Central clinches Region 2-7A title with victory over Lee

With 4:10 left in the third quarter of a region shootout between Central and Lee, Central quarterback Peter Parrish promptly delivered the deciding shot.

Parrish broke loose on an 83-yard rushing touchdown — his third on the ground — that sealed the deal for Central in a 52-30 victory. The Red Devils (8-0, 5-0) had their hands full for most of the afternoon, but the combined six rushing touchdowns by Parrish and running back A’montae Spivey helped the team win its fourth consecutive region title.

“I knew (from looking at the defense) if I pulled it, it was going to be wide open,” said Parrish, who had 12 carries for 183 yards and three rushing scores. “I pulled it, and it was wide open. I did the rest and had a little track meet.”

It was a track-meet type contest between the Red Devils and Generals (5-3, 3-2). With 49 combined points at halftime, it was evident that neither side was going to be able to completely stop the other.

For Central head coach Jamey DuBose, it was all about doing enough to win.

“I always tell our guys that it doesn’t matter if you win by one or if you win by 30,” DuBose said. “It was for the region championship, so everything was on the line for us. We got some answers for it and were able to come out of this thing with a win.”

Parrish showed off his elusiveness twice in the game’s opening quarter, taking off on rushing touchdowns of 48 and 35 yards, respectively. Spivey came through on the ground as well, posting 11-yard and 24-yard rushing touchdowns in the first half. Spivey’s second score helped Central hold a 28-21 lead at halftime.

Spivey finished with 11 carries for 154 yards and three touchdowns.

Though the Central offense was potent against the Generals, Lee didn’t surrender without a fight. Quarterback Kaniaus Johnson broke two long touchdown runs in the first half. Teammate Tedarrian Murray’s 31-yard touchdown also helped the team keep pace in the back-and-forth first half.

The problem for the Generals was they simply could not stop the big play for Central.

Spivey’s third rushing touchdown came on a 72-yard run with 8:05 left in the third quarter that made it a 35-24 contest. After Johnson broke another 23-yard scamper to the end zone, Parrish delivered the final blow.

“It’s part of the offense, and you never know who’s going to get the credit,” DuBose said. “It just so happened that they were trying to stop the running back. Pete had a lot of pull reads, used his speed and did a lot of good things for us.”

While Parrish’s score put the game out of reach, Central wasn’t done scoring.

Already up 42-30, Central tacked on a 20-yard field goal with 5:08 left in the fourth. The kick was set up by Justyn Ross’ 57-yard punt return. Ross later delivered the last touchdown of the contest, making a one-handed catch in traffic and taking it to the house on a 30-yard reception.

The Red Devils might have not played their best game Saturday, but at this point in the season, DuBose would be the first to offer that all that matters is the final score.

“A win’s a win, and we’re proud to get out of here,” DuBose said.

This story was originally published October 21, 2017 at 3:04 PM with the headline "Central clinches Region 2-7A title with victory over Lee."