THE SUPER SOPH: Murdock Living Up To Expectations
SECOND BAPTIST SCHOOL’S TURNER MURDOCK ‘24 WAS BUILT FOR ATHLETICS.
His father, Mark, quarterbacked the Texas Longhorns in the late 1980s and his mom, Jenny, was a Southwest Conference Champion at UT and played on the LPGA Tour.
His older brothers, Mark and Drew, starred at Stratford High School. Mark was the starting QB for the Spartans and played varsity basketball. Drew played football before going all-in for golf after his sophomore year. Drew plays for the University of Houston and Mark was a player-coach at Trinity.
“I’m like the little puppy of the family,” laughed Turner. “I can go to my brothers for advice from a younger athlete’s perspective. My mom keeps sports fun and is more light-hearted. She played at a professional level and knows how grueling sports can be. My dad keeps it in perspective that it’s just a game.”
The sophomore earned the starting quarterback position this year and led the Second Baptist School Eagles to the TAPPS 5A State Championship. He’s also tearing the cover off the ball and established himself as one of the aces on the mound for the baseball team this spring.
“I improved so much this year, mentally. Early in the year, I’d let a bad throw or an interception get in my head,” Turner said. “If I’d get off to a bad start, I’d get really down on myself. By the end of the year, I would just stay calm in the heat of the moment. It really paid off.”
Murdock earned a secondteam, all-district nod for his play in 2021 and the offense will be built around him for the next two seasons.
“I’m going back to work this off season,” he said. “I want to improve from a mental aspect, such as being able to read a defense and know what they are trying to do. I’m going to be doing a lot of footwork over the off season, so my feet are in the right position to make better throws.”
He will have a busy summer. While training for football, he will also be in the heat of the showcase baseball season.
“I have a lot going on this summer,” he said. “I’ll have to find out which day I will be starting games in baseball tournaments and squeeze in as much football as I can.”
Murdock could be even better in baseball than football. While he stars for the Eagles on the diamond, he also played for Twelve Baseball in Katy, where he pitches, plays outfield and first base.
“My strength is definitely my bat,” he said. “I think baseball helps with focus and work ethic. You might not get all the reps you need in a practice, so you have to do some work on your own. I’ve always been used to that type of workload and thrive in that environment.
“Playing football also helps me in baseball, physically by keeping my arm strength up all year long. Mentally, football is such a team sport. I like to bring that over to baseball… creating a team environment.”
He’s learned from one of the best teams in Houston – Team Murdock.