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WSN15: Football Top Moments #3 -Franklin upends Brookfield Central in epic 2006 title game

12/09/2017, 8:23am CST
By Travis Wilson

The WSN15 series will celebrate the 15th Anniversary of WisSports.net by looking back at the top players, teams, and moments of the past 15 years (2003-2017). 

We begin our WSN15 series with the Top 15 Moments of the WSN Era.

Top 15 Moments: #3 - Franklin upends Brookfield Central in epic 2006 title game

The Franklin Sabers have become one of the most consistent big-school programs in the state over the last decade and a half, but the 2006 Division 2 title team remains the lone group to hoist a gold ball as champion, despite two runner-up finishes in the last five years.

The Sabers were coming off a middling 5-5 season in 2005, but it all came together the following year. The team won the Southeast Conference title, defeating defending Division 1 state champion Racine Park, who featured star running back John Clay. After nearly going down in Level 2 against West Allis Hale, needing a goal-line stand in the closing minutes to preserve a 29-27 victory, Franklin would advance to its first championship game.

The opponent emerging from the other side of the bracket was fellow unbeaten Brookfield Central, who went through a challenging Greater Metro Conferene schedule unscathed. It marked the first time a pair of unbeaten teams met in the Division 2 title game since 1994.

Led by WFCA Honorable Mention All-State quarterback Robert Evans, Franklin would get on the board first, as Evans hooked up with Eric Kossoris for a 65-yard score on the second play of the game. Brookfield Central would answer however, as Drew Herma rushed for a pair of first quarter touchdowns to put the Lancers up 14-7.

Franklin would score the next 22 points in the second and third quarters however, taking a 29-14 lead when Evans found Nate Soddy from 22-yards out with 3:38 remaining in the third.

After turning the ball over on downs inside Franklin territory on its ensuing drive, things weren't looking great for Brookfield Central. However, a game-changing interception return for a touchdown by Travis Maze off Franklin backup quarterback Jared Ciche gave the Lancers life, pulling them within 29-21. 

That remained the score for the first half of the fourth quarter, as Brookfield Central took over at its own 19-yard line following a Franklin punt, with 6:30 left in the game. On the very first play of the drive, Mike Bogard hit tight end Rob Korslin, a future Badgers player, for a state finals record 81-yard touchdown pass, as Korslin out-manuevered a pair of Franklin defenders. 

Needing a two-point conversion to tie the game, Brookfield Central pulled a rabbit out of its hat, as Bogard appeared to be in the sights of Franklin's Mike Norman on a rollout pass. However, while turned around and facing away from the end zone, Bogard tossed the ball over his shoulder on a desperation attempt. Korslin went up in a crowd to grab it, pulling it in for the game-tying points.

Brookfield Central had a shot to win it in regulation, but missed a 40-yard field goal attempt with just over a minute remaining, as the game went to overtime. It was the first state finals contest to head to overtime since 1991, when Stanley-Boyd topped Mayville 21-14 in Division 4.

Brookfield Central won the toss and elected to go on offense second. At the time, all overtime drives began from the 10-yard line instead of the 25-yard line that the WIAA currently uses. 

On the first possession, Evans found Geoff Stuhr from seven yards out on third down, as the extra point gave Franklin a 36-29 lead.

On second down from the 10-yard line, Brookfield Central running back Drew Herma broke through and appeared to have a shot at the end zone. However, he was met by John Zaganczyk and Joey Cook, as Cook knocked the ball loose, to be recovered by Franklin defensive back D.J. Nogalski. The fumble clinched a 36-29 victory and the only state title in school history for the Franklin Sabers.

"It was nuts the way the whole game was," Franklin coach Jeff Klemp told the Wisconsin State Journal after the game. "It should have ended on a player like that."

For the latest and most up to date football news and recruiting information, follow Travis on Twitter @travisWSN. Email story ideas, recruiting info, etc. to Travis at travis(at)wissports.net.

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