FRANKLIN, Texas — There's a new man running the show for the Franklin football team.
Longtime Lions coach Mike Hedrick retired this year and his long time offensive coordinator Mike Fannin was promoted to head coach. Hedrick had coached Franklin from 2006 to 2019.
Fannin says the team will still implement a similar "slot t" offense that Hedrick used, but will add a few wrinkles into the fold.
The Lions are also dropping down from Class 3A DI to 3A DII this season, and start the season ranked 8th in the state according to Dave Campbell's Texas Football Magazine.
Players and coaches say if the line can hold up, there's a chance 2020 could be a special season.
"We got great backs, great backs on defense, just need to beef up the line a little more and now we just have to go at it," senior defensive end Ashton Ferguson says.
"I really like how last year, a lot of people took us as underdogs," senior running back Seth Spiller says. "Now we dropped down a division, everyone matured, so I think we should be a really good football team."
Coach Fannin says they had more than 90 kids show up to the first week of practice, which is the most the school has had in years.
