After losing to Eastwood the last time they met, Franklin decided to demonstrate that turnabout is fair play. The Franklin Cougars strolled past the Eastwood Troopers with points to spare on Friday, taking the game 44-27.
Ernie Powers was his usual excellent self, rushing for 316 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 11.3 yards per carry, and also picking up 71 receiving yards and two touchdowns. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in rushing yards. Another player making a difference was Lucas Garza, who threw for 88 yards and three touchdowns on only six passes.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Franklin was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 469 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 184 rushing yards in 13 consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Franklin wouldn't let Eastwood keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Franklin can thank Dylan Contreras and Steven Delara for forcing both of them.
When it comes to explaining why Eastwood lost, don't look at Jude Walker. Despite the final result, he picked up 125 receiving yards and a touchdown, and also punched in a rushing score. Walker is becoming a predictor of Eastwood's success: when he posts at least 80 receiving yards the team is 2-1 (and 1-3 when he doesn't). Andre Saenz also helped out by tossing the rock for 336 yards.
Franklin now has a winning record of 4-3. As for Eastwood, they have been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-4 record this season.
Franklin has already played their next contest, a 35-14 victory against Socorro on the 18th. As for Eastwood, they also didn't take long to hit the field again: they've already played their next game, a 43-14 loss against Pebble Hills on the 18th.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
