REESE KEEPER — Indians freshman quarterback Reese Hicks (4) breaks for yardage against Timpson in the 2A bi-district game Thursday, Nov. 11.

— Laurie Gould Photo

ROGERS GAINS — Indians freshman running back Tyler Rogers (21) gains some of the 80 yards he amassed in just four  carries against Timpson in the 2A bi-district game on Thursday, Nov. 11.

— Laurie Gould Photo

REESE HICKS PASS — Indians freshman quarterback Reese Hicks (4) finds senior wide receiver Clayton Merritt (7) with a pass Friday, Nov. 5 against Beckville.

— Laurie Gould Photo

KAYMON DAVIS RUNS — Indians sophomore running back Kaymon Davis (10) runs for yardage behind a block by senior lineman Juan Garcia (66) against Beckville Friday, Nov. 5.

— Laurie Gould Photo

8TH GRADE ACTION — Indians 8th grade running back Braylon Donnell moves for yard-age against Beckville Thursday, Nov. 4.

— FISD Courtesy Photo

BROTHERS COMBO — Senior Clayton Merritt (7) holds the football for his freshman brother Coleman (17) to kick a PAT during the Senior Night game with the Linden-Kildare Tigers Thursday, Oct. 28.  — Laurie Gould Photo

TWO-POINT REVERSAL — Freshman Tyler Rogers (21) picks up a fumble on a PAT try by Linden-Kildare and races to the opposite end zone to score two points for the Indians Thursday, Oct. 28. — Laurie Gould Photo

BRUNO KEEPER — Indians senior quarterback Cael Bruno (5) takes advantage of a block by Alex Oxford (60) for a big gainer Thursday night, Oct. 21 at Union Grove. — Laurie Gould Photo

REESE HICKS RAMBLES — Indians freshman back Reese Hicks(4) weaves through the Union Grove defense for yardage Thursday night, Oct. 21.

— Laurie Gould Photo

LINE OPENS HOLE TO TD — Indians senior quarterback Cael Bruno (5) dashes for a TD run through a huge hole opened by the Indians offensive line against Hawkins Friday, Oct. 15.

— Laurie Gould Photo

TD KICKOFF RETURN — Freshman Tyler Rogers (21) weaves his way through Carlisle defenders to score a TD on a kickoff return in the first quarter Friday, Oct. 8. Kody Loebig (11) prepares a block for the run.

— Laurie Gould Photo

ISAIAH ALLEN CATCH — Senior receiver Isaiah Allen (3) makes a great catch of a 41-yard pass which was key in a drive which set up the second Indian score Friday night, Sept. 24 against Big Sandy.  

— Laurie Gould Photo

BIRCH PRESSURES — Senior defensive lineman Justin Birch (22) puts pressure on the Big Sandy quarterback to try to interrupt the Wildcat passing game Friday night, Sept. 24 at Homecoming.

—Laurie Gould Photo

MITCHELL TACKLE — Junior   linebacker Jeremiah Mitchell (15) makes a key tackle for the Indians defense Friday, Sept. 24 against Big Sandy. Coming up to help is junior linebacker Jared Cook (55).

— Laurie Gould Photo

BRUNO RUSHES — Frankston senior quarterback Cael Bruno (5) struggles for a first down against Queen City Friday night, Sept. 17.

— Laurie Gould Photo

DAVIS TAKES HANDOFF — Indians sophomore running back Kaymon Davis (10) takes a handoff and begins one of his key runs against Queen City Friday, Sept. 17. — Laurie Gould Photo

MERRITT CATCH — Senior wide receiver Clayton Merritt (7) catches a Cael Bruno pass over the middle for a gainer Friday night, Sept. 17 against Queen City.  — Laurie Gould Photo

BIRCH RECEPTION — Senior wide receiver Justin Birch(22) takes a Cael Bruno pass and rambles 29 yards to set up an Indian score against Huntington Friday night, Sept. 10.

— Laurie Gould Photo

DAVIS GAINS — Tribe sophomore running back Kaymon Davis(10) breaks for a key run against Huntington Friday, Sept. 10 in a non-district home game.

—Laurie Gould Photo

MERRITT RECEPTION — Senior wide receiver Clayton Merritt(7) gets a pass and moves for yardage against the Huntington Red Devils Friday, Sept. 10. — Laurie Gould Photo

FUMBLE RECOVERY — Junior linebacker Jared Cook(55) takes off with a fumble recovery to score early for the Indians against Winona Friday night, Sept. 3. — Laurie Gould Photo

TIMPSON GAME — Indians advance the football against Timpson in home opener Friday, Aug. 27.

— FISD Courtesy Photo

Several Frankston Indian football players were honored by selections on the All-East Texas Football Team, selected by the Tyler Morning Telegraph.

Selected for the second team defense was Jared Cook, linebacker. Named to the third team defense were Alex Oxford, lineman, and Clayton Merritt, back.

Receiving Honorable Mention were Cael Bruno (5) at quarterback, Kaymon Davis. (10) at running back, Jeremiah Mitchell (15) at defensive lineman, and Tyler Rogers (21) and Reese Hicks( 4) at linebackers.

Cook was selected on the basis of his 106 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 1 interception and 1 defensive touchdown.

Oxford was selected in consideration of his 78 tackles, 28 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and 3 forced fumbles.

Merritt’s selection was based on 85 tackles, 23 tackles for loss, 3 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 pass broken up and 1 interception.

The Honorable Mention selections were for noteworthy contributions to their team at the positions they played.

Indians Coach Paul Gould congratulated the honorees for the recognition and for their contributions to the Tribe football team.

FHS Alex Oxford MVP on Defense

in District 9-2A-1 football honors

Frankston Indians’ senior defensive lineman Alex Oxford was selected as Most Valuable Player on defense on the District 9-2A, Division 1 All-District Football Team,  it was announced Monday, Nov. 29.

Five Indian players were named to the All-District First Team on offense and four on the First Team Defense.

On the First Team Offense are Cael Bruno, senior quarterback; Isaiah Allen, senior wide receiver; Clayton Merritt, senior wide receiver; Jared Cook, junior offensive lineman; and Juan Garcia, senior offensive lineman.

On the First Team Defense are Jeremiah Mitchell, junior defensive lineman; Reese Hicks, freshman outside linebacker; Kaymon Davis, sophomore defensive back; and Bayne Bacon, utility defensive player.

Selected on the Second Team Offense were Kaymon Davis, sophomore running back; Kody Loebig, junior wide receiver; and Logan Taylor, junior offensive lineman.

On the Second Team Defense were Justin Birch, senior defensive lineman; Tyler Rogers, freshman outside linebacker; Jared Cook, junior linebacker; and Clayton Merritt, senior defensive back.

Selected for Honorable Mention on Offense were Reese Hicks, freshman quarterback; Tyler Rogers, freshman running back; and Matt Fridinger, junior offensive lineman.

On defense, Honorable Mention went to Austin Boggs, senior defensive back.

Beckville, Carlisle, Hawkins and Frankston players dominated the All-District Superlative List and Beckville Coach Cody Ross was chosen as Coach of the Year.

Chosen Overall Most Valuable Player was Beckville’s Ryan Harris. MVP on offense was J’Koby Williams of Beckville. Offensive Newcomers were Colman Tapia of Hawkins and Fernando Espinoza of Carlisle. Defensive Newcomer was Will Bogs of Beckville. Special Teams MVP was David Deleon of Carlisle and Utility MVP was Brody Eaves of Carlisle.

Other district players were selected as follows:

On the First Team Offense, Beckville had 6, Hawkins 5, Carlisle 4, Linden-Kildare 2 and Union Grove 1.

