Cherokee County stood just 5 yards away from a game-tying touchdown midway through the third quarter in Friday’s Class 4A championship game at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

It was prime time for Montgomery Catholic’s defense – a unit that allowed just 73 points this season – to make a play. Timeout was called, giving both teams the chance to perfect their strategy for the fourth-and-2 play.

“We were about to hammer down,” Cherokee County coach Jacob Kelley said.

It didn’t happen. The Warriors committed a false start penalty, moving the ball back to the 10 for fourth-and-7, so the play call changed to a pass. Jacob Cornejo took the shotgun snap, feigned a run to the right and lofted pass into the end zone for tight end Ben Moseley.

Montgomery Catholic’s Rickie Williams defended the play and appeared to knock the ball out of Moseley’s hands. The incompletion preserved the Knights’ 7-0 lead en route to a 35-0 victory.

“At some point, they had to try to leak out the tight end,” Montgomery Catholic coach Kirk Johnson said. “We harped on it – it’s coming, it’s coming. Rickie Williams is one of the best players in the state as far as his assignment and doing what he’s supposed to do. We guessed right.”

The Knights scored four touchdowns in the final 12:08, as MVP Caleb McCreary scored on runs of 5, 66 and 29 yards and Josh Griffin had a 19-yard run.

Montgomery Catholic earned its eighth shutout of the season and won its first AHSAA state football championship.

“It’s a collective win,” Johnson said. “People talk about our defense and how little points we give up. Man, bump that. We have to play complimentary football, and we did that.”

Montgomery Catholic’s defense has dominated all season and, when the Knights needed a game-changing defensive stop, they delivered.

Cherokee County (13-2) finished as the 4A runner-up for the second straight season.

“t’s tough to end this way and have this taste in your mouth,” Kelley said.

Stat sheet: Montgomery Catholic rolled up 343 yards, with McCreary running 22 times for 197 yards and adding 60 yards passing while completing 9-of-14 passes. Griffin added 82 yards on the ground, and Williams had 54 yards receiving on five receptions. … Cornejo finished with 102 yards on 26 carries. He had runs of 6,7 and 9 yards on the final drive to push him over 100 yards. Tae Diamond had 80 yards rushing for Cherokee County and also forced a fumble while playing defense.

Key stat: Cherokee County did not complete a pass, finishing 0-for-5.

Did you know?: Cherokee County starting quarterback Carson Tittle suffered a torn knee ligament three weeks ago, but returned for last week’s semifinal victory over Westminster Academy and tried to play Friday. His lack of mobility prompted Kelley to take him out of the game, which relegated the Warriors to use a single-wing attack with Cornejo at quarterback. Tittle was 0-for-3 passing and was sacked once.

Making history: The shutout is the first at the Super 7 since UMS-Wright shut out Deshler 52-0 to win the Class 4A title in 2018.

Coachspeak: “It seemed like every time we were in a stuation to convert, we hurt ourselves with a penalty. You can’t be a championship football team and help (the other team) out.” – Kelley

“Its something I’ve dreamed of.” – Johnson, referring to the championship win

Breaking through: Montgomery Academy lost to Fyffe in the Class 3A final in 2020 and then fell in Class 4A semifinals in 2021 and 2022. Johnson said coming so close during the last few seasons made the championship win especially sweet. “It means the world to us,” McCreary said.

Giving credit: Johnson thanked former Montgomery Catholic coach Aubrey Blackwell, who hired him as an assistant before he was elevated to head coach for the 2021 season. The Knights are 41-2 under Johnson. “He believed in me when nobody in the state knew my name,” Johnson said.

Double dip: Montgomery Academy finished runner-up in the Class 1A-5A girls flag championship game, falling 18-12 to Wenonah in overtime. The only other school to have tackle and flag teams in Tuscaloosa this week was Central-Phenix City.