By TREY HICKMAN/For the Reporter

WEST BLOCTON — Calera standout Ronnie Clark’s dual-threat performance guided the offense while the defense turned in a stellar effort as the AHSAA Class 4A No. 1 Eagles eased to a 63-0 win over Region 4 rival West Blocton.

Visiting Calera (3-0, 2-0 in Region 4) suffered a slow start while the Tigers (0-3, 0-2) showed life early on before the Eagles finally found the end zone with 1:35 left in the first quarter.

The Clark-to-Jordan Bishop passing connection began the scoring and Calera never looked back.

For the night Calera had a 370-83 advantage in total yards and posted a balanced division of point production (28 in the first half, 35 after intermission).

“I don’t think that it’s any secret that we came out a little flat in the first quarter,” said Calera head coach Wiley McKeller. “We had a turnover and we had a big penalty that called back a touchdown. I was real proud of our guys the way we came in and kind of refocused at halftime. I thought (in) the second half we were a different football team than we were the first half. I was proud of the way we responded in the second half.”

Clark, enjoyed a strong night offensively, hitting on 10-of-14 passes for 131 yards, three touchdowns, and adding 102 yards and a score on seven carries. Shakeith Tyes led the Eagles’ rushers with 112 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries as Jordan Bishop topped the receivers with 122 yards and two scores on seven catches.

“I thought he (Clark) threw the ball well. I thought he ran the ball well,” McKeller said. “He’s a great player. He’s the leader of our team. I think he’s doing a great job.”

Defensively for the Eagles, linebacker Lane Johnson racked up 11 tackles while fellow linebackers Daillon Kennedy and Dylan Reddin contributed eight tackles apiece. Tyes added a receiving touchdown while free safety Tyler Harrell returned a punt for a score.

Calera welcomes Corner at home on Sept. 20.