Franklinton came up short to Neville in a 27-22 loss in a home game that took place Friday.
Tahj Magee threw for 90 yards on 12-of-19 passing. He also ran for 127 yards on 22 carries and two touchdowns.
Trequan Charles posted 26 yards on the ground on eight attempts with a two-point conversion. He also caught three passes for 26 yards.
Lagarian Bell led the receivers with five catches for 41 yards.
Rakerian Conerly had three receptions for 14 yards and Steven Thompson posted a catch for nine yards.
Defensively, Lamount Harris returned a fumble 40 yards for a score. He made 10 tackles
Hayden Cotton and Terion Partman recovered a fumble each and KeAndre Martin intercepted a pass, as the Demons defense forced four turnovers. Martin tallied six tackles.
James Bickham posted eight tackles while Rondrick King tallied five.
Franklinton coach Stephen Burris said his team moved the ball up and down the field, but just didn’t finish drives at times. Franklinton did not turn the ball over.
Defensively, Burris said his team created four turnovers.
He also said that special teams played the best they have played all year. He said they pinned Neville deep on kickoffs. He said they kicked well, punted well, tackled well and made both extra points.
“We played well against Neville,” Burris said. “The kids battled and had a chance, but came up short. The improvement from week one to now is tremendous. We face a very good Lakeshore team this week. They’re a good team, good quarterback, good receiver and they’re undefeated.”
Neville is 3-3 this season and is No. 18 in the unofficial LHSAA Class 4A power rankings. Since 2009, Neville has won four Class 4A state titles (2009, 2011, 2014 and 2015). The team has also been state runner-up twice (2012 and 2016). They were a state semifinalist in 2013.
Franklinton returns to action tomorrow night against Lakeshore at home in the District 8-4A opener.
The teams have played each other since 2011, which was the first year the Titans were in a district. Lakeshore opened in 2009. The football team was junior varsity that year and played a varsity schedule in 2010.
Franklinton is 5-1 against Lakeshore in the six meetings. Three of the games were decided by one possession, including last year’s 27-21 win. The other two close games were in the first two years. Lakeshore won the first game between the two, 28-27, to force a three-way tie for the district title with Salmen also in that group. The 2012 game was a 39-36 win by Franklinton.
Franklinton is 2-5 this season and has lost four in a row. Two of those have been by one point to Salmen (6-1) and Tylertown, Miss. (5-4). The other loss was a lopsided game against St. Thomas More (6-1).
Franklinton enters this week at No. 32 in the unofficial LHSAA Class 4A power rankings.
Magee has thrown for 1,048 yards with 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He has also run for 713 yards on 118 carries and nine scores.
Charles begins with 561 yards on the ground on 132 attempts with five touchdowns. Charles has also caught 15 passes for 103 yards.
Conerly enters with 430 receiving yards on 28 catches and five touchdowns.
Bell has 31 catches for 348 yards and three scores.
Defensively, Harris leads the team with 62 tackles, followed by Bickham’s 52. Those stats do not include the game against Salmen.
Lakeshore is 7-0 this season and has scored at least 28 points in each game while holding the opposition to 10-or-fewer points in six contests.
The Titans won last week’s game, 44-0, over H.L. Bourgeois.
Lakeshore is third in the unofficial LHSAA Class 4A power rankings and they are fifth in the Class 4A Louisiana Sports Writers Association poll.
“It’s a tough week because it’s a short week playing on a Thursday and that changes your normal routine,” Lakeshore coach Craig Jones said. “Franklinton has always been a team we’ve struggled with. Regardless of their record, they’ve played a tough schedule. If we want to win, we have to bring our ‘A’ game.”
Quarterback Chris Penton has thrown for 1,772 yards on 93-of-137 with 25 touchdowns and no interceptions. He has also run for 105 yards and a touchdown.
“Ever since Chris has become our quarterback two years ago, he has grown in his play at the position. We are excited about what he’s done this year,” Jones said.
Jacob Benard, who plays wide receiver, running back, kick returner and punt returner, enters the game with 29 catches for 626 yards and 10 touchdowns. He has carried the ball 30 times for 212 yards and four scores.
“Jacob is someone we feel we can put in different positions to get mismatches. He is dynamic with the ball in his hands,” Jones said.
Jalen Willis has caught 25 passes for 663 yards and nine scores.
Lakeshore’s top defenders include lineman Tylan Driver, safety Adam Randolph and cornerback Michael Gautier.
Jones said that Driver been a force in the middle with plenty of tackles for loss. Randolph has three interceptions and Gautier has multiple picks.