Top-ranked 6A Saraland took no prisoners on defense, recording five sacks and 15 additional tackles for loss while limiting No. 10-ranked visiting St. Paul’s to 22 yards of total offense in a 47-3 victory in a Region 1 battle at Spartan Stadium on Friday night.

“I thought we played sound in all three phases of the game,” Saraland coach Jeff Kelly said. “Defensively, I am proud of how we are developing on that side of the ball. The guys there are playing hard.”

The Spartans (2-0 overall, 2-0 region) will travel to rival Spanish Fort next Friday, while the Saints (2-1, 1-1) will face Murphy at Ladd-Stadium on Thursday night.

“They were bigger, stronger and faster than us,” St. Paul’s coach Ham Barnett said. “I still believe in our team and our offensive line and that is what we will continue to depend on. They just got the best of us tonight.”

Quarterback K.J. Lacey, a Texas commit, was 11-of-17 passing for 275 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 20 yards and another TD. DeShawn Spencer ran five times for 107 yards and a pair of scores, while reigning Mr. Football Ryan Williams caught three passes for 89 yards and two touchdowns and Santae McWilliams and Lawardrick Jones each added scoring runs. C.D. Gill had four catches for 73 yards, Dillon Alfred three for 103 and Tucker Singleton was 5-of-7 on PATs.

Jamison Curtis had 2 quarterback sacks, while Cam York, Chris Thompson, Jermaine Paramore and Camron Laffitte added a sack apiece. Laffitte also recovered a fumble on a strip sack.

Braxton Byrd was 7-of-15 passing for 80 yards for St. Paul’s but was sacked five times for 52 yards in losses. Cooper Estes had three receptions for 61 yards for St. Paul’s. The Saints were just 1-of-13 on third-down conversions.

The Spartans scored on drives of 64, 59, 56, 21, 51, 80 and 71 yards, building a 7-0 lead after 1 quarter and 34-0 by halftime.

Spencer opened the scoring on a 42-yard run and later added a 56-yard scoring jaunt, Lacey connected with Williams on scores of 2 and 80 yards and ran for a 10-yard score, while McWilliams scored on a 6-yard run and Jones closed out the scoring on an electric 25-yard burst.

Kenny Johnson recorded an interception and Jaboris Stone recovered a fumble for the visitors.

The Saints drove 57 yards in 5 plays, with Drew Ginsberg — who missed just right on a 50-yard field goal attempt midway through the third quarter — connecting on a 33-yard field goal at the 11:02 mark of the fourth quarter to close the gap to 41-3 and avert the shutout.

– Robert Ladnier

BIRMINGHAM

Montevallo 33, Hale County 21

The Bulldogs improved to 2-0 on the year with the Class 4A, Region 3 opening win at Hale County’s Howell Field in Moundville. Montevallo held the Wildcats scoreless to rally from a 21-14 halftime deficit with 19 third-quarter points.

Braxton King completed 11-of-16 passes for 111 yards with a 13-yard touchdown toss to Javon Rogers, who also scored on a 55-yard punt return. King had a pair of TD runs of 6 and 25 yards. Charlie Adams had a 1-yard touchdown for the Bulldogs.

Razareo Conwell ran for 92 yards on 19 carries in the win. King had 76 yards on 10 attempts. Rogers caught seven passes for 85 yards.

Hale County dropped to 1-2 on the year, 0-1 in region play.

Briarwood Christian 28, Chilton County 10

Briarwood Christian relied on a stingy defense, allowing just 161 yards of total offense and forcing three turnovers, to beat Chilton County in Clanton.

The victory snapped a seven-game losing skid for Briarwood (1-2 overall, 1-0 in Class 6A, Region 6). Caleb Keller caught a 20-yard touchdown pass for Briarwood.

Briarwood returns to action next week against Pelham at home, while Chilton County (1-2, 0-1) plays at Helena.

Oneonta 43, Hanceville 24

Oneonta trailed 3-0 after one period before scoring 26 unanswered on the way to the Class 4A, Region 6 win at home. Fluff Bothwell scored two rushing touchdowns, one on a 77-yard pass reception, one on a 56-yard interception return and one on a 57-yard kickoff return for the 2-1, 1-0 Redskins. Bothwell ran for 176 yards on 20 carries, including an 86-yard TD.

Eighth-ranked Oneonta also got touchdowns on a 10-yard run by Malikih Montgomery and a 35-yard pass from Landon Abernathy to Teigan Hill. Augustus Sokira kicked a 22-yard field goal in the win.

Bulldogs quarterback scored on a 1-yard run and completed TD passes of 57 yards to Marquies Leeth and 12 yards to John Davis. Dylan Lazaro kicked a 28-yard field goal for Hanceville (1-2, 0-1).

Bothwell also had eight tackles for Oneonta, two for losses.

