There have been some lopsided wins in the history of Ankeny Centennial football.
No game, however, has been as big of a mismatch as Friday’s homecoming contest against Des Moines East.
The Jaguars jumped out to a 37-0 lead in the first quarter and went on to post a 72-0 victory at Ankeny Stadium. The biggest previous win was a 63-0 rout over Sioux City West in 2014.
“We started off fast and scored often right away,” said Centennial co-head coach Ryan Pezzetti. “We got a lot of people involved with the game from start to finish. Doing that at the homecoming game is always beneficial for our student body and our team.”
Elijah Porter ran for a 65-yard touchdown on Centennial’s first play from scrimmage. Just two plays later, Isaiah Bassett made a tackle in the end zone for a safety, giving the Jaguars a 9-0 lead just 73 seconds into the game.
After Trenton Smith threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Braeden Jackson, Porter scored again on a short run to make it 23-0 with 4 minutes 33 seconds left in the opening period. Porter rushed for 105 yards on just six carries.
Centennial defensive back Drake Dittmar provided the next two scores, returning a pair of interceptions a total of 83 yards to the end zone in a span of less than 3 minutes. The Jaguars later got another pick six from Kane Brooks, this one covering 20 yards, to complete the scoring.
JJ Morgan ran for a 10-yard touchdown in the second quarter, then Jeremiah Bassett added another scoring run to make it 51-0 at the half. Bassett scored again in the second half before Gavin Matheny rushed for 4-yard touchdown.
The Jaguars racked up 196 yards on the ground, while Smith completed 6-of-8 passes for 77 yards. Max Snyder caught four passes for 57 yards.
Centennial raised its record to 3-2, while the Scarlets dropped to 0-5. Friday’s game was sandwiched between last week’s 24-21 loss at top-ranked Southeast Polk and next week’s showdown against No. 2 Dowling Catholic.
“I think I can speak for all of the coaches in Class 5A, the season is a grind,” Pezzetti said. “We’ve got kids that our pretty beat up who missed the game, and hopefully we can get them back before the end of the year. When you play the competition we do week in and week out, it’s a physical game and a violent game. Those injuries are going to happen, but we just hope we can get those kids back and have some other kids step up in their absence.”
The Jaguars will host Dowling (5-0) on Friday at Ankeny Stadium. The Maroons are coming off a 50-0 win over Des Moines Roosevelt on Thursday.
Dowling has won every game by at least two touchdowns.
“They’re outstanding,” Pezzetti said of the Maroons. “They’re very well-coached and a very talented team. They don’t make a lot of mistakes. It’s just a traditional Dowling team.”
Centennial appears to be on track to earn a playoff berth. A win on Friday would help tremendously for playoff seeding.
“We’re looking forward to the challenge to prepare for them and to see where we’re at,” Pezzetti said.
