Down 12 points at halftime against a team ranked in the top 25 nationally, Lee County needed a spark.

An early third-quarter sack by Jace Murray seemed to do it. Lee County didn’t allow a first down in the second half and beat Miami Carol City, the consensus No. 16 team nationally, 23-20.

“Jace is our team leader,” Lee County coach Dean Fabrizio said. ”The big hit on the quarterback early in the third quarter changed the momentum of the game. He is one of the most physical players we have had here at Lee County.”

Murray wasn’t finished, though. In the fourth quarter, after Lee County had taken the lead, Murray got another sack, putting Carol City in a third-and-23, virtually ending the game. The Facebook video of the play got 281K views.

Murray, who is 5-11, 225 pounds, finished with 14 tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks and two QB pressures. He is a four-year starter who committed to Army in June.

Murray is the AJC Varsity/GHSF Daily Player of the Week.

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