Shelbyville seeking first sectional game win since 2015

Shelbyville has not won a sectional football game in exactly 10 years. The Golden Bears defeated Jennings County, 49-26, on Oct. 23, 2015. Since then … 10 straight sectional losses.

On Friday at McKeand Stadium, Shelbyville (4-5) hosts Connersville (4-5) in a Sectional 23 quarterfinal game where it is the favorite to win.

“I think the kids are excited about it. They are ready to get going,” said Shelbyville head coach Scott Fitzgerald. “They are ready to go play physical and they are ready to go play for our football lives. They have to have that mindset this week.”

There is no recent history between the Golden Bears and Spartans but there are two common opponents this season. Shelbyville went 2-0 against Greensburg (34-14) and Rushville (45-20) while the Spartans split those meetings, defeating Greensburg (28-14) and losing to Rushville (32-28).

The Rushville loss was the start of a four-game losing streak that ended with a 41-34 win over Batesville in the regular-season finale.

“They will be a big, physical team,” said Fitzgerald. “They will be a run first team. The fullback does a nice job. The tailback is a good tailback. And they have some good, big physical lineman. They want to come straight at you if they can. We have to come meet the physicality.”

Both teams enter the postseason with quarterbacks that did not start the season at the position.

Connersville lost starting quarterback Noah Patterson to an injury during its week three win at Greensburg. Rylan Keen now directs the run-heavy offense. The junior has completed just 35 of 67 passes for 557 yards and three touchdowns.

Junior running backs Braydon Keller (100 rushes, 709 yards, three touchdowns) and Parker Flanigan (76 rushes, 406 yards, nine touchdowns) have combined for more than 1,100 yards on the ground this season.

The Golden Bears had little success stopping Pendleton Heights’ ground attack last Friday and that opened up the passing lanes which led to a 49-7 loss. Joel Weaver rushed for 210 yards and three touchdowns on just eight carries. Brandt Gray completed 9 of 12 passes for 150 yards and two touchdowns.

“If we are not reading our keys and doing what we are supposed to do, if we leave a guy open then he can make some throws and make some things happen,” said Fitzgerald. “They want to run first. We have to stop that and be able to cover the pass with some 1-on-1 in some areas.”

The Arabians ran eight plays in the first half that netted at least 11 yards and five went for more than 30 yards.

Connersville’s defense will be tasked with shutting down Shelbyville’s run game anchored by senior Donavon Martin, who has rushed for 1,066 yards and eight touchdowns. His 218 rushing attempts is second most for a single season in program history – trailing only Derek Atwood’s 243 attempts in 2007.

That reliability on the ground game has made the development of freshman quarterback Layden Fitzgerald (88 of 166 pass attempts, 1,227 yards and 12 touchdowns) go smoothly.

The young quarterback threw for nearly 200 yards in the loss at Pendleton Heights last Friday but also had his third and fourth interceptions in the last two games.

“A couple (of the interceptions) are him making throws when he shouldn’t have made a throw,” said coach Fitzgerald. “He has to learn and understand there are times when he has to pull the ball down and go. He has to make sure he has a good foundation, make sure his feet are set and if there is a guy in his face and not really a guy open, it’s not time to throw the ball. It has to be tucked away and run.”

Adding Fitzgerald’s quickness to the offense can make the Golden Bears more dynamic. He is averaging 4.8 yards per rushing attempt but mostly defers to Martin and his older brother, Grantland Fitzgerald (46, rushes, 400 yards, six touchdowns).

Shelbyville’s seniors enjoyed a memorable Senior Night on Oct. 10 with a 49-21 win over Mt. Vernon. The sectional draw afforded them another opportunity to secure a win at McKeand Stadium.

“It’s a group of guys that have stuck with it through thick and thin and they’ve really been leaders,” said coach Fitzgerald. “They’ve bought into the fact that we’ve got to win in the weight room first. We’ve had guys step up and have really great numbers in the weight room and been leaders there to push others to come along.”

Fitzgerald, now in his third year as head coach of the Golden Bears, was the senior class’ eighth-grade coach at Shelbyville Middle School.

“These (seniors) are the guys I coached in the middle school when they were coming up,” he said. “The opportunity to help coach them down there and see them develop and grow, has been fun.”

If Shelbyville wins Friday, it will likely travel to Bedford North Lawrence (6-3) on Oct. 31 for a semifinal contest. The Stars are at Jennings County (2-7) Friday. In their first meeting on Sept. 26, Bedford North Lawrence won 63-0.

Steve Bush photos

CONNERSVILLE (4-5) AT SHELBYVILLE (4-5)

SITE: McKeand Stadium at Shelbyville High School.

GAME TIME: 7 p.m.

BROADCAST: GIANT fm (96.5 fm, 1520 am, 106.3 fm, or online at giant.fm) will air the game live from McKeand Stadium. The pre-game show with Johnny McCrory and Jeff Brown begins at 6 p.m.

STUDENT THEME: Pink Out.

COACHES: Ryan Lynch, 15-26 in fourth year at Connersville; Scott Fitzgerald, 8-21 in third year at Shelbyville.

SAGARIN RATINGS: Connersville, 41.81, 191st overall, 46th in Class 4A; Shelbyville, 54.46, 133rd overall, 35th in Class 4A; Shelbyville is a 16-point favorite.

LAST MEETING: Shelbyville defeated Connersville, 48-27, on Oct. 24, 2014, in a sectional semifinal round game in Connersville.

SERIES ALL-TIME: The two programs have played 59 times, with all but one game before the Golden Bears joined the Hoosier Heritage Conference. The series is tied 29-29-1.

CLASS 4A, SECTIONAL 23 PAIRINGS: Bedford North Lawrence (6-3) at Jennings County (2-7); Connersville (4-5) at Shelbyville (4-5); Martinsville (3-6) at Greenwood (2-7); and Silver Creek (3-6) at Charlestown (7-2).

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