After flying high against the Eastlake Falcons last Friday, The Franklin Cougars came back down to earth. Franklin took a serious blow against Pebble Hills on Friday, falling 54-14. Franklin lost against Pebble Hills in their previous head to head back in October of 2022, too, but the margin this time around was much wider than the 34-14 score last time.
Despite the loss, Franklin still got an impressive performance from Shay Smith, who rushed for 132 yards and two touchdowns. Smith was no stranger to the big play, turning on the jets for a run that went for 56 yards.
Gael Ochoa had a dynamite game for Pebble Hills, throwing for 327 yards and five touchdowns while picking up 15.6 yards per attempt, and also rushing for 103 yards and a touchdown on only ten carries. The team also got some help courtesy of Zereian Quarles, who rushed for 128 yards and two touchdowns on only nine carries.
Pebble Hills' defense stepped up as well, laying out the QB ten times. It was a group effort, with three guys contributing.
Franklin's loss was their third straight at home, which dropped their overall record down to 5-3. The slump could be explained by some tough opposition over that stretch, namely Pebble Hills, Montwood, and Americas. As for Pebble Hills, the victory (which was their third in a row) raised their record to 7-2.
Franklin will head out on the road to face off against Eastwood at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Eastwood is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last seven games. As for Pebble Hills, they will be playing in front of their home fans against Eastlake at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Eastlake will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Texas Rankings (they are ranked 453rd, while Pebble Hills is ranked 195th).
