Guess what? This weekend three Laurens County football teams are going for their 10^th victories.

Clinton High School (9-3) hosts Fairfield Central (9-3) in the third round of the Class 2A playoffs. Laurens Academy (9-2) plays King Academy (11-0) at Greenwood Christian for the SCISA eight-man title. Presbyterian College (9-2, 5-2 PFL) hosts Marist (5-4, 4-3) in the season finale at Bailey Memorial Stadium.

Last year the Red Devils won the state title. The Crusaders lost in the finals. The Blue Hose won their last four games to finish 6-6.

Laurens Academy has put two old jinxes to rest. The Crusaders not only beat Richard Winn for the first time in 16 years; they beat the Eagles twice. LA ended a five-game losing streak against Holly Hill Academy.

Next is W.W. King, which has beaten the Crusaders twice this season, naturally.

The Crusaders fell to King, 60-34, on Sept. 19, and, 44-22, on Oct. 31.

Caleb Hardy returned to the lineup after suffering a hamstring injury. He leads the Crusaders in rushing (1,366 yards), receiving (920) and tackles (135) and touchdowns (28).

Fairfield Central gave Clinton its toughest playoff test last year, falling, 32-21, at Wilder Stadium.

A season ago, the Griffins played the Red Devils in the Upstate finals, a step closer to the state title than this year.

The Red Devils and Griffins have met nine times, beginning in 1986 with a 40-0 victory. Fairfield Central’s only victory was a 12-3 win on Nov. 12, 1999. Clinton has won six in a row since.

Three times – 1987, 2009 and 2024 – Clinton has taken down Fairfield Central on the way to a state championship. Last week Clinton advanced past Saluda, 35-25, while Fairfield Central was dispensing with Andrew Jackson, 36-0, in Kershaw.

Clinton came from behind in the fourth quarter against Saluda, led by senior running back Javen Cook, who scored four touchdowns and rushed for 236 yards in 20 carries. In the 12 games to date, Cook, nicknamed “Zoom,” has rushed for 1,777 yards in 155 carries, scoring 35 touchdowns.

Derek Cammon led the Griffins by rushing for 93 yards at Andrew Jackson.

Clinton has scored at least 31 points in its last nine games. The Griffins have won eight games by at least 29 points this season.

The teams have three common opponents. Clinton defeated Union County, 60-0; Fairfield Central defeated the Yellow Jackets, 35-0. Newberry defeated the Red Devils, 41-12, and Fairfield Central, 45-34. Clinton defeated Chesnee, 50-29, in region play. The Griffins won by a score of 50-21 in the first round of the playoffs.

LA’s Ethan Collins, a junior quarterback, won this week’s Player of the Week award, presented by S.C. Farm Bureau Insurance, at the Laurens County Touchdown Club, which meets on Thursday at noon at The Ridge in Laurens.

Collins had 67 yards rushing on 11 carries with two touchdowns and a two-point conversion for the Crusaders.  Collins was successful on 7/12 passes for 126 yards.

“Ethan has led us from the QB position now as a three-year starter,” said his head coach, Jolly Doolittle. “He is everything you want in a quarterback. He is tough, smart, a relentless competitor and a 12-month hard worker. In short, he is a leader.”

Whiteford’s Giant Burger of Laurens is the meal provider, with the line opening at 11:45 a.m.

The meeting features the Clemson-South Carolina game with Rick Sanford representing the Gamecocks and longtime offensive-line coach Robbie Caldwell representing the Tigers.

Tickets are available at the door for $15.

Presbyterian College Director of Athletics Dee Nichols hired Robert “Bus” Baker as the head coach of the cross country programs. Baker was an All-Big South runner at Radford.

“Robert ‘Bus’ Baker knows our conference, knows our institution and knows what it takes to build a winner in the Big South,” Nichols said. “He understands the competitive landscape and is ready to guide our runners toward consistent championship-level performances. He brings great energy and a commitment to investing in our student-athletes’ growth, team culture, discipline and their ability to win.” 

Before coming to PC, Baker served as an assistant cross country and track and field coach at Ferrum College during the past cross-country season. He helped guide Ferrum’s men’s cross country program to its highest finish at the ODAC Championship meet in school history while coaching one All-American, three all-region runners, and nine conference top-five finishers. Every student-athlete on Ferrum’s roster this past season set a personal record.

Before joining the coaching staff at Ferrum, Baker was a volunteer assistant cross country and track and field coach at Florida Gulf Coast for one season

The Richmond, Va.,native graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology from FGCU in 2025. For one season, he was a member of the University of Louisville’s cross country and track and field teams during the 2021-22 season.

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