CONCORD — For East Rowan, it was Reid ’em and weep Friday night.

Central Cabarrus’ quick Lamont Reid was just too much for the East defense as the Vikings topped the Mustangs 38-20 in the South Piedmont Conference football opener for both teams.

Reid’s statistics were amazing: 302 yards on 15 carries and four touchdowns on runs of 85, 63, 49 and 1 yards.

“I don’t know that we’ll face a better back than he is,” said coach Tom Eanes of East after his Mustangs fell to 1-3 for the season. “I saw last year’s game film during the summer and I said, ‘Whoa.’ He can just outrun anybody when he wants to. He’s a good back. Their offensive line opened some good holes, too. They did a good job scheming us, I thought.”

Reid, a 6-foot-1, 182-pound senior, also tormented the Mustangs last season in a 31-28 Central victory at East. He scored four touchdowns and carried the ball 31 times for 205 yards. That gives him 507 yards against the Mustangs in two games.

Despite Reid’s yardage, Eanes thought his inexperienced defensive unit showed improvement.

“I thought the second half the defense played with more spunk. It’s hard to stop No. 31. I thought they showed some improvement that way. We’re just not there yet,” said Eanes.

Central (2-2) had 407 yards total offense, but only 173 came in the second half.

“I still don’t think we’re playing up to our abilities yet,” Eanes continued. “We’re getting better. I know everybody’s sort of frustrated with us, but we’re going to get there.”

East, with losses to South Rowan, North Rowan and Central and a victory over Mount Pleasant, has been outscored 179-86 so far, but the schedule has been tough. South, North and Central all are expected to contend for playoff spots.

Reid put Central on the scoreboard in less than three minutes with a 49-yard touchdown run. It was 7-0 after Andrew Long’s extra-point kick.

East charged back with running back Cal Hayes Jr. teaming up with wide receiver Nick Lefko for a 50-yard touchdown pass. Lefko caught the ball in the clear at the Vikings’ 23 and raced into the end zone.

“We’ve had that in our scheme,” explained Eanes. “Because we run so much option, we feel like we’ve got to keep that corner from flying up. Cal made a good throw and Nick got it down there for us.”

The Mustangs’ Matt Shelton kicked the extra point, but a penalty against East nullified it. Shelton’s try from the 25-yard line was short, and East trailed 7-6 with 6:12 still left in the first quarter.

It took Central only five plays to score again with a facemask penalty against the Mustangs helping the Vikings. Reid ran it in from 1 yard out, Long converted, and it was 14-6 with 3:36 still remaining in the first period.

Long’s 27-yard field goal early in the second quarter made it 17-6 for the home team.

East lost a fumble in Central territory on its next possession, but shook off the turnover and scored the next time it got the ball. The Mustangs went 53 yards in only four plays with the elusive Hayes breaking several tackles on the way to a 41-yard TD run. Quarterback Raymondo Brady ran for the 2-point conversion, and it was 17-14.

Central made it 24-14 late in the half on Reid’s 63-yard TD run and Long’s conversion.

It was wide receiver Michael Ricks’ time to shine early in the third quarter. After a 25-yard punt return by Reid, Ricks caught two straight passes from quarterback Jake Roberts, then ran 12 yards to score.Long converted for a 31-14 lead.

It was 38-14 later in the quarter after Reid broke loose for an 85-yard scoring run.

East scored the game’s final touchdown when Brady hit wide receiver Taylor Weber from 4 yards out to start the fourth quarter.

Weber was one reason Eanes was happy with the Mustangs’ passing game, which netted 102 yards and two touchdowns.

“We schemed them into some mistakes. They were really trying to bring that safety in there to play the option, and we felt like he was going to be in there and we could hit Weber, or we threw to my son (Drew for a 30-yard gain) down there on the 1- or 2-yard line,” said Eanes.

“Taylor Weber’s really come around and given us a different weapon out there at wide receiver with his height (6-3). We feel like we can throw the ball to him. He’s growing every day.I just wish he wasn’t a senior,” said the East coach.

Weber, a basketball starter for the Mustangs, didn’t play football last year.

The biggest negative for East was three lost fumbles, one of them setting up Central’s field goal and another coming at the Vikings’ 20 after the Mustangs had driven from their own 38. East trailed only 31-14 at the time.

East returns home next Friday to play another SPC opponent, Piedmont. East rolled 49-0 at Piedmont in 1999.

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NOTES: Hayes was East’s leading rusher with 68 yards in seven carries. He had 118 yards total offense, counting his TD pass to Lefko. Brady added 51 yards in 20 carries for the Mustangs. ... Brady replaced injured Drew Davis at quarterback. Davis, who has a torn calf muscle, cold be back in action next week. ... Weber caught two passes for 22 yards. ... Dane Thompson, Greg Tucker and Ryan Carroll recovered fumbles for Central.