RICHMOND — With back-to-back road games against traditional powerhouse programs up next on the schedule, the Indians certainly didn’t need the added distraction of dealing with serious injury problems.

But, that’s the situation they’ve found themselves in as they prepare for showdowns with Scott County and Lexington Catholic.

“We are hurting,” Madison Central coach Bert Browne said.

During last week’s 19-13 double-overtime win over Mercer County at home, the Indians (2-0) lost two offensive linemen to injuries — seniors Christian Carter (arm) and Tyler McKinley (knee). Chris Walters, another senior offensive lineman, suffered a foot injury prior to the season opener.

Central will have to put a new-look and somewhat inexperienced offensive line on the field against Scott County tonight in Georgetown.

Game time is set for 7:30 p.m.

“The bottom line is you’ve got to go over there and get after them and see what happens,” Browne said.

Carter and Walters appear to be out for an extended period of time. The extent of McKinley’s injury is not yet know.

Junior Tyler Rice and sophomore Joey Sparks stepped in on the line last week and helped the Indians hang on for an exciting victory in front of a big crowd at the school’s new athletic complex.

Central racked up almost 400 yards of total offense, but needed overtime to top Mercer County. Senior wide receiver Ken-Jah Bosley had two touchdowns, including the game-winner, and finished with 228 yards on nine catches.

The Indians were just 3-of-12 on third downs and converted on only 2-of-7 red zone chances.

“We left a lot of points on the field,” Browne said. “We dropped a halfback pass that would have been a 70-yard touchdown. Hunter (Stocker) threw an interception when we had a couple of guys open. Then we threw passes off the fingertips of two guys that would have been touchdowns. So, we left 28 or 35 points on the field. That game shouldn’t have been that close.”

Still, it was a win.

And that victory allowed the Indians to open the season 2-0 for the first time since 2008.

“It’s big for us, but I think we can do a whole lot better than we did tonight,” senior defensive lineman Brandon Parks said after the game. “I feel like we can win these next two games if we put our hearts into it.”

That won’t be easy.

The Indians haven’t beaten Scott County since 1999. The Cardinals extended their winning streak against Central to six games with a 35-6 win last year in Richmond.

Scott County took a 21-0 lead in the first quarter and finished with 295 yards rushing.

“Last year, we left points on the field, just like we did (against Mercer),” Browne said of last year’s game.

In that loss, Central was 1-of-11 on third downs, 1-of-6 on fourth downs and 1-of-3 on red zone chances.

Scott County went 14-1 last season with the only loss coming in the Class 6A State Title game.

The Cardinals return many key pieces from that team, including Dierrius Dumphord (123 yards last year against Central), Kevo Edwards, Hunter Nelson, Kevin Clausen and Darrell Gray.

Dumphord had 101 yards rushing last week and two touchdowns in a 61-6 win at home over Harrison County. Edwards had 142 yards rushing and added four touchdowns.

“They’ve got some weapons,” Browne said.

Scott County opened the season with a 46-14 win over Seneca before falling to Highlands, 60-37.

The Cardinals have advanced to at least the fourth round of the Class 6A Playoffs for the past three seasons.

“We’ve got to go over there and play against a program that is established and has been good for many years,” Browne said. “They’ve got a good football coach who works hard. They’ve developed their program. We’ve got to go over there and play a great football game.”

With a banged-up offensive line, the Central coaching staff knows it might have to open up the playbook and take a much difference approach against Scott County.

Still, they plan on getting the ball to Bosley.

The senior has 13 receptions on the season for 293 yards and four receiving touchdowns.

If the Cardinals play a straight man-to-man defense in the secondary, that is a matchup the Indians believe they can turn into big offensive gains.

“If they do that, then we’ve got to take advantage of what Ken-Jah can do,” Browne said. “We’ve got some things we are going to do them with Dominique Hawkins and some other guys.”