After a record-breaking season last year, the Gulf Shores Dolphins have picked up where they left off in rewriting the history books. With a 37-14 win over Murphy on Thursday, Gulf Shores secured its first 6-0 start to a season.

The Dolphins registered all their points unanswered and took a 37-6 lead into halftime to help surpass 200 points scored on the season for an average of 33.5 points per game.

On the other side of the ball, Gulf Shores’ 50 points allowed (8.3 per game) now ranks 10th in the state among teams who have played six games. The mark is tops in all of Class 5A ahead of Clay County which has yielded 45 points in five games (9 per game).

Also, since entering the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s state poll for the first time as preseason No. 8 last year, the Dolphins have not left the rankings in the last 17 editions. Gulf Shores registered its highest spot at No. 2 entering Week 4’s win over LeFlore.

No. 2 Gulf Shores 37, Murphy 14

Thursday night saw another all-around effort from senior Ronnie Royal and another pick-six from senior Braden Jackson as some of the Dolphins’ standout performances.

Royal, an NC State commit, racked up 150 return yards highlighted by a 32-yard punt return for a touchdown to add on top of 31 rushing yards on 9 carries and 2 catches for 21 receiving yards. Junior Kolin Wilson ran for 2 touchdowns as part of a 124-yard effort on 8 carries in addition to a 33-yard touchdown catch.

Jackson’s 54-yard interception returned for a touchdown served as a spark for the Gulf Shores unit that was led by senior classmates Isaiah Hammac and Otto Brewer. Hammac led the way with 7 tackles and Brewer supplied 5 tackles including 3 tackles for loss.

The Dolphins will take their No. 2 ranking and 6-0 overall record (4-0 in region) back home in Week 7 with a region contest against the Williamson Lions (3-3, 2-2) scheduled for Oct. 6.

Elberta 43, Northview (FL) 26

Also in Class 5A, Elberta grabbed a non-region victory for its second straight win on the season and improved to 3-1 all-time when racking up at least 40 points.

Senior quarterback Brady Cole Harrison led the Warriors’ scoring effort with 4 rushing touchdowns to go along with 189 yards on 8-of-14 passing. Junior Rosson Duplesis supplemented the rushing attack with 151 yards on 19 carries with a touchdown.

Defensively, freshman cornerback Landon Achorn stole 3 interceptions but it was Noah Gracie who returned a fourth for an Elberta touchdown.

That helped the Warriors eclipse the 40-point mark for the first time since doing it twice in 2020. It was Elberta’s first 40-point game since a 48-41 loss to LeFlore on Oct. 12, 2020, but served as its first 40-point effort in a win since a 48-34 decision over St. Michael on Sept. 26, 2020, which set a single-game school record.

After evening the series against the Northview Chiefs, the Warriors also moved to 1-1 all-time in border wars against Floridian opponents.

Both teams in Elberta’s Week 7 matchup against the UMS-Wright Bulldogs will enter with 2-3 overall records and 1-2 marks within Class 5A Region 1.

McGill-Toolen 35, St. Michael 31

A second-half rally fell just short as the St. Michael Cardinals evened out to 3-3 overall.

Freshman quarterback Gunner Rivers’ second touchdown throw to sophomore Brody Jones, as well as a rushing touchdown from senior Martin Corte, gave host St. Michael a 31-28 lead down the stretch. McGill-Toolen answered with a seven-play drive to go back ahead after the Yellow Jackets led 28-17 at halftime.

Rivers finished with 268 yards on 23-of-33 passing with 3 touchdowns where Jones caught a pair of scores as part of a 148-yard night on 11 catches. Corte caught the other scoring throw as one of 13 catches for 134 receiving yards to go along with 119 rushing yards and 1 touchdown on 17 carries.

Through six games, Rivers’ 1,750 passing yards sits second in the MaxPreps state rankings behind only Tuscaloosa Academy junior Preston Lancaster by just 22 yards. The mark was good enough for 67th in the country according to MaxPreps.

The Cardinals are set to resume play within Class 4A Region 1 against the Orange Beach Makos (0-5, 0-3) on the road in Week 7. Last year’s battle, which ended in a 49-41 win for St. Michael, set a single-game scoring record.

No. 1 Saraland 70, Foley 20

The top-ranked, defending Class 6A champion Saraland Spartans extended a 12-game win streak with another single-game scoring record.

The explosive Foley offense saw senior Perry Thompson, an Auburn commit, register 140 receiving yards on 7 catches including an 80-yard touchdown where he outraced the defense to the end zone untouched.

Senior running back Kolton Nero collected 74 rushing yards on 21 carries, added a 4-yard catch and also threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to junior Shaborn Oakes who finished with 46 receiving yards on 3 catches. Sophomore quarterback Nelson Thompson completed 13-of-20 passing attempts for 210 yards and added a 15-yard rush on his lone carry.

The Lions fell to 2-3 overall and will bring an 0-2 record within Class 7A Region 1 into Friday’s rivalry tilt against the Fairhope Pirates (1-4, 0-2).

OTHER WEEK 6 FINALS

Alma-Bryant 34, Robertsdale 6

Up next: The Golden Bears (0-5, 0-4) will be back home for a region game against the Murphy Panthers (0-6, 0-4) on Friday.

No. 4 MGM 45, Baldwin County 14

Up next: The Tigers (1-4, 1-2) are scheduled for another home game on Friday, this one within Class 6A Region 1 against the McGill-Toolen Yellow Jackets (3-2, 2-1).

No. 2 Mobile Christian 39, Orange Beach 6

Up next: The Makos (0-5, 0-3) have a home game set for Week 7 against the St. Michael Cardinals (3-3, 2-1) within Class 4A Region 1.