Second play from scrimmage, first carry.

The result? A 61-yard touchdown run.

Nick Frame couldn’t have asked for a better start.

The senior signal caller set the tone early last week against Notre Dame Green Pond with his longest run of the year to give Northern Lehigh a 7-0 lead less than two minutes into the game.

It was a signature performance and a statement win for the Bulldogs, who topped the Crusaders with a thrilling 40-33 victory to improve to 6-1 on the season.

Frame ran for 204 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries last week, and also threw for 82 yards and a score, a performance that earned him Times News Player of the Week honors.

The senior got the edge and hit the turbo button on his first carry before ending up in the end zone.

“We weren’t expecting that,” Northern Lehigh head coach Joe Tout said of the play. “We thought we’d have success with it. The edges looked good, seeing the North Schuylkill film (against Notre Dame). I could tell, against Northwestern (a 34-27 win in Week 2) we had a really good drive to start, and then we started the game with that (against NDGP). That kind of gives you a good sense that your kids are locked in, that everybody’s locked in.”

The Bulldogs quickly built a 14-0 lead with two touchdowns in their first five offensive plays from scrimmage.

Frame carried the ball nine times for 85 yards in the first half, helping Northern Lehigh sustain several long drives.

“Once he told me during the week (at practice), I knew this was going to be the start of me running the ball,” Frame said of the Bulldogs’ game plan. “In past games, I know we have a bunch of running backs and I don’t really need to run the ball, but it’s good to get into it. It’s really fun.”

So was that long touchdown run.

“It’s definitely a confidence builder for me,” said Frame, “because the week before against Salisbury (a 42-0 win), I ran for a 40-yard touchdown, and that helped me pick it up. And this past week, it really helped, and it will just keep getting bigger as the season goes on.”

Frame also had some huge throws in key spots, including a 14-yard touchdown pass to Austin Smyth on fourth down to extend Northern Lehigh’s lead to 20-6 with 7:22 to play in the first half.

A first-year starter at quarterback, Frame’s development at the position has helped the offense evolve, beyond just the numbers he puts up on the ground or through the air.

“I thought in the second half, him running that midline (option), that’s a play we didn’t run in the first half purposely,” said Tout. “You lull people. It’s a different look. We started to run that, and then that setup the other plays and he was able to break some runs. We felt we had a good game plan going in, but there’s one thing between having that and having kids execute, and our kids executed to a T.

“And Nick really did too, because a lot of the last drive, one of his long runs, they had him for maybe a four-yard gain, and he broke out of it for 12 more. That was huge for us, just keeping the drive alive. We’ve been talking to him, too, about reading when he’s throwing the ball, to read that edge block, and he did the best job I think this year of stepping up when he could and then rolling out and he did that on that last drive, the last pass especially to Jack (Tosh), their kid (NDGP) came screaming in and Nick rolled out and bought himself some time. He was cool under pressure, too. He set the tone, he didn’t panic, especially on that last drive.”

On the game-winning drive against Notre Dame, Frame broke free for an 18-yard gain with the ball at the Crusader 49-yard line before hitting Jack Tosh for a gain of 16 yards on the next play. Frame found Tosh again two plays later for 10 yards, setting up the go-ahead two-yard touchdown run by Alexander Jimenez Wittong with 0:18 left in the game.

Frame is also a leader on defense from his safety position, where he is a three-year starter. He recorded five tackles and came up with an interception against the Crusaders.

Making an impact on both sides of the ball is something Frame enjoys. It’s also going to be vital for a team with major postseason aspirations after winning a District 11 Class 2A title and advancing to the state semifinals a year ago.

“I knew in the beginning of the season that I have to step up and play a big role. (It) put a chip on my shoulder,” said Frame. “It’s nice, having everybody trust me. It gets us all going, and we all keep on going as hard as we can every single week. We go through adversity with players getting hurt and we just do the best we can.”