The Lisbon sophomore is a solidly built athlete who won the football genetics lottery — height, build, speed and awareness.

Standing next to older brother, Noah, though, the younger Francis indeed finds himself in a little bit of a reputational, if not physical, shadow

But at the snap of the ball, both Francises stand as equals. And it often equals pain for the opposing team.

The brothers both start in the backfield for the Greyhounds, and they both hold an edge on defense — sometimes the same edge, other times sharing a side of the line.

But it’s on the offensive side that they stand out, even with senior quarterback Tyler Halls running and gunning each game. Lucas is strong for a running back, Noah is nimble for a fullback.

“He’s got speed and I got power,” Noah said. “That’s how it’s going down this season.”

“You need a push, they’re going to give it to either one of us,” Lucas said. “There’s a lot of different things we can do with our offense that revolve around us.”

The Francis brothers’ importance isn’t lost on longtime Lisbon head coach Dick Mynahan.

“They’re a big part of the team, and without them it would change our team completely,” Mynahan said.

The brothers bring hard-nosed running to an offense that Mynahan tries to keep balanced and versatile. But the coach has been part of enough November games to know that championships are often won with the run.

“I guess all said and done, if you want to play late in the year you have to have a running game if you want to hang around,” Mynahan said. “I think they both offer us that type of a game.”

While Lucas looks the part of a runner, Noah could be confused for an offensive lineman without a number on his jersey. But after one carry it becomes apparent that Noah belongs in the backfield.

“I wouldn’t say I’m fast, but I can definitely move around as a running back,” Noah said. “I don’t let myself think that I’m slow, and I don’t let anyone tell me how good I can be. I just come out and try to surprise people.”

“For his size, he’s a little shifty,” Lucas said.

Mynahan said he doesn’t think Noah surprises people with his running because he’s a known commodity after four years of varsity football. But Lucas has been a pleasant surprise early in his career for Mynahan.

“I didn’t really expect Lucas to turn out the way he did,” Mynahan said. “I guess the biggest surprise I had with him is on defense, and how he has a natural instinct for our linebacking position. He is just an athlete in the field that instinctively has a pretty good idea of where things are going and what’s going to happen.”

Lucas flashed his instinct in a playoff win at Dirigo last season, grabbing the game-sealing interception.

He showed both his power and nose for the end zone on offense in a week two win over Maranacook this year. On one play, Lucas overpowered a defender while blocking for his older brother. Lucas was called for holding on the play

“Personally, I didn’t think it was a hold,” he said.

On the next play, Lucas got the ball himself and took it down the right sideline for a 27-yard touchdown.

“I knew I was getting the ball the next play and I wanted to make the most out of it, and I did,” Lucas said.

The brothers only got to play for a half against Maranacook, thanks to a blowout by intermission. With a little steam left to blow off, they brought water out to the second-team offense during an injury timeout in the third quarter. They did it without being prompted. Noah said he likes to see the younger kids get playing time, and likes to talk to them about the game. Lucas joked he was just trying to get in his conditioning for the game. Mynahan said it was one of those moments that make him cherish coaching high school football.

The younger Francis said he’s learned a lot from watching his older brother play. Some of that education has been physical, and it’s helped Lucas play above his grade.

“I’m an upper-hand against all the other kids my grade because I got such work when I was younger from him,” Lucas said. “He always used to tool around with me.”

The brothers played football together during their peewee days, and said playing varsity together the past two years has been a good experience.

They hope that experience gets them to the third Saturday in November this season.

“It would be great to go out like that, winning a (gold) ball with my brother,” Noah said.

wkramlich@sunjournal.com