There were a lot of big plays Friday night at Vincent – unfortunately for the home team, the Fultondale Wildcats had more of them.

The Wildcats beat Vincent, 44-23, in a game that featured 903 yards of combined offense and 11 plays of 20 yards or more.

“We made our share of big plays on offense,” said head coach Dwight Spradley. “But it was a long night for us defensively.”

The Wildcats stomped out 499 on the ground and didn’t have to complete a pass en route to the three-touchdown victory.

Vincent had a more balanced attack, with 204 yards rushing and 200 yards passing, but couldn’t stop Fultondale’s backfield.

“They just had too many weapons,” said Spradley. “We couldn’t tackle them.”

The fireworks started when Wildcat running back Jonathan Craig dashed in from 29 yards out early in the first quarter. A successful 2-point conversion put Fultondale up, 8-0.

Vincent answered on its next possession with an 83-yard run by Juwan Rogers. The junior running back finished the night with 212 yards rushing and 32 yards receiving.

The Wildcats scored on their next possession when Craig snuck in from the goal line to retake the lead.

Vincent kept things close with a 71-yard bomb from Corey Deloach to Brett Frizzell. The touchdown and PAT gave the Yellow Jackets their only lead of the night, 15-14.

The game got out of hand in the second quarter, when Fultondale scored twice off the legs of workhorse Craig. The Wildcats lead at halftime, 38-15.

The offensive showcase that was the first half slowed after intermission. Each team scored just one touchdown, both in the third quarter.

Rogers scored from 13 yards out to tighten things, 34-23. But the Wildcats responded with a 12-yard run by Craig to cap the scoring at 8:48 in the third.

Craig finished the night with five rushing touchdowns and 209 yards, but was upstaged by his teammate Christopher Barber, who had 211 yards but couldn’t find the end zone.

Both teams had their fair share of turnovers — losing three fumbles and an interception apiece.

On defensive, Rogers led Vincent with seven tackles. Brett Frizzell proved he can catch on both sides of the ball; the junior had a game-high 76 yards receiving and grabbed a pick in the second quarter.

Vincent (5-2, 3-2) travels to Pickens County next week for another regional match-up. Fultondale secured a playoff spot with Friday’s win.