Panther football is through to the third round of the state playoffs.
Having earned a first-round bye by way of an 8-2 record, on Nov. 14 Franklin kicked off their postseason with a second-round game. In a heart-pounding 14-13 win over Forest Hills, they advanced to a 5A West quarterfinal at Hickory this weekend.
Amid renovations to the Panther Pit with the Braves no longer in contention, the sixth-ranked Panthers hosted #11 Forest Hills (Marshville) at Cherokee High School, following the Yellow Jackets’ first-round win over Smoky Mountain.
Franklin kicked off to the Union County visitors to start the game, where penalties forced a Yellow Jacket three-and-out. From their own 34 Franklin drove all the way to the Jacket 3, but fumbled a first-and-goal handoff recovered by the defense.
Franklin’s offense seemed to stall once again minutes later, when back-to-back penalties brought up a fourth-and-2 on the Panther 26. Lined up in punt formation however, they snapped the ball directly to Addix Sutton, who pushed the pile forward for a key first down. Quarterback Anderson Terrell cashed in a few plays later, finding Gabe Harrison in stride for a beautiful 41-yard touchdown.
Forest Hills answered moments later with their own big play, completing a 29-yard pass on third-and-27. On first-and-10 from their own 14 however, Franklin’s defense held firm when it counted, getting a tackle for loss from Cayson McAllister, passes defensed from Harrison and Payton King, and a fourth-down quarterback hurry from Daiveon Hall to force a turnover. Harrison added another key pass defensed on the Jackets’ next drive to help maintain Franklin’s 7-0 lead until the half.
Franklin’s offense kicked back into gear to start the third, mounting a good-looking drive on the ground behind Garrett Young. On third-and-goal from the 2, the sophomore capped a 16-play, 73-yard, 10-minute drive to double Franklin’s lead.
Forest Hills’ quarterback responded on his next drive, completing passes to four different receivers and adding a key 24-yard run. On first-and-goal from the 9 the Jackets’ running back capped an 11-play, 72-yard drive to make it 14-7.
Franklin received the ensuing kickoff early in the fourth, but were forced into a fourth-and-13 from the Jacket 48. There they attempted a fake punt/pass to Paxton Sutton, but the pass fell incomplete for a turnover on downs.
Forest Hills took advantage of their field position from there, posting a 19-yard run and a 30-yard completion on back-to-back plays. On first-and-goal from the 2 the Jacket running back scored again for a chance to tie the game. On the extra-point try however, Harrison made the play of the game, blocking the kick to keep his team ahead 14-13.
Forest Hills’ defense refused to go quietly despite the setback, giving the ball back to their offense with five minutes to play. Harrison soon capped an incredible night however, intercepting a Jacket pass near midfield. Young and Addix Sutton then gained key first downs on the ground to run out the clock for a nail-biting Panther win.
“It feels amazing. We all played our hearts out and had some injuries, but we battled through it – great team win,” said Harrison after the game. Regarding his two massive plays to help seal the game, the sophomore said he was simply in the right place at the right time. “[Defensive coordinator Matt Bradley] was like, ‘Hey Gabe, we need you to block this kick.’ I was like, ‘OK, I’ll do it,’ dove out for it, and managed to hit it. ... Honestly, it was the wrong coverage [on the interception] – I was dropping into cover-2 but I had to stay in that cover-3, and the ball came right to me for the interception.”
“When given the opportunity to make plays tonight, we made them on special teams, on defense, and on offense,” said head coach Josh Brooks. “At the end of the day, we just made the plays – we intercepted the ball when we had to have it. We blocked the PAT when we had to have it. We got first downs when we had to have them, and I saw a very experienced football team – a very unselfish football team – get the job done against a very good team.”
“We learned from a tough loss against Brevard, and I knew that game would come back and pay dividends for us, but I couldn’t be more proud of our team – I just can’t say that enough. They’re winners, and they were going to be winners whether we won that game tonight or not. They’re just winners, they practiced like winners in the cold and snow last week, and they carried that right to the field. I’m not surprised that we made the plays we had to make tonight, because that’s what they do.”
In beating Forest Hills, the Panthers advanced to the third round of the 5A state playoffs, and will travel to Hickory Nov. 21. By way of a 9-1 record this regular season, the Red Tornadoes earned the West Region’s #3 seed, and demolished 19th-ranked Montgomery Central in Round 2. Hickory’s only loss so far came at the hands of #1 South Point, who prevailed 27-25 in the first week of the season.