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Mustangs in 'paradise'
South Effingham slams brakes on three-game losing streak against Rebels
Noah Hoang
Tight end Trevor Pfiester (in rear) signals a touchdown as wide receiver Noah Hoang (13) races into the end zone after connecting on a long pass from South Effingham quarterback Taylor Jackson on Friday at The Corral. - photo by Mark Lastinger/staff
Trice Williams
Effingham Herald
Updated: Sep 15, 2019, 8:58 PM
Published: Sep 15, 2019, 8:05 PM

GUYTON — South Effingham’s surging football team jolted the scoreboard and their biggest rival Friday night.

The Mustangs continued to chip away at the losing stigma that has surrounded them in recent years by dominating the Effingham County Rebels 41-27 at The Corral. Their seniors ended a three-game skid against the Rebels as the team improved to 3-0 for the first time since 2015.

“It’s another day in paradise,” senior South Effingham quarterback Taylor Jackson. “It feels great. To come out here and do what we’ve done with the energy we have — it’s amazing.”

Jackson hit Zach Taylor with a 15-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter. Effingham County countered with a field goal and from there a defensive battle ensued. 

The Mustangs’ Rocko Griffin ended the scoring drought toward the end of the second quarter with a 3-yard run to paydirt. He finished with three touchdowns and rushed for 110 yards.

Griffin’s final score covered 39 yards and came during the Mustangs’ 21-point fourth-quarter outburst. Adam Napier and Noah Hoang also scored during the spurt.

 “Rocko is a phenomenal player and he does some great things,” first-year head Mustangs head coach Nathan Clark. “He’s getting better every day. He’s working with running backs coach (Jason) Napier and offensive line coach (Michael) Pfiester to try to make sure they are hitting those holes and following the right blocks.”

Superb offensive line play has given the Mustangs, who led 14-3 at halftime, more than a fighting chance.

“I am so proud of the offensive line for opening up those holes,” Clark said.

Clark was also pleased with what the win did for the entire South Effingham community.

“It feels great,” he said. “I am so happy for the players and the fans. That is who I am happy for. They’ve worked so hard, especially the seniors. 

“We were just fortunate tonight. We are giving up too many big returns but other than our kickoff team we are doing good on special teams. 

“I am so happy for these people here in this community. This is special. It is not like this everywhere. This is a special thing that’s going on. I told the team you better enjoy it because a lot of people don’t.”

It was estimated that nearly 5,000 people were in attendance and Jackson admitted that the big crowd added to his motivation to put on a show.

“It always feels great to have so many people here,” Jackson said. “You want to give the fans what they came to watch. And then you want to have a little bit of bragging rights.”

Rebels head coach Buddy Holder, who team fell to 1-2, said it is important that his players don’t allow themselves to be dragged down by their defeat.

“They all fought hard,” he said. “I am proud of them. We are a young team. You don’t define yourself and your season by one game.

“It should hurt a little bit because it is an important game but we have things we have to fix to be the very best team we can be.”

Randy Scott was the Rebels’s best offensive weapon against the Mustangs. He returned a kickoff for a touchdown and added a 19-yard scoring reception on a pass thrown by Zach Garcia.

Next week the Mustangs will face their first road against West Laurens in Dexter. The Raiders dropped South Effingham 37-0 last year but Jackson is confident heading into the contest as his offense is averaging 44 points per game.

“West Laurens is a great team,” Jackson said. “They are 3-0 just like us. Putting up a lot of points against them is the goal. 

“We want to win the first play, win the first quarter and then win that game. Take it play by play.”

Jackson has done a good job of making the offense go, Clark said.

“He’s a playmaker and he makes some unbelievable plays,” the coach explained. “He is locked in and he is cutting down his mistakes every week. He’s become a leader. I am so proud his leadership.”

