Epic 22-point comeback by Charles City stuns Franklin as Panthers win first playoff game in 20 years

Charles City's Deante Seay (72, center) plugs the hole against a Franklin running back as Kyle Jones (1) and Richard Adkins (51) gets in on the tackle.

Andre' Jones photo

During the Sept. 16 regular season contest against the Franklin Broncos, Charles City head coach Steward Greene said he felt an aura despite the setback. But if the Panthers head coach felt the vibe during that matchup, he must have felt like he was in nirvana Friday night.

Powered by a never say die attitude, the 11th-seeded Charles City Panthers rallied from a 22-point deficit to upset the sixth-seeded Franklin Broncos 30-28 in the first round of the Group 1A East Regional Playoffs. The win is also the first playoff victory for the Panthers since 1996, ending a 20-year drought.

With the entire first quarter resulting in a 0-0 stalemate, both teams faced personal obstacles that prevented placing points on the scoreboard. For the visiting Panthers, it was lack of a consistent offensive attack while the hosts Broncos struggled with penalties and turnovers. It wasn’t until the 2:38 mark before the halftime intermission when the scoreboard changed. Franklin running back Alexander Allen’s touchdown and subsequent conversion run bestowed an 8-0 advantage for the hosts heading into halftime.

Charles City’s only turnover on the night proved costly. Coming out the break, quarterback Mason Jefferson’s pass attempt was intercepted by Bronco cornerback De’Marque White. A 44-yard air connection between Franklin quarterback Fredquon Lassiter to Da-Shaun Butts set up Allen’s second touchdown tote and a 14-0 advantage.

Even miscues by the hosts seemed to work out in their favor. Despite being pushed back to third and 43 thanks to a combination of penalties, Lassiter connected with Ryan Aylward on a 32-yard pass. On fourth down and 11, a blown Charles City coverage resulted in Lassiter finding White wide open for another touchdown. Butts conversion elevated the margin for the hosts to 22-0 with 1:05 remaining in the third quarter.

But the Panthers’ offense received its much-needed kick-start. Twenty seconds after Franklin’s latest score, wide receivers distracted Franklin’s secondary, allowing Jefferson to run down the right sideline. A slight sidestep to the left by the senior signal-caller resulted in a 53-yard touchdown run. A conversion pass from Jefferson to Justin Thomas narrowed the deficit to 14 heading into the fourth stanza (22-8).

With Franklin possessing the ball after a short kick, the Broncos elected to utilize a running game that milked the clock for the night. But a carry by Bronco back Rashad Wilkerson resulted in Charles City’s Kyle Jones ripping the ball from his hands, similar to an action executed in the previous matchup. This time, however, Jones returned the ball 62 yards for a touchdown and got the visitors within a single score (22-16).

Panther momentum was high until the ensuing kickoff. A squib kick landed in the dangerous hands of Franklin return man Natron Lee. Lee paused momentarily, before attacking a gap between Charles City’s wedge for six points, returning the lead to 12 with 10:40 left in the fourth quarter (28-16).

Charles City’s resiliency remained intact. After a short Bronco kickoff, a run by Panther ball carrier Cecil Tyler in addition to a Franklin personal foul placed the visitors at the 14-yard line.

Franklin’s defense responded, dropping Tyler and Jefferson on subsequent runs and a pass attempt, setting up fourth and 13. With no choice but to go for it, Tyler sneaked out the backfield and became the recipient of Jefferson’s pass. Before hitting the ground, the running back stretched the ball across the plane of the goal, with the referee throwing his hands in the air to signify the score to return the game to a touchdown margin (28-22).

Franklin ran four minutes of game time off the clock before the hosts faced a fourth and seven. Lassiter took a snap and bootlegged left, connecting with running back Butts out the backfield on a pass to the flats. However, a solid tackle from all-conference linebacker Troy Crawley for the Panthers ended the drive and returned possession to the visitors.

Bronco pressure became too intense at the 3:53 mark, as Jefferson was sacked for a six-yard loss followed by another tackle that resulted in a minuscule gain. Jefferson was able to connect with Thomas for seven yards on third down but the guests faced a fourth and eight. The Panther signal-caller threw a pass that fell to the dirt, returning possession to the hosts with 2:23 remaining.

