The Haralson County High School football team is hurting going into Friday's home meeting with Rockmart at 7:30 p.m. — and it's not just because of last week's loss.

The Rebels (3-3, 1-2 Region 4-AAA) not only dropped a 28-20 contest against B.E.S.T. Academy in Atlanta, they also lost senior tight end/defensive end Seth Neeley for the season to a broken left leg.

"You plan for injuries, you hope you don't get them, but you plan for them by moving people around and have a plan for each one. That's what we've been doing each week. With Seth, it was great having him, but he only played one full game this year," Lane said.

At 6-foot-6, 217 pounds, Neeley is a presence on the field, but the Rebels have had to play without him through most of the season already. The senior injured his knee in the season opener, missed three games and played his only full game two weeks ago against Douglass.

The injury to Neeley, along with others, will put more emphasis on the play of Bryce Wrenn, Lane Fortune and Nii-Okai Reindorf, who have served as leaders on and off the field all fall.

"On Friday night, Bryce had to play in the secondary and Lane played on both sides and, of course, Nii-Okai is so important in our offense and special teams. That's where we're a little thin. We're trying to develop some younger kids in those spots, but we're playing freshmen. I had a freshman go the whole game last week," Lane said.

But with a capable Rockmart (2-3, 1-1) coming to Taylor Memorial Stadium, the Rebels don't have much time to feel sorry about themselves. The Yellow Jackets avoided a three-game losing streak with a 26-12 win against Jackson, Atlanta last week.

It was senior Kwame Peek leading the way for Rockmart in the win, rushing for 93 yards on six carries, 95 yards on six passes and three total touchdowns.

"Rockmart is big and athletic. They have all the tools. I've seen everybody on film or in person and Rockmart is by far the better looking of the teams. They look like some of the teams we were playing [in Region 6-AAA] last year. They've got athletes and linemen, they've got it all. If they come out and put it together, they can be a very, very good team," Lane said.

The focus will be beating the Yellow Jackets, but it will also be on improving after a poor showing last week.

"It's extremely important. We just didn't play a good game at all. I'm not taking anything away from anybody, but when you have 17 penalties and missed tackles, it's hard to win any ball games. It's disappointing the way we played because I know we're capable of playing better," Lane said.