Football Recap: Corey Howard's Menacing Defense Leads Valdosta over Tift County + How To Watch

The home team had come away the winner the last four times Valdosta and Tift County had met, but sadly for the fans who attended this one that wasn't the case. The Wildcats walked away with a 48-35 victory over the Blue Devils on Friday. The win continues a trend for the Wildcats in their matchups with the Blue Devils: they've now won four in a row.

Tyrieke Wade

Passer Rating

10/24/25 @ Tift County	168.3
10/10/25 vs Richmond Hill	158.6
10/03/25 @ Colquitt County	85.4
09/26/25 @ Camden County	142.4
09/12/25 vs South Gwinnett	136.5
+ 3 more games

Tyrieke Wade was nothing short of spectacular: he threw for 265 yards and six TDs while completing 89.5% of his passes, and also punched in one rushing score. What's more, he racked up 168.3 passer rating, the most he's had since back in August. Jamarian Mingo did his part for the team as well, scoring a TD off of 123 receiving yards.

On the other side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Valdosta's defensive line and their 3.5 sacks. Corey Howard was especially locked on to Tift County's QB and sacked him twice. Howard also set a new season-high mark in total tackles with eight.

Despite the loss, Tift County still got an impressive performance from Kamari Holloman, who rushed for 150 yards and three touchdowns. The Blue Devils also got help from Dai'Jon Hayes, who showed off his sure hands for 97 receiving yards.

Valdosta's record now sits at 8-1. As for Tift County, they are on a five-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 3-6.

Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Valdosta will welcome Lowndes at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The Wildcats will need to watch out since the Vikings have now posted at least 31 points every time they've taken the field this season. As for Tift County, they will look to defend their home field on Friday against Camden County at 7:30 p.m. The Blue Devils will be up against the Wildcats' rather soft defense (which has allowed 31.22 points per game), so fans could be in store for a big offensive performance.