STARKVILLE — Frustrating.

That’s how West Point High School football coach Chris Chambless described the last six years. The Green Wave won Mississippi High School Activities Association Class (MHSAA) 5A State championships in 2009 and 2010. But with Oxford and Starkville as formidable opponents, it was hard for West Point to get a chance to play for a title, let alone win one.

But Chambless never gave up. On Saturday night, he and West Point were rewarded for their persistence with a 29-8 victory against Laurel in the MHSAA Class 5A State title game at Mississippi State’s Davis Wade Stadium.

“It feels great. It always feels great to win one,” Chambless said. “I told the guys before we left to enjoy it. I’ve been to four and I never took the time to enjoy it, It was tough. You come here and you’re all stressed out, you want to win, and you want to make sure every little things done right.”

It is the third title for Chambless as the head coach of West Point, and the fourth as a member of the staff. West Point won the 2005 title when Chambless was the defensive coordinator. It is the eighth overall title for West Point.

After losing at Starkville 28-6 on Sept. 2, West Point (14-1) won 13 in a row to close the season.

Junior running back/quarterback Marcus Murphy was named Most Valuable Player with 33 carries for 141 yards and three touchdowns.

“It feels great,” said Murphy, a Mississippi State commitment. “I’ve been practicing to score one in this game and it got us a gold ball. The community was behind us. They stayed with us thick and thin from the loss against Starkville. They never turned their backs on us, and we did it for the community and the coaches.”

Facing fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line in the fourth quarter, Chambless called a timeout. He sent his offense back out and Murphy then took the snap and followed his center for a 1-yard touchdown with 5 minutes, 29 seconds remaining to give the Green Wave the cushion they needed.

Murphy said the huddle was intense, but he was ready to do whatever it took for his team.

“We prepare for moments like that,” Murphy said. “We’re West Point football. We shouldn’t be stopped on fourth-and-1.”

Murphy scored a 2-yard touchdown with 56 seconds remaining.

After West Point’s Ryan Melton forced a fumble and Trey Brownlee recovered it, Murphy scored a 3-yard touchdown with 4:05 remaining in the third quarter to give his team a 16-8 lead. Murphy carried the ball four times for 14 yards on the 13-play, 63-yard drive that took 5:21 off the clock.

“Murphy is a high-character kid, and he keeps us together, he keeps us rolling, he never has a bad day, does the little things right, and he’s a great leader for other people to follow,” Chambless said. “He’s a good example. Even when he doesn’t think he’s leading, he’s leading by the way he works, by the way he carries himself every day.”

The Green Wave built a 10-0 lead on a 36-yard Jose Garcia field goal in the first quarter and a 5-yard touchdown pass from Clayton Knight to Semaje Harris with 9:49 remaining in the second quarter.

Facing third-and-goal, Knight faked a handoff and rolled to his left. He hit a wide open Harris as he fell backwards into the end zone.

Laurel (13-2) answered when Tyquan Ulmer hit Je Vah Jones for a 24-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 10-6 with 7:36 remaining in the opening half. Jones went up between two defenders and came down with the ball in the back of the end zone.

After forcing a three-and-out, Laurel’s Jalon Thigpen blocked a Jose Lemus punt. The ball bounced back and came to rest in the end zone. West Point recovered it for a touchback and Laurel trailed 10-8 with 5:03 left in the first half.

Laurel had 98 yards of offense after having 69 in the first half.

“Preparation is a big key,” said Chambless, whose team finished with 326 yards of offense (307 rushing, 19 passing). “The grind, our kids love the grind and they don’t shy away from a challenge. We challenged our defense this week facing a high-powered offense. They stayed humble all week and they matured more this week than they have any other week.

“We did this for the community, we did it for the school, and that’s what we’ll continue to try to keep doing.”

Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait

Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.