Two dominant backs in Antwan Raymond and Jamarice Wilder are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Clearwater Academy International Knights will head out on the road to face off against the Venice Indians at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Clearwater Academy International sitting on five straight victories and Venice on seven.
Last Friday, Clearwater Academy International took their match at home with ease, bagging a 43-6 win over University Christian. Given Clearwater Academy International's advantage in MaxPreps' Florida football rankings (they are ranked 28th, while University Christian is ranked 136th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Raymond, who rushed for 53 yards and three touchdowns. Christoper Cresser got in on the action as well, converting a pick into a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Venice can now show off six landslide victories after their most recent match on Friday. They didn't even let IMG Academy White onto the board and left with a 43-0 victory. Venice pushed the score to 36-0 by the end of the third, a deficit IMG Academy White had no chance of recovering from.
Venice can attribute much of their success to Jadyn Glasser, who threw for 176 yards and three touchdowns, and Alvin Johnson iii, who rushed for 140 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 carries.
The team's defense also helped out by holding IMG Academy White to a paltry 200 yards. A big part of that defensive dominance came down to Venice's ability to keep the quarterback under pressure: the team laid him out four times before it was all said and done. Leading the way was Eli Seed and his two sacks.
Clearwater Academy International now has a winning record of 5-4. As for Venice, their victory was their sixth straight at home, bumping their overall record up to 7-2.
We should be in store for an exciting game Friday as both teams have no problem gaining yardage. Clearwater Academy International has been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 399.8 total yards per game. However, it's not like Venice struggles in that department as they've been averaging 393.6 per game. With a pair of commanding offenses duking it out, the defenses are going to have their work cut out for them.
Clearwater Academy International didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Venice in their previous matchup back in November of 2022, but they still walked away with a 26-20 victory. Does Clearwater Academy International have another victory up their sleeve, or will Venice turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
