Falkville hit the road for a matchup against the Coosa Christian Conquerors Friday night in Gadsden, looking for the third region victory of the year.

Falkville was pressured by the Conquerors early on, as Coosa Christian took an early 6-0 lead and had two other first-half drives that made it inside the Blue Devils’ 10-yard line. The night would ultimately, however, go Falkville’s way.

Both times the Conquerors got inside the 10, the Falkville defense stepped up to keep Coosa Christian out of the endzone. The first drive was stopped when Austin Holmes intercepted a fourth-down pass at the five-yard line and returned it 22 yards. The second drive ended when the Blue Devils stopped the Conquerors on another fourth-down try at the eight-yard line.

The Blue Devils weathered the early pressure to build a 28-12 lead at halftime. Coosa Christian, however, came out of the locker room following halftime and immediately cut into the Falkville lead.

With the Conquerors on the move, the Blue Devils turned the momentum in their favor when senior defensive back Cullen Donahoo picked up a Coosa Christian fumble and returned it 88 yards for a Falkville touchdown and a 41-26 lead.

Falkville would go on to outscore Coosa Christian 21-0 in the rest of the second half to secure a 62-26 Class 1A, Region 7 victory.

Falkville finished the night with 482 yards of total offense.

The Blue Devils were led by Peyton Sallee, who finished 14 of 16 for 269 yards and three touchdowns through the air while adding 33 yards rushing and two touchdowns.

Christian Angulo ran for 130 yards on 17 carries with one touchdown to lead the Falkville rushing attack. 

The team combined for 211 yards on 30 carries.

Mikell Philyaw finished with 239 yards of total offense and three touchdowns. He had six receptions for 152 yards and an 87-yard kickoff return for a score. Andrew Jones had four catches for 88 yards and a touchdown, to go along with a 21-yard interception return for a score.

The Blue Devils’ defense gave up more than 400 yards of total offense but forced five Coosa Christian turnovers.  

The victory sets up a Region 7 showdown Friday night with Decatur Heritage. Falkville (4-3, 3-1) currently trails Decatur Heritage (6-0, 3-0) in the race for the region championship.