On the First Team Defense: Beckville had 8, Carlisle 4, Hawkins and Linden-Kildare 3 each.

On the Second Team Offense: Union Grove had 4; Beckville and Linden-Kildare 3 each; Hawkins and Big Sandy 2 each; and Carlisle 1.

On the Second Team Defense: Union Grove had 5;  Carlisle 3; Beckville, Hawkins and Linden-Kildare 2 each; and Big Sandy 1.

——————————————————————————————————

Timpson defeats Indians 62-0

in Class 2A-1 bi-district play

The Timpson Bears Thursday, Nov. 11 advanced to Area Class 2A-1 playoff competition after controlling the first half in bi-district action against the Frankston Indians at Jacksonville’s Tomato Bowl.

The Bears scored a 62-0 victory over the Indians, with 55 of those points coming in the first half.

Timpson scored every time they had the football in the half, leading 27-0 in the first quarter and adding 28 more points in the second period.

The Indians received the opening kickoff but could not convert on a fourth down play. Timpson took over inside Indian territory and immediately rushed for a touchdown and booted the PAT to go ahead 7-0.

Next time the Bears got the ball after an Indian punt, they were in good field position and completed a pass for a score only two minutes after their first score. The PAT attempt was no good, but the Bears lead increased to 13-0.

After receiving the following kickoff, the Indians had to punt and Timpson took over, this time just inside their own end of the field. With about four minutes left, they ran for another touchdown. This time the PAT kick was good and they led 20-0.

An Indian fumble deep in their own end of the field set up the Bears inside the 20 and they promptly took advantage with another score and a successful PAT kick to lead 27-0.

After receiving the ensuing kickoff, the Indians attempted a pass play and the Bears intercepted near the end of the quarter.

Timpson capitalized on that turnover early the second period with a run for a score. The PAT kick was good and the Bears led 34-0.

Frankston received the kickoff but couldn’t move the ball and were forced to punt it back to Timpson who started inside the 50. Shortly they scored on another running play with just under five minutes to go in the half. The PAT try again was good and they raised their lead to 41-0.

The Indians were forced to punt back to the Bears on their next possession after the kickoff and with just over a minute to go, Timpson ran again to paydirt and kicked the extra point to lead 48-0.

With about a minute to go, the Indians took over after the kickoff, but a pass attempt was picked off and returned for a score by a Bear defender with just four seconds left until halftime. Again the PAT kick was good and Timpson had their 55-0 halftime lead.

Timpson scoring seemed to be about to continue in the third quarter when they drove inside the 20 after taking the second half kickoff. However, they fumbled the football and the Indians staved off a score.

After the fumble recovery, the Indians were able to move the ball to just past midfield, but had to turn the ball back to the Bears after a fourth down play failed to yield a first down.

Timpson could not drive the football and punted, but as the fourth quarter began, the Indians were unable to sustain a drive and punted back to Timpson.

However, Timpson ended up deep in Tribe territory and shortly ran for their only second half score and kicked the extra point to make the score 62-0, their final winning margin.

The Indians had one more chance to drive for a score, but a Tribe fumble ended that effort.

The young and promising Indians had made it into the playoffs the second straight year, only to fall again in bi-district to a formidable Timpson team which will be contending again for a 2A-1 state championship.

Frankston Coach Paul Gould said coaches and players knew, going into the game, that Timpson was a formidable opponent, a state championship contender, but he said the players went into the game with determination and played hard. He said the young players did not seem intimidated by the challenge.

Coach Gould said he has been proud of the leadership the seniors played during this game, the season and during their years on the team. He said they really believed in what we are doing to build a program where we someday might develop into the caliber of teams like Timpson.

Seniors playing their last football game for the Indians were Isaiah Allen, Austin Boggs, Clayton Merritt, Colby Zarate, Bayne Bacon, Justin Birch, Virgil Gallaway, Alex Oxford, Juan Garcia and Tristan Shuptrine.

Although the Indians will be losing the seniors, the coach said he thinks the young players will continue to progress, and some sub-varsity players coming up will be able to help fill the spots vacated.

In the Timpson game, he particularly noted the performance of freshman quarterback Reese Hicks and another freshman, running back Tyler Rogers, along with sophomore wide receiver Devin Allen. Hicks ran for 45 yards and completed 7 of 14 passes for 49 yards and had two interceptions, one forced by the Bears’ rush. Rogers carried the ball only four times but gained 80 yards, averaging 20 yards per carry. Allen had three pass receptions for 29 yards.

Defensively he thought senior defensive back Clayton Merritt and senior lineman Alex Oxford had a good game.

Coach Gould said he looks forward to the years ahead in which the coaches and players will continue to work for progress toward what they believe will be a continually successful football program and culture.

( Frankston-Timpon Bi-District Game, Cumulative Statistics HERE )

Score by Quarters:

Timpson     27      28      0      7 — 62

Frankston    0        0      0      0 —   0

REGULAR SEASON GAMES

Indians fall victim to top-ranked

Beckville 71-8 in district finale

The Frankston Indians were playing Beckville, the District 9-2A-1 leader, ranked by some as No. 7 in 2A-1, and early in the game on Friday, Nov. 5 the Bearcats lived up to their credentials.

The formidable Beckville team quickly jumped out in the lead and never gave it up to win 71-8. Frankston’s only score would come late in the third quarter.

That was when Frankston put together a good drive and freshman back Tyler Rogers went the final five yards to score. Clayton Merritt ran for the two extra points to take the zero off the scoreboard and avoid a shutout.

The Bearcats built up a 36-0 lead after only a quarter and by halftime they had increased their margin to 57-0.

The Indians, meanwhile, could not get their offense going against the aggressive Beckville defense. At the same time, Beckville was combining passing and running the football to build their lead.

In the second half, the Bearcats added 14 more points to pad their first half performance.

The first Beckville score came on a pass play, but the PAT kick was blocked giving Beckville a 6-0 lead. After holding off the Indians, the Bearcats scored again, also on a pass play and ran for a two-point conversion, making the score 14-0.

Beckville increased their lead after a Tribe fumble on the kickoff and the Bearcats took over inside the Tribe 10. Seconds later they ran for a touchdown and added two extra points on a run to make the score 22-0.

Frankston got an opportunity to score when they recovered a Bearcat fumble on  the Beckville 26-yard line. However, the Bearcats were to come right back with a fumble recovery of their own. Beckville capitalized on this opportunity and completed a scoring pass and kicked the extra point to increase their lead to 29-0.

Frankston could not move the football and punted to the Bearcats, who quickly ran for another TD and kicked the PAT to lead 36-0 when the quarter ended.

In the second quarter, Beckville scored 21 more points for the 57-0 halftime lead.

Beckville scoring slacked off some in the second half but the Bearcats scored another seven points in the third quarter to make their lead 64-0.

It was then that the Indians finally put together a scoring drive, climaxed with Rogers’ five-yard run to the end zone and Merritt’s two-point conversion run.

Beckville scored once more in the fourth quarter to finalize the 71-8 win.

The fourth seeded Indians are preparing to take on No. 3 ranked Timpson, District 10-2A-1 first seed, in bi-district at the Jacksonville Tomato Bowl on Thursday, Nov. 11 at 7 p.m.

Indians Coach Paul Gould was obviously disappointed in the game outcome. He said he thought the Indians didn’t play as well as he had wanted, but thought they played better in the second half. He said the team will be working in practice during the week to improve for the bi-district game against top-ranked Timpson.

The Indian coach said he thought Beckville is definitely the best team in District 9-2A-1 by far and probably Beckville and Timpson are the best two teams in the region.

Despite his disappointment with this loss, Coach Gould said he is proud of the progress his team has made during the season.

