Football Recap: Clayton Skates Past New Hanover with Ease

Comets

Margin (Wins)

09/12/25 @ West Johnston	53
09/19/25 vs Fuquay - Varina	46
08/22/25 vs Wilson Prep	40
09/25/25 @ Smithfield-Selma	36
10/10/25 vs South Garner	35

With a playoff win on the line, Clayton rose to the challenge on Friday. They really took it to the New Hanover Wildcats for the full four quarters, racking up a 29-0 win. Considering the Comets have won seven games by more than 28 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.

Aiden Smalls continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 131 yards and two scores on only 13 carries, while also throwing for 96 yards and one touchdown. That's the most rushing yards he has posted since back in August. Noah Smith was another key player, rushing for 130 yards and one TD while picking up 7.6 yards per carry.

They were just one part of a punishing run game: Clayton was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 313 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.

Clayton didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. In fact, those interceptions all came courtesy of defensive juggernaut Charles Smith. The game marked his first with multiple interceptions this season.

Despite the loss, New Hanover had strong showings from Javonie Webb, who rushed for 102 yards on only 11 carries, and Tony Clark-Nelson, who rushed for 46 yards.

Clayton has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 9-2 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 9.1 points on average over those games. As for New Hanover, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-6.

Looking ahead, Clayton will face off against D.H. Conley at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams might be coming in a bit winded given these two teams combined for 919 yards in their previous games. New Hanover does not have any more games scheduled as of now.