Franklin hands Summit first loss of season

SM-Tn Sports

SPRING HILL — With the game on the line, Carson Repass saved the day for Franklin.

Repass reeled in a 15-yard pass from Connor Beavon in the back corner of the end zone with 3:20 left to play to lift the Admirals to a 27-20 upset of second-ranked Summit Friday night.

The Beavon-to-Repass connection capped a methodical 16-play, 82-yard drive for Franklin (2-2), which seemed to be thwarted after an errant snap set up a third-and-goal play from the 15. Beavon, however, was able to keep the play alive before finding Repass for the game-winning score.

The Spartans’ (3-1) attempted to answer, but their ensuing drive ended after just four plays when Destin Wade was stopped a yard short on a 4th-and-2 run with 2:28 remaining.

Franklin was able to run the remainder of the clock out behind the power running of D.J. Durham, who picked up a pair of critical first downs. Durham had 32 of his 64 yards rushing on that final drive.

Summit Spartans defenders try to take down Franklin’s Bryce Sparks in Friday night’s WCS clash. (Photo by Charles Pulliam / Williamson Herald)

The Admirals scored the game’s first point driving 70 yards before settling for a 27-yard field goal by A.J. Elliot.

Summit quickly answered back as Wade hooked up with Caleb Jolley for an eight-yard touchdown to give the Spartans a 7-3 lead with 3:10 left in the first quarter.

After a costly false start penalty stalled the Spartans’ next drive, Franklin trimmed it deficit to 7-6 on Elliot’s 24-yard field goal.

Summit’s Destin Wade (1) avoids Franklin defenders during the Spartans’ 27-20 loss to the Admirals on Friday night. (Photo by Charles Pulliam / Williamson Herald)

The Admirals regained the lead just before halftime as Isaiah Domingo’s interception was the catalyst for a nine-play scoring drive capped by Carson Garner’s 4-yard touchdown run with just 22 seconds left in the half to give Franklin a 13-7 lead.

The Spartans surged ahead on their opening drive of the third quarter as Wade took over scoring on a 46-yard run to tie the score at 13 after an errant snap negated the point after attempt.

The Admirals sailed back into the lead on Bryce Sparks’ 48-yard touchdown run just 45 seconds after Wade’s score.

Not to be outdone, Wade answered again with a 73-yard touchdown run to tie the score at 20 with 7:39 remaining in third quarter.

Unfortunately for Summit, Wade’s long run would be the last for the Spartans, who failed to gain another first down following the touchdown run.

For the game, the Spartans finished with 257 yards of offense led by Wade’s 195 yards rushing. He also completed 5-of-12 passes for 36 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.

Franklin amassed 364 yards of offense, including 231 yards on the ground. Bryce Sparks rushed for 113 yards, while Beavon completed 10-of-21 passes 131 and a touchdown.

The Admirals return to Region 6-6A action next week at home against Independence (2-1), while Summit will enjoy a COVID-related open date as Overton was forced to cancel next week’s game. The Spartans return to action on Sept. 25 at Clarksville Northwest.

Franklin 27, Summit 20
At Spartan Stadium

F – 3 10 7 7 27
S – 7 0 13 0 20

Team Statistics

F S
First Downs 23 9
Rushes-Yards 44-218 25-221
Passing Yards 134 36
Com-Att-Int 10-22-0 5-12-2
Penalties-Yards 6-30 5-50
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 2-0

Individual Statistics
Rushing

Franklin — Bryce Sparks 17-113, DJ Durham 9-64, Grayson Bruce 6-26, Ashton Orton 6-22, Carson Garner 1-4, Connor Beavon 4-0
Summit — Destin Wade 13-195, Sam Kerouac 7-20, Brandon King 4-4, Maddox Reed 1-2

Passing

Franklin — Connor Beavon 10-22-1-0 134
Summit — Destin Wade 5-12-1-2 36

Receiving

Franklin — Taylor Spierto 4-64, Carson Repass 2-38, Carson Garner 2-18, Mitch Lanik 1-9, Bryce Sparks 1-5
Summit — Zac Switzer 3-27, Caleb Jolley 1-8, Brady Pierce 1-1

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