He had words of praise for freshman quarterback Reese Hicks who he said did not appear intimidated by his formidable opposition. Hicks completed 9 of 13 passes and ran for 73 yards in the game, calling the signals after senior quarterback Cael Bruno was sidelined with an injury. He also said he was proud of his backs who ran hard during the night but couldn’t find the daylight for more scores. In fact, the coach said he was proud of all his skill players.

Looking ahead to the challenging task against Timpson in bi-district play, Coach Gould said he thinks the Bears are better than they were when they defeated the Indians 61-0 in the non-district opener. He said they have team speed on both offense and defense and the Indians will have to put together some drives and avoid turnovers to challenge the Bears.

The Indians coach said Timpson runs a balanced run-pass offense out of the familiar spread offense and uses their speed to “go to the football” in their 3-3 stack defense.

Timpson players who the Indians must defend against are sophomore quarterback Terry Bussey, senior running back Braden Courtney, sophomore running back Dakovian Tutt and sophomore wide receiver  Vosky Howard, all offensive threats.

This year’s bi-district game is a repeat matchup between the Bears and Indians who played in last year’s bi-district game which the Bears won and contended for the state championship.

In sub-varsity action the Beckville eighth graders defeated the Frankston eighth grade team 48-22 to take the district championship. The previously undefeated Indians eighth grade team came in second in the district. In the seventh grade game, Beckville won 26-6. There was no junior varsity game.

( See Frankston-Beckville, Cumulative Statistics HERE )

Score by Quarters:

Frankston    0       0     8     0 —   8

Beckville    36     21     7     7 — 71

Indians defeat Linden-Kildare 34-12

Oct. 28, clinch seeding in AA playoffs

The Frankston Indians clinched a spot in the Class 2A playoffs Thursday, Oct. 28 with an offensive show, hindered only by a respectable Linden-Kildare defense, and some untimely penalties and turnovers.

The result was predictable since the Indian defense was pretty good too.

Final score was Indians 34, Linden-Kildare 12.

The Tigers had some pretty good runners with breakaway speed but most of the game the Indian defense wouldn’t let them out of the backfield or very far past the line of scrimmage.

By contrast, the Indians had some pretty good runners with breakaway speed too, but they consistently broke away, sometimes for big play scores.

Eliminate the penalties, a few fumbles and a key injury to senior quarterback Cael Bruno and the Indian offense might have made it more of a rout.

The Indian victory against Linden-Kildare started early, as they took the opening kickoff at their own 34 and used the running of Bruno and sophomore running back Kaymon Davis to score. Bruno started it off with a 23-yard run and then handed off to the explosive Davis who broke loose for a 36-yard jaunt to the Tiger 2. Despite a two-yard loss on the next play, Bruno capped the drive with a four-yard run for the score. The PAT try was no good, but the Indians had a 6-0 lead with 9:40 left in the first quarter.

Neither team could score for the remainder of the first quarter, the Tigers grinding out yardage, keeping the football away from the Tribe offense and eating up time on the scoreboard clock. Then they punted the Indians into a hole at their own 5, finally forcing a punt back to the Tigers, who ate up some more clock time, but having to punt as the quarter ended.

The Indians put together a convincing drive to start the second period, but despite the running of Bruno, Davis and freshman Tyler Rogers and a 12-yard pass to junior Kody Loebig, which put the Indians at the Tiger 1, the Indians fumbled at the 2 to thwart a seemingly sure touchdown.

Despite the bit of fortune, the Tigers could not move the chains and punted. The Indians took over at the Tiger 35. They used runs by Davis and Reese Hicks to score, Davis going the last 13 yards to paydirt. Coleman Merritt’s PAT kick was good and the Tribe led 13-0 with 3:55 left in the half.

Linden-Kildare started a drive on the ground from the Indian 49 after the ensuing kickoff and moved the ball convincingly to Indian 16, but there they fumbled and alert Tribe linebacker Rogers recovered to end that threat. The Indians could not capitalize on their good fortune and the half ended shortly after a Tribe punt to the Tigers.

The two teams exchanged possessions in the third quarter, Frankston driving from their own 42 on runs by freshman Reese Hicks and Rogers but they ran out of downs at the 13. Linden-Kildare’s ensuing possession yielded nothing and they punted. The Indians took over the ball again at the Tiger 42 and were at the Tiger 13 when the third quarter ended, thanks to the running of Rogers and Hicks.

Then in the fourth, Hicks picked up a key first down on a fourth down try with a 10-yard run to the Tiger 3. On a quick count, Hicks went into the end zone with 11:41 left in the fourth period. The try for two points failed but the Indians made their initial points of the second half to lead 19-0.

The Indians kicked off to the Tigers who set up shop at the 40. However, on the first play, the Tigers fumbled and senior Justin Birch recovered for the Indians. It took only one play for the Indians to capitalize as freshmen quarterback Hicks raced 42 yards for a score, less than a minute from their previous TD at 11:16. Coleman Merritt’s PAT kick was good and the Indians took a 26-0 lead.

On the following Linden-Kildare series, they failed on a fourth down try, and Frankston got the ball back. On their second play, Davis took a handoff and sped through the Tiger defense, 55 yards for a score. The PAT try failed but the Indians had a 32-0 lead with 7:51 left in the game.

After the kickoff, Linden-Kildare drove inside the Indian 20 but failed to convert on fourth down at the Tribe 14. However, the Indians fumbled and the Tigers had a real shot at getting on the scoreboard from the 4. Two plays later, they scored, trailing 32-6 with 3:10 left in the game. On the Tiger PAT conversion try, they fumbled and an alert Indian, Rogers, scooped up the loose ball and took off to the opposite goal, not only denying the Tigers points but earning two more points for the Indians, now leading 34-6.

A Tribe fumble on their next possession led to a successful drive for the Tigers who scored with only 23 seconds left in the game to make the score 34-12. The PAT try was blocked.

After gaining possession on the ensuing kickoff, the Indians went into the victory formation, downing the ball to allow the remaining seconds to tick off the clock and take their 34-12 win.

The Indians must now prepare for their final regular season game against District 9-2A-1 leader, Beckville, on Friday, Nov. 5 at Beckville. Kickoff will be at 7:30 p.m. The Indians are now 3-2 in district and 5-4 overall going into that game.

Indian seniors, who were honored pre-game, played their last game at Jeff Opal Austin Stadium. They are Isaiah Allen, Cael Bruno, Austin Boggs, Clayton Merritt, Bayne Bacon, Justin Birch, Virgil Gallaway, Alex Oxford, Juan Garcia, Wade Rackley and Tristan Shuptrine.

A much more experienced Indian team a year before found themselves in a similar situation. They were assured a fourth seed in the playoffs but looking at a final district game against a very good Beckville team. Then they faced a bi-district encounter with a very, very good Timpson team.

In sub-varsity action during the week, the undefeated Braves eighth graders defeated a combination 7th and 8th grade Lindenindn-Kildare team 52-0. There was no junior varsity game. Earlier in the week, the Braves seventh graders had an intrasquad scrimmage in which the Blue team edged the White team 28-24.

Coach Paul Gould said he thought his team played well and he was excited about the win. He credited his offensive line for helping make possible almost 400 yards rushing and just over 50 yards passing. He said he thought the freshman understudy, Reese Hicks, played well at quarterback, attempting to fill a void when starter Bruno sustained an injury. He also praised the defense who all played well and allowed Linden-Kildare less than 100 yards rushing.

Looking ahead to the Beckville game, Coach Gould said the district leader will pose a real test, offensively and defensively, for the Tribe. He said he thinks this year’s Beckville team may be better in some ways than the team the Indians played last year when the Tribe fell in that regular season finale 49-21.

