CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – It would take more than home-field advantage and a two-score lead to sink Dowling Catholic’s dynasty. Cedar Falls controlled the ball and gave the Maroons their best title test to date, but it still wasn’t enough.
Dowling Catholic continued its dominance of Class 4A football with a 22-16 comeback win at the UNI-Dome on Friday night, sealing a sixth straight state championship for coach Tom Wilson’s squad.
“Our kids have a lot of heart and this means a lot to them and I think that came through on the field tonight,” Wilson said.
The run of six consecutive state championships by the West Des Moines power is tied for the longest title reign in state history, equaling Regina, Iowa City’s stretch from 2010-15 in Classes 2A and 1A. Cedar Falls (12-1) was trying to snap a three-game skid in title games and add to its 1986 trophy, but a 13-0 early lead and 16-7 advantage entering the fourth quarter weren’t enough.
“We came out flat, just like we did last week,” Dowling running back Teagan Johnson said. “We had to get it together, pick each other up, get together with one heartbeat.”
A stout Cedar Falls defense forced Dowling’s offense to sputter early on. Through three quarters, the Tigers possessed the ball for nearly 24 of a possible 36 minutes and held the defending champs to just one third down conversion, a testament to the gameplan of coach Brad Remmert’s staff.
But Tigers failed to execute in the fourth quarter and paid for it painfully. With 2,000-yard rusher Jayson Murray hampered with an injury, Johnson stepped in carried the offense as Dowling’s defense stepped up on the other side of the ball. Johnson scored both of Dowling’s fourth quarter touchdowns – the first coming after a bad snap by Cedar Falls’ punt unit, the second with just 3:58 remaining – and the Dowling defense forced Cedar Falls into negative yardage in the fourth.
“We have experience being down,” Dowling senior linebacker Jack Keough said, “but we’re fighters. We’ve got some dogs on this team. When we were down tonight, we kept working, we kept battling, and we wanted that championship.”
Cedar Falls finished with just 183 total yards of offense, and 4A’s top receiver, Logan Wolf, finished with just three receptions for eight yards. Jack Campbell had a game-high 14 tackles for the Tigers in defeat.
Dowling trailed early in its semifinal win over Bettendorf, 17-0 at halftime, and faced similar odds on Friday night. But in their closest UNI-Dome experiences of the Wilson era, the Maroons made the most of the opportunity.
“Every year is different, every group is different,” Wilson said. “And every fall the new group feels the pressure of winning mounting on them. Every group is special. This one definitely is too, and I’ll always remember their heart.”
