Saraland hammers Spanish Fort for third straight year, 54-7, behind big plays from Roberts, Spencer and Brown

 

 

 

 

 

 

By JIMMY WIGFIELD

SPANISH FORT — Saraland coach Jeff Kelly got what he asked for. Unfortunately for Spanish Fort, so did the Toros.

The No. 3-ranked Spartans buried Spanish Fort under a barrage of big plays Friday night as Saraland demolished the Toros for the third straight season 54-7 atop The Hill.

Jamison Roberts completed 9 of 12 passes for 254 yards and three touchdowns, all of them to Deshawn Spencer, who also returned a punt 58 yards for a score, as the Spartans (4-0, 3-0 6A Region 1) dominated Spanish Fort early once again and demonstrated the Toros were no match for their sophisticated passing game.

“We came into this week just trying to focus on us and try to be the best version of ourselves,” Roberts said. “Coach told us to gain our respect and that’s what we were trying to do. I think we put the whole state on notice tonight.”

It was the second-worst defeat in Spanish Fort history, topped only by a 57-7 loss to McGill-Toolen in 2007, the second year of a program that has won four state championships but none since 2015.

Kelly challenged his team before the game to not pay attention to the scoreboard or who they were playing.

“I wanted to see their best tonight,” said Kelly, whose team has won 24 straight regular-season games, 20 straight region games and 11 straight regular-season road games. “I wanted to see their best effort. I wanted to see their best execution. It’s the best we’ve played up to this point. Spanish Fort is a good team — we’ve got a lot of respect for them.”

It was Saraland’s fifth straight win in a series the Toros once dominated by winning six of the first seven games.

“We haven’t lost to them in a while,” Kelly said. “I don’t know if you’d call it a rivalry or not. I don’t think our kids see it as a rivalry. I don’t want them to see any game as a rivalry. We don’t talk about the opponent. We don’t talk about the name, you know, who we’re playing. We want to go focus on the schemes that we’ve got to defeat. We want to study and become experts at the schemes that we’re going to see and then we’re going to defeat them, regardless of who our opponent is.”

Roberts — who was sacked just once and operated in a clean pocket all night — threw TD passes of 53, 55 and 24 yards to Spencer, who had six receptions for 198 yards, and Roberts also scored on runs of 2 and 4 yards.

“Jamison’s playing at a high level right now,” Kelly said of his junior quarterback, who has completed 53 of 76 passes for 850 yards and nine TDs in four games. “Our offensive line is continuing to grow and get better. We played our best game up front tonight and we’ve got to keep going.”

In the last three years, Saraland has beaten Spanish Fort 54-7, 42-17 and 49-7 behind the passing of current Texas quarterback K.J. Lacey and now Roberts, who have combined to throw for 687 yards and eight touchdowns in the three victories over the Toros.

“My O-line did amazing tonight, giving me time to make the reads I had to make and make the plays I had to make,” Roberts said.

They also opened holes for P.J. Brown, who broke an 86-yard TD run on the Spartans’ second possession and finished with 130 yards on nine carries.

Saraland outgained Spanish Fort 282 yards to 82 in the first quarter alone and finished with 521 yards of total offense to the Toros’ 193.

The Spartans led 20-0 after the first quarter and 34-7 at halftime. In the last three years, Saraland has outscored Spanish Fort 62-3 in the first quarter.

The Toros were just as overwhelmed by the Spartans’ defense, which held Spanish Fort to no first downs and minus 6 yards of total offense in the second half, although it gave up its first touchdown run this season.

“Coming out at half, we had to clean up some things and just needed to play with a little bit more effort and just doing our job,” defensive coordinator Skylar Mosley said. “And we cleaned them up and they rose to the challenge the second half. We’re just proud of that.”

Saraland had 239 yards rushing and 282 passing and held the ball for 16:29 in the second half, including 10 of the 12 minutes in the fourth quarter.

The Spartans — who at 66-9 own the best record in Class 6A the last six years — have been ranked 45 straight weeks, including 40 straight weeks at no lower than No. 4.

The only chance the Toros had to get into contention was foiled late in the second quarter, when, trailing 26-7, they drove from their 36 to Saraland’s 12 before Lawardrick Jones ran back an intercepted pass off a fake field goal 99 yards for a touchdown, only to have it called back on an illegal block. Unperturbed, Roberts hurled a 55-yard TD pass to Spencer, who beat the defense so badly he had time to wait for the ball to come down for a 34-7 lead.

“That was a key to the game,” Kelly said. “If they scored then and they get the ball in the third quarter and score, it could have been 26-21 and a different ballgame.”

Roberts said Spencer seemed to be open anytime it was needed.

“Deshaun is a very electric guy,” Roberts said. “Whenever we need him to make a play or a big play, he’s always going to come through. That’s what I love about him. Even if he makes a mistake, he’s just going to forget about it and just go on to the next play.”

Spencer said the Spartans had been waiting to use that play after Jones’ pick-six was wiped out.

“We worked on that play the entire week,” he said. “Coach Kelly’s like, ‘Hey, we’re going to do this, we’re going to get them on this play.’ It’s just awesome to see a play come together. … Coach Kelly prides us on giving our best effort at practice and when you practice well, it don’t guarantee you a win but like he always says, it gives you the will to win or the right to win.”

Spencer, who has committed to Duke, has 27 catches for 481 yards and six TDs in four games and proved impossible for Spanish Fort to cover.

“Coach put me in a lot of different scenarios where I could get open,” he said. “If you see some guys bracketing me like over the top outside, then he’ll move me to slot because I’m able to bounce out from running back to outside receiver to slot receiver and really attack their coverage.”