Central pulls away late with defensive scores to get win over Paul W. Bryant

TUSCALOOSA, ALA. - Week five of Alabama high school football was underway at Falcon Field following Central's first loss of the season last week to Hillcrest. The Falcons relied on defensive scores late in the game to seal a 47-20 victory over the Paul W. Bryant Stampede.

The first quarter consisted of jabs from both teams. The Falcons struck first with a Tra'Von Hall 15-yard rushing touchdown to go up 7-0. On the following drive, Bryant's Brayden Cheatum connected with Cedric Bankhead for a 37-yard touchdown pass as both teams felt each other out going into the second quarter.

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The second quarter was Armani White, who rushed for 30 yards to reach the 1-yard line before Nathan Richardson Jr. capped off the drive with a touchdown plunge. After an unsuccessful possession from the Stampede, Anthony Dixon burst through the gap for a 62-yard touchdown run, giving the Falcons a 21-7 advantage with roughly five minutes left until halftime.

However, the Stampede were not going down without a fight. Similar to their first touchdown connection, Cheatum found Bankhead—this time from 45 yards out—to keep the game within one score. Just as the first half seemed over, the Falcons ran one last play before heading to the locker room. White found Hall crossing the field, who broke multiple tackles for a 60-yard score to respond immediately.

Coach Pippen, head coach of the Falcons, said the reason he did not take a knee was that there was still one play to be made.

"We got a chance to get points right here, and we get the ball at the half," he said. "It was a great opportunity to double up, get one of our best players the ball, and see what he can do."

Tra'Von Hall, the Ole Miss commit, did just that. He finished with six total touches—three on the ground and three through the air—for 113 yards and three touchdowns.

The Falcons carried momentum from Hall's touchdown into the second half, with White finding Dixon in the back of the end zone to give Central a 34-13 advantage. Dixon finished with four touches, tallying 98 yards and two touchdowns.

The Stampede special teams unit blocked Central's punt on the following drive at Central's 22-yard line, giving great field position to the Bryant offense. Brandon Treadway, after breaking multiple huge runs to finish with over 100 rushing yards, found his way into the end zone from six yards out to slice the lead to 34-20.

At the start of the fourth quarter, it looked as though the Stampede might make a push after a missed field goal by the Falcons. However, after Cheatum took a massive hit, his pass was intercepted in the air and returned 65 yards for a touchdown by Jaelon Bramlett. The mistake proved costly for the Stampede, as the Falcons forced a strip-fumble on Bryant's next drive while in the red zone. Jaden Taylor scooped up the loose ball and hustled 85 yards to close out the game.

The game was intense from start to finish, with player tempers heating up on several occasions.

"They just have to stay poised, man—stay even-keeled, because those guys have great players over there," Pippen said. "So I figured they were going to make some plays, but we just have to stay even-keeled."

Indeed, the Falcons remained even-keeled, outscoring the Stampede 19-7 in the second half to secure the 47-20 win. Central now enters the bye week at 4-1 as the team prepares to travel to Bessemer City on October 2nd.

Bryant falls to 2-3 and will also head into a bye week before hosting Northridge.