Donald Thomas shouted instructions to Eastern’s defense during Tuesday’s football practice at O’Brien Stadium.

But he wasn’t doing it from his normal middle linebacker position.

He did it standing 30 yards behind the Panthers defense, not in his normal practice attire.

He wore a gray T-shirt with blue shorts and a black medical boot that ran halfway up his right leg.

The senior, who was named to the mid-season Buck Buchanan watch list Tuesday – the award given to the top defensive player in the Football Championship Subdivision -suffered a foot sprain in last Saturday’s game at Murray State.

Thomas said he’s hopeful he’ll play this Saturday against Tennessee-Martin, but it’s unclear now.

Injuries have devastated Eastern’s roster this season. At least 18 Panthers have either missed games or played with injuries.

Add starting center Drew Cairo-Gross (dislocated shoulder) and kicker Zach Yates (illness) to this week’s medical report.

The number of injuries is mind-boggling, and Eastern defensive coordinator Roc Bellantoni said Monday he’s become numb to the injuries.

The Panthers are fighting for their playoff lives. And they’re having to do it with players proving themselves in games because there’s no other alternative.

This is not an ideal situation for any team, let alone a team with national championship aspirations.

If a team gets a decent pass rush on Bodie Reeder, Eastern’s quarterback will have a hard time avoiding it with his sprained left ankle.

Running back Ademola Adeniji, the backup at the start of the season, has had the two best games of his Eastern career the last two weekends.

But if he goes down, there goes Eastern’s rushing game. Ron Jordan appears to be full speed again after being slowed with a right ankle injury, and appears fine in practice, but the speed of practice is completely different than games.

Travorus Bess is still dealing with a lingering hamstring injury, and Norris Smith’s knee injury isn’t recovering fast enough.

The offensive line already had to deal with the loss of its best offensive lineman when right tackle and three-year starter Anthony Rubican went down with a left knee injury Sept. 29 at Southeast Missouri.

Kevin Mahoney and Mike Scheibel have filled in admirably for Rubican, but can’t fully replace Rubican’s veteran experience.

Now, Cairo-Gross is questionable for Saturday because his left shoulder keeps popping in and out of socket.

Either Chris Vaccarro or Ryan Spears, two linemen who have had to deal with their own injuries this year, will replace Cairo-Gross if he can’t go.

“You’ve got to live with (injuries),” Eastern head coach Bob Spoo said. “You don’t like to see it happen, but it happens, and you’ve just got to keep moving on and hope that there’s not going to be a big drop-off with the next guy.”

So far, there hasn’t been a drop-off.

Guys like Alain Marcelin filled in for Thomas in the second half last week, and Jason Fisher and Quinten Ponius, two unproven players before the season, have made up the loss of Adam Kesler. Kesler, slated as the starter at the inside slot receiver, tore his ACL in early August.

If these players don’t keep on contributing and can’t make up for the void of the injured starters, the Panthers biggest injury will happen in late November.

A missed playoff berth would hurt the most.