Effingham County will host Statesboro on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
Effingham County Falls 34-33 to Clarke Central in Playoffs
Effingham County football
Jmere Doe-Davis rushed 194 yards on 26 carries, but Effingham County fell 34-33 to Clarke Central, marking the Rebels’ fifth straight first-round playoff loss. (Mark Lastinger / Effingham Herald)
Donald Heath
Updated: Nov 15, 2025, 4:54 AM
Published: Nov 15, 2025, 4:35 AM

SPRINGFIELD, Ga. — Effingham County watched a 16-point second-half lead disintegrate in a heartbreaking 34-33 loss to Clarke Central in the first round of the Class 5A state tournament Friday night at The Griff.

The Gladiators’ Tristan Thomas hauled in a 55-yard touchdown pass with 3:04 remaining, and quarterback Kamron Lawrence followed with a two-point conversion run to end the Rebels’ season.

It marked the fifth straight first-round playoff exit for ECHS in the last five seasons.

But this one hurt more than most.

“It’s terrible. You don’t get this time in your life back,” senior linebacker Duff Davis said. “I didn’t know tonight would be the last time taking off the pads, but you have to cherish it and enjoy every moment you get a chance to play.”

The Rebels (8-3), the No. 2 seed from Region 1, had every reason to believe another game awaited them. Even after Clarke Central rallied to tie the game in the fourth quarter, ECHS surged back in front, 33-26, on Jmere Doe-Davis’ 9-yard touchdown run with 3:41 left.

Doe-Davis finished with 194 yards on 26 carries. He handled the ball 11 times on the Rebels’ 12-play, 89-yard go-ahead drive.

But 37 seconds later, ECHS was behind for good.

“It’s a team loss. We played our hearts out. We just didn’t get the outcome we wanted,” Doe-Davis said. “We just didn’t execute at the same level we did at the beginning of the game. We came out flat in the second half.”

Effingham County football
Effingham County’s Duff Davis (27) and Marshawn Monroe (95) chase Clarke Central quarterback Kamron Lawrence during the Rebels’ 34-33 first-round playoff loss Friday. “It’s terrible. You don’t get this time in your life back,” Davis said after the game. (Mark Lastinger / Effingham Herald)

Rebels dominate late first half

After taking a 7-3 lead early in the second quarter, the game quickly slipped away from the Gladiators. Doe-Davis and the Rebels pounded Clarke Central’s three-man front for 78 rushing yards on the next possession — all but one yard from Doe-Davis — setting up Jackson Wilhoite’s second field goal, a 29-yarder, to cut the deficit to 7-6.

ECHS appeared to force a punt from the Gladiators’ 23 with less than three minutes left in the half. Central showed a fake but called timeout.

The Gladiators returned with the same fake — and this time were stopped. Collin McIntosh was dropped for a three-yard loss, giving the Rebels the ball at the 20.

Two plays later, quarterback Tucker Perkins found Noah Reese for a 14-yard touchdown, and Wilhoite’s PAT pushed ECHS ahead 13-7.

Things only worsened for Clarke Central. Lawrence fumbled on the next possession, and linebacker John Baker recovered at the Central 29.

Six plays later, Jernard Albright scored on a 2-yard run out of the wildcat with eight seconds left in the half, giving the Rebels a 19-7 lead.

Effingham County football
Jernard Albright (7) scores on a 2-yard run out of the wildcat formation, capping a key drive that showcased Effingham County’s balanced rushing attack against Clarke Central. (Mark Lastinger / Effingham Herald)

Clarke Central mounts a furious comeback

Clarke Central opened the second-half scoring with a field goal, but ECHS responded with Perkins’ 19-yard touchdown pass to Malik Letman to build a 26-10 advantage.

Perkins completed 20 of 28 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns.

But the Gladiators kept swinging. Two touchdown runs by Nuhsi Valenti and a pair of two-point conversions pulled Clarke Central even. The second conversion came on a halfback reverse and throwback to Lawrence to tie the game at 26.

“They made adjustments. We were ready for it, but we didn’t execute like we should have,” Davis said.

Effingham County football
Noah Reese dives into the end zone for a touchdown, finishing off a 14-yard connection from quarterback Tucker Perkins. (Mark Lastinger / Effingham Herald)