New Palestine High School

The Class 4A No. 1 New Palestine football team’s challenge this week was twofold. One was to prepare for a Shelbyville squad that’s developing as a program. The other was internal - continue to show sharpness and focus with the Dragons a heavy favorite entering the game. The Dragons passed both tests, blanking the Golden Bears 56-0 while also playing a crisp game. “It was nice to come out and play well. The challenge this week was a little bit different. It was us against us this week,” NP coach Kyle Ralph said. “Shelbyville is obviously getting better - they have a win in the conference and they’re showing improvement. But weeks like this, you’ve got to really challenge yourself and stay focused. They did a great job in practice this week and did that. I’m really pleased with that.” The Dragons are now 7-0 (5-0 HHC). Shelbyville moves to 1-6 (1-4). The Dragons gained 479 yards of total offense on 41 plays, with senior quarterback Danny Tippit again posting a big day in the passing game, completing 14-of-17 passes for 239 yards and four touchdowns. It marked his fourth consecutive 200-yard passing game. He has thrown for 16 TDs over that four-game stretch. Junior running back Grayson Thomas ran for 147 yards and three scores, becoming the first back in New Palestine history to post three consecutive 1,000-yard rushing seasons. He now has 1,033 yards for the season and 3,422 for his career. His performance Friday moved Thomas past Eric Roudebush and Alex Neligh into third place on NP’s career rushing list. Thomas, like his teammates, had a solid night executing the offense. The Dragons’ varsity unit scored on all eight of its possessions, with only two of the drives needing more than four plays. The Dragons hit Shelbyville with a quick blitz, scoring 21 points in 57 seconds in the first quarter. They went 65 yards in seven plays on their first drive, keyed by Thomas’ 23-yard run. That set up Thomas’ 25-yard TD with 7:14 left in the first quarter. Kicker Brendan Tanksley then recovered an on-side kick at midfield. TIppit hit Isaiah Thacker for a 41-yard pass on the first play, setting up a 9-yard TD to Blaine Nunnally. The first play after a Shelbyville fumble, Tippit and Nunnally hooked up again from 19 yards out, 15 seconds after their first strike. The three scores gave the Dragons a 21-0 lead. They added on, needing three plays to go 32 yards after a botched punt by Shelbyville. A 16-yard pass to Kyler Kropp set up a 4-yard TD by Thomas to make it 28-0. Two short fields set up by the Dragons’ punt return team set up three-play drives - one ending in a 24-yard pass to Kropp, the other a 4-yard pass to Ty Mitchell. Eian Roudebush capped off an 82-yard drive late in the half with a 5-yard run. It was set up by a 52-yard pass to freshman Cameron Rollyson. The Dragons added another score in the third quarter on a 27-yard run by Thomas on first-and-26. The Dragons’ defense held Shelbyville to 91 total yards. The Golden Bears were led by Axel Conover, who had 32 yards on 13 carries. Shelbyville crossed midfield only once, with its varsity defense recovering a fumble by the Dragons’ reserve offense in the fourth quarter. But the Dragons returned the favor, forcing a turnover and keeping the shutout, marking the Dragons’ second shutout of the season. It’s the fourth consecutive year they have blanked Shelbyville and 10th consecutive victory over the Golden Bears. The Dragons now prepare for New Castle and the final road game of the regular season. NOTES: In addition to Thomas moving into third place on the NPHS career rushing list, he also moved into fourth place on the career rushing touchdowns list with 49. He is three shy of Jeff Miles, who has 52 TDs and is in third place. ... Isaiah Thacker's 65 receiving yards gave him 1,185 for his New Palestine career, moving him into sixth place on the NPHS career receiving list. ... Tippit now has 1,496 passing yards this season, 12th-most in school history in a season. He is within 100 yards of moving into seventh place. ... The Dragons' shutout was their fourth consecutive against Shelbyville. It was their second this season and the 24th in 10 seasons under coach Kyle Ralph. ... Ralph celebrated his birthday with the victory. ... The Dragons have now forced a running clock in six consecutive games. ... The Dragons can clinch a piece of the HHC title with a victory over New Castle next week. ... The 28 first-quarter points and 49 first-half points were both season highs. ... The Dragons have not allowed a point in the first quarter this season. ... The Dragons' 476 yards of total offense were a season-high. The 91 yards allowed were a season-low. It was the first time since Oct. 29, 2021, when the Dragons allowed 79 yards in a win over Franklin, the Dragons have held a team below 100 total yards. It was also the first time since Sept. 27, 2019 against Greenfield-Central they've allowed zero passing yards. Week 7: New Palestine 56, Shelbyville 0 Friday, Sept. 30, 2022 at McKeand Stadium, Shelbyville New Palestine (7-0, 5-0) 28-21- 7- 0 -- 56 Shelbyville (1-6, 1-4) 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 0 Scoring summary NP: Thomas 15 run (Tanksley kick), 7:12 NP: Bl. Nunnally 9 pass from Tippit (Tanksley kick), 6:32 NP: Bl. Nunnally 19 pass from Tippit (Tanksley kick), 6:17 NP: Thomas 4 run (Tanksley kick), 1:49 NP: Kropp 24 pass from Tippit (Tanksley kick), 9:27 NP: Mitchell 4 pass from Tippit (Wells kick), 6:18 NP: Roudebush 5 run (Wells kick), 2:04 NP – Thomas 27 run (Wells kick), 4:20 Team stats First downs: NP 20, S 5 Rushes-yards: NP 25-188, S 34-97 Passing C-A-I: NP 15-18-0, S 0-4-0 Passing yards: NP 283, S 0 Total plays-yards: NP 43-471, S 38-91 Fumbles-lost: NP 2-1, S 7-3 Penalties-yards: NP 3-31, S 3-25 Punts-avg: NP 0-0, S 4-36.5 Time of possession: NP 22:19, S 25:41 Individual stats New Palestine Rushing: Thomas 14-138, Tippit 2-27, Roudebush 1-5, Neal 5-20, Doss 2-1, D.Thacker 1-(-3) Passing: Tippit 14-17-0-239, Neal 1-1-0-44 Receiving: Kropp 5-70, I.Thacker 4-66, Bl.Nunnally 2-28, Rollyson 1-51, Clark 1-44, Thomas 1-20, Mitchell 1-4 Shelbyville Rushing: Conover 13-38, Lux 5-26, Turner 2-26, Jackson 5-19, Macharia 3-0, Martin 2-(-1), Parker 4-(-11) Passing: Parker 0-4-0-0 Receiving: none