The Paul Bryant Stampede (3-0) lived up to their nickname Friday night in a furious comeback against Selma (2-1) at Memorial Stadium.

Down 14-0 at halftime, the Stampede stormed back with a furious rally to stun the Saints 25-21 with a late touchdown run by Raylan Crooks.

“They left it all out there,” said Selma head coach Leroy Miles. “That’s all we ask our kids to do is come out and play to the best of our ability. We came up a little short, but they played as hard as they could possibly play.”

Selma led 14-0 at halftime after a first quarter touchdown run by Jonathan Pressley and a Marquell Moorer touchdown pass to Herschell Brown Jr. and the Saints were seemingly in control the whole way, but Bryant didn’t go away. After Paul Bryant threw three interceptions in the first half, it was Selma that made the major errors in the second half.

“This is the first time this school has been 3-0 man,” said Paul Bryant head coach Eldrick Hill. “Thirteen football seasons, 13 years of history and the first time we’ve been 3-0. We preached about making history this and man it’s an awesome feeling.”

The Stampede blocked a Selma punt in the third quarter and recovered it at the Saints’ 5-yard-line. Even after two negative plays and two false start penalties forced a fourth-and-goal from the 18, Paul Bryant quarterback Reed Snyder connected with Zabrian Moore Jr. for a touchdown to pull the Stampede within 14-7 with 5:40 left in the third quarter.

After forcing another three-and-out by the Saints, Bryant took advantage of great field position.

On the third play of the drive, Snyder connected with Moore Jr. again on a 35-yard strike that brought Paul Bryant within one point. Bryant missed the extra point and trailed 14-13 with 2:01 left in the quarter.

Selma answered immediately on a kickoff return by Quentavious Davis to the Bryant 9-yard-line. On the first play after the return, freshman Allen King ran it in to put Selma back in command at 21-13.

The biggest play of the game probably came in the opening stages of the fourth quarter.

After holding Bryant on downs, Selma took over possession at its own 3-yard-line. On the first play, quarterback Marquell Moorer handed off to running back Brandon Hatcher for what looked to be the touchdown Selma needed to put the game out of reach, but he fumbled inside the Bryant 5 and the Stampede recovered to stay alive.

B.J. Moore forced the fumble on the play for Bryant.

“We had scored to bring it within whatever we did and that guy broke off for like a 70-yard run. B.J. comes out of nowhere and we work on turnovers every week,” Hill said. “We have a turnover circuit. You see the ball, you punch it. The kids sprint down there, caught that guy, punch the ball out, we get it — game changing play right there.”

After the teams traded possessions, Bryant drove the field and scored on a 3-yard run by Devin Hollie with 4:07 left to play. Snyder’s two-point pass was incomplete and Selma still led 21-19.

Paul Bryant chose to kickoff deep and Selma had a chance to run out the clock. After gaining 8-yards on a first down run King was stuffed on second, third and fourth downs at the Bryant 39 to give the ball back to the Stampede.

On the first play of the drive, Snyder connected with Andreaz Spencer for a 58-yard pass that moved the Stampede to the Selma 2-yard-line. Crooks ran it in on the next play to put Paul Bryant up for the first time the entire game.

Selma had one last possession but could not get a first down.

“It’s the little things that add up to big things so you have got to minimize the little mistakes,” Miles said. “They add up and sometimes it can cost you the ball game, but we can’t say any particular situation cost us. I think our effort was great. Our kids played hard and they played hard the whole game. It was a brutal match. It was a 6A match and when you are playing 6A its tough.”

Paul Bryant kneeled the ball twice and then stormed the field in a wild celebration.

“We are going to get some shirts printed up, 3-0 — first time in school history,” Hill said. “We’ll celebrate tonight, tomorrow and Sunday we’ll go back to work.”

Paul Bryant hosts Bessemer City next week while Selma will play at Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa.