The Class 5A playoffs have already started for the Ankeny Centennial football team.
In a do-or-die game between two opponents with identical 4-4 records, the 14th-ranked Jaguars punched their ticket to the postseason with a convincing 41-3 victory at No. 19 Urbandale on Friday.
“It feels really good,” said Centennial tight end Chase Schutty. “We needed this to get into the playoffs, and we needed to show everybody that we’re a team that can take it to the Dome. I think we did that tonight.”
Elijah Porter ran 16 times for 119 yards as the Jaguars (5-4) rebounded from last week’s 17-7 loss to Waukee Northwest. Porter and Braeden Jackson each ran for a pair of touchdowns, while Schutty caught two scoring passes from Trenton Smith.
“We executed on all levels and did what we needed to do,” said Jackson, who rushed for 82 yards on just five carries. “It was a great team win. The defense played great, and the offense played great. We’re excited to move on to next week.”
Centennial dominated the game from the start. Porter scored on a 9-yard run to cap a 65-yard drive to open the game, then added a 3-yard touchdown run to give the Jaguars a 14-0 lead with 1 minute 19 seconds left in the first quarter.
The J-Hawks (4-5) were outgained by a 120-2 margin in the opening period. They didn’t pick up a first down until early in the second quarter.
“We just had to play good on defense,” said Centennial defensive back Connor Welsch. “We’ve been playing pretty well, and we just had to keep that rolling into the playoffs.”
The Jaguars later drove 92 yards for another touchdown. Schutty hauled in a 38-yard scoring pass from Smith to make it 21-0 with 1:13 to go until halftime.
“The key was to have a really good offense,” Schutty said. “Our offense wasn’t the best (against Northwest). We needed to take up some time and score some touchdowns, and our defense just needed to do what they do. They did a hell of a job.”
Jackson scored on a 2-yard run early in the third quarter. Then, after the Jaguars forced a punt, he dashed 68 yards to the end zone on the next play from scrimmage to extend the margin to 34-0.
“The intensity was there,” Jackson said. “We had a great week of practice. Every day we were putting in work, and we knew we had to come out and win this game. It’s just a great feeling to know that we came out and executed.”
Urbandale scored its only points on a 25-yard field goal by Rockne Carver with 2:42 remaining in the third quarter. The J-Hawks managed just 163 total yards.
Smith responded with a 35-yard pass on the ensuing possession to Max Snyder, who had seven catches for 101 yards. He then found Schutty for a 30-yard touchdown pass on third-and-21 to put the running clock into effect with 11:13 left to play.
Smith completed 14-of-18 passes for 218 yards. He has now passed for 18 touchdowns on the season, eight of them to his senior tight end.
“We’re really excited,” Schutty said. “Whoever gets us is going to be disappointed to have us because we’re a tough team to play. We have some really good players, and we have a really good bond going.”
Nate Christiansen led the Jaguars’ defense with 7.5 tackles. Mitchell Grider and Cole Pieper each made four tackles, while Isaiah Bassett had a sack.
Centennial moved up to 13th in the final RPI rankings from the Iowa High School Athletic Association. The first-round pairings will be announced on Saturday at 10 a.m., but it appears likely that the Jaguars will visit No. 4 Northwest in a rematch of last week’s game.
“I feel really confident,” Jackson said. “I know this team has the talent. We just have to keep executing and not make any mental mistakes–keep playing like we know we can play.”
Centennial battled the state’s top two teams, No. 1 Southeast Polk and No. 2 Dowling Catholic, down to the wire during the regular season.
“We’ve played close with everybody,” Welsch said. “We’ve lost a couple of tough games, but our team persevered and we kept our heads high the whole season. We’re going into the postseason with a lot of confidence.”
