Somehow, found a way to earn a victory at Northview on Friday, 16-13.
Despite losing its starting quarterback.
Despite struggling on offense and turning the ball over in the red zone.
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Despite moving up from Division II to Division I. It didn’t matter because the Panthers made enough plays down the stretch on both sides of the ball. It was the opening game of the season for both squads.
Willy Davis ran for a 15-yard touchdown, while Antonio Macias followed up with a two-point conversion to give Franklin a 16-13 lead with 8:23 left to play in the game.
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The Panthers’ defense withstood a Vikings comeback that seemed destined to happen in the closing minutes. Northview drove the ball to the Franklin 19-yard line, but three penalties and a 10-yard sack by linebacker Eddie Cisneros sent the Vikings back to midfield.
Panthers defensive back Joshua Taylor killed the drive with an interception return that put the ball in Northview territory.
The Vikings got the ball back and had one last shot, but quarterback Victor Garcia’s last-second heave toward the end zone was batted down.
Taylor also came in to play quarterback in the second quarter after starter Edwin Camas went down with an ankle injury. Camas had thrown for 60 yards on four for seven passing.
Taylor went 4 of 9 for 63 yards but was a threat to run the ball. He carried the ball just six times yet the Vikings defense was kept honest because of Taylor’s speed. He also threw two interceptions, one of them in the end zone.
“Every time your starter goes down it limits your offense,” Panthers coach Eric Jaimes said. “It limited us, but No. 1 (Taylor) is pretty good. His speed and natural ability were the difference.”
Taylor said it felt crazy having to come in so abruptly.
“I had to step up and be the man on the team,” Taylor said. “I’m versatile. I could throw it, run it and fake the defense, show them something new.”
Northview’s Garcia had a strong game with 172 yards on 13 of 24 passing. He threw one touchdown, a 67-yard strike to his favorite target of the night, receiver Will Mitchell. Mitchell had five receptions for 103 yards.
Franklin moved up to Division I because of the success the team has had in recent seasons. Jaimes says that the regular season is the same, but the real test will come in the playoffs.
“It doesn’t affect us till the playoffs,” he said. “Same league and practice games. If we’re blessed to make the playoffs, the caliber of teams will be a big difference. We’ll be playing teams like Crenshaw, Taft, Dorsey, Manual Arts. They all have team speed.”
Jaimes said the team doesn’t know the status of Camas. They have to see how his injury heals.
Next week, Franklin plays at Poly High (Sun Valley).
Team Qtr. 1 Qtr. 2 Qtr. 3 Qtr. 4 Total Franklin 8 0 0 8 16 Northview 0 10 3 0 13
First quarter
F - Camas 7 run (Davis conversion)
Second quarter
N - Mitchell 67 pass from Garcia (Ortega kick)
N - Ortega 34 field goal
Third quarter
N - Ortega 30 field goal
Fourth quarter
F - Davis 15 run (Macias conversion)
Leaders:
Passing: Franklin — Taylor (4 of 9, 63 yards); Northview — Garcia (13 of 24, 172 yards).
Rushing: Franklin — Macias (13 carries, 34 yards); Northview — Taylor (20 carries, 54 yards).
Receiving: Franklin — Taylor (2 receptions, 33 yards); Northview — Mitchell (5 receptions, 103 yards).
