Troup running back Marcus Davis scores on a 51-yard touchdown run against Shelbyville on Thursday at Brook Hill. (Herb Nygren Jr. | Tyler Morning Telegraph)

BULLARD — Troup’s Seth Gibson has made a strong case against the need for two-a-days.  

Because of his summer baseball team’s trip to the Little League World Series, the Tigers running back missed most of this month’s preseason workouts. But his absence hasn’t affected his ability to star on the football field.

In the opener of Bullard Brook Hill’s Fall Football Classic, Gibson scored a 53-yard touchdown on his first carry of the season. That helped Troup race out to a big halftime lead en route to beating Shelbyville, 41-8, on Thursday night at Herrington Stadium.

Gibson finished the game with 86 yards on four carries, less than a week after the Rose Capital East Senior All-Stars played for the world title in Bangor, Maine. On top of that, his first week back in a Tigers uniform was cut short because of the Thursday game.

No matter.  

After watching teammate Marcus Davis dazzle the visiting crowd with 123 yards on nine carries in just over a quarter of action, Gibson got into the action with less than six minutes left in the second quarter.  

With Troup leading by three touchdowns and looking much better than last season’s winless team, Gibson took his first hand off at the Tigers’ 47-yard line and darted through the Dragons defense to make it 28-0.  

Gibson’s second carry also featured a race to the end zone, but his 28-yard score was called back because of a blocking penalty. His carries were limited to the second quarter, thanks to Troup putting the game away by halftime.  

Of course, Gibson wasn’t alone in the Tigers’ commanding performance.  

Davis, a sophomore speedster, rushed for 126 yards and 12 touchdowns to spearhead a ground game that finished with 230 yards. He put the Tigers ahead 14-0 on a 51-yard run with 6:04 to go in the first.    

Senior quarterback Brock Grigsby passed for 119 yards and a touchdown, while senior receiver and defensive back James Jiles caught three passes for 89 yards and deflected a fourth-down pass in Troup’s end zone to deny a Dragons score.  

Shelbyville 41, Troup 8
Fall Football Classic
At Herrington Field, Bullard Brook Hill

Troup          14   14  13    0  — 41

Shelbyville    0    0    0    8   —  8

First Quarter

TRO — Michael Davis 2 run (Gabriel Leon kick), 7:55

TRO — Marcus Davis 51 run (Leon kick), 6:04

Second Quarter

TRO — Michael Davis 1 run (Leon kick), 10:35

TRO — Seth Gibson 53 run (Leon kick), 5:16

Third Quarter

TRO — Kody Welch 12 pass from Brock Grigsby (kick blocked), 8:26

TRO — Anthony Adkins 13 fumble return (Leon kick), 6:22

Fourth Quarter

SHE — Blane Deal 20 pass from James Bradford (Deal pass from Bradford), 9:50

                            TRO      SHE

First Downs           16          12

Rushes-Yards        20-230    35-124

Comp.-Att.-Int.       8-10-0     11-24-2

Passing Yards        119         81

Penalties-Yards      2-30        3-20

Fumbles-Lost         2-2          1-1

Punts-Avg.            0-0          4-27.3

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Troup, Marcus Davis, 12-126; Seth Gibson, 4-86; Brock Grigsby, 2-15; Michael Davis, 2-3. Shelbyville, Dillon Brown, 20-91; James Bradford, 14-30; Jagerrick Moore, 1-3.   

PASSING — Troup, Grigsby, 8-10-0—119; Shelbyville, Bradford, 11-24-2—81.

RECEIVING — Troup, James Jiles, 3-89; Mi. Davis, 1-14; Jacob Beaty, 1-8; Kody Welch, 1-8; Quintin Green, 1-0. Shelbyville, Blane Deal, 8-74; Blane Consford, 1-5; Tyler West, 1-2; Brown, 1-0.