With the state playoffs close enough to reach out and touch, No. 1-ranked Saraland sent loud message to the rest of the teams in Class 6A on Friday night in the form of a 42-13 dismantling of No. 9 Theodore.

The unbeaten Region 1 champs and defending 6A state kingpins (9-0, 7-0 in region) scored on their first five possessions of the game and took an insurmountable 35-0 halftime lead to the locker room before the Bobcats (6-3, 5-2) even knew what hit them.

Texas commit junior quarterback KJ Lacey was 11-of-20 for 201-yards and three TDs through the first two quarters alone, and unstoppable wide receiver Ryan Williams caught 5 passes for 90 yards, a pair of touchdowns and even threw a 27-yard TD on a double pass to Santae McWilliams in the opening half.

It was total domination of a very good Theodore team.

“We come out to kill an ant with a sledgehammer,” said confident junior Alabama commit Williams. “We feel like we have the most talent in the state offensively, and we just want to dominate anybody we play.”

Lacey echoed the sentiment.

“Our mentality every game is to put 50 on the board,” he said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t do it tonight. We came out slow in the second half, and we had a receiver go down so it kind of messed up a little chemistry.”

The Spartans put together back-to-back three-play drives of 78 and 62 yards to start the game, with Lacey capping the first on an 11-yard scoring toss to Jordan Dees and followed with a perfect 42-yard strike to a streaking Williams at the left corner of the end zone for a 14-0 lead.

After Theodore’s third consecutive three-and-out, the onslaught continued with a McWilliams 11-yard touchdown run to cap the first quarter, before his second period catch in the end zone from Williams, and Lacey’s second scoring toss to Williams midway the second quarter.

Arterus Moffet’s 35-yard pick 6 off Bobcats quarterback Crishon Overton capped Saraland’s end zone antics, while Tucker Singleton was true on all six PATs.

Theodore’s scoring came on a 68-yard pass from Overton to Cameron Pruitt in the third quarter and Navontay Richardson’s 19-yard run against Spartans subs on the last play of the game.

Play of the Game: The kickoff. After that it was all Spartans.

By The Numbers: 474 — Points scored by the Spartans this season; 106 — Points Saraland’s defense has allowed; Lacey finished 15-of-26, for 229 yards, the three TDs and one interception; Williams finished with 10 receptions for 100 yards and C.D. Gill had four grabs for 96 yards.

Game ball: Giving it to Lacey or Williams would be easy, but the Spartans defense played lights out all night long, forcing seven Theodore punts, recovering a fumble deep in Bobcats territory and Moffett’s pick 6.

They Said It: “My plan was to come out an dominate, and my teammates helped me do that. We definitely came out here with a chip on our shoulder, and we were ready to play and ready to dominate.” — 6-foot-3, 245-pound Saraland defensive lineman Antonio Coleman, who was a terror all night.

“I thought tonight was a complete game. Defense did an outstanding job, and the offense came out and lit it up in the first half. I thought we came out and did a pretty good job tonight.” — Saraland coach Jeff Kelly

“They officially dominated us in the first half. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out. We didn’t play great, and they have a great team.” — Theodore coach Steve Mask

Next week: Both playoff-bound teams cap the regular season Friday as Saraland goes for perfection at McGill-Toolen, while Theodore visits St. Paul’s.