Both teams from the Land of Logan trail on the road in KHSAA football regional semifinal games. Russellville has played Campbellsville closer than Logan County has Franklin-Simpson.
The Panthers gave up an early touchdown with the Eagles scoring at the 10:38 mark of the first quarter on an 80-yard drive in three plays. But the Panthers came back to score with Jacob Naylor hitting Ryan Flores for a 10-yard touchdown pass. Naylor had completed a fourth-and-22 pass to Lennon Ries for the drive-extending first down.
Campbellsville led 13-7 after a quarter, a score that was still in play late in the half before the Panthers added another six points on a 13-yard run.
Ries intercepted a CHS pass in the final seconds to keep the Panthers' deficit 19-6 at the half.
Naylor hit Flores with a touchdown pass with 5:22 in the third period to cut the deficit to 26-13 on Hunter McDowell’s conversion, but Campbellsville took the ensuing kickoff back for a touchdown to make it 32-13.
The F-S special teams had scored two touchdowns before the Cougars could get anything going. Tre Bass took the opening kickoff back 89 yards. Four plays later, Carlos McKinney returned a blocked punt for a score, and Franklin led 13-0.
Coach Todd Adler's Cougars got back in the game on an 88-yard kickoff return of their own by Maurice Gordon. Gordon had two other long returns in the first half, but unfortunately for the Cougars, that means the Cats were scoring.
Bass scored three TDs in the first quarter and four by the midpoint of the second quarter. Franklin led 27-7 after a quarter.
The Cougars got a second TD on an 8-play, 58-yard drive with quarterback Tyler Ezell scoring from the one. He had connected with Chandler Silvey making a key catch and Gary Hardy picking up good yardage on the ground to get there.
It looked like the Wildcats would be just short of putting the game away by halftime, but that changed. Franklin led 49-13 when Bass tackled Ezell in the end zone on a fake punt on the last play of the half. That created a running clock to start the second half.
The Cougars had given up a state-best 95 points in their first 11 games, but Franklin had put over half of that total in two quarters.
The Panthers are without the services of leading rusher Ed Barber on offense because of an ankle injury.
If the home team leads hold up, Logan County will finish its season with a 10-2 record. Russellville will go 5-7 in Coach Mike Benton’s first season at the helm.