State semifinal, Dec. 8, 2022
Franklin 43, Edna 13
By Douglas Pils
KATY – The Franklin Lions took to the air to secure their third straight trip to AT&T Stadium to play for a Class 3A state championship.
As strange as that sounds, it’s true. The Slot-T experts scored three of their six touchdowns via the pass in a 41-13 victory over Edna on Thursday to set up a meeting with Brock this Thursday at 7 p.m. in Arlington.
“It never gets old. One of the best feelings in the world right now,” said Mark Fannin, who knows nothing but seasons ending in Arlington since taking over as head coach in 2020. He’s now 43-3 as the Lions’ coach. “I couldn’t be more proud of these kids tonight for how they came out and played.
“Edna is a really good ballclub and we had to make some adjustments and these kids have done that all year long.”
Throwing the ball was the biggest adjustment as the Cowboys slowed the Franklin rushing attack at the start of the game, forcing punts or turnover on downs on the first three possessions.
Quarterback Cort Lowry threw touchdowns to Devyn Hidrogo and an ESPN top-play nominee to Bo Jimenez, completing 4 of 7 passes for 110 yards. Jayden Jackson’s 22-yard halfback pass to Dean Rampy gave the now 15-0 Lions a 21-7 lead just before halftime.
As much success as Franklin has running the ball – both senior Bryson Washington and sophomore Jayden Jackson surpassed 2,000 yards rushing for the season in the victory – Lowry’s eyes light up when Mark calls for the pass.
“All of the time. I love throwing the ball,” said Lowry, who has thrown for nine touchdowns and 616 yards this season. “We just practice it all week long. We go 100 percent and we have receivers being covered by the DBs to give us a game look.”
Franklin trailed 7-0 at the end of the first quarter and received a punt on the first play of the second quarter after a sack by senior linebacker Landen Lorenz stopped Edna. Jackson, who had 129 yards on 16 carries, converted a third-and-2 with a 12-yard run to the Cowboys 45.
On first down, Lowry rolled out to his right and hit Hidrogo in stride about 15 yards down the field and the junior speedster took care of the rest, outrunning three Cowboys down the sideline. Lowry’s extra point tied the game at 7-7 with 10:18 to go in the quarter.
The Lions defense held strong after Edna returned the kickoff to the Franklin 45 and a short punt set up a quick-strike three-play drive. Washington, who had a game-high 184 yards on 22 carries, picked up 16 yards on two plays and then Jackson wouldn’t be stopped on a 44-yard sprint through several Cowboys defenders.
Leading 14-7, Franklin stopped Edna’s next drive at the Lions 2, forcing a motion penalty and then a missed 27-yard field goal. Franklin couldn’t get much going after the miss, punting the ball back with 1:07 left in the half.
The Cowboys tried to get into scoring range, but Lorenz stepped up again, intercepting a deep pass that was tipped by Fragiel Owens. Lorenz, who now has five interceptions, returned it to the Franklin 45 with 57 seconds left in the quarter.
Lowry hit Washington on a pass down the middle for 25 yards and with 16 seconds left, the Lions were at the Edna 22. After a timeout, Jackson took a pitch to his right, pulled up to pass, did a little scrambling and found Rampy open near the goal line for that 21-7 lead.
In a half with three punts and one turnover on downs as the Lions’ run game struggled a bit, Lowry and Jackson’s arms provided a needed lift.
“I’m proud of our quarterback Cort Lowry and even Jayden Jackson with an unbelievable throw that looked like Tom Brady on his third or fourth read on something we’ve never worked on with the scramble drill,” Fannin said. “It worked out in our favor.”
Since the Lions had won the opening coin toss, they deferred the ball until the second half. Franklin came out running again, converting two short third-down plays to set up first-and-10 at the Edna 29. Lowry faked a handoff on a deep drop, got blasted as they let go of the ball toward the right corner where Jimenez reached out with his left hand to snare the ball as he skidded into the end zone.
That gave Franklin a 28-7 lead and their third touchdown pass of the game. It’s not the typical way the Lions have taken care of business this year, but they were ready to use it when the moment called for it.
“It’s something we always have had in our back pocket and we work on every single day,” Fannin said. “We don’t miss a day of our passing situations. Our quarterback throws every single day. We’re catching passes every single day and it paid off tonight.
Edna cut the lead to 28-13 with 2:50 to go in the third quarter, but the Lions used only five plays and less than two minutes before Jackson’s 41-yard scoring run made it a three-score game again.
Washington, who had a team-high nine tackles on defense, added the final touchdown midway through the fourth quarter. Lorenz had eight tackles along with the interception, sack and a pass broken up.
When it was over, Franklin had 511 yards, its sixth 500-yard night of the season and first since beating Cameron. It adds up to a third straight berth in the state final, a difficult task that was the goal all year long.
“I think from Day 1, everyone knew we could do it,” senior defensive lineman Andrew Elmore said. “If there was a moment that said ‘we’re definitely going to go back,’ it was after the bye week when our offense was rolling and our defense gelled and figured things out. Once we did that, everyone just knew there was no question, we’re going to be playing at AT&T again.”
Getting back to state means a lot to Lowry, because he watched the past two years as quarterback Marcus Wade Jr. led the Lions’ marches to state. This year, the junior has directed the offense.
“It’s amazing,” Lowry said. “The first two years, I was watching from the sidelines and didn’t really understand it, but now that I’m feeling it, it’s the best feeling I’ve ever felt.”
For the Lions seniors, it marks the end of an amazing three-year run. After Thursday, they will have played 47 games in three years, so they’re bringing a lot of experience with them. Washington, who’s headed to Baylor to enroll early next month, is ready for the final ride.
“It really means a lot and for it to be my senior year going to state three times in a row, it’s kind of like a privilege,” Washington said. “Not everyone gets to do this. I just want to thank God for putting me in the situation to be able to play at this level with my brothers.”
In 2020, the team motto was “164” for the number of miles between the field house and AT&T Stadium. After the heartbreaking loss, the 2021 motto was “Finish164” and in 2022, it’s “Defend164” to add a second title. The Lions are ready.
“We’re going to travel that 164 again,” Fannin said. “It’s going to be fun.”
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