MEADVILLE — With a six-game winning streak on the line, there were a couple of things Franklin County head coach Trent Hammond was hoping would not happen as the Bulldogs took on Amite County in a Region 7-3A game Friday night.

First, he did not want his players to be distracted during practice since it was homecoming. Second, he was hoping his players would not look past a one-win Amite County team and ahead to the Bulldogs’ showdown at No. 1 Tylertown next Friday night.

After getting off to an uncharacteristically slow start, Franklin County scored 22 points in the second quarter and rolled to a 49-6 win over Amite County to set the stage for what will be a battle for the region championship.

“I thought we came out sluggish. We didn’t execute like we should have early. Defense kept us in it,” Hammond said. “This community’s been looking forward to next week. We had to overcome that all week.”

Franklin County (7-2, 3-0) scored its first points on a safety when Amite County quarterback Jerel Cobb was flagged for intentional grounding in the end zone at the 10:18 mark of the second quarter. Thanks to the Bulldogs’ defense, Cobb completed just 6-of-13 passes for 62 yards with one interception. The Trojans’ rushing game was even worse, with 34 carries for 38 yards.

Nearly five minutes later, Jermaine Stander was on the receiving end of a 3-yard touchdown pass from Edward McGhee. Dehendret Collins scored on a 2-point conversion run for a 10-0 Bulldogs lead. Frank Hunt then scored on a fumble recovery in the end zone and Darnell Ford scored on an 11-yard run to give the Bulldogs a 22-0 halftime lead.

“We got some points with two defensive touchdowns and a safety. That allowed us to come alive offensively,” Hammond said. “We got a short field. Amite County has a defense which I don’t know if we would have drove the field on them. They’re big and athletic.”

Franklin County got a 3-yard touchdown run from Tevin Thomas in the third quarter and three fourth-quarter touchdowns, including a 7-yard fumble return by Jimmy Barnes with 4:12 to go and a 40-yard run from Robert Curry with 41 seconds left.

Ford was the leading rusher for the Bulldogs with 15 carries for 75 yards while Thomas had nine carries for 65 yards. Ford also had one reception for 27 yards.

Amite County (1-5, 0-3) scored its only touchdown with 58 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter when Laterrence Wilson recovered a fumble in the end zone.