Lawrence Co. runs past Eagles

Eagle senior Shaq Thompson makes a move on Lawrence County defender Andre Alejandre on a kickoff return. (T-G Photo by Gary Johnson) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

It was homecoming for the Eagles but the Wildcats proved to be unfriendly guests racking up 464 yards of total offense, all on the ground off 59 carries.

"I'll have to tip my hat to Lawrence County coach (David) Marston," Shelbyville coach Jason Hardy said. "He had a great game plan against us. He kind of went another direction from what they've done the past two games on offense and went away from what we do best defensively.

"I thought we adjusted to it but the execution just wasn't there. I think this was a good football game between two good football teams. We had the opportunity but just didn't get it done."

The Wildcats (5-2, 3-1 8-AAA) scored first off a 3-yard run by Blair Vincent at the 3:57 mark of the opening quarter but the visitors didn't convert the point after.

Shelbyville responded 31 seconds later when tight end Bobby Wilson hauled in a pass up the middle from quarterback Tre Stewart and took it 54 yards to the end zone. Angel Jarquin connected on the point after to give the Eagles a 7-6 lead.

Lawrence County added another touchdown after a nine-play drive capped off by a 24-yard TD run by Harry Douglas with 6:20 remaining in the half. The pass attempt on the two-point conversion failed leaving the score 12-7.

The Eagles ventured into Wildcat territory late in the second quarter but walked away with no points.

Shelbyville defenders Jovan Jackson (bottom), Darian Lanier (left) and Will Trice bring down Lawrence County's Trent Garland. (T-G Photo by Gary Johnson) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

"At halftime we talked about all the missed opportunities we had in the first half," Hardy said. "We had a number of people wide open on pass plays in the first half and if we convert more of those we're really in a good position at the half. We had a guy wide open at the start of the game for an easy touchdown and we just didn't execute it."

Lawrence County tacked on two more touchdowns in the third quarter, a 41-yard run by Logan Taylor and a 17-yard scamper by Douglas as the Wildcats increased the lead to 25-7.

"We knew at halftime that the team that played the best in the second half would win the game. They came out and really took it to us in the third quarter and that was a difference," Hardy said.

Shelbyville scored first in the fourth quarter on an 18-yard pass from Jackson to Stewart. Jarquin's kick cut the lead to 25-14 with 8:12 left.

The Eagle defense gave up a pair of long TD runs from that point, ending any hope of a homecoming comeback.

Pinned back on the Wildcat 4-yard line, Taylor broke loose for a 96-yard run. Douglas scored a few minutes later on a 49-yard run to increase the score to 28-14 with 2:57 left.

Shelbyville freshman running back Marquis Morton picks up a first down before being tackled by Lawrence County linebacker Caleb Smith. (T-G Photo by Gary Johnson) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

Shelbyville scored off a halfback pass from freshman Marquis Morton to Jackson, then Luke Faulk passed to Michaux Maxwell for the two-point conversion to make the score 28-22.

"That long touchdown run when we had them backed up was a backbreaker," Hardy said. "There's just no excuse for our defense to give up that long run. We had people there but nobody made a play."

Shelbyville finished with 294 yards of total offense, including 205 in the air.

Jackson led the way with five receptions for 101 yards.

Lawrence County dominated the time of possession, holding a 32:06 to 15:54 advantage.

The Eagles will have a well-deserved bye week then return to action on Oct. 16 in a huge district matchup at Tullahoma.

"Lawrence County is in the driver's seat for the second automatic berth into the state playoffs behind Columbia but if we can win our next three games and finish 7-3 that would be a great success and would put us in a pretty good position to get a wild card berth," Hardy said. "That's great, but the only thing that matters now is for us to heal both mentally and physically and get prepared for a tough game at Tullahoma in two weeks."