Now is not the time for Lawrence High football players to be dropping like flies.

Hampered by a two-game losing streak and another tough Sunflower League opponent, injuries and illnesses are hurting LHS this homecoming week.

In fact, one of the Lions’ best, senior Jeff Colter, won’t be available tonight when LHS and Shawnee Mission North collide at 7:30 p.m. at Haskell Stadium.

Colter, Lawrence’s top running back and a shutdown defender, has battled illness all week and hasn’t practiced. Even if he can make it out to Haskell, coach Dirk Wedd said Colter would watch from the sideline.

Colter, an All-Sunflower League cornerback, would be helpful tonight against Mack Brown, SM North’s potent passer. In two games, Brown has passed for 522 yards and seven touchdowns. He’s likely a future Division One quarterback, mulling offers from Colorado and Ball State.

“Mack Brown throws as good of a ball as I’ve seen at the high-school level in four or five years,” Wedd said. “We’ll have our hands full.”

In addition to Colter, running back Ian Handshy won’t start after missing Monday’s practice because of illness. Senior lineman Aaron Kie suffered a broken thumb this week, and junior linebacker/tight end Scott Penny still is recovering from a broken hand he suffered last week. Kie and Penny are expected to play, and Handshy will play most of the game.

Lawrence (0-2) is young enough as it is, but even more sophomores and juniors will have to play tonight.

“We’ve had a good week of practice,” Wedd said. “We have some serious sickness and injury, but whoever plays on Friday, I expect them to do a good job.”

SM North (1-1) beat Free State 35-13 in its season opener but fell to Olathe South 45-21 last week. The loss may have been surprising — Olathe South was just 2-7 last year — but Wedd thinks it will make the Indians all the more hungrier. Lawrence, he said, needed to answer.

“If you can’t get excited about playing homecoming against Shawnee Mission North,” Wedd said, “you’re not very motivated. I think we’ll be ready to go.”