m excited the boys are getting to see their success.”

Offensive firepower explodes

Five different Daphne scorers produced six touchdowns for the hosts in their first game to score over 40 points since the 55-7 win over Alma-Bryant Oct. 1, 2021.

It was all started by running back Nick Clark who was coming off a three-touchdown game the previous week. He capped an explosive first drive with a bruising, three-yard run after two big hookups from quarterback Gabe Reynolds to receiver Stephon Blackshear.

Clark said it was the preparation on the practice field that led to more rushing success Friday night.

“I got a real good scout team during the week and in the end it really just paid off on how I was going to read and my offensive line was going to block it,” Clark said.

Later in the first quarter, Reynolds found Stacey Boykins, who broke tackles and outran the defense for a 44-yard touchdown, in what was another quality start from the Trojans’ signal-caller who transferred from Saraland this offseason.

“The guy has come in and has been working,” King said. “He was successful for us tonight so I’m proud of him coming in and doing a great job for us.”

Blackshear and Michael Scott both added rushing touchdowns to help Daphne put more points on the board.

Trojans enjoy sweet win at home

After the season-opening loss to Saraland, Daphne earned its first home win of the season and the Trojans relished the feeling.

“Feels great to have my first senior win at home,” Long said. “The first game wasn’t what I thought it was going to be but sometimes you’re not a perfect person. Sometimes you’re going to take losses but you have to always learn from them and bounce back.”

“This feels great, my folks played, Jeremy Clark played here so it feels good to play on the same soil as them too,” Clark said of the season's first home win.

Up next

Daphne will remain at home next week and brings its 2-2 overall record to Jubilee Stadium to host the Baker Hornets, who earned a 56-35 win over Foley to similarly move to 2-2 overall and 2-0 in 7A-Region 1.

Money quotes

“I feel really great but I have to stay humble and hungry at the same time while I’m going at it,” Clark said of his performance. “I can’t do it without my teammates because without them I wouldn’t be right here.”

“It’s really big, it means a lot to us and we made it happen,” Long said of going 2-0 in region. “That makes us want to go even more.”

Other Baldwin County final scores

Thursday, Sept. 8

Clarke Prep 74, Snook Christian 30

Elberta 20, LeFlore 14

Fairhope 38, MGM 23

Theodore 49, Baldwin County 0

Friday, Sept. 9

Baker 56, Foley 35

Bayside Academy 35, Wilcox Central 0

Daphne 40, Davidson 21

McGill-Toolen 38, Robertsdale 7

Orange Beach 37, Satsuma 12

Saraland 35, Spanish Fort 24

St. Michael Catholic 42, Escambia County 13

UMS-Wright Prep 35, Gulf Shores 28