Yuk. Yuk. Yuk. Yuk. Yuk.

Those are Ryan Murphy’s five yuks. Add five more for twin brother Brian and they equal the price the two Free State High seniors have to pay to play four quarters of football.

On game days, in order to prevent persistent cramping, the Firebirds’ lookalikes are forced to swallow five bottles apiece of an electrolytic concoction called Reyhydralite.

Rehydralite does not taste like ambrosia of the gods.

“It’s horrible,” Ryan Murphy said. “I dread it every Friday.”

Today is a dread day. The unbeaten Firebirds will entertain Olathe Northwest for homecoming. Kickoff will be at 7 p.m. at Haskell Stadium.

After some early season leg cramping following halftime, the Murphy twins began a regimen of Rehydralite five times daily on game days – at breakfast, lunch, dinner, pre-game and at halftime.

“The stuff seems to be working,” Free State coach Bob Lisher said.

When healthy – as they’ve been over the last three weeks – the Murphys are the most potent 1-2 offensive punch in the Sunflower League. Ryan, the quarterback, has run for eight touchdowns and passed for six more. Brian, the running back, has 10 TDs. Their combined five-game offensive output is just shy of 2,000 yards.

Thus Lisher – and the rest of the Firebirds – are mighty glad Rehydralite is on the market. At the same time, they’re also delighted they don’t have to quaff the foul brew.

“I had a taste of it,” Lisher said, “and it’s not the best-tasting stuff. I’m glad I don’t have to drink it.”

While the Murphys receive most of the publicity for playing offense, they also start in the secondary, and it is on defense where the Firebirds have made the most improvement.

Last year, when the Firebirds had only eight seniors on the roster, many juniors were force-fed into starting roles and it showed. During a 4-6 season, Free State’s defense allowed 30 or more points on five occasions, including a stunning 36-35 loss to Olathe Northwest.

This year, the Firebirds have surrendered an average of only 14.2 points a game.

Senior linebacker Andy Petz was part of last year’s swinging gate, but now he’s helping lock the fence on opposing offenses.

“There’s the physical aspect,” Petz said. “We’re a year older and a year bigger, but there’s also our mental approach. We knew our defense hurt us last year and we’ve had a chip on our shoulder.”

Lisher also switched from a two-linebacker to a three-backer set that has shut down opposing running games. Only Shawnee Mission West has a better defense against the run.

“Three backers instead of two helps,” said senior Jimmy Bruce, who plays alongside Petz, “but we still have to go out and play.”

Junior Ryan Werts, the third inside backer, agrees with Petz and Bruce about the formation and the attitude, but he tossed in another wrinkle.

“I think when you have the Murphys and such a good offense,” Werts said, “that it relaxes us on defense and lets us play our game.”