Columbia and his staff could be without standout running back Ryan Williams, who suffered an ankle sprain in the second quarter last week. Williams, one of the leading rushers in the state, was scheduled to return to practice on Wednesday. Columbia said no final determination has been made on Williams' availability.
"We'll just have to wait and see," Columbia said. "It will probably be a game-time decision."
If Williams can't go, Columbia will form a backfield by committee, consisting of Darius Skinner, Ethan Curry and Bryson Morton.
Aside from not knowing who will start in the backfield, Clark is looking for a way to end its two-game losing streak. Columbia hopes his team can regain the swagger it had in the first four games. Clark won its first three games on the road and went 1-1 in a recent homestand.
"Home or away, we need to be mentally prepared to play," the Clark coach said.
In order to get back on track, Columbia said the team needs to "win the turnover battle." Last week, the Cards committed five turnovers against the Blue Devils and gave up a touchdown on special teams, which shifted the momentum in favor of Henry Clay in the second half.
"We need to keep our turnovers at a minimum," he said.
As for the Rockets, Columbia compared Todd Shipley's team to Harrison County. Like the Thorobreds, Shelby County employs the spread offense.
"They will throw the ball a lot," the Clark coach said. "They have a good passing attack and they will run out of the shotgun most of the time."
To counter the spread, Columbia said his defense needs to win the battle in the trenches.
"The key is to get pressure on the quarterback, get him out of a rhythm and make him throw the ball before he wants to," he said.
In addition, Columbia said Shelby County isn't a typical winless team.
"They are quick and aggressive," he said. "Even though they are 0-5, they play hard."
