SPANISH FORT, Ala. — Jamison Roberts had a hand in six touchdowns, and Saraland scored 42 straight points after a 14-14 first quarter to rout Spanish Fort 56-14 on Friday night, Oct. 23. The Oklahoma commitment threw for 409 yards and four scores and ran for two more as the Spartans locked up second place in Class 5A, Region 1.
Roberts completed 21 of 25 passes, and two of his receivers topped 100 yards. The win was Saraland’s seventh in a row and its sixth straight over Spanish Fort.
“Jamison was the difference in the game,” Saraland coach Jeff Kelly said. “What he was able to do, delivering the ball accurately and on time, it puts a lot of pressure on the defense.”
A tie game, then a 28-point quarter
For one quarter, the Toros kept pace. Spanish Fort pulled even at 14-14 when Cullan Mitchell scored on a 14-yard touchdown run, and the teams were tied after the opening period.
The second quarter belonged to Saraland. The Spartans scored 28 points in the period and went to halftime ahead 42-14, then added two more touchdowns after the break. Spanish Fort did not score again.
Kelly said the Spartans needed a little time to settle in on the road.
“We had a good plan coming in offensively. We just had to settle in after the first quarter. We gave them a short field for their score, gave up a big play on the other.”
— Saraland coach Jeff Kelly
Roberts’ night by the numbers
Roberts spread the ball around and picked apart the Spanish Fort secondary. His four touchdown passes went to three receivers, and he added short rushing touchdowns of 1 and 6 yards.
“The game plan tonight was to attack them thru the air, and feel like we did that tonight.”
— Saraland quarterback Jamison Roberts
- Jamison Roberts, Saraland: 21 of 25 passing, 409 yards, 4 TDs; rushing TDs of 1 and 6 yards
- Chris Cunningham, Saraland: 8 catches, 139 yards, TDs of 2 and 80 yards
- Larry Pettway, Saraland: 8 catches, 128 yards, including a 34-yard TD
- Deuce Scott, Saraland: 78-yard TD reception
- Ayiden Pugh, Saraland: 12 carries, 69 yards, TD runs of 3 and 2 yards
- JJ Thibodeaux, Spanish Fort: 8 of 14 passing, 107 yards, including a 78-yard TD to Bo Farmer
- Cullan Mitchell, Spanish Fort: 14-yard TD run
The Spartans’ eight touchdowns break down simply: four Roberts touchdown passes, two Roberts touchdown runs and two short scoring runs by Pugh. Spanish Fort’s points came on Thibodeaux’s long pass to Farmer and Mitchell’s tying run.
A historic night against the Toros’ defense
Saraland’s 56 points were the second-most Spanish Fort has ever allowed at home. Only McGill-Toolen, which scored 57 points in 2007, has put up more against the Toros on their own field.
The result extended a string of road success for Saraland, too. The Spartans have won 17 consecutive regular-season road games, and their last regular-season road loss came in 2022.
“It’s exciting to load up the bus and come on someone’s home field, get our team away, we play really good ball on the road,” Kelly said.
By the numbers
- 17: consecutive regular-season road wins for Saraland, whose last such loss came in 2022
- 6: straight wins for Saraland over Spanish Fort
- 42: unanswered points for Saraland after a 14-14 first quarter
- 2: Saraland receivers with more than 100 yards, Cunningham and Pettway
- 409: passing yards for Roberts on 25 attempts
Bouncing back from a home loss
Saraland’s only loss this season came at home to Gulf Shores, a defeat that also ended the Spartans’ 41-game home winning streak earlier this fall. Since then, the Spartans have not lost, and Roberts said the team has used that night as fuel.
“Losing at home was one of the worst feelings, and we’ve really bounced back after that loss.”
— Jamison Roberts
The seven-game winning streak has been lopsided. Saraland piled up 624 yards in a 68-10 win at Pell City in September, shut out Murphy 64-0 in early October and beat Blount 56-14 on Oct. 16, when Roberts threw a school-record seven touchdown passes. That performance earned him Zaxby’s Player of the Week honors for Week 9.
Roberts is also headed for a December showcase in Mobile. He was named one of two quarterbacks on the Alabama roster for the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic, sharing the position with Thompson’s Trent Seaborn, an Alabama commitment. That game is set for Saturday, Dec. 12, at Hancock Whitney Stadium on the University of South Alabama campus.
Where the Class 5A, Region 1 race stands
Gulf Shores had already claimed the Class 5A, Region 1 championship with a 36-0 win at Spanish Fort on Oct. 16, a game in which the Dolphins held the Toros to 10 total yards. The Dolphins are the only team to beat Saraland this season.
Saraland and Spanish Fort entered Friday tied for second place in the region at 5-1, and the head-to-head meeting was expected to go a long way toward settling the No. 2 seed. With the win, Saraland will finish as the region runner-up. Spanish Fort will finish third and will play its first-round playoff game on the road.
How Class 5A playoff seeding works
In Classes 1A through 5A, the Alabama High School Athletic Association sends the top four teams from each region to 32-team state playoff brackets. Playoff berths and seeding come from region standings, not polls or overall records. In Class 5A, the top two teams in each region host first-round games, which is why Friday’s result carried home-field implications.
The final week of the regular season features non-region games for Mobile and Baldwin County teams, so those results will not change the region standings.
All 12 AHSAA football and flag football state championship games will be played at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Dec. 1-5.
Spanish Fort looks to regroup
Spanish Fort, coached by Chase Smith, has had a strong season despite the past two weeks. The Toros opened with an 18-15 win over Class 6A Foley and put together a five-game winning streak in which they outscored opponents 151-21, including a 31-7 region road win at Theodore. Back-to-back losses to Gulf Shores and Saraland, the region’s top two teams, followed.
Thibodeaux’s 78-yard touchdown pass to Farmer and Mitchell’s tying run in the first quarter showed the Toros can create big plays, but Saraland’s offense proved too much once the Spartans found their rhythm.
What’s next
Both teams are finished with region play.
- Saraland (8-1, 6-1 Class 5A, Region 1): hosts Class 6A Auburn on Thursday.
- Spanish Fort (6-3, 5-2): plays at St. Paul’s.
After that, Saraland will host a first-round Class 5A playoff game as the region’s No. 2 team, while Spanish Fort will travel to open the postseason.
