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Panthers
2007 season one of many ups and downs.
Before the 2007 season started, the outlook for the Franklin
Panthers was one of uncertainty. Long time Franklin
fan Harold Justice told me after he had watched a few of the
early workouts that "this team is going to have to
bring their dinner bucket every Friday night as they are going to
have to work hard to win every game". This was
evident as the season wore on and the Panthers hung tough in
every game they played. With no clear superstars coming back
from the 2006 team, the 2007 Panthers proved the concept of
teamwork as they never gave up or quit even as the going got
tough.
The Season got started with a good showing in a scrimmage
against SMC favorite Cherokee. In that scrimmage
Franklin showed the promise of a good season.
The regular season began with an impressive win in an endowment
game over always
tough Hayesville. In that game the home town fans were
treated to a near record setting performance by Senior RB
Josh Young. Young rolled to an impressive 313 yards
and four touchdowns as the Panthers rolled to a 35-16 win.
The Murphy Bulldogs came to town the next week and gave the
Panthers a non conference loss in the Panther pit. The
last non conference team to beat Franklin in the Pit was
Robbinsville on 9-3-2004. The Panthers were leading
24-13 in the fourth quarter with the time running out and that's
when the wheels fell off the wagon. Murphy had a
stroke of luck and all momentum and the bounces started going
their way. The Bulldogs scored 14 unanswered points in
the last 2 minutes and 48 seconds to leave the Pit with a
27-24 win. Josh Young had 250 yards and 2 Td to lead
the Panthers. Next
came a trip to the Big Oaks Stadium in Robbinsville to face
the resurgent Black Knights. The Knights had hired a
new coach in the off season who had instilled a new attitude
to a town that was accustomed to winning. The Panthers
beat Robbinsville by a 31-14 score. Josh Young rushed
for 141 yards and a touchdown and Vince Collins rushed 74
yards and a touchdown. Christian Vose had his first
100+ yard passing game of the season as he completed 9
passes for 108 yards.
The Swain High Maroon Devils who were experiencing an
unusual early season slump had not scored an offensive
Touchdown all season came to the Panther Pit looking for an
upset over the Panthers. The Maroon Machine did manage
a third quarter TD, but the damage was done by the Panthers
as they held off Swain by a 24-6 win.
With the overall record at 3 wins and 1 loss, things were
looking good for the Panthers to hit their mid season stride
and have some momentum heading into the MAC conference next
week. But before MAC play began, Franklin had to make
the trip over Cowee Mtn to play Smoky Mountain in Carr
Hooper Stadium. Rains from a tropical storm caused the
game to be played on Saturday night instead of the usual
Friday night slate (Franklin has not ever won a game
that has been rescheduled that I can find). Franklin
had a 7 game winning streak over the Mustangs that extended
all the way back to 2000 and the Mustangs were
looking to put an end to it this season. Franklin used
a ball control attack all game to control the clock and the
tempo, and had amassed a 13-2 lead heading into the 4th
quarter. But this was Franklin and Smoky and anything
can happen and well, it did. In short, Smoky was able
to outscore the Panthers in the 4th quarter 22-7 including a
go ahead score with just :35 seconds left in the game.
The loss to Smoky caused some turmoil as some Franklin
residents started putting gripes and complaints in the Rants
and Raves section of the local newspaper.
With a short week and MAC favorite T.C. Roberson facing them, the
Panthers could have laid down and quit. But it became
obvious that the Panthers wanted to make a statement as they
came out and 14 unanswered points on the Rams. The
Rams fought back and managed to win the game 24-17, but the
Panthers had multiple chances to go ahead or even put the
game away, but it just was not meant to be.
The next MAC opponent was the Erwin Warriors. Erwin
led most of the game, but Franklin battled back late in the forth
quarter to punched
in a score with :35 seconds left to take the win. The
game winning drive was aided by several pass interference as
well as un sportsmanship calls to keep the drive
alive.
