FRANKLIN, Ind. — Franklin and Alma met on a clear, spring day for a track meet and a football game broke out. Okay, so it was a beautiful fall day and the two schools were actually playing football, but with Alma’s 46-38 win, spectators got everything they bargained for and more in a match-up between the two of the most prolific offenses in Division III.
Alma (3-0), ranked second in the nation with 588 yards total offense per game coming into the contest, outgunned Franklin (2-1), who ranked eighth with 546.5 yards. The Scots hung a school-record 800 yards of total offense on the board, while senior quarterback Josh Wakefield broke Bill Nietzke’s passing yardage record. The senior threw for 569 yards on 36 of 60 passing with three scores and two interceptions.
Alma also broke the school records for first downs in a game with 38, breaking the old mark of 33 set by the 1996 team on three separate occasions. Greg Bowden rushed 20 times for a career-high 192 yards and three scores as Alma rushed for 231 yards as a team. Alma's Brian Pierce led the receiving corps with 14 catches for 193 yards. The reception total was one off the school mark, while the yardage total was third-best ever at Alma.
For Franklin, quarteback Travis McMahen was 24 for 49 for 451 yards and five TDs, while Mike Manford hauled in 218 yards receiving on nine catches and three scores. Jim Larkin also grabbed five balls for 149 yards and two more scores for Franklin, which suffered its first defeat of the season
Game Story
Your support helps keep this site operating