COASTAL

UMS-Wright 13, LeFlore 6

Anotehr strong defensive performance helped UMS-Wright stay undefeated in four meetings – all in the last seasons – against LeFlore.

Joe Lott scored on a 6-yard run in the first half, and LeFlore tied the game at 6-all with a touchdown in the third quarter. Both teams missed their extra points.

Jake Jaye scored on a 7-yard run late in the the third quarter for a 13-6 lead, and the Bulldogs’ defense did the rest.

UMS limited LeFlore to just 136 yards of total offense on 50 plays, including just 42 on the ground. LeFlore finished 2-for-10 on third down.

LeFlore’s defense also played well, holding the Bulldogs to only 172 yards on 52 plays.

UMS-Wright (2-1 overall, 1-0 in Class 5A, Region 1) plays at Gulf Shores next week. LeFlore (1-2, 0-1) plays Elberta at home in Toulminville.

Mobile Christian 38, W.S. Neal 6

Damien Gaston completed 8-of-14 passes for 246 yards – seven for 218 yards to Michael Moore – as the unbeaten Leopards handed W.S. Neal its first loss of the season in the Class 3A, Region 1 opener at Harrison Field in Brewton.

Gaston and Moore connected for a 72-yard touchdown to open the floodgates for Mobile Christian, the only TD through the air on the night as the Leopards raced to a 21-0 first-quarter lead that ballooned to 38-0 after three periods.

Aiden Ransom scored on a 2-yard run and PJ Brown scored twice in the third quarter – from 17 and 1 yard away. The Leopards also scored on a 15-yard fumble return. Carter Lewis kicked a 22-yard field goal and hit five extra points for 3-0 Mobile Christian.

Quay McCants scored on a 66-yard pass play in the fourth period for the Eagles (2-1, 0-1).

The winners rolled up 382 total yards and held Neal to 166. Mobile Christian got pass interceptions from Jordan Woullard and Kentonio Kelly and recovered two fumbles.

Mobile Christian will host Excel on Friday in another Region 1 game while W.S. Neal hosts Monroe County.

Theodore 39, Murphy 8

Braxton Clark scored four touchdowns (two receiving, two rushing) as Theodore won its second straight game to improve to 2-1 overall.

Theodore (2-0 in Class 6A, Region 1) also got a pair of touchdown passes from Cameron Rigby, a punt return for a score by Deon Morris and a field goal by Miguel Frias.

The Bobcats led 36-0 at the half and held the Panthers without a first down in the first two quarters. Theodore travels to Baldwin County next week. Murphy (0-3) hosts St. Paul’s on Thursday.

Williamson 39, Elberta 12

Willie Maddox rushed for 150 yards and a pair of scores as Williamson won on the road.

The Lions improved to 2-1 overall, 2-0 in 5A, Region 1 play.

Keith Donald had three receptions for 140 yards and a TD.

Ellis McGaskin had a touchdown and also led the defense with 12 tackles. Kiyante Pettway also scored.

Williamson hosts Vigor on Friday at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. Elberta (0-3, 0-2) travels to LeFlore.

Jackson 50, Orange Beach 2

South Carolina QB commit Landon Duckworth accounted for five touchdowns for the Aggies.

Duckworth was 10-of-17 passing for 201 yards and four touchdowns. He also rushed for 93 yards and a touchdown on three carries.

EJ Crowell (12 carries, 127 yards, TD) led the ground attack. Keeyun Red Chapman had a pair of TD receptions and Nasir Powell and JR Payne also caught TD passes.

The Aggie defense held Orange Beach to just four first downs.

Jackson (2-0, 1-0 4A, Region 1) travels to T.R. Miller next week. Orange Beach (0-2, 0-1) returns home to host Satsuma.

HUNTSVILLE/TENNESSE VALLEY

Lee-Huntsville 46, Hazel Green 21

Lee-Huntsville earned a third straight victory to start the season, marking the first time the Generals have been 3-0 since 2011, with a dominating victory over Hazel Green.

Carlin Long led the way for the Generals (3-0 overall, 1-0 in region) with 228 yards rushing and three touchdowns. Quarterback Leshaun Vann was 3-for-7 passing for 63 yards and a touchdown. Patrick Baily was 4-for-7 for 67 yards and two touchdowns.

Lee will be at Mae Jemison and Hazel Green (0-3, 0-1) be at rival Buckhorn for the annual Cotton Classic rivalry game.

Hartselle 42, Cullman 0

Hartselle stayed undefeated by earning a shutout victory over Class 7A, Region 7 rival Cullman.

The Tigers got touchdowns six different players: Ri Fletcher, Marcus Tapscott, Peyton Steele, Gage Ownby, Noah Lee and Lincoln Bryant

Hartselle (2-1 overall, 1-0 in region) will be at Columbia next week, and Cullman (1-2, 0-1) will be at Decatur.

