2023 RECORD OVERALL RECORD : 7-4 DISTRICT RECORD : 4-2
Frankston INDIANS
TAYLOR HONEA Sports Writer sports @ palestineherald . com
The Frankston Indians turned in another successful campaign in 2023 , ending their year 7-4 overall and finding their way into the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year . But , beyond the records and the standings , Frankston has something special brewing in their small town . While this year may have been a slight step back for the football team in the record books compared to last season , the snowball effect is in full swing within the Frankston athletic department , as excellence has become the standard for the Indians . The play of now two-time reigning All-Area Overall Most Valuable Player Tyler Rogers can be described in a word : Excellence . The junior running back and linebacker has been a large part of the football renaissance happening in Frankston , boldly leading his crew of ultra-talented teammates fearlessly this season , gaining almost 900 yards on offense , while collecting 102 tackles defensively . Indians Head Coach Paul Gould has also disproved an old football idiosyncrasy from legendary NFL coach John Madden , who said “ If you have two quarterbacks , you have none .” The Indians used a two-quarterback system successfully this year , trading series between sophomores AJ Donnell and Carson Bizzell . Bizzell is more of a traditional quarterback , with good arm strength and solid decision making , while Donnell is a constant threat to take the ball himself and run , with enough arm talent to keep defenders honest . The quarterback tandem accounted for nearly 2,500 yards and 29 touchdowns on the year . Donnell , who plays wideout when not under center , would also lead the Indians in receiving yards with 700 and touchdown receptions with six .
Frankston will be bringing back a large percentage of their starters next season , but will have to find a replacements for a few positions , which will be left unoccupied by the graduation of such seniors as Kaymon Davis , Sir ’ Issac Foster and Ryan Harper , all of whom were All-District selections in 2023 . While Frankston has made it to the playoffs for four consecutive years , they have not been able to get over the hump and advance past the first round in any of those years . In fairness , the road has not been easy for the Indians , as they were matched against Terry Bussey and the Timpson Tigers in the first three years . Bussey , a five-star college recruit , is the number two overall athlete in the country for the 2023 senior class . This year the Indians would draw a new opponent , the Cooper
20 WINTER EDITION 2024