Spivey siblings get it done on ground as Central rolls

Central senior running back Jamaar Spivey said he and his brother, junior running back Amontae, tease each other about how many touchdowns they’ll score. On Friday, all that talk was replaced by some well-timed runs from both brothers.

The Spiveys were responsible for 99 yards of offense and four touchdowns in the first half of Central’s 33-7 victory over Bob Jones. The siblings’ tenacious runs set the stage for the Red Devils, the team ranked No. 2 in Alabama’s Class 7A, to abruptly leave 7A’s No. 8 squad in the dust.

“It’s feels great,” Jamaar said. “Me and my brother, we compete every day. We just go back and forth at it, and it’s fun.”

Amontae put Central (1-0) up in the first quarter with a six-yard touchdown on the ground then added to it in the second. The younger Spivey patiently awaited for quarterback Peter Parrish to find him on a screen, and once Parrish rocketed the ball his way, Amontae took off for a 25-yard score to give Central a 12-0 lead.

After Bob Jones (0-1) cut into the lead with a 13-yard touchdown pass, Jamaar got in on the action with a three-yard touchdown run with 2:38 to go before halftime. He then tacked on a four-yard touchdown run with 26 seconds before halftime, all but assuring the Red Devils were walking away winners.

Just about the only disappointment for the Spiveys came in the second half, after Jamaar said he and his brother quibbled about breaking their touchdown tie. Instead, sophomore running back Joseph McKay got in on the action, scoring on a 2-yard run.

“They’re both explosive guys,” head coach Jamey DuBose said about the Spiveys. “The younger Spivey, Amontae, he’s probably got more power. Jamaar is a little bit more of a slasher.”

While the Spiveys repeatedly lit up the scoreboard, their teammates on defense stood tall, too. Along with only giving up seven points, the Red Devils defense had little issue with the Patriots’ offense. Central batted several passes down at the line of scrimmage and also forced two turnovers in the victory.

“They were all correctable mistakes tonight. The defense, they blew one assignment in the secondary that was a big play that (set up) the touchdown,” DuBose said. “We need to tackle a little bit better at times, but I thought we played really solid defensively. Even when the backups came in, they did really good.”

Central quarterback Peter Parrish delivered a strong debut in his start for the Red Devils. The junior completed six consecutive passes to open the game and showed off his arm in the first two quarters, going 13-of-21 with 143 yards and an interception.

Red Devils wide receiver Justyn Ross had a relatively quiet night in the first game of his senior season. The five-star recruit got his work in during the competitive first half, hauling in two receptions for 33 yards.

DuBose admitted he was tempted to let Ross and some of the other Central players run wild on Friday but realized that with his team’s high aspirations, it was better safe than sorry.

“I wanted to come out here and put some numbers up for some of our guys. At the same time, when you get up you’ve got to pull a Justyn Ross out with a long season left,” DuBose said. “You can’t use him in that situation.”

This story was originally published August 26, 2017 at 8:56 AM with the headline "Spivey siblings get it done on ground as Central rolls."