EASTVILLE—Quarterback Donzell Shearin threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Josh Willis with less than a minute to play to lift Franklin High to a 28-24 win over Northampton in a non-district football game Thursday night.

The Broncos, in their 2007 debut, trailed 24-21 when the big play happened.

&uot;That was a surprise to them (Northampton). We hadn’t planned on going to that formation that game,&uot; said Darren Parker, Franklin head coach. &uot;The kids adjusted well and we pulled it out.&uot;

Franklin had 368 yards total offense on the night — 268 rushing and 100 through the air.

Parker said playing a tough opponent like Northampton was good for his team early on.

&uot;It was good to be in a good game early in the season. It was a dogfight, and you want those games,&uot; he said. &uot;I think it will help us a lot. We did well against Smithfield (in a scrimmage), and playing well against Northampton will help us as a team.&uot;

The Broncos have a week off and then will host rival Southampton on Sept. 14.

&uot;We will take these two weeks to improve and heal

up. This pretty much refocused us and brought the hunger back,&uot; Parker said.