Wested ties record for career TD passes in 37-27 win over Warren
By ED BRANNON
Thew News-Herald
The shortest player on the field may have come up with biggest play of the game in Friday night's game Region 5 game between the Franklin Knights and the host Warren Dragons.
Franklin linebacker Brandon Perrine, who stands just 5-feet, 7-inches tall, jumped out of his cleats to pull down a key interception late in the third quarter and the Knights went on to post a 37-27 victory.
"Brandon's interception really came at a time when we needed our defense to make something happen," Franklin coach Dave Smith said. "That play really switched the momentum of the game."
At the time, Franklin was nursing a 21-14 lead, and following Perrine's pick, the Knights went on to score 16 straight points during the next eight minutes to take total control of the game.
Perrine wasn't the only Knight to make an impact, even though he ran for 58 yards and hauled in a pair of touchdown passes.
Quarterback Julian Wested also stood out, completing 12 of 18 passes for 255 yards and four TDs. The senior QB now has 29 career TD passes, tying him with Rich Cerro and older brother Nick Wested for the school record.
Early on, it looked like the Knights might run away and hide from the Dragons (1-5 overall, 0-2 R-5).
After being forced to punt on its first offensive series of the game, Franklin scored touchdowns on its next three
drives to open up a 21-0 lead with 11:26 left in the half.
Wested and Perrine hooked up on a 39-yard TD pass with 4:25 left in the first quarter and Brian Greenlee kicked the first of his five PATs.
After the Dragons punted, the Knights (3-3, 1-2 R-5) scored again. Wested ran for 31 yards and three plays later, Sean Cogswell blasted in from nine yards out with 59 seconds left in the period.
Cody Waagner pounced on a fumble on Warren's next series, which set up a 22-yard TD pass from Wested to Tyler Bittner.
However, the Knights weren1t able to put the Dragons away. A fumble and interception stopped Franklin's next two possessions and faced with a fourth-and-two from the Warren 11 with under 30 seconds left in the half, the Dragons got themselves right back in the ballgame.
Greenlee's 27-yard field goal attempt was blocked and Mitch McTavish snared the loose ball out of the air. He promptly dashed 92 yards for the touchdown and Colter Johnson1s kick made it 21-7 at the break.
Warren cut into the deficit again with 4:48 left in the third quarter when Matt Stapleford connected on a nine-yard TD pass to Todd Latimer and Johnson1s kick made it 21-14.
Franklin was forced to punt on its next series and Warren took over at its own 41.
It was at that point when Perrine leaped into the spotlight.
Stapleford attempted a short pass over the middle and Perrine jumped high and came down with the interception.
The Knights answered quickly, going 47 yards in seven plays. A key 13-yard pass from Wested to tight end Steven Spieker kept the drive alive and four plays later, Wested dumped a screen pass to Perrine, who darted 25 yards to paydirt on the final play of the quarter.
Greenlee's kick pushed Franklin's lead to 28-14.
The Knights padded their lead moments later when Johnson couldn1t come up with a bad snap on a punt and was forced to kick the ball out of his own end zone for a safety.
After receiving the free kick, Franklin put the game out of reach, going 56 yards in 10 plays. The final seven came on a seven-yard pass from Wested to Spieker.
Warren scored twice in the final 1:55 against Franklin's reserves. Stapleford hit Latimer on a 24-yard TD pass and later teamed up with McTavish on a 46-yarder with just 22 seconds left in the game.
"I thought we came out and established our presence on the line," Smith said. "That was a real key. We were physical up front and flew to the football. The blocked field goal really took our momentum, but I thought the guys came out and re-established control in the third quarter."
The Knights finished with 417 yards of total offense while the Dragons had 196, including minus 22 rushing -- the fewest ever by a Warren team against Franklin.
Cogswell had 69 yards rushing and Perrine 58 and Franklin had 162 yards on the ground. Warren had minus-22 yards rushing on 24 attempts.
Perrine also had 64 yards receiving, Bittner added 56, Cogswell had 54, Bob Fazzolare 45 and Spieker 30.
Next up for the Knights is a Friday night home game against backyard rival Oil City.
"The nice thing about next week's game is that I don't have to say a thing to these guys," Smith said. "They all know what's at stake."
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