Central-Phenix City pulled away from Hewitt-Trussville in the second half as the Red Devils displayed a variety of weapons on offense and a stifling defense in a 48-24 victory.

The key play of the game came early with Class 7A fifth-ranked Hewitt-Trussville down 14-7 and driving inside the 20 of fourth-ranked Central. That’s when Central senior defensive back Rydarrius Morgan dove for a Huskies fumble and tipped the ball in mid-air as it was going out of bounds. The Red Devils recovered the ball and smothered Hewitt’s momentum.

Six plays later, junior quarterback Andrew Alford hit Jacob Tenney on a 48-yard touchdown pass to put the Red Devils up 21-7 with 1:54 to go in the half.

Alford found senior wideout Dylan Gentry for a 20-yard score with 7:53 remaining in the third quarter and delivered another strike to Gentry with 11:15 to go in the fourth quarter to pad a 35-17 lead.

Alford hit 5-star Texas A&M commit Cam Coleman with a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter, the first on a 3-yard pass to the left side of the end zone. On the next Red Devils possession, Alford found Coleman with a 67-yard strike to end Central’s scoring.

“He (Alford) settled in and our offensive line settled in, and we could see what (Hewitt) was doing and we were able to make some adjustments and calls,” Central coach Patrick Nix said. “Anytime it’s the first game, you don’t know what they’re going to do, and to be quite honest, we don’t know who we are yet.”

Nix did not allow players to be interviewed following the game, citing school district policy.

Hewitt-Trussville got on the board first with a 63-yard pick-6 by senior defender Riggs Dunn, but the Huskies could never winnow the lead into single digits. The Huskies’ Kennedy Mitchell scored twice on runs of 3 and 15 yards.

“Red zone scoring was huge — not scoring in the red zone,” Hewitt-Trussville coach Josh Floyd said. “We were down there three times and we ended up with three points. We had a fumble in the red zone. That was big.”

Play of the game: Morgan’s heads-up dive on the Hewitt-Trussville sideline to tap a fumble that was headed out of bounds to a teammate killed the Huskies’ momentum and allowed the Red Devils the opportunity to go up 14 points in the first quarter.

By the numbers: 20, as in 20-yard line: Both teams had success moving the ball, as Hewitt had 18 first downs while Central had 16, but the Red Devils clamped down in the red zone and only allowed three points on three trips for the Huskies; 4, as in 4 touchdown passes by Alford in his first start for the Red Devils; and 17, the number of completed passes Alford threw in a row after missing on his first three attempts.

Game ball: Alford, who settled down after going 0-for-3 in his first three attempts through the air. Once he settled in, he was deadly in finding the seams of Hewitt-Trussville’s defense.

Coachspeak: “I think we’re pretty talented. I think our defensive staff does a great job of preparing our guys running our base defense. We didn’t do anything crazy, because again, you don’t know exactly what you’re going to get because it’s the first game of the season.” — Nix

They said it …: “We’ve got to do a better job of scoring in the game. We’ve got to do a better job of scoring touchdowns.” — Floyd

“I know if I’m just myself that things will work out. I believe in my guys, and I think we worked the hardest I’ve ever worked during an offseason, so I’m confident in everyone from our receivers, our running backs, our O-line. I think we’re going to be fine. That’s one of the best defenses we’re going to see all season. — Hewitt-Trussville quarterback Peyton Floyd, reigning Class 7A Back of the Year.

Next week: Central hosts Smiths Station while Hewitt-Trussville travels to Gadsden City.