Smith shines as Franklin Regional beats rival Plum

By: Michael Love
Friday, August 27, 2021 | 10:50 PM

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Things couldn’t have started any better for Franklin Regional and new coach Lance Getsy on Friday against Plum at Franklin Regional Stadium in Murrysville.

A Caden Smith interception, his first of three picks, on the first play from scrimmage led to a Connor Donnelly 2-yard touchdown run.

With less than five minutes elapsed in the first quarter, the Panthers were in business.

From there, offense, defense and special teams combined to keep FR in the lead, and the Panthers went on to claim a 41-12 Week Zero win.

“Any time you can get a win, it’s special, and this one was really special for me,” Getsy said. “I thanked the kids for going out there and battling play after play. It is all about the kids. It’s not about me. I am appreciative, but it’s all about them and what they were able to do out here tonight.”

The win was Franklin Regional’s fourth in the past five meetings with Plum. Covid schedule reshuffling canceled last year’s meeting.

Trailing 27-6 late in the third quarter, the Mustangs, No. 5 in the Triblive HSSN Class 4A rankings, appeared to get momentum back as Logan Brooks scored on a 28-yard end-around. The point-after conversion was not successful, but the Mustangs drew closer.

But Franklin Regional, as it also had done earlier in the game, took the ensuing kickoff back for a touchdown. Ayden Hudock fielded the ball at his 18 and went 82 yards.

Zach Bewszka capped the scoring for the Panthers on a 15-yard run with 3 minutes, 41 seconds left.

“This is the youngest team I’ve coached, and we have only a few starters back. But that is not an excuse,” Plum coach Matt Morgan said. “It was just a lot of little things, and (Franklin Regional) took advantage of them. A lot of kids need to grow up fast if we want to be any kind of contender for our conference. That’s why we played this game, to see where we’re at and evaluate guys. We still have a lot of growing to do, from the seniors all the way down to the freshmen.”

After Franklin Regional’s opening score, the Panthers defense stood tall and stopped Plum at the FR 36.

On the first play of the ensuing Panthers drive, Smith got the ball in his hands again, this time on a halfback option, and found a wide-open Hudock for a 64-yard score.

Joseph Bayne’s second PAT gave FR a 14-0 lead with a little over five minutes left in the first.

Plum got on the board just over two minutes later as freshman Darian Nelson picked off a short pass from Donnelly at the 17 and ran it in for the touchdown.

Franklin Regional again struck quickly and regained its two-score lead as Zach Bewszka took the kickoff 79 yards.

Down two scores early in the second quarter, Plum looked to get things going. A 50-yard kickoff return from Logan Brooks set the Mustangs up at the Franklin Regional 45.

Plum drove inside the Panthers 10 before a false start and a run for a loss put the Mustangs at the 16. Eryck Moore ran it to the end zone from 16 yards, but a holding penalty nullified the score.

The Mustangs then were denied points when, on fourth and 23 from the 24, Smith intercepted a pass from Sean Franzi at the 2 and scampered 98 yards.

The Bayne PAT kick was blocked, but Franklin Regional extended its lead to 27-6.

“I was exhausted,” Smith said of the touchdown aftermath. “My legs, I could barely walk. That was a really long run for me. I was tired, but it was a very good tired.”

Getsy wasn’t surprised his tall and strong receiver/safety would make a difference.

“Caden is a special player, and we knew he was going to make big plays for us,” Getsy said.

Tyler Bewszka led the Franklin Regional rushing attack with 72 yards on 15 carries, and Donnelly added six carries for 51 yards.

Moore paced Plum with 15 carries for 73 yards. The Mustangs were held to 173 yards of total offense, while Franklin Regional was balanced with 133 yards rushing and 128 passing for a total of 261 yards.

“Tomorrow we’ll be back in here, and we’ll watch the film,” Getsy said. “I did see a lot of mistakes, but they were mistakes while giving everything they had. Do we have this down pat right now? No, but this is supposed to be a week-two scrimmage. We’re not where we need to be, but we’re headed in the right direction.”

Watch an archived broadcast of this game on TribHSSN.

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Franklin Regional, Plum