He said the Bearcats still have their talented quarterback 6-3, 200-pound Ryan Harris (9) who does everything well and had a big game last year against the Indians. He also noted they have a running back with good breakaway speed.

The Tribe coach said Beckville is very athletic on both sides of the ball, moving the ball well offensively out of multiple formations and their pressure multiple defense makes it tough on opposing offenses.

Coach Gould has hopes that the Indians have improved enough offensively to meet the challenge and can avoid costly turnovers. He said Beckville will be a good test for a Tribe defense which has been performing well as the season progresses.

In sub-varsity action during the week, the undefeated Braves eighth graders defeated a combination 7th and 8th grade Lindale-Kildare team 52-0. There was no junior varsity game. Earlier in the week, the Braves seventh graders had an intrasquad scrimmage in which the Blue team edged the White team 28-24.

( See Frankston vs. Linden-Kildare game, cumulative statistics HERE )

Score by Quarters:

Linden-Kildare   0    0    0    12 — 12

Indians                6    7    0     21 — 34

Indians jump out to early lead

to win over Union Grove 35-6

The Frankston Indians varsity football team dominated play Thursday, Oct. 21 to defeat the Union Grove Lions 35-6 in a District 9-2A-1 game at Gladewater.

The win boosted the Indians’ season record to 4-4 and the district mark to 2-2 with two more district games to go.

According to information confirmed by Tribe Coach Paul Gould, the Indians scored early in the contest to take a 7-0 lead in first quarter.

After receiving the football on the opening kickoff, the Lions were unable to sustain a drive and punted to the Indians.

The Tribe took over deep in their own territory near the 20 and began a drive which, minutes later, resulted in a 40-yard touchdown run by sophomore running back Kaymon Davis. Coleman Merritt booted the extra point to put the Indians on top 7-0.

The Indian defense was able to stop the Lions on their next possession on fourth down in Indian territory and had possession as the first quarter ended.

Early in the second quarter, the Indians climaxed a drive which again called on Davis to run a yard for his second touchdown of the night. Merritt added the extra point and the Indians led 14-0, which turned out to be the halftime score.

After receiving the ball on the ensuing kickoff, the Lions were unable to sustain a drive and punted to the Indians, who maintained possession until halftime.

The Indians received the second half kickoff and, in short order, the Indians’ sophomore running back Davis took off on a 65-yard run to put the Indians ahead 20-0 with only seconds gone in the third quarter. The PAT kick attempt failed.

After the kickoff to the Lions, their offensive attempts were cut short when Tribe senior Austin Boggs intercepted a Union Grove pass and the Indians took over in Lions territory. Minutes later, freshman running back Reese Hicks ran in from a yard out for a score. Merritt added the extra point and the Indians had extended their lead to 27-0.

A scoring drive for the Lions was thwarted when they fumbled and Frankston senior Bayne Bacon recovered just short of the Indians’ goal line.

However, shortly afterward, the Lions stopped the Indians drive when they recovered a Tribe fumble in Indian territory and were driving toward paydirt when the third quarter ended.

The Lions managed to move the football inside the Indians 10 but were unable to convert on fourth down and turned the ball over to the Indians.

Moments later, the Indians moved the ball upfield and senior Isaiah Allen caught a pass from senior quarterback Cael Bruno for 88 yards and a score. The Indians converted on a two-point run and went ahead 35-0.

After the Indians kickoff to the Lions, Union Grove was able to move the ball for their only score. Their PAT attempt failed and the score was 35-6.

The Indians were able to hold onto the ball after the ensuing kickoff until the game ended.

According to statistics compiled by Coach Gould, leading rusher for the Indians was Kaymon Davis with 11 carries for 161 yards and three touchdowns. Bruno ran for 85 yards on eight carries. Freshman Tyler Rogers got 74 yards on six carries and Freshman Reese Hicks carried nine times for 70 yards. The team rushing total was 390 yards.

Leading receiver was Isaiah Allen who caught three passes for 108 yards and a touchdown. Bruno completed 5 of 12 passes for 135 yards and one TD.

This week, in another Thursday night game, the Indians will be hosting Linden-Kildare on Oct. 28 at 7 p.m. It will be Senior Night for Frankston.

Coach Paul Gould was happy about the win. He said he thought the Indians played well and were efficient offensively during the game.

He had words of praise for the entire offensive line and also recognized the rushing performances of Kaymon Davis, Tyler Rogers and Reese Hicks.

Defensively, he thought the Indians were tough, allowing less than 100 yards rushing. The Indian coach said linebackers Jared Cook and Rogers had a good night.

Even though the Indians were able to move the football well, the Indian coach said Union Grove was scrappy and played hard, trying to keep the football away from the efficient Indian offense.

Looking ahead to the Thursday night game with Linden-Kildare, he noted that they had won over Big Sandy 28-21 the week before and he compared them to Queen City, a non-district opponent which the Indians edged out 27-26.

Coach Gould said the Tigers have two good running backs with breakaway speed who run well behind a pretty good size offensive line with good quickness. They mount their basic run-oriented offense with timely passes out of a Pro-I but try to confuse defensive with multiple sets, he said.

Defensively, he expects the Indians to have to be alert to the Tigers’ multiple defensive alignments out of a basic Split 6 to be effective in their offensive attack and continue to play errorless ball.

In sub-varsity action, the undefeated eighth grade Indian Braves dominated their Union Grove counterparts 44-0. Earlier the seventh grade Indians took a 30-0 win. Union Grove did not field a junior varsity team.

This week, on Wednesday, Oct. 27, the eighth grade will play an “away” game against a combined 7th and 8th grade team from Linden-Kildare starting at 5 p.m. followed by the junior varsity contest. The seventh graders will be participating in an intra-squad scrimmage on Tuesday here, the coach said.

(See Frankston-Union Grove and cumulative statistics HERE .)

Score by Quarters:

Frankston        7    7    13    8 — 35

Union Grove   0     0     0     6 —   6

Hawkins’ second half scoring

wins over Tribe 36-14 Oct. 15

The Frankston Indians and the Hawkins Hawks battled it out in the first half Friday night, Oct. 15 but the Hawks came on strong in the second half to take a 36-14 victory in a District 9-2A contest on a chilly night at Jeff and Opal Austin Stadium.

The first quarter was scoreless for both teams, with each exchanging turnovers and defenses holding their opponents’ attempts to sustain a drive.

However Frankston was to score first in the second quarter.

The Indians took over after the Frankston defense held the Hawks on fourth down at the Indians 31. Then on the first Tribe play after the turnover, Indian quarterback Cael Bruno broke loose on a 69-yard run for a score with 7:57 left in the half. The PAT kick attempt was blocked, but the Indians led 6-0.

After that, the Hawks offense, using the running of senior speedster Kayden Upchurch and senior quarterback Jeremy Torres, began a scoring drive which started on their own 21. Torres capped it off with a 49-yard scoring pass to senior Drew Dacus with 5:38 to go in the half. The PAT try failed but the Hawks had evened the score at 6-6.

The next time the Hawks got the ball, they set out on a penalty ridden drive which set them up at the Tribe 46. From there Torres found Upchurch with a 46-yard pass play for a score and Torres ran in for the two-point conversion to take the lead 14-6 with only seconds remaining on the first half clock.

In the second half, Frankston scored first to cap a drive which started at their own 33. Key runs by sophomore Kaymon Davis and a key pass to Isaiah Allen moved the football to the Hawks 9. From there Bruno kept for the score with 7:26 left in the third quarter. Bruno passed to Kody Loebig for the two points and things were tied 14-14.

