(Story by Rob Gray)
From the first snap, Ankeny Centennial just looked different.
The underdog Jaguars strode into Friday’s Class 5A playoff matchup at No. 4 Waukee Northwest with a spring in their step and a thirst for revenge in their roster-wide heart.
“We’ve had the juice since Monday,” said Centennial running back Elijah Porter, who rushed for a game-high 124 yards on 19 carries to help his team thrash the Wolves, 35-7, amid cold and windy conditions. “We’re gonna keep doing the same thing.”
That would be winning. The Jaguars (6-4) entered Friday’s game against Northwest (7-3) with a chip on their shoulder after an out-of-character 17-7 loss to the Wolves just two weeks ago.
Centennial’s offense seemed to be listless in that matchup, but sprang to life Friday. Porter’s backfield mate, Braeden Jackson, totaled 146 yards rushing and receiving and scored three touchdowns—including a 30-yard scoring grab from quarterback Trenton Smith on the Jaguars’ opening possession.
Centennial simply dominated from start to finish, building a 35-0 lead before Northwest got on the board late on a 17-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Sam Johnson to running back Ryan Woodruff.
“Our coaches and our players, how we prepared for the past two weeks getting to this point, I couldn’t be happier,” said Jaguars’ co-head coach Ryan Pezzetti. “Our coaches have put in the time to get better and so have our kids. We haven’t skipped a beat, and we’re looking forward to playing next Friday.”
Centennial will travel to Bettendorf (8-2) aiming to earn a spot in the 5A semifinals at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls. Two weeks ago, the prospect of attaining that goal appeared dim, but the Jaguars regrouped and are playing their best football in the postseason.
“It’s exciting,” Porter said. “But we’re not satisfied.”
Centennial won the coin toss Friday, which given the weather conditions, gave it a leg up from the get-go. The Jaguars deferred, of course, and forced an immediate three-and-out on the Wolves’ opening possession.
A shanked punt set Centennial up at the Northwest 30-yard line—and Smith connected with Jackson immediately on a scoring strike via play-action.
“We knew we had nothing to lose at this point in time, being the lower seed, and they’re a quality football team, no question about it,” said Pezzetti, whose team limited the Wolves to 145 yards of total offense while collecting three takeaways. “It’s just unfortunate we had to play each other again. (Northwest) coach (Corey) Kopatich does a great job—they’re a very physical football team. Our kids rose to the occasion tonight and matched it and then some.”
The Jaguars thrived up front on both sides of the ball whether with or against the wind, building a 21-0 lead at halftime. That cushion ballooned to 35-0 after Jackson’s 3-yard touchdown run and Porter’s 6-yard burst to paydirt to put the finishing touches on a command performance in all three phases of the game.
“You want balance and being a 5A football team in Iowa, you have to have balance,” Pezzetti said. “You can’t be one-dimensional. You can’t run the ball every play. You can’t throw the ball every play. It’s a game of inches and you’ve got to be prepared (to do) whatever need be to win the game.”
Smith painted a portrait of efficiency, completing 11-of-14 passes for 116 yards, one touchdown, and one ill-advised interception on a run-pass option play.
“He’s been efficient all year long,” Pezzetti said. “I think now he’s got 19 touchdown passes, and I don’t know how many incompletions he had tonight—I know he threw the one interception, but he played great. He’s a great game manager, he’s a great leader on the football field and does what he needs to do.”
