With Buffalo, Franklin stampedes into Pub finals

JAVIER BUFFALO didn't even have his pads on anymore.

Plus, his ribs still smarted from a diving touchdown grab, his second on Saturday night when Ben Franklin High beat George Washington, 36-19, in the Public League semifinals.

But, about 45 minutes after the final buzzer, the 5-11, 180-pound junior wide receiver still had time for one final tally after he skillfully fielded post-game interview questions.

"Are you done now?" asked Kevin Caldwell, the record-setting Franklin quarterback, who was holding a football in his hand.

Without a word, a smiling Buffalo trampled the turf at the Marcus Foster Supersite, streaking down the right sideline as Caldwell cocked, locked and rocketed a soaring spiral some 60 yards down the field.

Of course, Buffalo made the catch in stride and galloped into the end zone before an assistant coach shut down the festivities. "Save it for next week," a voice called out.

But what else would you expect from an aerial attack chock-full of record setters?

Franklin (9-0, 5-0) will meet Simon Gratz (10-1, 6-0) on Saturday for the AAAA championship at Northeast High.

Solo, celebratory touchdowns are all fine and good, but Buffalo also has a knack for the tough ones, too.

"Before the ball ever comes to me, when I line up, [I'm thinking] 'No defensive back can stick me,' " Buffalo said. "That's how I look at it. That's not being big-headed. It's just me believing in myself and believing I can do it. At the end of the day, like coach [David] Carter says, 'It's the man who thinks he can.'

"So, when that ball goes in the air, if I believe I can do it - I can do it. That's how I look at every pass."

Trailing 7-0 in the first quarter, Caldwell lofted a pass to a blanketed Buffalo, who still rose up and snagged the ball for a 32-yard score. He finished with six grabs for 104 yards.

The play was a designed run until quarterback and receiver exchanged a glance, said Buffalo, who set a school record with 676 receiving yards as a sophomore (since broken) and also entered this season as Franklin's career leader in receiving yardage.

"The ball went up and everything went blank," he said. "And I did what I had to do. As a receiver, my only job is to catch the ball. That's my only job."

Caldwell's gig is delivering, which he has done more times than any Pub quarterback in history this season.

His four touchdown passes against Washington make 32, which surpassed current Temple backup Tim DiGiorgio's 30 at Frankford in 2011.

The 5-9, 190-pound Caldwell is also one scoring toss behind former La Salle QB Brett Gordon's city record of 33. He also already holds Franklin's career passing yardage mark.

Against the Eagles (6-5, 4-2), Caldwell went 16-for-22 for 293 yards with TD tosses of 32, 43, 45 and 16. A performance made more impressive considering the chilly, blustery conditions.

"First of all, the receivers will tell you, Kevin's passes hurt," Buffalo joked. "They hurt. But he has great accuracy and that comes from the coaches working with him. He's been working [hard], and that's a great feeling, just knowing that I have somebody like that."

Also closing in on a record is senior wideout Rafael "Macho" Rodriguez, who caught four balls for 107 yards and two scores and added a late 55-yard scoring run.

With 15 receiving TDs this season, Rodriguez is tied with Delane Hart, who topped the all-time, single-season Pub charts last season at Martin Luther King. With 746 yards this season, he also usurped Buffalo for Franklin's single-season mark.

"I love Macho to death," Buffalo said. "It's like I've known him my whole life. He's like a brother. He was here for me when I was a freshman."

Buffalo, a South Philly resident (27th and Wharton), actually attends World Communications Charter, which has a cooperative sponsorship with Franklin. As a freshman, he said Carter believed in him when few others did.

A broken left wrist in eighth grade, Buffalo said, made him an unknown entering high school. He actually contemplated another Pop Warner season in lieu of high school before Carter approached.

"He told me they knew I could ball, I went to a practice and from there I was starting," he said. "Since then, they've believed in me.

"Since I was a young pup [my family] were the ones who told me I should play football," he added. "I was one of the kids who sat in the house and played video games. They said I needed to get out more, so starting football really made a big difference. Now, everything I look at is football or school . . . That's my main focus: Get good grades and do what I do on the field."

Just a junior, Buffalo said college suitors have yet to inquire, but with a 2.9 cumulative GPA he already has sports medicine on the brain.

However, for now, he only has eyes for a championship.

"Since I was a freshman, we started from a losing season to building all over again," he said. "This feels great, it's the best feeling in the world just knowing that I have people that have my back. Nobody believed in us. It's us against the world. Getting this win means the world, but it's not over yet. We still have the championship next week. I'll let this sink in, but bottle it up for the championship."

Washington junior Qadir Cobbs finished with 196 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries. Junior QB Damir Mitchell had 59 passing yards with a TD. Senior defensive end Shareef Miller had two sacks. Senior Tavious Morgan added 45 receiving yards and a score. For Franklin, Rodriguez added 66 yards on two carries. Defensively, Taj Clea added a sack for a safety.