From there, Hawkins seemed to take control, first on a five-yard TD run by Torres who followed with a two-point conversion which put the Hawks ahead 22-14 with 2:08 left in the third quarter.

The next Hawks score came after a Tribe turnover late in the quarter. Hawkins began a drive at their own 43 and used key runs by Upchurch and Torres to get to the 3. A penalty set the Hawks back but Torres answered with an 18-yard scoring run with 9:14 to go in the game. He then ran for the two extra points and Hawkins was ahead 30-14.

Hawkins scored their final six points after getting a pass interception deep in Indian territory. The Hawks moved the ball to the Indians 2 where Braden Adams powered in for the score with 5:14 left in the contest. The PAT try failed but Hawkins had their winning margin 36-14.

Coach Paul Gould was disappointed with the loss but said he thought the Indians played hard and the team played well against a good Hawkins team until they were hampered by a couple of key injuries in the third quarter. He said turnovers hurt also. The coach said the Indians will continue to try to get better as they go into the final games of district play.

In sub-varsity games on Thursday, Oct. 14, Coach Gould said the Indian junior varsity lost to Hawkins 28-0 and the seventh graders played a Cross Roads junior high, 7th and 8th graders, team and were defeated 12-6. The eighth grade Indians continued to win, defeating a combined 7th and eighth grade Hawkins team 32-6, he said.

The Indians will be going to Gladewater Union Grove for their next district game on Thursday, Oct. 21 for a 7 p.m. kickoff.

Looking ahead to the Union Grove game next week, Coach Gould said the Indians will be looking at a team which is rebuilding after losing several key players from last year. He said their offense is very similar to that of the Indians, mostly running but still posing a passing threat. Their defense is built around a split-6 but uses variations at times, the coach said. Overall he thinks they have average speed and are about the same size as the Indians.

Again he stresses that the Indians will have to play well and avoid mistakes in order to win.          

(See Frankston-Hawkins Statistics HERE )

Score by Quarters:

Hawkins        0    14    8    14 — 36

Frankston     0      6    8      0 — 14

Carlisle halftime lead holds up

to secure 32-22 win over FHS

The Frankston Indians had a chance to win over Carlisle Friday night, Oct. 8 in the fourth quarter after the Indians defense held off the Carlisle offensive attack for much of the second half, but a late Carlisle touchdown and a safety secured the win for Carlisle 32-22.

The FHS Indians were able to answer a Carlisle touchdown and field goal with a 65-yard kickoff return by freshman Tyler Rogers and a PAT kick by Clayton Merritt to trail the Carlisle tribe by only three points, 10-7, at the end of the first quarter.

Despite a couple of touchdowns and extra points which gave Carlisle a 24-7 lead with about three minutes to go in the half, the Frankston Indians put the game within reach when senior quarterback Cael Bruno ran for a score and followed with a two-point run to narrow the Carlisle lead to 24-15 with 28 seconds left in the half.

Defenses held off both teams in the third quarter as neither offense could sustain a scoring drive, but in the fourth quarter with less than six minutes left, Carlisle got on the scoreboard again and kicked the PAT to increase their lead to 30-15 and force the Frankston tribe to score twice and tack on three more points after their scores or add a field goal to tie things up.

When the Frankston tribe got the football, quarterback Bruno found an open Kody Loebig for a touchdown pass covering about 45 yards about a minute after the Carlisle score. When Merritt kicked the extra point, Frankston trailed by 30-22. A touchdown and a two-point conversion might put the game into overtime.

Things looked promising when Frankston forced a Carlisle punt with 2:34 to go but the Carlisle punt put the Frankston offense deep in their own territory.

The Carlisle defense came through with a defensive play which resulted in a safety awarded to Carlisle with less than two minutes left. Carlisle led 32-22 when Frankston was required to execute a free kick after the safety.

Carlisle then ran out the clock and secured the final 32-22 victory.

The Frankston tribe compiled 285 yards rushing and 143 passing for the game. Bruno led rushers with 9 carries for 83 yards and a touchdown. Kaymon Davis had 8 rushes for 33 yards.

Freshman Tyler Rogers led in receiving yardage catching a pass for 83 yards. Kody Loebig had two receptions for 49 yards and a TD. Isaiah Allen had a single catch for 11 yards.

Quarterback Bruno completed four of 13 pass attempts, threw a TD pass and had a single interception.

Leading on defense were Jared Cook and Isaiah Allen with nine tackles each. Getting eight tackles each were Clayton Merritt, Alex Oxford and Tyler Rogers. Reese Hicks had seven tackles.

The win by Carlisle boosted their 9-2A record to 2-1 and 2-4 for the season. Frankston’s district mark is now 1-1 and the season record is 3-3.

In sub-varsity action on Thursday, Oct. 7, the junior varsity lost to their Carlisle opponents 14-0. The seventh graders lost 18-0 but the eighth grade Indians continued to win with a 26-7 victory.

The Indians varsity will host the Hawkins Hawks at Austin Stadium on Friday, Oct. 15 at 7:30 p.m. in another district contest.

Hawkins is currently tied for second place in District 9-2A with a 2-1 record. Their season record is 4-3. They have posted wins over Linden-Kildare 44-20 and Big Sandy 60-30. Their sole district loss so far has been to district leader Beckville 61-13.

The Hawks advanced to the 2A playoffs last year, finishing 6-0 in district and 10-0 for the season. The Indians had a chance to defeat the Hawks late in their game last year but a Hawks TD and two-point conversion with six seconds left gave Hawkins a 37-33 win. The Hawks, as first seed, faced Garrison from 10-2A, and were upset 17-7 in bi-district.

Frankston Coach Paul Gould described this year’s Hawkins team as “better than their record shows”. He said the Hawks returned 7 offensive and 8 defensive starters from the 2020 team.

“We’re going to have to play well to win,” he stressed.

The Indians coach said Hawkins is a “run oriented” team but they throw in some play action passes from time to time to catch defenses “loading up the box”.

He said the Hawks depend a lot on the runs of a quick senior, Kayden Upchurch, who returns from last year’s successful team. Adding to their threat is 215-pound junior fullback Braden Adams who adds power to the running game.

Coach Gould said the Hawks use a slot-T offense with variations and utilize the experience of a good size offensive line to move the football.

He said their defense operates out of a 3-3 stack and “likes to blitz”.

Their team quickness is good and they have some breakaway speed among their skill players, the coach said.

Looking back at the Carlisle game, Coach Gould said the Indians played well at times and had a chance to tie things up and go into overtime late in the game, but were beset with adversity. He said Carlisle was able to use ball control and some timely scores and defensive stops during the night to win.

He had words of praise for the performance of freshman Tyler Rogers who returned a kickoff for a touchdown and  played well on both sides of the ball.

(See Frankston-Carlisle statistics HERE )

Score by Quarters:

Frankston   7      8   0    7 — 22

Carlisle     10    14   0    8 — 32

Indians win first 9-2A game 34-3

over Big Sandy at Homecoming

The Frankston Indians got off to a slow start but took a 13-3 lead at halftime over Big Sandy Friday night, Sept. 24 and went on to win their first District 9-2A game 34-3 before a large Homecoming crowd at Jeff and Opal Austin Stadium.

The Tribe offense had trouble getting their offense going in the first quarter, thanks to errors but the defense held off Big Sandy and allowed them only 3 points with a 35-yard field goal by Jake Johnson with 6:56 left in the quarter.

However early in the second quarter, the defense continued to do their thing and the offense got things rolling on their first possession, driving 45 yards for a score, mostly using the running of sophomore running back Kaymon Davis who carried the ball repeated times to set up a first down at the Big Sandy 4. Two plays later senior quarterback Cael Bruno ran in for the score with 8:57 to go in the half. Clayton Merritt booted the extra point and the Indians led 7-3.