Athens 46, Decatur 16

Quarterback Brogan Gross completed 10-of-16 passes for 242 yards and two touchdowns as Atahens remained undefeated.

Silas Jones had 63 yards rushing and a touchdown and also caught a 24-yard touchdown from Gross. John McIntyre added catches for 93 yards and a touchdown and had a 56 yard touchdown run. Jay’shon Ridgle caught five passes for 74 yards and had 20 yards rushing and a touchdown. Johnson Speegle caught two passes or 50 yards and a touchdown.

Athens (3-0, 1-0 in region) plays at Muscle Shoals next week, while Decatur (1-2, 0-1) will host Cullman.

Madison Academy 26, J.B. Pennington 21

Class 3A, No. 4-ranked Madison Academy held off a late J.B. Pennington rally to stay undefeated.

The Mustangs led 14-0 at the half and 26-7 in the fourth quarter before the Tigers scored two touchdowns and cut the lead 26-21.

Ken Cherry led the Mustangs with 187 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Jackson Reece caught 10 passes for 152 yards and a touchdown.

“Hats off the JB Pennington,” Madison Academy coach Bob Godsdey said. “They came in here and played their tails off and challenged us. Glad to get a win and battle through some adversity but hats off to them.”

Madison Academy (3-0, 1-0) is off next week and travel to Danville on September 22. Pennington (1-2, 0-1) will host Danville next week.

Huntsville 31, Grissom 0

Hunstville earned a shutout victory over Grissom, the Crimson Panthers’ 12th win over their city rival in the last 13 meetings.

Huntsville quarterback Jacks McClung tallied 126 yards passing and two touchdowns. Ashton Caldwell caught both touchdown passes. Marlon Jones Jr. rushed for 44 yards and a touchdown. Marlin Jones closed out the scoring with a 1-yard run with 3:38 in the third quarter.

Huntsville (1-1, 1-0) will be at James Clemens next week, and Grissom (1-2, 0-1) will host Bob Jones

Scottsboro 63, Boaz 38

Jacobi Edmondson rushed for 240 yards and scored three touchdowns as Scottsboro rolled up 629 total yards to outscored Boaz 63-38 in the Class 5A, Region 7 opener for both teams.

Jayden Gilbert added 134 yards and three scores.

Scottsboro scored on its first two possessions. Quarterback Jake Jones scored on a 1-yard and Antonio Brocks had a 60-yard run to lead 14-0.

Boaz cut the lead to 14-7 with 2:44 left in the opening quarter as Tyler Pierce threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Bo Brock to complete an 11-play, 74-yard drive. Jose Arreguin added the point after.

The two teams swapped scoring drives on their next two possessions each.

Scottsboro got a 56-yard touchdown run by Gilbert and a 73-yard run by Edmondson.

Pierce threw touchdown passes of 47 yards to JaKai Hudgins and 34 yards to Wade Dobbins.

After Boaz cut the lead to 28-21 with 8:05 left in the second quarter, Scottsboro started its possession from their 8-yard line. On the first play, Jones fumbled and Jacob Gareri recovered for Boaz at the 6.

After a 3-yard gain by Presley Fant, Boaz was penalized for clipping, moving the ball back to the 18.

The drive stalled and Arreguin kicked a 33-yard field goal with 6:59 left in the second quarter to cut the lead to 28-24. Gilbert added touchdown runs of 2 and 20 yard runs as Scottsboro led 42-24 at halftime.

Jones added a 17-yard touchdown run and Edmondson a 31-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter while Pierce threw a 44-yard touchdown pass to Hudgins in the third quarter.

Edmondson added a 23-yard run for a score in the fourth quarter while Brayden Bennett threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Landon Alexander for Boaz.

Tristan Childers led Boaz in rushing with 103 yards on 14 carries. Pierce completed 24 of 41 yards for 400 yards. Fant caught nine passes for 78 yards. Hudgins caught five passes for 121 yards.

Scottsboro remained unbeaten at 3-0 and will enjoy an open date next week. Boaz dropped to 1-2 overall and will travel to Cleburne County Friday.

– Ricky Smith

Decatur Heritage 34, Valley Head 12

Decatur Heritage blew open a close game in the second half by forcing turnovers on which offense capitalized with scores to beat Class 1A, Region 7 rival Valley Head 34-12 on Friday.

Savarius Evans led the Eagles (3-0, 1-0) with three touchdown runs and two runs for 2-point conversions. Julio Thomas scored twice with a 26-yard reception from Nash Thomas and an 80-yard kickoff return. Dalton Gay and Jayden Cooper each had an interception.