Tuscola came to the Panther Pit with a new coach and a new
attitude. Franklin had jumped out to an 10-0
lead and then Tuscola turned on the heat with an offensive
attack that scored 27
unanswered points. Sophomore Blaine Clark finally
stopped the Tuscola onslaught as he would crack
the end zone late in the third quarter for the Panthers. Vose would throw for
284 yards as the highlight for the Panthers. Several
key players left the game injured for the Panthers,
Defensive linemen Larry Nesbitt left with a shoulder injury,
Santiago Lopez would leave with a chest injury. Josh
Young left the game with a high ankle sprain injury.
However, none of these injuries proved to be season enders
for any of the players.
With a 1-2 MAC record and several key injuries, things were looking bleak for the
Franklin faithful as the resurgent North Buncombe Black
Hawks and their phenomenal QB Randy Pressley were next
inline for the Panthers. Franklin had a game plan to
try to contain Pressley, but that is easier said than
done. It was said in the Franklin crowd that you could
line up just Pressley and the center against an 11 man
defense and he would still get 10 or 15 yards. That being
said, Pressley ran for 230 yards and three touchdowns as the
Black hawks broke a 6 game losing streak to Franklin with a
31-23 win. The bright spot was the running of Blaine
Clark who rushed for 135 yards and two
touchdowns.
Normally, Franklin vs. Asheville has conference title
implications, but this year it looked like an easy win for
the Cougars as they were coming into the game with just 1
loss to a private school in Charlotte. Besides,
Asheville had won the last 5 meetings and 10 of the last 11
games between the schools. So on paper it looked like
an easy win for the Cougars. Asheville jumped out to
an easy 14-0 lead on two big plays and seemed to put the
game into cruise control mode. Then the Offensive
front and Josh Young took over the game. Young would
punch in a 1 yard score just as time was running out to end
the first half to give Franklin some second half
momentum. In the third quarter, Asheville would punch
in a score, but Ian Stewart would block the PAT kick to
leave Asheville ahead 20-7. Young would respond with a
7 yard run as the third quarter was ending to make the score
14-20. The fourth quarter was all Franklin as
Asheville could not gain any momentum. Young would
score the tying touchdown with 2:16 left in the game and
Andrew Raby would give the Panthers the win with the PAT
kick. Asheville would attempt a 48-yard FG to win the
game, but the kick was way short and the Panther fans
stormed the field in celebration. With
the momentum back on their side, Franklin headed back to
Buncombe Co. to face the Enka Jets. Franklin took the
opening kickoff and drove down the field and scored on a
Vose to Erxleben pass play. Franklin would attempt an
onside kick on the kick back to Enka and recover the
ball. That set up another score of Josh Young to put
the Panthers up 13-0. Franklin would stop Enka and
take over to start another scoring drive that was capped by
a 20 yard scamper by Young. Leading 20-0 Franklin was
in control until Jake Stamey would recover a fumble and
return it 30 yards for a third quarter score. Enka
finally got on the board in the 4th quarter to make the
final 28-7.
NCHSAA playoff seedings are similar to a cheap box of
chocolate, you never know what to expect. The initial
guess was that the Panthers would be a 12 or 13 seed and
that all games would be played on the road. The
playoff seedings were released on Saturday Nov 3, and
Franklin seeded a #10 and they would face the #7 team North
Buncombe.
With a six game first round playoff winning streak on the
line, the Panthers had to go back to face North Buncombe and
Randy Pressley. This game turned out to a very weird
game to say the least. With the game tied at 14 in the
fourth quarter, Blaine Clark busted a 54 yard score to put
Franklin ahead 21-14. With 1:01 left in the game North
Buncombe was facing a fourth down and long when Pressley
heaved a hail mary into the end zone that Jason Erxleben
properly batted down, but the ball fell into the hands of a
trailing Black Hawk receiver for the score. The play
was so strange the radio announcers had to wait a few
minutes to gather their thoughts to tell exactly what happened.
Franklin radio announcer Byron McClure termed the catch
"the immaculate reception in Weaverville".
