Football Recap: Clarke Central Triumphs + How To Watch

With a playoff win on the line, Clarke Central rose to the challenge on Friday. They won a game that couldn't have been any closer, slipping by the Effingham County Rebels 34-33. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Gladiators have posted since August 16th.

Nuhsi Valenti

Rushing Touchdowns

10/10/25 @ Loganville	3
11/14/25 @ Effingham County	2
10/24/25 @ Alcovy	2
09/26/25 @ Apalachee	2
10/30/25 vs Winder-Barrow	1
+ 2 more games

Clarke Central's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Nuhsi Valenti, who rushed for 114 yards and a pair of scores while picking up 7.1 yards per carry. Valenti also punched in two rushing touchdowns, which is notable because the Gladiators are undefeated when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns, but 2-5 otherwise. Clarke Central also got a significant boost from Kamron Lawrence, who ran away from the competition to the tune of 89 yards.

They were just one part of a punishing run game: Clarke Central was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 261 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 181 rushing yards in five consecutive matchups.

Despite the loss, Effingham County still got an impressive performance from Jmere Doe-Davis, who rushed for 209 yards and one TD while picking up 8.0 yards per carry. With that strong performance, Doe-Davis is now averaging an impressive 102.3 rushing yards per game. The team also got some help courtesy of Tucker Perkins, who threw for 192 yards and a pair of touchdowns while completing 71.4% of his passes.

Clarke Central's win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 6-5. The road victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 37.0 points over those games. As for Effingham County, with the loss, they broke their seven-game winning streak and moved their record to 9-3.

Looking ahead, Clarke Central will venture away from home to face off against Roswell at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The Gladiators will need to watch out since the Hornets have now posted at least 31 points in their last eight contests. Effingham County does not have any more games scheduled as of now.