“We told guys this is the game that will determine where we’re at as a football program,” Decatur Heritage coach Nikita Stover said. “We knew last year they bullied us all over the field (a 57-35 loss at Valley Head). I’ve been preaching for months now. Valley Head is the standard of where I want our toughness to be. Tonight (we) showed that we’re heading on the right direction.”

Ben Johnson and Tytan Blevins each had a rushing score for Valley Head (1-2, 0-1).

Decatur Heritage led 14-12 at halftime and put the game out of reach in the second half with three touchdowns. Two followed interceptions of Valley Head passes and the last one after stopping the Tigers on downs near midfield.

“I think it was evenly matched in the weight room,” Valley Head coach Charles Hammon said. “The difference tonight was a little bit of speed.”

Decatur Heritage will play at Coosa Christian next week in another region game. Valley Head will have an open date and will play at home against Coosa Christian the following week.

– R. Sirvell Carter

Arab 21, Douglas 14

Arab overcame an early lead to earn the victory behind three TDs from Logan Silva.

Silva ran 16 times for 93 yards, including TD runs of 4, 2 and 15 yards.

After Douglas scored on 31-yard pass play from Cason Jay Walls to Vernon Wayne Crenshaw, Silva gave the Knights (3-0) the 14-7 lead on his first two scores in the second quarter.

Silva made it 21-7 with his 15-yarder in the third quarter.

Douglas added a 1-yard run by Walls for the final score.

Arab’s Drew Puccio was 7-of-17 for 137 yards while Douglas’ Walls was 8-of-20 with a TD and two interceptions.

STATEWIDE

Montgomery Catholic 56, B.T. Washington 6

In the opening of 4A Region 2 play for both squads, Montgomery Catholic (3-0) took care of business against Booker T. Washington (1-2) in a dominating win.

The Knights have outscored opponents 126-18 so far this season.

Montgomery Catholic received the opening kickoff and did not look back with an opening drive 37-yard touchdown pass from four-year starter Caleb McCreary to fellow senior receiver Courtney Williams.

McCreary orchestrated an efficient and productive offense throughout the evening, generating half of the Knights’ touchdowns and going 9-of-16 for 110 yards through the air.

On the first play of the game for BTW, the Golden Eagles gave the ball right back on a fumble that was recovered by the Knights’ Garrett Sanford. This was the first of four turnovers by the Golden Eagles, including a pair of pick-sixes by the Knights’ defense.

It was Sanford who secured the highlight of the game when he intercepted Elijah Hall pass at the line of scrimmage and took it 57 yards to the end zone, and the rout was on from there. Sanford finished the game with eight tackles, three tackles for loss and one sack along with the two turnovers.

Running back Josh Griffin joined in on the offensive attack and scored the first two Montgomery Catholic touchdowns, finishing the contest with 150 yards on 11 carries.

The final turnover of the night from Hall was the dagger, a 65-yard pick-six from Rickie Williams.

For Booker T. Washington, both sides of the ball were led by 2024 Auburn commit Joseph Phillips, who finished with 6 tackles and the lone Golden Eagles touchdown, his second touchdown reception of the season.

Next week, the Knights will hit the road for their second region game of the year, taking on Slocomb (1-2). Meanwhile the Golden Eagles will head back home for a 4A Region 2 contest with Geneva (1-2).

– Alex Husting

Central-Phenix City 48, Enterprise 7

The Class 7A No. 2-ranked Central High Red Devils jumped ahead 17-0 in the first quarter and kept on rolling for a 48-7 win over No. 3 Enterprise at Bill Bacon Field.

A 25-yard field goal by Ethan Paul gave the Red Devils a 3-0 lead with 9:07 on the first quarter clock. Just 27 seconds later, Central’s Ljay Williams recovered an Enterprise fumble in the end zone. Then Andrew Alford connected with Dylan Gentry on a 50-yard TD toss with 6:00 left in the quarter.

Paul added a 39-yard field goal with 9:41 left in the second quarter to give Central a 20-0 lead. After Enterprise cut the margin to 20-7, Central took three plays to make the score 27-7 on a 58-yard TD toss from Alford to Daylyn Upshaw.

Upshaw caught a 33-yard TD pass from Alford on Central’s first series of the second half. That was the only score of the third quarter. Central led 34-7.

In the final quarter, Zack Simmons-Brown scored on a 1-yard run. Sophomore Donovan Crow scored on a 70-yard run for the game’s final points.

Upshaw became the third receiver in three games to lead Central. The junior caught four passes for 159-yards with two touchdowns.

Alford had his least productive night of the season, completing 10-of-20 passes for 296 yards with three touchdown passes. He now has 1,029 yards with 13 touchdowns in three starts.

Central will play host to Opelika High next Friday night at Garrett-Harrison Stadium in Phenix City. The two teams have played each other 80 times since 1928 and every season since 1947, except for 1973. Central leads the series with its oldest rival 47-33-0.

– Mark Clark

This post will be updated