The Hawks elected to go for two and a high snap forced a
lame duck that was intercepted by Franklin to preserve the
21-20 win. The
second round playoff games are where things get
interesting. In the past, Franklin has been knocked
out in the second round by powerhouse teams such as
Kannapolis, Carver, and South Point. If you look at
the State 3A standings each year, you will always see these
teams listed as perennial powerhouses. The fact that
Franklin has matched up with them over the years says
something about FHS football. Franklin's second round opponent
this year was the #2 seed Anson Co. Bearcats from
Wadesboro. Whether it was the 32 degree cold, or just
good defense played by both teams, both offenses could not
generate any running consistency an went to the air.
Franklins Senior QB Christian Vose ( 240 yards passing) had
a huge night as the Panther receivers continually beat the
Anson coverage's. Vose was able to complete passed in
sometimes triple and quadruple coverage. Wide outs
Jason Erxleben (125 yards) and Cody Herman (75 yards) made
huge catches for the Panthers. Anson Co. would score
first as a busted play on a tipped pass resulted in a long
Bearcats score. Franklin would tie the game up at 7
when Josh Young plowed in for a score. The second and
third quarters were all Anson as they would score on two big
pass plays and would add a field goal to take a 24-7 fourth
quarter advantage. Franklin would rally as Vose would
hit Erxleben in the end zone and Andrew Raby would add a
28-yard field goal. Franklin had the momentum, but an
onside kick with just over a minute to go was recovered by
Anson to end the game for a 24-17 final
score. Accomplishments
of the 2007 Panthers on the FHS record book
| Career rushing yards:
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Career
rushing attempts: |
| 3,419
Alex Croteau
|
551 Alex Croteau |
| 2,860
Keith Brooks
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466 Josh Young |
| 2,851
Josh Durm |
428 Chris Durm |
| 2,629
Randy Chastain |
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| 2,492
Chris Durm |
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| 2,368
Josh Young |
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| 2,355
Shawn Bryson |
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| Season
rushing yards:
|
Season
rushing attempts: |
| 1,801
Alex Croteau(2004) |
326 Josh Young
(2007) |
| 1,689
Josh Young (2007) |
279 Alex Croteau (2005) |
| 1,685
Randy Chastain (1971)
|
| 1,561
Chris Durm (2003) |
|
| 1,560
Alex Croteau (2005) |
|
| 1,543
Rodney Morris (1998) |
|
| 1,508
Josh Durm (2002) |
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| Career
rushing touchdowns:
Season receptions: |
| 45
Alex Croteau
67 Preston Sanders (2005) |
| 35
Randy Chastain
58 Dustin Penland (2002) |
| 32
Shawn Bryson
54 Craig Young (2000) |
| 28
Keith Brooks |
|
51
Jason Erxleben (2007) |
| 27
Josh Durm
50 Dustin Cabe (2004) |
| 25
Josh Young
50 Craig Younce (1999) |
| 25
Marcus West
47 Kyle Ward (2006) |
|
47 Dustin Penland (2001) |
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| Season
rushing touchdowns: |
Rushing Yards in a Game
|
| 29
Alex Croteau (2005) |
323 – Rodney Morris vs.
Enka, 1998 |
| 23
Randy Chastain (1971) |
313 – Josh Young vs.
Hayesville, 2007 |
| 20
Josh Young (2007) |
|
| 19
Shawn Bryson (1994) |
|
| 18
Josh Durm (2002) |
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Rushing Touchdowns in a
Game
|
|
Rushing Attempts
in a Game |
| 5 – Alex Croteau vs. RS
Central, 2005 |
|
37
– Josh Young vs. Hayesville, 2007 |
| 5 – Rodney Morris vs.
Tuscola, 1998 |
|
36
– Josh Young vs. Asheville, 2007 |
| 4 – Josh Young vs.
Hayesville, 2007 |
|
34 – Chris Durm vs. T.C.
Roberson, 2003 |
| 4 – Shawn Bryson vs. North
Buncombe, 1993 |
|
34
– Josh Young vs. Murphy, 2007 |
| 4 – Walter West vs.
Murphy, 1982 |
|
34
– Josh Young vs. T.C. Roberson, 2007 |
| 4 – Randy Chastain vs.
Murphy, 1971 |
|
30
– Blaine Clark vs. N. Buncombe, 2007 |
| 4 – Pat Pattillo vs.
Sylva-Webster, 1951 |
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