Mountain Brook scored on its first four possessions and allowed one trip across midfield in the first half as the Class 6A No. 8-ranked Spartans rolled to a 35-14 victory over Buckhorn in Thursday night’s Class 6A first-round playoff matchup at Spartan Stadium.

Mountain Brook (8-3, 5-1 Region 5) out-gained the Bucks on offense, 447 yards to 231, and held the Bucks scoreless until allowing two scores in the final 13 minutes.

The Spartans received the opening kickoff and called seven straight run plays before capping the 62-yard drive with a 30-yard touchdown pass from John Cooper to Stuart Andrews. Following an interception by Clyde Beavers, Cooper found Cole Gamble streaking down the middle of the field for an 80-yard touchdown pass.

Gamble scored on a 1-yard plunge to open the second quarter and added a 21-yard touchdown run midway later in the second quarter to put the Spartans up 28-0 at halftime.

The Spartans forced a three-and-out on Buckhorn’s initial possession of the second half and swiftly added to their advantage with a 24-yard touchdown run from Gamble, capping Mountain Brook’s scoring.

Buckhorn (6-5) put together a grueling 13-play, 69-yard drive to close out the third quarter and scored on a 2-yard touchdown pass from wide receiver Myles Anglin to tight end Wyatt Owen. The Bucks added another score midway through the fourth quarter, capping another 13-play drive with a 26-yard touchdown pass from backup quarterback Abram Aguilar to Jayden Crutcher.

Star of the game: Gamble. The senior running back finished with 22 rushies for 178 yards and three touchdowns, while hauling in two receptions for 93 yards and a score.

“It’s a testament to our work on the practice field and of course the offensive line. We have a lot of young guys, but they keep stepping up in critical spots and that’s big for us heading deeper into the playoffs,” he said.

Did you know: Mountain Brook extended its streak of first-round playoff wins to four straight seasons.

By the numbers: 5, wins for Mountain Brook in the series, which it leads 5-0 with four straight wins between 2010 and 2013. … 3, successful third-down conversions by each team. Mountain Brook went 3-for-10 and Buckhorn was 3-of-14.

Stat sheet: Mountain Brook – Cooper finished 7-for-16 passing for 200 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, and added 46 yards on the ground. Jack King had six carries for 26 yards, before leaving the game with an injury in the fourth quarter, and Andrews had two receptions for 37 yards and a touchdown. Hudson Young had three catches for 70 yards. Buckhorn – Jack Rupe completed 13-of-22 passes for 89 yards and an interception, and Aguilar was 1-of-4 with a 26-yard touchdown pass. Shamarion Landrum led the rushing attack with 25 carries for 91 yards and Israel Cooper had four carries for 26 yards. Crutcher led the receiving effort with seven catches for 74 yards and a touchdown, and Anglin had a 9-yard reception and a 2-yard touchdown pass to Owen, who finished with three catches for 14 yards.

Coachspeak: “A beat is a beat and you live to fight another day. In the game of football, it’s never too late to learn and never too late to grow. That’s been our weekly motto and we have not played our best game yet. That’s still out in front of us and we’re chasing that. It’s exciting.” — Mountain Brook’s Chris Yeager

What’s next? Mountain Brook advances to the second round of the Class 6A playoffs against the winner of Friday’s matchup between No. 1-ranked Clay-Chalkville and Cullman.