By RYAN ARENA

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – St. Charles football coach Frank Monica believes his Comets’ annual spring game is an important barometer of where the team stands entering next season. And Thursday’s scrimmage was indeed a stern test, as St. Charles squared off against Class 4A state runner up Franklinton at Thomas Dupuy Stadium.

Franklinton’s varsity scored five touchdowns to SCC’s two to capture the unofficial win by a score of 31-14.

The Demons’ Terrance Magee threw two touchdowns, and Lawrence Robinson and Jeremy Burton each forced two turnovers in the game.

SCC turned it over four times in the game.

Franklinton worked its way down the field on its first possession, relying on a series of wide receiver screen routes and hitches to stretch the Comet defense sideways. It capped the drive with a four-yard touchdown sweep by Vincent Wilson.

“We played as base as we could, without playing as many defensive backs as usual,” said St. Charles coach Frank Monica. “It caught up to us. They took advantage of some guys that aren’t as good when playing in space.”

St. Charles answered when quarterback Donnie Savoie found Jeffrey Hall wide open over the top of the Demon defense for a 22-yard score to tie things up. That came after Savoie and Hall hooked up for a sizeable gain on a slant pass to set SCC up.

“Our young quarterback made some plays, and made some mistakes,” said Monica. “But I don’t know that we gave him a ton of help, either, tonight.”

Franklinton overcame a redzone holding penalty on its next possession when McGee hit Reginald Wilson for a score to make it 13-7 — Franklinton missed the extra point, its first of four failed point after attempts.

On the Demons’ fourth possession, McGee hit Vincent Wilson, who was split out wide, with a quick pass at the line. He danced for a 20-yard score, making it 19-7.

“We’ve got nine guys returning with significant experience on the offensive side,” said Franklinton coach Shane Smith. “So we expect to have success there. To end the spring like this, you’ve got to be happy.”

After the teams’ took an intermission, Franklinton made its most explosive play of the day when Josh Robinson got outside on a sweep and raced for a 75-yard score to make it 25-7.

It became 31-7 after Savoie was hit by Lawrence Robinson and fumbled on a missed handoff. Lawrence Robinson picked up the ball and ran for a 30-yard score.

“That’s a very, very good team, and we knew that beforehand,” said Monica. “But it’s still no excuse to make some of the mistakes that we did.”

St. Charles would score last, generating its own explosive run when Lazedrick Thompson bullied up the gut and broke loose for a 75-yard touchdown on the first play of SCC’s eleventh possession.

“Franklinton’s a team with high expectations,” said Monica. “But we can’t waste any time trying to close the gap between us that you saw tonight. We won’t play them again, but we play some teams that are awfully similar.”

Monica said that despite an imperfect spring game performance, some solid progress has been made over the past few weeks.

“As a whole, it was very positive,” said Monica. “We had guys that wanted to be here, and I think we got out healthy. The spring game is crucial because it magnifies your mistakes and weaknesses. We know what we need to work on.”