Freshman Jaden Franklin keys Kent Denver football run

When Jaden Franklin was issued his pads in August, he didn't exactly picture himself as a 1,000-yard back.

"I didn't expect to play any varsity, actually," the Kent Denver (Englewood) freshman said.

Fast forward a few months and Franklin is Class 2A's most trending topic after yet another monster performance, one that pushed the youthful speed burner into quadruple digits on the ground.

Franklin exploded for 185 yards and a key late touchdown Saturday in the Sun Devils' rally-from-behind 31-22 quarterfinals triumph against Faith Christian. And perhaps making this one more special than his four previous 100-plus efforts – other than the significance of the contest, of course – was his ever-wavering hero-goat status.

Franklin lost two fumbles in the first half, one which allowed Faith Christian to stake itself to a 15-0 advantage on the following play, the other which short-circuited a Kent Denver drive inside the Faith 25-yard line. The youngster roared back with 126 yards in the second half, including an icing 52-yard clincher at the 2-minute mark.

"People might not want to say it because he's a freshman," Kent Denver receiver Collins Gantz said, "but let's face it, he's an athlete."

Making Franklin's numbers more remarkable, if not mind-boggling, is that his 1,086 yards have been produced on only 89 carries (resulting in an unheard of 12.2 yards per attempt). That's because Franklin seldom has received the lion's share of the rushing load. He has started only a handful of games for the 11-1 Sun Devils, including the quarterfinals with senior starter Jackson Givens shelved by an injury.

Franklin has received more than 10 carries in only three of Kent's 12 games, with his 19 totes against Faith Christian representing a season-most. Yet there he is, among the classification's top rushers and with 16 touchdowns to his credit.

Granted, he has had the benefit of teaming in the backfield with bulldozing fullback Brannon Jones and quarterback Matt Florence, a deft runner. But Franklin can legitimately throw his name into the conversation of the state's most impactful freshmen.

"We knew he had skills in camp," Kent Denver coach Scott Yates said. "We just weren't sure he'd be ready to step up and play at the varsity level. It's been a maturing process. But when you get to this point in the season, a kid who's a freshman is more like a sophomore."

The reality for Franklin is that he could return to his role as a situational back this week in the semifinals at Florence (1 p.m. Saturday) depending on the health of Givens.

"I've just been taking it week by week," Franklin said. "The team is flowing, everything is going well, and I'm just fortunate when I get to be a starter. When they told me I was the starter (against Faith), I said, ‘OK, let's go. I'm ready.'"

MaxPreps Colorado Class 2A state football brackets

The Kent Denver-Florence matchup, Nos. 3 and 2, respectively in the 2A bracket, highlights a bevy of key small-school matchups on Thanksgiving weekend. No. 4 Bayfield travels to top-seeded Brush in the other semifinal, as the bracket has held to form so far.

That hasn't been the case in 1A, as 11th-seeded Wiggins (9-3) has upset its way to a championship matchup with top-seeded Burlington. Wiggins, coached by Mitch Risner, has upset No. 8 Limon, No. 3 Lutheran and No. 2 Hotchkiss along the way to earn a home date with the unbeaten Cougars (12-0).

Pass-happy Wiggins has one receiver with 82 catches (Travis Groves), another with 71 (Dalton Marini) and quarterback Taylor Risner has tossed 26 TDs. Running back Christian Ramos and multifaceted playmaker Coley David lead Burlington.

The 8-Man final also promises to be a dandy Saturday as defending champion Hoehne travels to Dayspring Christian (Greeley) in a matchup of 12-0 stalwarts. Senior running back Martin Waln (27 total touchdowns) leads Hoehne, while Dayspring is guided by the two-pronged rushing attack of Eli Miller and Ben Sanderford. Each has eclipsed the 1,200-yard plateau.

The state's first football champion was crowned Saturday, when Fleming earned its first boys title in any sport by trouncing Otis 62-28 for the 6-Man crown.