When Big Sandy got the ball on the following possession, their hopes for a quick comeback were shattered when a pass by Wildcats quarterback Jezreel Bachert was intercepted by Tribe freshman linebacker Tyler Rogers who returned the ball to the Big Sandy 46. After a loss and a penalty, the Indians were set back to their own 46, but Bruno went to the air and found Isaiah Allen with a 41-yard pass to move the Indians to the Wildcats’ 13. After a two-yard run by Bruno, Davis took off for 10 yards to the one-yard-line. Bruno did the rest, going the yard for the score with 2:40 left in the half. A charging Big Sandy defense blocked Merritt’s PAT kick but the Indians led 13-0.

Big Sandy tried a comeback before the half ended, driving to the Indian 25, but their drive had taken too long and with seven seconds left in the half, they were forced to try a 42-yard field goal. However, the Indians rushed the kicker and blocked his kick try as the half ended.

The Indian defense forced Big Sandy to punt on the Wildcats’ first possession of the second half. After the punt return, the Indians were in business at their own 38. From there, Bruno ran for 19 to the Big Sandy 43. Davis then rushed for seven more yards to the 36 before outrunning defenders for 36 yards and a score with 9:01 left in the quarter. Merritt’s PAT kick was good and the Indians padded their lead to 20-3.

That was to be the only scoring for the remainder of the third quarter, but the Indians were not finished. After holding Big Sandy on downs inside Indian territory at the 38, the Tribe’s Davis put together three runs of 15, 14 and 2 to reach the Big Sandy 27. On second down Bruno found  junior wide receiver Kody Loebig streaking down near the goal and Loebig hauled in the aerial for a 27-yard touchdown play. With 7:32 left in the game, Merritt’s PAT kick was good and the Indians led 27-3.

When the Wildcats received the kickoff, they could get no farther than their own 10. A play later a Big Sandy ball carrier fumbled when an aggressive Tribe defense corraled him at the 9. From there freshman running back Rogers found a hole and raced the distance to paydirt, only 16 seconds after the previous Tribe score. Merritt’s PAT kick was good and the Indians had their 34-3 winning margin.

Big Sandy made one more serious drive to try to score their first touchdown but a loss and a 15-yard penalty cost them after a successful pass got them to the Indian 10. Two plays later, and on fourth down, Alex Christensen caught a Bachert pass for 15 yards to the 20 but it was not enough for the first down and the Indians took over to run out the clock and assure their 34-3 victory.

In sub-varsity action on Thursday, Sept. 23, the junior varsity lost 22-6. The eighth graders won 28-8 and the seventh graders won a scrimmage scoring one TD to none for their Big Sandy counterparts.

The Indians have a bye next Friday, Oct. 1, before continuing district play at Carlisle on Oct. 8.

(Big Sandy Game Statistics HERE )

Score by Quarters:

Big Sandy     3      0    0      0 —    3

Frankston    0    13    7    14 —  34

Late TD boosts Indians to 27-26

win over Queen City Sept. 17

The Frankston Indians turned a fourth quarter touchdown with only minutes to go into enough to defeat the resurgent Queen City Bulldogs 27-26 Friday night, Sept. 17 at Queen City.

The Indians had taken a 21-6 lead into the dressing room at halftime and looked like they might have the game under control. However, Queen City came back in the third quarter with another touchdown to make it 20-12 going into the fourth quarter while the Indians failed to score in the period.

Early in the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs scored and ran for two points to narrow the Tribe lead to 21-20 while the Indian offense was unable to reach paydirt. The Indians defense managed to hold Queen City on fourth down on two occasions in the quarter and the second time they stopped the Bulldogs inside the 20.

Unfortunately for the Tribe, shortly after the turnover, they fumbled and Queen City took over in Indian territory at the 28 and turned their opportunity into a score to go ahead 26-21 when their PAT run failed.

The Indians took the ensuing kickoff and, in short order, scored their first touchdown of the second half. The two-point PAT try failed but the Indians had a 27-26 lead with just over a minute to go in the game.

The Indians defense held the Bulldogs on fourth down with less than a minute to go to preserve their 27-26 victory.

Frankston scored on their first possession of the game with sophomore running back Kaymon Davis taking the handoff and running 10 yards for the score. Clayton Merritt booted the extra point and the Indians led 7-0.

Isaiah Allen ruined the Bulldogs’ first possession as he intercepted the ball and returned it to the Bulldog 30. Shortly afterward, Tribe quarterback Cael Bruno ran in for a score from five yards out, but the PAT try failed and FHS had a 13-0 lead.

The Indians held that lead into the second quarter and forced Queen City to punt.   Unfortunately for the Indians, the Bulldogs intercepted a Tribe pass and started a drive on their own 45. Moments later they scored on a run to narrow the Indian lead to 13-6 when the PAT kick failed.

The two teams exchanged punts but when Frankston received the Bulldog punt they began a drive on their own 35 and moved the chains upfield to the Queen City 9. From there Quarterback Bruno ran for the TD and kept for the two-point conversion to pad the Tribe lead to 21-6 late in the second quarter.

Queen City scored on their first possession of the third quarter driving from their own 27 to score on a run. Their two-point conversion try failed but the FHS lead was narrowed to 21-12 as the quarter ended.

Early in the fourth quarter, Queen City scored and had a successful two-point conversion to further narrow the Indians’ lead to 21-20.

With about six minutes left in the game, the Tribe defense held the Bulldogs on downs at the Indians’ 19-yard line where FHS took over.

Unfortunately, the defensive stand was spoiled when the Tribe fumbled at their own 28 to give Queen City a new set of downs.

Queen City turned that bit of fortune into a score which put them ahead 26-21 when the two-point conversion attempt failed.

With little time left on the game clock, Frankston took the ensuing kickoff on their own 45. Seconds later, freshman running back Tyler Rogers took the handoff and ran 20 yards for what would be the winning touchdown. The two-point conversion try failed but the Indians led 27-26.

There was less than two minutes left in the game, but the Bulldogs still had a chance to take back the lead. However, they faced fourth down on their own 48 with under a minute but the Indians defense stiffened and took over at the Bulldog 47 to secure the win.

Coach Paul Gould said he thought the Indian defense played well. He said they held Queen City to 270 yards of offense. He said Jared Cook, Clayton Merritt and Tyler Rogers had good games on defense.

Offensively, the coach thought the first two Tribe possessions were very efficient. However, he said, “After that we continued to hurt ourselves with turnovers. We have to clean that up because district starts next week.”

Looking ahead to that the Homecoming game on Sept. 24, Coach Gould assessed the first district opponent.

The Indian coach said Big Sandy is offensively in the shotgun and defensively they line up in a 50.

“They are playing well and we are going to have to work on our consistency to beat them,” the coach said. “I expect our guys to have a good week of practice this week since it is the first district game.”

Big Sandy is 2-2 in non-district play, having won over Tyler All Saints 54-0 and defeated Overton 33-12 while losing to Alba-Golden 20-0 and to Ore City 28-19.

The Indians also are 2-2, having lost to Timpson 61-0 and Huntington 43-12 while winning over Winona 39-0 and downing Queen City 27-26.

In sub-varsity games on Thursday, Sept. 16, the seventh grade had three touchdowns to none for Cushing in a scrimmage. The eighth grade won over Cushing 38-0 and the Junior Varsity lost 40-0.

On Thursday, Sept. 23, the seventh and eighth grade and junior varsity will journey to Big Sandy for a 5 p.m. start.

