Maybe the growth to football competitiveness in the Hoosier Heritage Conference was not so far off for the 2023 Golden Bears.
An 18-point underdog against Delta Friday, Shelbyville scored a touchdown on the first half’s final play to tie the game at 7-all at the break. First-year head coach Scott Fitzgerald had a simple lockerroom message for his team.
“Do you believe now? Do you believe you can play with anybody?” said Fitzgerald. “And they were definitely up for it. They understood at that point they can play and they can get it done. They need to continue to work at it each and every day and understand it happens in practice.”
Shelbyville suffered its first loss of the season, 21-14 to Delta, ranked in the top 20 in the Class 3A Associated Press poll. By comparison, Shelbyville was 0-4 in its last four games against the Eagles and was outscored 279-27.
“I saw us play with a lot of heart,” said Fitzgerald. “When you look at the film, overall they are probably more talented than we are. But our kids showed a lot of fight. We did a lot of really good things. If we don’t give up two scramble touchdowns and we get a call that I felt like we should have gotten here or there, it really could have been a completely different ball game.”
While Shelbyville quarterback Eli Chappelow is having an All-Conference type of season so far, the Golden Bears’ rushing attack is laboring. The Golden Bears managed a season-low 55 yards rushing against Delta.
“We have to get more physical,” said Fitzgerald. “We are getting after them every day in practice. (Tuesday) was a big run day. We did a lot of our run game to make sure we know where we are going, make sure we are covering up the right guy. Then it just comes down to we have to be physical and stay on. Sometimes we are making a good initial hit but then we are falling off.”
Fitzgerald is not yet ready to make a personnel change. He continues to trust seniors Jacob Harker and Connor Duncan, junior Michael Creech, sophomore Jack West and freshman Anthony Stafford to get the job done.
Chappelow threw his first interception of the season against Delta but that in no way overshadows his 54% completion rate, 816 passing yards and 11 touchdowns this season.
Seniors Axel Conover (16 receptions, 223 yards, 2 TDs) and Luke Brinkman (15 receptions, 364 yards, 4 TDs) continue to be Chappelow’s top targets with Donavon Martin and Grantland Fitzgerald each with seven catches as well.
For New Castle to have success, senior quarterback Tyson Lewis must be productive. In three games this season, he has thrown for 435 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for a team-high 142 yards.
“He does a good job getting out of some trouble at times,” said Fitzgerald. “He scrambles quite a bit. He will work down field and make some throws but he will also run the ball.”
In New Castle’s lone win this season, 26-21 over Franklin County, Lewis passed for 142 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 126 yards and another touchdown.
Lewis’ top target is sophomore Tylin Thrine (11 catches, 129 yards), who won the IHSAA wrestling state championship at 126 pounds as a freshman.
“They have a couple of other guys that are quick guys and they will get it to them in open spaces and they can make you pay,” said Fitzgerald. “We have to pay attention. The one big thing we didn’t do last week that we have to do this week, when (the quarterback) does scramble we have to stay on our guys down the field, because he can throw the ball down there.”
Shelbyville’s defense will be without starting defensive end Keagan Turner, who injured a knee in the win over Rushville and has a torn anterior cruciate ligament that will force him to miss the remainder of the season.
Starting middle linebacker Brayden Schultz is dealing with a hip injury but no major damage was found after the loss to Delta.
“The doctor said it will be what pain he can deal with,” said Fitzgerald. “Right now, we are trying to take it easy with him and see how he feels the next couple of days.”
If Schultz cannot go, Luke Jackson is the next man up in the defensive scheme.
“That allows us to keep our front and our secondary intact,” said Fitzgerald. “And he can use his speed because New Castle is not a power run team where (Jackson) will have to come fill the hole each time. He can play in the coverage and do some things he has already been doing.”
Through three games, Schultz leads Shelbyville with 33 total tackles, including a team-high five tackles for loss.
Conover (25 tackles, 3 interceptions) and Julian Eads (23 total tackles) follow Schultz on the defensive statistic sheet.
Steve Bush photos.
QUICK FACTS
Shelbyville at New Castle
Game Time: 7 p.m. at Huffman Field at New Castle High School, 801 Parkview Drive in New Castle.
Broadcast time: 6 p.m. pregame show from Huffman Field on GIANT fm (96.5 fm, 106.3 fm, 1520 am, and the GIANT fm app) with Johnny McCrory and Jeff Brown.
2023 record: Shelbyville 2-1, 0-1 HHC; New Castle 1-2, 0-1 HHC.
Head coaches: Scott Fitzgerald, 2-1 in first year at Shelbyville; Kyle York, 26-41 in 7th year at New Castle.
Sagarin ratings: Shelbyville, 52.74, No. 37 in Class 4A. New Castle, 48.95, 40th in Class 4A. Shelbyville is a 2-point favorite.
Last meeting: Shelbyville won 22-20 to secure its only win of the season. Link to the Shelby County Post's game story can be found here: https://shelbycountypost.com/sports/651968
Series: The two programs have played eight times since New Castle joined the Hoosier Heritage Conference. Shelbyville won the first three meetings (2014-2017) while New Castle won the next four between 2017 and 2020. The 2021 game was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Around the HHC Friday: Class 4A, No. 7 Greenfield-Central (3-0, 1-0 HHC) at Pendleton Heights (3-0, 1-0); Mt. Vernon (1-2, 0-1) at Class 4A, No. 6 New Palestine (1-2, 1-0); Yorktown (2-1, 0-1) at Delta (3-0, 1-0).
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