Big games are supposed to slow quarterbacks down. Columbus senior Kai Moore just keeps speeding up.

The Northern Illinois commit was in command from the opening drive of Friday’s GMAC championship game, throwing for 148 yards and a touchdown as Columbus beat Miami Central 28-3 in a weather-shortened showdown at Traz Powell Stadium. His long touchdown strike to Tyler Bryant in the second quarter — a deep shot of more than 55 yards — broke the game open and showed exactly why college coaches wanted his signature.

Friday was simply the latest chapter of a superb senior season. According to High School On SI, Moore entered the GMAC final averaging 206 passing yards per game with 18 touchdown passes on the year, steering an Explorers offense that has overwhelmed opponents during a six-game winning streak. In the five wins before the Central game alone, Columbus outscored its opponents by a combined 241-27.

Moore does not lack for weapons, and he uses all of them. Five-star Miami commit A’mir Sears threatens defenses at receiver and cornerback and has four touchdown catches this season. Junior Tony Brown III stretches the field, and sophomore running back Brian Wilson Jr. — who scored twice against Central — gives the Explorers a ground game defenses cannot ignore. Moore’s job is to pick the poison, and he keeps picking right.

The results have Columbus at 8-1, ranked among the top three teams in Florida and No. 15 in the nation by High School On SI, with a berth in the state’s first-ever Open Division bracket all but locked up. The Explorers’ only loss came by a touchdown against St. Thomas Aquinas, the top-ranked team in America — a rematch in December would surprise nobody.

First, Moore and Columbus finish the regular season Friday at Miami Northwestern. Then comes the bracket, and a senior quarterback playing the best football of his life, with a college future already secured and a state legacy still to chase.