Key injuries testing Shelbyville's depth in preparation for Rushville

Shelbyville will face its oldest rival Friday without two of its biggest playmakers.

Senior Grantland Fitzgerald and sophomore Camden Thoman both suffered right knee injuries in the Golden Bears’ 39-14 win over Greensburg. Both are expected to miss at least 2-4 weeks.

Shelbyville is seeking its third 2-0 start in the last four seasons under the direction of head coach Scott Fitzgerald. To do so will mean the first back-to-back wins over Rushville since 2011-2012.

“It is a rivalry game and it’s something we’ve talked about with the guys,” said Fitzgerald. “Two years ago, we went over there and they kicked out butt (28-7). They are going to want to do that. We can’t go out there and give a lax effort. We have to go out and play championship football.”

Rushville won the first two meetings in the series beginning in 1927 (12-0) and 1928 (13-6). The neighboring county programs have met 84 times prior with the Golden Bears, now celebrating 100 years of football, holding a 48-35-1 series record.

• The Lions have outscored the Golden Bears 1,402-1,393 in those 84 meetings.
• The only tie came in 1971 (14-14).
• The only overtime game came in 2012 (a 21-20 win for SHS).
• The two programs have never met in the postseason.

“It’s right down the road. I think they always feel like the little brother and they always play with a chip on their shoulder which is great,” said coach Fitzgerald. “That’s what they should be doing. We have to go in with the mentality that we have a chip on our shoulder. We have to come in and win it from the start.”

While Grantland Fitzgerald’s knee injury is concerning, he had a similar injury in his left knee he played through his entire junior season. And even though he hurt his right knee early in the win over Greensburg, he still carried the ball 31 times for a game-high 209 yards and two touchdowns.

“He was really swollen Saturday and Sunday,” said Scott Fitzgerald.

Thoman tweaked his right knee early Friday as well. There is no structural damage and he could be back in as early as two weeks if all heals well.

Sophomore Tucker Schultz (photo) was pressed into action against the Pirates but did not catch a pass.

Senior Kameron Holland (eight carries, 57 yards) and sophomore Kendrick Hook (seven carries, 33 yards) were both effective alternatives to Fitzgerald in the backfield in the season opener. Holland (photo) is expected to get the start against Rushville with Hook and sophomore Layden Fitzgerald rotating in.

“Guys have to know they have to step up no matter who is playing,” said coach Fitzgerald. “You just have to step up, do your job and give your best effort on every play.”

Run the ball is all Milan did in a 56-0 win over Rushville in the season opener. The Indians amassed 380 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground while overpowering the Lions.

“Milan had some big guys in the backfield and hammered it up front. They did a fantastic job,” said Fitzgerald. “I think we are capable of doing similar things. We have to go out and play physical and not make some mistakes. We still made some mistakes up front last week as far as our assignments. We have to do a little bit better job of being mistake free on those.”

Senior quarterback Owen Zachery is playing for his third coach in as many seasons. Sam Pavey, Quinn Barada and Eli Pavey combined for nearly 800 yards rushing and eight touchdowns last season, but all graduated leaving an inexperienced backfield presence.

“(Rushville) will run a mixture of things but they are trying to spread it out a little bit, but it’s a lot of spread to run,” said Fitzgerald. “They are not going to toss the ball up and down the field. The quarterback is a good runner when he has a chance.”

Shelbyville’s defense created two takeaways against Greensburg and had two more on kickoff coverage that stifled the Pirates’ offense.

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