After stopping the Broncos and burning their final two timeouts, Charles City faced a must stop against Franklin on fourth and three. The hosts’ play call saw Lassiter run a bootleg to the chains in front of the visiting sideline. As Lassiter was met by Jefferson, now at cornerback, the referee ran in, spotting the ball at the 25-yard line, resulting in a turnover on downs and the Panthers receiving one last opportunity with 1:15 left in the game.

On first down, Jefferson connected with Crawley for a 15-yard connection. A facemask penalty committed by the Broncos tacked on an additional 15 yards, placing the ball at Franklin’s 45. On the next play, Jefferson found a seam between offensive linemen Andre’ Mason and Richard Adkins, allowing a hole to open up for a 35-yard run to get down to the 10-yard line with 36 seconds remaining. On first and goal, Franklin’s defensive line sacked Jefferson. On that play, however, Charles City was penalized for an illegal formation. Franklin elected to decline the penalty to allow the clock to run.

But the next play allowed the Conference 42 Offensive Player of the Year to shine. Jefferson eluded a sack and bolted up the right hash mark. The quarterback split two Bronco defenders and plowed into the end zone for the score, knotting the game at 28 apiece with 22 seconds showing on the game clock.

Franklin called a timeout prior to the two-point attempt by the Panthers. On the snap, Jefferson handed the ball off to Tyler on the left side. Tyler attacked a Bronco defender and crossed the stripe, giving the Panthers a 30-28 lead.

Franklin took over at their own 40-yard line. On first down, Lassiter connected with Aylward on a 17-yard passing route. As the chains reset, the Broncos’ discombobulation resulted in wasted time, forcing the hosts to burn a timeout with six seconds remaining. The Panthers’ secondary retreated to the goal-line, prepping to defend a possible Hail Mary pass. Instead, Lassiter elected to throw a short route in an attempt for a higher-percentage pass play, but all six ticks on the clock expired on an incomplete pass as the Panthers completed the comeback.

A choked up Greene commented about the passion and determination of his team.

“In years past, our team would have given up when they saw a 22-point deficit,” he said. “But tonight, they proved to themselves that this was a new team and a new era.

“To play as poorly as we did and still come out with a win just shows you the guts and determination of this team,” Greene continued. “This coaching staff did a phenomenal job preparing these young men by having them in the right place.

“But tonight, it was these young men who got into the mindset that their season wasn’t going to end here at Franklin and now we move on to our next contest.”

That next contest is another rematch for the Panthers. Charles City travels to Colonial Beach, an opponent they lost to by a mere six points.

“They were here in the stands tonight and they saw how much we have improved,” Greene said as he wrapped up his comments. “Now we must work on our game plan for them.”

Charles City overall record improves to 6-5.

2nd Quarter
F (2:38)- Allen 1 yard run (Allen run) 8-0
3rd Quarter
F (9:00)- Allen 3 yard run (run fail) 14-0
F (1:05)- Lassiter 35 yard pass to White (Butts run) 22-0
CC (0:43)- Jefferson 53 yard run (Jefferson pass to Thomas) 22-8
4th Quarter
CC (10:53)- K. Jones 62 yard fumble return (Tyler run) 22-16
F (10:42)- Lee 73-yard kickoff return (run fail) 28-16
CC (8:12)- Jefferson 17 yard pass to Tyler (run fail) 28-22
CC (1:15)- Jefferson 15 yard run (Tyler run) 30-28

Passing (completions/attempts/yards)
CC- Jefferson 4/12/48, 1 TD, 1 int.
F- Lassiter 7/11/173, 1 TD.

Receiving (receptions/yards)
CC- Tyler 1/17, 1 TD; Thomas 2/16, Crawley 1/15.
F- Butts 3/63, Aylward 2/49, White 1/35, 1 TD; Lee 1/26.

Rushing (attempts/yards)
CC- Jefferson 20/103, 2 TD; Tyler 9/56.
F- Allen 17/80, 2 TD; Butts 17/71, Tyler 10/32, Everett 7/19, Lassiter 5/17, Wilkerson 3/16, Lawson 2/11, White 1/0.