Stymied throughout the first half, Class 5A top-ranked UMS-Wright pieced together a pair of 50-yard scoring drives in the second half to rally for a 21-20 victory over visiting No. 7 Faith Academy to win the 5A, Region 1 title at Ervin S. Cooper Stadium on a chilly homecoming Friday night.

“Their resilience in unbelievable. I really don’t know what to say,” UMS-Wright coach Terry Curtis said of his team. “They didn’t quit. They played hard, and they hung in there. We made a few adjustments and played a little bit harder. They are fun to coach. I am not sure how we won.”

The Bulldogs improved to 9-0 overall, 7-0 in region and will host to Williamson next Friday, while the Rams (7-2, 5-2) will host LeFlore. It was victory No. 345 for Curtis, leaving him one shy of the all-time Alabama victories record of 346. He can tie former Vestavia Hills coach Buddy Anderson with a win next week.

“It was a good game if you didn’t have a dog in the hunt,” a disappointed Faith coach Jack French said. “Their line just destroyed us (in the second half). They’ve got a great team, and they always do. They can beat you and they do it the right way.”

South Alabama commit Cole Blaylock, limited to only 4 carries in the opening half, finished with 20 totes for 144 yards and a touchdown and hauled in a 37-yard reception for 181 all-purpose yards. Joe Lott ran 14 times for 63 yards and Sutton Snypes was 4-of-6 passing for 46 yards and 1 interception for UMS-Wright.

The Bulldogs finished with 213 yards on the ground, gained 15 first downs and was 4-of-8 on 3rd down conversions.

Christian Burnette ran 22 times for 132 yards and a TD for Faith. Jarrett Daughtry was 18-for-25 in the air for 178 yards, a pair of touchdowns and 1 interception. Dorian Smith caught 6 passes for 55 yards and a score, and Tynean Goodwill brought down 6 catches for 74 yards and a TD. Faith had 162 yards on the ground, netted 17 first downs, but was 2-of-9 on 3rd-down attempts.

The Rams scored on drives of 72, 67 and 52 yards while building a 20-7 halftime advantage.

Burnette scored on a 1-yard run in the first quarter, while Daughtry found Smith all alone in the end zone for a 26-yard TD at the 9:52 mark of the second quarter and then connected with Goodwill on a 49-yard bomb with 2:27 to go until intermission. In between, Michael Inge intercepted a pass, but a 29-yard field goal attempt by Kadeyn Vinson, who was 2-of-3 on PATs, was just wide right on the effort.

“They had us in the first half,” Curtis said. “They pretty much moved it at will.”

The Bulldogs scored on their first possession, going 74 yards in 9 plays with Lott scoring on a 1-yard run with 2:59 to go in the opening quarter. Kingston Phan added the first of his 3 PATs to knot the score at 7-apiece.

Opening the third quarter, Lott led a 10-play drive that ended with a lost fumble that Inge recovered in the end zone. But UMS-Wright scored on a 6-play drive with Lott cashing in a 1-yard run at the 1:34 mark to close the gap to 20-14.

The Bulldog defense made 3 crucial stops in the fourth quarter to turn things around, holding the visitors on downs on 4th-and-1 at the 22-yard line, holding ground on a fourth down where Faith tried to draw them offsides but ended up quick kicking from shotgun formation that netted only 5 yards to set up the go-ahead score, then forced an incomplete pass on 4th-and-4 at the 37 with 3:26 left in the game.

UMS took only 5 plays to score the game-winner with Blaylock going 24 yards on a touchdown run with 5:06 left in the contest and Phan added the all-important PAT for the first lead of the game for the home team.