Bluefield's Hurt quietly wins MVP award
Tuesday, December 6, 2005
By TOM BONE - Bluefield Daily Telegraph

WHEELING — One player from each team in the state football championships is singled out to receive the Samuel A. Mumley Most Valuable Player Award. Jeremy Hurt, a junior for Bluefield High School, was the unsuspecting honoree from the Beavers after their 40-0 championship game loss on Friday night to Weir High School.

He stepped forward in the chilly night air to pick up his trophy, then turned to hear applause from his teammates as he walked across the artificial turf at Wheeling Island Stadium.

Hurt, 6-foot-2, 195-pounds, had 31.5 total tackles in the regular season and hiked his total past 50 during the Beavers’ four-game playoff run, including approximately seven stops in the title game.

After the BHS huddle broke up, Hurt expressed his appreciation for receiving the award, while recognizing that the individual honor was not his alone. “It feels really good, but we play as a team. That’s what’s in my heart, my mind.”

At the time, Bluefield’s defeat — and the potential to return in 2006 — were foremost on his mind.

“The team was trying, we were really trying. It took a lot of heart,” Hurt said. “We played our (behinds) off the whole game, but we didn’t come out on top.

“It just hurts on the inside. I never want to feel this pain again. We’ll be back, though. ...

“We’ll be back up here next year for sure — no doubt about it.”

He resolved to turn the experience into more productivity next fall.

“This is a learning stage for me,” Hurt said. “I’m just determined to have my senior year next year ... to step up another level, to make a big change in our team.”

Bluefield coach Fred Simon said, “Jeremy plays hard. I’m very proud that he got the award. ... They ended up having to run away from him as the game went on.”