Football opens 2025 season with tight 27-20 loss at Franklin (Ind.)

FRANKLIN, Ind. —  The Ohio Northern football team opened its 2025 season with a 27-20 loss at Franklin (Ind.) on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.

The Basics

• Records: Ohio Northern (0-1 Overall), Franklin (1-0 Overall)
• Venue: Faught Stadium - Franklin, Ind.

The Game

• Senior Sam Feldman (Springboro) completed 25-of-48 passes for a career-high 343 yards to lead the ONU offense.
• Junior Seth Borondy (Bellbrook) caught 10 passes for a career-high 146 yards.
• Franklin scored on the first play of the game, connecting on an 84-yard flea-flicker pass to go up 7-0.
• The Grizzlies then marched 90 yards on 10 plays on its third possession to go up 14-0 with 3:39 left in the first.
• Junior Braylen Kennedy (Lima/Allen East) got the Polar Bears on the board with a 37-yard field goal with 35 seconds left in the first quarter to pull Ohio Northern within 14-3.
• Kennedy connected on a 23-yard field goal with 4:16 left in the third quarter to trim the deficit to 20-6.
• Ohio Northern reached Franklin territory on each of its first seven possessions, but were only able to come away with six points.
• Feldman hit sophomore Raffi Stauffer (Irwin/Fairbanks) on a 19-yard TD pass to get within 27-13 with 1:44 left in the third.
• Feldman then rushed in from 23 yards out with 9:47 left in the game to make it 27-20.
• The ONU defense held on downs and took over at its own 14 with 3:16 left. Northern made it to its own 46-yard line before turning it over on downs with 1:26 left in the game.
• The Grizzlies were able to kneel out the clock and hang on for the victory.
• Senior Louie Blasiole (Mantua/Crestwood) ran 12 times for 44 yards.
• Junior Jordan Pettaway (Oregon/Clay) ran 10 times for nine yards.
• Junior Kyle Celestin (Miami, Fla./Surge Academy) caught seven passes for 88 yards.
• Franklin was led by Marshall Kmiecik, who was 21-of-35 passing for 238 yards and 3 TDs.
• FC's Owen Wright caught eight passes for 113 yards and 2 TDs and threw the 84-yard TD pass on the opening play.
• The Grizzlies out-gained the Polar Bears in total offense 472-439.
• Defensively, senior Daryus Barrett (Cleveland/Benedictine) had a career-high 11 tackles.

Notables

• ONU leads the series between the two schools by a 2-1 margin, with a 1-1 mark in Franklin.
• Today's game was the first of 10 in the 131st season of football at Ohio Northern. Ohio Northern is now 563-527-36 all-time, a winning percentage of .516.
• Pettaway currently ranks 22nd all-time in ONU history in rushing with 1,498 yards.
• Blasiole is 24th on the all-time career rushing list with 1,460 yards.
• Northern is now 23-9 in its last 32 season openers and is 69-57-5 in its 131 season openers.
• Andy Fries is in his second season as head coach at ONU with a 5-6 record.

Up Next

• The Polar Bears will return to action on Sept. 13 when they host Heidelberg in the 15th annual Bendekovic Bowl at Dial-Roberson Stadium. The game is also on Senior Day and ONU will honor its 2025 Hall of Fame Class at halftime.