The Franklinton Demons football team lost a 54-41 shootout last Friday in Demon Stadium against the Lutcher Bulldogs. The loss puts the Demons’ record at 2-3 as they enter district play next week on the road at 4-1 Hannan.
The Bulldogs got out to a seemingly insurmountable 21-0 lead midway of the second period. But the Demons then put together a nice drive as they went 63 yards to the end zone as quarterback Kerston Diddon ran in from 12 yards out for the score and to cut the lead to 21-7.
After forcing the Bulldogs to punt, Jayden Burkhalter returned the ball to the Bulldogs 15 with just :16 left in the first half. Ricardo Burris caught a pass from Diddon in the end zone to cut the lead to 21-14 at halftime.
The Demons had the ball to open the second half but failed to score after moving the ball to the Bulldog 17. Lutcher then scored the next two touchdowns to go up 35-14.
The teams then traded scores for the remainder of the game as both teams scored on each of their possessions until Lutcher ran out the clock on their final drive. A couple of onside kick attempts were unsuccessful by the Demons and the Bulldogs won 54-41.
Coach Nick Saltaformaggio pointed out the strength of their opponent and said he still feels the Demons are in good shape.
"First, credit Lutcher. They have a great program. Defensively, we struggled to get off the field on third down. They ran the ball extremely well and we struggled to stop them. I do think we are a better defensive football team than we showed in this game. Offensively, we played well overall, but shot ourselves in the foot with untimely penalties especially early on. I still believe we have a good football team. There are lots of lessons to be learned moving forward and as we move into district play, I am confident our kids will respond the right way down the stretch."
Quarterback Kerston Diddon led the Demons statistically with 350 yards and four touchdowns passing on 28 completions of 35 attempts while rushing for 25 yards and a touchdown on two carries. Jayden Burkhalter caught 9 passes for 94 yards, Chakyn McClain caught 7 for 92 yards and two touchdowns, Ricardo Burris caught 7 for 52 yards and a touchdown, Preston Venables caught 2 for 39 and Rhett Anderson caught 3 for 69 yards. Burris rushed 25 times for 85 yards and a touchdown.
