Wildcats earn first victory of season
By Jim Mashek – Sporting TImes
Warren Central recovered a Franklin-Simpson fumble on the opening kickoff and opened the scoring two minutes into the game at Joe Hood Field.
The Wildcats came back with a vengeance.
Franklin-Simpson controlled the ball and took control in the second quarter, cruising to a 49-20 victory over the Dragons on Friday night.
Franklin-Simpson improved to 1-3 overall and 1-0 in KHSAA Region 1, District 2 play. Warren Central, still looking for its first win since the 2015 season, gave a good account of itself but struggled at the line of scrimmage against the bigger, stronger Wildcats.
Warren Central is winless in five games this season.
“We’re going through some growing pains,” second-year WCHS coach Cary Fowler said. “We had a lot of missed opportunities tonight. We had three trips into the red zone without any points. That makes it tough.”
It was the first victory for Max Chaney as the Wildcats’ head coach.
“It was a must-win for us, actually,” Chaney said. “We talked about it, as a team, and we knew Warren Central had some good athletes. We’re trending in the right direction, but there’s a lot of lessons to be learned.”
Warren Central’s Santana Atkins recovered the fumble on the opening kickoff for the Dragons. WCHS quarterback Jace Carver found Xander Church for a 10-yard touchdown pass at the 10:10 mark of the first quarter.
The Dragons’ two-point conversion attempt failed and Franklin-Simpson trailed 6-0.
F-S quarterback Luke Richardson directed a nine-play, 50-yard touchdown drive to put the Wildcats in front. Richardson scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak, and the PAT made it 7-6.
The Wildcats’ Omar Harrison scored on a nifty 37-yard touchdown run in the final minute of the first quarter, and RIchardson scored on another 1-yard run before hitting Kyjuan Stutzman for a 26-yard TD pass that made it 27-6.
In the second half, Carver got the ball to WCHS teammate Demetrius Barnett for a 23-yard touchdown pass at the 10:16 mark of the third quarter.
But Franklin-Simpson quickly answered with another touchdown, with Richardson scoring on a 1-yard run with 6:40 left in the third quarter.
Chaney said his team’s stats man had three different Franklin-Simpson backs — Harrison, Malik Carter and Branson Andrews — all rushing for at least 100 yards on the night.
“I feel like our offense finally got going tonight,” Richardson said. “The offensive line had its best game of the year. Our backs showed their potential.”
Franklin-Simpson tight end Andrew Ogles said the Wildcats were stunned by their loss on opening night, a 14-12 setback at the hands of Russellville. They’ve been working to get back into a groove ever since.
“We’ve got to play better, fundamentally, but we had 13 freshmen and sophomores get their first varsity win tonight,” Ogles said. “It doesn’t get any easier at all. We’ve got a lot of athletic teams coming up.”
Franklin-Simpson is on the road to play Warren East on Friday night, while Warren Central will play host to Monroe County.
