Ramsay quarterback Tremell Washington threw four first-half touchdown passes and ran for another as the Class 5A fifth-ranked Rams ran away with a 56-7 victory over John Carroll on Thursday at Birmingham’s Legion Field.

“This is his second start and he’s coming into his own now,” Ramsay coach Ronnie Jackson said. “He’s reading defenses better and he’s taken charge as the quarterback. He’s been a great leader and extremely proud of the way he’s been playing.”

The Cavaliers were confused early on the first possession of the game, but converted a long third-down pass to keep the drive on track. Carson McFadden capped the 10-play, 82-yard drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Seth Seidenfaden, but John Carrol was held to six straight three-and-outs the rest of the first half.

Ramsay (6-2, 5-0) struck back with a vengeance, tying the game on a 41-yard touchdown run by Washington and scoring the go-ahead touchdown on a 54-yard pass to Jalen Jones. Ashton Ashford put Ramsay up 21-7 on the next Rams possession, scoring on a 5-yard run, and Dekoriae Foster extended the lead to 28-7 on a 2-yard plunge early in the second quarter.

Washington threw two more touchdowns to put the Rams up 42-7 near the end of the first half, a 6-yard pass to Kristian Stinson and 3-yard pass to Montez Dunson, and capped the offensive scoring with a screen pass to Ashford, who weaved through traffic for a 35-yard touchdown.

With only five seconds remaining in the opening half, James Jones stripped John Carroll’s Mitchell Nutter on the ensuing kickoff and returned it 22 yards for a touchdown as time expired, bringing the lead to 56-7 at the break.

The second half began with a running clock and the Cavaliers forcing a fumble on the second play of Ramsay’s opening drive. John Carroll (1-6, 1-4) went three-and-out on the ensuing possession, but did gain two first downs on its final drive of the game. Ramsay deployed the bench after the break and turned the ball over on both of its second-half drives.

Star(s) of the game: Washington. The sophomore scatback-turned-quarterback finished 13-of-15 passing for 239 yards and 4 touchdowns. He completed his first 8 passes of the game and added 81 yards and a score on the ground.

“It was a big change and I had to step up when my brother (Kameron Keenan) went down. It’s a different mode, we can move more and I can run more to get more time in. It’s just new. I haven’t played quarterback since eighth grade, but I’m learning faster, getting smarter and better every day,” he said.

By the numbers: 14, the number of first downs by the Ramsay offense. …3, the number of sacks by the Ramsay defense, 2 sacks by Caleb Patterson. …1, the number of third-down conversions in 10 attempts by the John Carroll offense.

Stat sheet: Ramsay – Ashford led the rushing attack, amassing 77 yards and a touchdown on 4 attempts and adding 56 yards and a score through the air, and Dekoriae Foster had 3 carries for 7 yards and a touchdown. (Jalen) Jones was the top receiver for the Rams, pulling down 3 receptions for 71 yards and a touchdown, and Stinson finished with 3 catches for 39 yards and a score. Jacob Andrews had 4 receptions for 73 yards and Dunson had a 3-yard touchdown catch on a back-shoulder fade. John Carroll – McFadden finished 9-of-19 passing for 91 yards and a touchdown and Seidenfaden had 2 catches for 42 yards and a score. Nutter finished with 14 carries for 43 yards and KJ Beck added 3 catches for 43 yards.

Coachspeak: “We hang our hats on our defense. Our defense sets the tone and we feed off our defense. If they come out lights out, we’re going to have a great game.” — Ramsay’s Ronnie Jackson

He said it: “Coming down, running our lanes, we practice stripping the ball and recovering it. In that moment, I saw the ball and went for it, because it’s an instinct, and I picked the ball up and ran. You have to have the mentality that you’re playing the best team in the state and that the uniform on the other side doesn’t matter.” — Patterson on fumble return score

What’s next? The Rams play host to Hayden while John Carroll plays host to Jasper.