High school football: No. 18 Thompson breezes to Alabama 7A three-peat 38-22 over Central

Not an early injury to their star quarterback or a meeting with a formidable undefeated opponent could slow down 18th-ranked Thompson (Alabaster). The Warriors showed off their depth, big-play prowess and mostly a devastating defense while winning their third straight Alabama High School Athletic Association 7A championship Wednesday with a 38-22 victory over Central (Phenix City) at Protective Stadium on the campus of the University of Alabama-Birmingham.

The Red Devils scored two touchdowns in the final 38 seconds to make the score a little less lopsided.

Sophomore quarterback Zach Sims threw two touchdown passes on his first two attempts before starter Conner Harrell returned and along with game MVP Ryan Peppins led the Warriors (13-1) to third straight crown and 27th win over the last two seasons. Central finished 13-1.

Ryan Peppins tracks down a fourth-quarter 78-yard touchdown bomb from Conner Harrell.

Photol by Brandon Sumrall

Harrell threw two touchdown passes to Peppins, who finished with seven catches for 205 yards, and put the game away with a 3-yard touchdown run early in the fourth as the Warriors breezed to a 24-0 halftime lead, held off a mild Central rally.

Considering Thompson entered with five shutouts and having allowed just 77 points all season it probably shouldn't have been a big surprise. The Warriors also got a big game from Trevor Hardy, who had an interception and kicked a 37-yard field goal.

Thompson senior receiver Ryan Peppins was voted the game's Most Valuable Player after hauling in seven passes for more than 200 yards and two touchdowns.

Photo by Brandon Sumrall

When North Carolina-bound Harrell went down with a lower-leg injury on the his team's first drive, the Thompson sideline did a collective "Oh no, not again."

Harrell, who entered with more than 6,000 career passing yards and 80 touchdowns in two seasons as a starter, didn't play the second half of his team's only loss, a 24-21 defeat to Hoover on Oct. 22 with a hand injury.

The Warriors had control of that game, but in the rematch, in last week's semifinals, Harrell was 100 percent and Thompson breezed to a 35-10 victory over Hoover.

The only thing that could possibly deter the two-time defending champs was an injury to their star 6-foot-2, 190-pound signal-caller.

But no worries. The first pass from Sims, Harrell's understudy, was 24-yard touchdown to Deuce Oliver, giving the Warriors a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter. Sims fired his second touchdown pass, a 26-yard dump off to Justin Pegues, making it 14-0 with two minutes left in the quarter.

While the Warriors were dominating on both sides of the ball and line, Harrell got some good treatment and returned by the middle of the second quarter. He led them on a 40-yard drive, leading to a 37-yard Hardy field goal, making it 17-0.

Then, after a 16-yard sack by the state's top senior recruit, Alexander, the Warriors took over near midfield.  Off play-action, Harrell fired a beautiful 40-yard bomb to Peppins, setting up another touchdown. Harrell scrambled up in the pocket and found Peppins all alone in the right corner of the end zone on a 6-yard flip and the Warriors led 24-0 at intermission.