On Senior Day for the Franklin College football team, it was the underclassmen that provided the explosives.
And a record.
Franklin beat winless Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference rival Manchester 36-0, Saturday afternoon in the final home game of the 2023 season at Faught Stadium.
Junior Garrett Cora rushed for 165 yards and scored two rushing touchdowns to tie the single-season school record, while an electrifying 77-yard interception return by freshman Jason Pierre Louis in the first quarter set the tone for Grizzly Cubs, who recorded their first shutout of the season and first since 2021.
“Really proud of our whole team effort, offense, defense and special teams,” Franklin coach Alan Hensell said. “They really bounced back and showed how resilient they are all year, and this was another example.”
After losing their past two games by a combined score of 105-35, which included getting blasted 55-0 last week by Mount St. Joseph, Manchester was what the Grizzlies needed.
The Spartans, for their part, helped out with four turnovers.
In addition to Pierre Louis’ pick-six, the Grizzlies also scored on a 41-yard field goal from Gabe Crutchfield and junior quarterback Jack Henninger’s 1-yard touchdown run on the way to a 17-0 halftime lead.
Franklin (4-5, 4-2 HCAC) continued to roll in the second half thanks to Cora’s two scores. Those gave him 17 on the season, which ties him with R.J. Hartsfield’s mark from 2007.
The Franklin defense added a safety to its scoring total and Crutchfield hit a 25-yard field goal to close out the near perfect day for the Grizzlies.
The score could have been bigger, but twice Franklin failed to score after reaching the red zone of Manchester, gambling and losing on two fourth-down plays — one of those when the Grizzlies were at the 5-yard line.
In the end, though, it didn’t matter.
Franklin’s defense allowed the Spartans into Grizzly territory only twice, one in each half, and nearly held Manchester under 100 total yards (44 yards rushing, 57 passing). The Grizzlies more than tripled that tally with 357 yards in offense.
Jireh Ojata paced the defense with 10 tackles, including five for loss and two quarterback sacks.
“When you look at what we did in all areas, I think this was our best game,” Hensell said.
While it was the underclassmen who scored the touchdowns, Hensell lauded the play of the Franklin seniors in their last home appearance.
“They left it all out there, and to send them off the field with a win was special.”
Franklin will try to finish its season at .500 when it takes a road trip to rival Hanover this coming Saturday.
