The Saraland Spartans are within one win of returning to the Super Seven after Friday night’s 31-21 home win over Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa.

But it wasn’t the Spartans’ point-a-minute offense that spearheaded this victory over the Patriots. This time it was something even more impressive.

Saraland was the more physical team on both sides of the ball in a matchup of two undefeated teams and two of the most respected programs in the state.

“This was our game plan all week, to play as physical as we had to play to get the win,” said Saraland senior offensive tackle Daylan Martin.

Saraland faced a defense that played three deep safeties on all but two plays.

The idea was to limit big plays. The Patriots were largely successful, limiting Texas quarterback commit K.J. Lacey to 219 yards (56 came on a tunnel screen to Alabama commit Ryan Williams). The Patriots also picked off two passes and recovered a fumble.

But none of that was enough because the Spartans won the battles up front.

“We have so much respect for Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa and the program they have,” said Saraland coach Jeff Kelly, whose team has won 19 straight games. “I’m so proud of our guys for coming to play such a physical football game. This was a challenging game.”

Hillcrest started the game strong. On the opening drive, Saraland was moving. But Williams fumbled as he was going to the ground following a catch. Kamari Patton (who also had an interception) knocked the ball loose and Anthony Quarles recovered.

The Patriots then moved the ball 79 yards in nine plays for a 7-0 lead. Decorrion Thomas raced around right end on a fourth-and-two run for a 15-yard touchdown.

Saraland answered right back as they always do. Santae McWilliams capped the nine-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown run.

Late in the first half the Patriots made a gamble that didn’t pay off. A fake punt from the Saraland 43 came up four yards short. The Spartans turned the possession into a touchdown. Lacey hit McWilliams on a 9-yard pass for the score with 13 seconds left before halftime.

Saraland scored two early in the third quarter touchdowns to take control. Deshawn Spencer scored on a 15-yard run, then Williams went 56 yards on a tunnel screen to increase the lead to 28-7 with three minutes left in the third quarter.

Hillcrest kept battling, but the lead was never less than 10 points the rest of the way.

Play of the Game: Lacey is known as a pocket passer who is great at extending plays. But what happened with 8:43 left in the third quarter was something to behold. Lacey scrambled left, then right, then he faked running up the middle before backing up. He froze completely for couple of seconds then scrambled around right end. By the time he stepped out of bounds with a seven-yard gain, 27 seconds had elapsed since the snap. Lacey was also hit out of bounds, so the total gain of the play was 22 yards.

Star watch: Williams, the junior Alabama commit, caught four passes for 92 yards and a touchdown. He also ran the ball 6 times for 45 yards and had a touchdown run called back for holding. He confirmed that he will attend the Iron Bowl.

By The Numbers: Saraland finished with a balanced offense. The Spartans ran the ball 37 times for 185 yards while passing for 219 yards. Hillcrest rushed for 78 yards and passed for 160.

Coachspeak: “Their defense whipped our tails,” said Hillcrest coach Jamie Mitchell. “Our defense gave us a chance to win, but we just didn’t do enough on offense. They out-physicalled us, which doesn’t happen often.”

Next week: Saraland will host Pike Road (a 31-28 winner over Benjamin Russell) in the state semifinals next Friday. The winner will advance to the Super Seven. Hillcrest’s season comes to an end at 12-1. The Patriots are 23-2 in their last 25 games, with both losses coming to Saraland.