Friday night, Sept. 24, the kickoff between the Indians and Big Sandy will be at 7:30 p.m. at Jeff and Opal Austin Stadium.          

(Queen City Game Statistics HERE)

Score by Quarters:

Indians         13    8     0      6 — 27

Queen City   0     6     6    14 — 26

Huntington passing attack sparks

Sept. 10 win over Indians 43-12

The Huntington Red Devils used an effective passing game and controlled the line of scrimmage with their big and physical line to hand the Frankston Indians a 43-12 non-district loss Friday, Sept. 10 at Jeff and Opal Austin Stadium.

The Indian defense had problems covering the pinpoint passing of Huntington senior quarterback Garrett Chancellor(13) and the sure-handed receivers, Darion Hale(5), Chase Hopson(6) and Ayden Colbert(17). Big junior running back Connor Murray(44) kept Indian defenders busy with his bruising runs, setting up the Red Devil passing game.

The Huntington passing attack was largely responsible for all three first half touchdowns, two directly and one setting up a one-yard touchdown run.

The Indians finally got on the board in the second half after trailing 20-0 at halftime, using the running of sophomore Kaymon Davis and senior quarterback Cael Bruno, the running and receiving of senior Isaiah Allen and the receiving of seniors Clayton Merritt and Justin Birch and junior Kody Loebig.

The Indians held the Red Devils on downs to start the second half and took over at their own 45. On four plays, the Tribe posted their first score. Kaymon Davis ran for 16 and two plays later, Justin Birch took a pass from Bruno which covered 29 yards. On the next play, Bruno kept for 12 yards and the score with 8:59 left in the third quarter. The PAT try was unsuccessful, but the Indians had narrowed the Huntington lead to 20-6.

Unfortunately for the Indians, Red Devil quarterback Chancellor connected with Hale on a 57-yard scoring pass. Colbert booted the extra point and Huntington padded their lead to 27-6 with 7:26 to go in the quarter.

The Indians were not to score again until the fourth quarter but Chancellor found Colbert who went 79 yards to paydirt and kicked the PAT to raise the score to 34-6 with 2:30 left in the quarter.

Late in the fourth quarter, the Indians began a 66-yard drive which started on the Indian 34. First Isaiah Allen caught a pass from Bruno and went 14 yards to midfield. Bruno kept for 8 and a penalty moved them to the HHS 44. Freshman quarterback Reese Hicks came in and ran for 10, 7 and 10 yards to reach the 17. A loss set the Indians back to the 26, but Bruno found Clayton Merritt with a 16-yard pass to the 10 and then tossed to Kody Loebig for the score with 9:21 left in the final quarter. The PAT try was unsuccessful, but the Tribe now narrowed the HHS lead to 34-12.

On the next Tribe possession on their own 11, HHS was awarded two points on a safety and it was 36-12.

After the free kick, Huntington took over at the Indians’ 35 and in five plays, the Red Devils scored on a one-yard run by Connor Murray. The PAT kick by Colbert made it 43-12 with only 1:27 left in the game.

Coach Paul Gould said he was disappointed with the outcome of the game, but he said the Indians played hard.

He said the Tribe defense held Huntington to only 89 yards rushing, but they weren’t able to stop the Red Devils passing game. He said the Indians also made too many mistakes, particularly early in the contest.

The Indians’ coach said the team will be trying to eliminate the mistakes and continue to try to get better in the week ahead as they prepare to meet Queen City in their next non-district game.

He said Queen City operates their offense out of the spread and uses a 3-3 stack defense to stop their opponents. He said they like to throw the football and have a good quarterback. The Indians will need to work on their pass defense to help them win over the Bulldogs, the Tribe coach said.

Queen City has a 2-1 record going into the game with the Indians. They won over Linden-Kildare 32-28 in their season opener and defeated Union Grove 57-12 on Sept. 3 before losing this week to Quitman 25-20.

In sub-varsity action against Huntington, the junior varsity lost 34-10 while the seventh graders tied 14-14 and the eighth grade won 38-0.

On Thursday, Sept. 16, the JV and seventh and eighth graders are scheduled to go to Cushing for a 5 p.m. start.

Then on Friday, Sept. 17, the Indians will be going to Queen City for a 7:30 p.m.  kickoff, their first game of the season away from home.

( See Indians statistics in the Huntington game HERE )

Indians take 39-0 non-district win

over Winona Wildcats on Sept. 3

The Frankston Indians came back strong in their second non-district game of the season, defeating the Winona Wildcats 39-0 at Jeff and Opal Austin Stadium Friday, Sept. 3.

The Indians dominated the first half on offense and defense, not allowing the Wildcats a first down until late in the second quarter when the Wildcats launched a passing game to drive to the Indians’ 24-yard line before Jared Cook intercepted a Wildcat pass as time ran out in the first half.

After scoring 20 points in the first quarter, the Indians picked up 12 more in the second period to hold a commanding lead 32-0 at halftime.

The Indians started the third period with a scoring pass on an early possession and increased the score to 39-0, the final winning margin.

The Indians got off to a quick start exercising their defensive muscle when junior linebacker Jared Cook stepped in front of a Winona pass on the first play of the Wildcats’ first possession. Cook then took aim for the end zone from 38 yards out and scored with about 10 minutes to go in the first quarter. The Indians quickly led 6-0. The PAT attempt failed.

The Indians scored their first offensive touchdown of the game and season climaxing a drive of about 50 yards with key passes to Clayton Merritt from quarterback Cael Bruno setting up the Tribe on the Winona 26. Sophomore running back Ryan Harper took the handoff and weaved his way for a score with 4:13 left in the first period. Again the PAT try failed but Frankston had a 12-0 lead.

On the next Wildcat possession, an alert Tribe senior defensive back Isaiah Allen intercepted a Winona aerial on third down and sprinted 30 yards to paydirt with 3:40 left in the initial quarter. Freshman quarterback Reese Hicks put the icing on the cake with a run for the two extra points. The Indians took a 20-0 lead into the second quarter.

After holding the Wildcats on their next possession, the Indians found themselves on their own 3 after a Winona punt of about 53 yards. Undaunted, the Indians launched a 97-yard drive, using the running of quarterback Hicks and sophomore running back Kaymon Davis along with a key pass reception from Hicks to senior wide receiver Bayne Bacon to get to the Wildcats’ 28. From there, Davis took a screen pass and took off 28 yards to score with 8:13 left in the half. The PAT try was unsuccessful, but the Indians had padded their lead to 26-0.

The Indians were to score again about midway in the quarter. After holding off the Wildcat offense, the Tribe took possession at their own 39. It took them only two plays to score. First Bruno found wide receiver Allen with a 26-yard pass to the Winona 35. From there, Davis broke loose on a 35-yard run to the end zone with 6:27 left in the half. The PAT try failed, but the Indians would have their first half 32-0 lead.

Winona’s passing attack came alive, giving them their initial first downs of the game, but as time ran out linebacker Cook intercepted a Winona pass to end the Wildcat threat with no time left on the first half clock.

In the third quarter, the Indians were to add another score as quarterback Bruno found Merritt with an 8-yard pass play. Merritt booted the PAT and the Indians had their 39-0 winning score.

Coach Paul Gould was elated over the win, saying he thought the Indians played with faster speed than in their season opener against the top-rated Timpson team a week earlier. He praised the offensive performance of his quarterbacks and running backs on offense along with some key receptions by wide receivers.

The coach also had high praise for the defense which he said was more aggressive. He cited Bayne Bacon, Justin Birch, Isaiah Allen, Ryan Harper, Clayton Merritt and Jared Cook, along with the usual top performance by All-District lineman Alex Oxford.

He said the defense held Winona to only 102 yards in total offense during the night.

