Valley quarterback Mason Morrow didn’t take over the starting position last year until heralded transfer Jake Rubley was declared ineligible by the Iowa High School Athletic Association.
Rubley’s departure may have been a blessing in disguise for the Tigers.
Morrow, who has developed into a solid quarterback, passed for three touchdowns and ran for two more to lead the sixth-ranked Tigers to a 35-21 victory over visiting Ankeny Centennial in the opening round of the Class 5A playoffs on Friday.
“Valley is a very nice team offensively,” said Centennial co-head coach Ryan Pezzetti. “They probably have as much talent as anybody around here. They have a nice quarterback, a nice running back and some nice receivers, and they are well-coached.”
Valley (8-2) will host No. 8 Pleasant Valley (8-2) in Friday’s quarterfinals. The Jaguars finished the season with a 4-6 record.
“It’s hard to believe that was my last game,” said Centennial senior Trey Porter. “But I’m on to the next thing–Northern Illinois. I’m going to do everything I can to get that starting job and to be the best player I can be. I just want to thank all my teammates for making me better each game and practice. And also thank all the people I played (against) for making me better each game.”
Porter gave Centennial an early 7-0 lead when he scored on a 7-yard run up the middle 5 minutes into the game. The touchdown was set up by a long punt return from Carter Cahill.
“That felt really good,” Porter said. “We just had some trouble on offense later in the game, but it was just a great game to finish out with my boys. I enjoyed every moment of it.”
Valley responded with a 16-play, 80-yard drive that took nearly 9 minutes off the clock. Morrow capped the drive with a 1-yard sneak.
Dion Hutch, who rushed for 143 yards on 26 carries, ran 6 yards on fourth-and-2 to keep the drive alive. He later dashed 16 yards to the Centennial 8 on third-and-8.
“They answered, and that’s what good teams do,” Pezzetti said.
Centennial appeared to catch a break when Valley was called for a roughing-the-punter penalty midway through the second quarter, but the Jaguars were unable to capitalize on the extra possession. After punting the ball away, the Tigers then drove for the go-ahead touchdown.
Morrow threw a 21-yard scoring pass to Eli Raridon with 2:06 left, giving Valley a 14-7 lead at halftime. Raridon, one of the top tight ends in the country, also had a 14-yard run and a 15-yard catch on the drive.
“We felt pretty optimistic at the half,” Pezzetti said. “We thought we had some things that we could do, but we just came up short.”
Morrow scored again on a 1-yard sneak early in the third quarter. After the two teams combined for three turnovers in a span of five plays, Morrow then tossed a 10-yard touchdown pass to Raridon with 48 seconds left in the period.
Morrow completed 17-of-20 passes for 206 yards. He later threw a 56-yard scoring strike to Cade Grevengoed, who had four catches for 80 yards.
Raridon had eight receptions for 71 yards.
“We had some adversity going in the first quarter and kind of fell off after the half,” said Centennial linebacker Easton Miller. “But we still fought until the end.”
Miller picked off a pass by backup quarterback Quintin Loeb and ran 50 yards for a touchdown with 3:12 remaining in the game, cutting Valley’s lead to 35-14.
“I just took my drop and saw the quarterback’s eyes going over there. I wasn’t really expecting to catch it with a club, but it just fell in my arms and I grabbed it and I ran for six (points),” said Miller, who played with a cast on his right arm. “It felt really good.”
After Valley botched a punt on the ensuing possession, the Jaguars added another touchdown when reserve quarterback Sean Stewart threw a 9-yard pass to Gavin Rumelhart with 30 seconds left.
“That’s one thing about our kids,” Pezzetti said. “They laid it on the line from start to finish. They never quit.”
The Tigers outgained Centennial by a 366-149 margin. The Jaguars had just 69 yards in the first half–and 44 of them came on a run by Owen Gates late in the second quarter.
Centennial will return many of its key players next year.
“We’re a pretty youthful team from top to bottom,” Pezzetti said. “We’ll miss our seniors, and I hate to see the season end. But there’s only one team that is going to end the season with a victory.”
