<p>Franklin’s football team has ended long success-related dry spells all season. Friday, hosting Seymour in the Class 5A sectional semifinal, the Grizzly Cubs halted a few more such droughts, and they did it in dominating, workmanlike fashion.</p>
<p>Franklin scored touchdowns on all but one of its first-half possessions, building a 35-0 halftime lead on the Owls and prompting a second-half running clock. The Cubs added another touchdown from there, while their defense limited Seymour to 67 first-half yards and 181 overall en route to a 42-0 win.</p>
<p>The victory catapults Franklin (8-2) into next Friday’s sectional championship game for the first time since 2006. It was also the Grizzly Cubs’ first tournament victory since a 22-19 win over Bloomington North in 2012. Finally, the last time Franklin won eight games in a season was 1981.</p>
<p>Franklin will play at top-ranked New Palestine for the championship after the Dragons defeated Whiteland 35-7 in the other semifinal game. If the Cubs figure out a way to beat New Palestine, it would represent the second sectional title in school history. The other came in 1984.</p>[sc:text-divider text-divider-title="Story continues below gallery" ]Click here to purchase photos from this gallery
<p>“It’s cool to play for a sectional championship, but it doesn’t matter who we play,” said Franklin quarterback Drew Byerly, who accounted for all five of the Grizzly Cubs’ first half touchdowns (three passing, two running). “We have to prepare the same way and execute the way we do.”</p>
<p>Byerly’s three touchdown passes went to three different receivers. He found Max Lancer on the left edge of the end zone just 2 minutes, 47 seconds into the game for Franklin’s first score, a 16-yard pass. Peyton Ruble took a play-action pass and ran 39 yards untouched with 5:09 left in the first quarter, making it 14-0 Cubs.</p>
<p>After Byerly scored on runs of 62 and 35 yards on Franklin’s next two touchdowns, Christian McClure hauled in a slant pass off a play fake for a 12-yard touchdown reception to conclude the first half scoring with 2:36 remaining in the half.</p>
<p>Both of Byerly’s touchdown runs came in heavy traffic. He broke multiple tackles on both runs and maneuvered through Seymour’s defense to score both times.</p>
<p>“We’ve had two good weeks of preparation,” Franklin coach Chris Coll said. “Whether it’s been 13 years or one year, getting to a sectional championship is always challenging and gratifying. I’m aware of the historical aspects of this season, but we’ll soak that up and enjoy it more when we get to the offseason.”</p>
<p>Jalen Ward, who rushed for 84 yards on 18 carries, scored the Cubs’ lone second half touchdown, a 2-yard run with 6:41 remaining in the third quarter.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Franklin’s defense limited Seymour to just six first downs all game. The Owls (4-6) were just 2 of 11 on third-down conversions, and failed on both of their fourth-down tries.</p>
<p>“We felt they were a run-first team, and I thought we prepared well leading into it and executed pretty well against their run game,” Coll said of the Owls. Seymour managed just 86 rushing yards on 30 carries.</p>
<p>Byerly rushed for 104 yards on just seven carries, and completed 11 of 18 passes for 176 yards. He sat out the fourth quarter, as did most of Franklin’s starters.</p>
<p>“We got it done in multiple ways,” Byerly said. “It wasn’t all passing, and it wasn’t all running. We combined everything together, and it was a pretty complete game. Obviously, our defense played amazing, too.”</p>