The Indian Junior Varsity fell to their Winona counterparts 24-8 on Thursday, Sept. 2, according to coaches.

Looking ahead to next week, Coach Gould described non-district opponent Huntington as a “big and physical” team. He said they run the spread offense and use a 50 defense to defend against opponents. They have lost their first two games to Arp and Shelbyville, the coach said.

He said the Indians will be trying to continue to improve as they face opponents going into the District 9-2A schedule.

The Indians will again be playing in the familiar confines of Austin Stadium on Friday, Sept. 10 at 7:30 p.m.

The Indians junior varsity will journey to Huntington on Thursday, Sept. 9 for a 5 p.m. start. The seventh and eighth grade Indians are scheduled to host Huntington, starting at 5 p.m. on the same day.

(See Frankston  Individual Statistic for Winona game HERE )

Score by Quarters:

Winona            0      0    0    0 —   0

Frankston     20    12    7    0 — 39

Explosive Timpson hands Indians

home-opener loss 61-0 on Aug. 27

The explosive Timpson Bears put together six touchdowns in the first half and added three more in the second half to hand the Frankston Indians a 61-0 season-opening loss on Friday night, Aug. 27 at Jeff and Opal Austin Stadium.

The Indians showed periods of promise throughout the game, offensively and defensively, but couldn’t put together a significant drive on offense against the aggressive Bear defense or stop the attack by a team which last year advanced to the 2A-1 semi-finals and had most of that team coming back this year.

Timpson scored on long runs on their first two possessions and added a long pass to jump out to a 20-0 lead in the first quarter. They added three more touchdowns in the second quarter to post a 41-0 lead with no time remaining in the first half.

The Bears expanded their lead to 49-0 with only seconds gone in the third quarter with a 46-yard run. Then, with less than two minutes to go in the quarter, they increased their lead to 55-0.

Midway in the fourth quarter, they drove to the Indian 16 and scored to make the final score 61-0.

Standouts for Timpson were Sophomore Quarterback Terry Bussey(10), Senior running back Braden Courtney(22), Sophomore running back Dakovian Tutt(20) and Sophomore wide receiver Vosky Howard(6), along with a very quick and aggressive Bear defense.

Frankston Coach Paul Gould said, as formidable as Timpson was, he thought the Indians learned a lot in the contest. He said a lot of Indian players were able to see action and be tested against one of the best teams in Class 2A-1.

The Indians’ coach said this game was just the beginning of a year where he thinks the Indians will get better and better as they become more experienced and some key spots on the team are finalized. He sees a promising future for the Indian football program.

Coach Gould said he thought that several defensive players  had a good game. They included Ryan Harper, Clayton Merritt, Jared Cook, Justin Birch and Tyler Rogers. He also praised the performance of All-District lineman Alex Oxford, senior perennial performer on both sides of the ball, for the Indians.

Overall, Coach Gould was impressed with the way the team continued to play hard the entire game, regardless of the obtacles presented by the performance of the Timpson opponent. He said that attitude will serve them well as the season progresses.

The Indians’ coach said that efforts will continue to fine-tune both the offense and defense and find the best players to fill the spots vacated by graduation and other reasons

Now the Indians must prepare for the Winona Wildcats, a team which the Tribe coach said is almost a mirror image of the Indians on offense. Despite having won over the Wildcats for the past two years, Coach Gould said the Indians must be ready to  win when Winona visits Jeff and Opal Austin Stadium  on Friday, Sept. 3 at 7:30 p.m. as scheduled. The Indian offense will face a Winona team which lines up in a basic 4-3 defense.

In a junior varsity contest on Thursday, Aug. 26 at Timpson, the Indians JV fell to talented counterparts 46-0 and are scheduled to be on the road against the Winona JV on Thursday, Sept. 2, Coach Gould said.

(See Frankston Statistics in Timpson game  HERE )

Score by Quarters:

Timpson    20 21 14  6 — 61

Indians        0   0   0  0 —   0

Indians football team faces tough

foe, hosting Timpson on Aug. 27

The Frankston Indians football team will get a stern test on Friday night, Aug. 27 when they take on a tough District 10-2A foe, picked by some polls as high as No. 3 in the state in Class 2A, Division 1.

The Timpson Bears were state semifinalists in 2020, posting a perfect record in district play and ending up with a season record of 14-1. Two of those season wins came at the expense of the Indians, who opened on the road against the Bears and came away with a disappointing 68-24 loss.

The Indians went on to finish fourth in District 9-AA, but their playoff spot drew the 10-2A champion Timpson in bi-district. The Tribe suffered a 66-7 loss to the Bears. The Tribe offense had lost the services of senior quarterback Brink Bizzell to an injury. Bizzell had led his team in rushing and passing before being sidelined.

This year the Indians are described as young and talented with some team speed and an offensive line which has shown progress so far, according to Coach Paul Gould. The Indian coach expects senior Alex Oxford, all-district first team lineman last year, and junior Jared Cook, named to the all-district second team, to be leaders on offense and defense, along with returning defensive backs Clayton Merritt and Kaymon Davis.

The Indians return six starters on defense and five on offense with other players vying for the spots open by graduation and other reasons, Coach Gould said.

Seeing action in the scrimmages so far have been two players who are candidates to fill the quarterback slot, vacated by Brink Bizzell, senior quarterback, who was a team leader in rushing and passing, and chosen a co-most valuable player at quarterback in District 9-2A. They are 175-pound senior Merritt and 190– pound freshman Reese Hicks.

Seeking to fill the running back slots are two sophomores, 175-pound Davis and 160-pound sophomore Ryan Harper.

Meanwhile, Timpson is reported to be returning nine starters on offense and seven on defense from their impressive 2020 season. They have a noteworthy running back and a slot back who is an excellent receiver and runs the ball well and a quarterback who hurts defenses with his running and passing, according to the Indian coach.

Coach Gould said the Bears are a solid defensive team as well.

Timpson is an early favorite to contest for a top spot in 10-2A along with the Indians’ first scrimmage opponent, San Augustine.

Kickoff is 7:30 p.m. at Jeff and Opal Austin Stadium.

Young, talented Indian football

team prepares for 2021 season

A young and talented Frankston Indians football team donned their pads this week in preparation for the 2021 season with high hopes to make it to the playoffs after competing in a tough 9-AA district.

On Friday, Aug. 13, the Indians varsity football team scrimmaged with San Augustine. Coach Paul Gould  said he felt like the Indians had a good first scrimmage.

“I was happy with the overall effort,” Coach Gould said.

The Indians scrimmaged Cushing and Troup on Thursday, Aug. 19 with the junior varsity starting at 5 p.m. followed by the varsity scrimmage at about 6:15.

More on the scrimmages and the Friday, Aug. 27  home opener against  Timpson coming up.

Coach Paul Gould’s team returns six starters on defense and five on offense.  He said the practices are featuring rotation of players to see which ones fit in the spots left open by graduation or other vacancies.

Two players will be vying for the quarterback spot vacated with the graduation of All-District MVP Brink Bizzell who piled up yardage both on the ground and with his passing last year. They also will be looking at two prospects at the running back spots.

Coach Gould said that currently taking snaps in practice are quarterback candidates, 175-pound senior Clayton Merritt and 190-pound freshman Reese Hicks. Working out at running back are a quick 175-pound sophomore Kaymon Davis and 160-pound sophomore Ryan Harper.

The Indian coach said he has high expectations for his offensive line which he says averages 240 to 250 pounds per man. He said they appeared to be showing progress in what he has seen so far.

Overall the coach thinks the team’s strength is some team speed. They will be using their traditional spread offense to attack opponents and line up in a 3-3 stack defense, Coach Gould said.