Valley, Johnston earn playoff bids and more of what we learned in Iowa high school football's Week 9

As the leaves change and the temperature drops, the state title races in Iowa high school football is just getting started.In Week 9, the playoffs started in Classes 2A, 1A, A and 8-Player while Classes 5A, 4A and 3A battled for seeding and the final postseason bids. The smaller class playoff games were largely devoid of any major upsets, but several larger class teams made a statement in their Week 9 games.

Here are 10 things we learned in Week 9.

1. West Des Moines Valley, once again, shows it’s not going to go down easily

Despite every obstacle thrown the Tigers’ way this season, Valley will be going to the playoffs, extending their streak that has been ongoing since 1992. At 4-5, they finished at No. 14 in the RPI.

The last time the Tigers earned the No. 14 spot? Just last season, when they went to the state championship game. Their first-round pairing last year was also Pleasant Valley, the team they're set to face once again in the Round of 16 this year.

This team isn’t going to wow you with its offense, but they don’t need to. Its defense is one of the state’s best, holding Southeast Polk and Dowling Catholic to 24 and 14 points, respectively, to start the season.Valley’s formula will be similar to that of the Iowa Hawkeyes. Control the time of possession by putting its defense in good positions to succeed.

The Spartans are a tough pairing for sure, but if we have learned anything over the years, it is to not doubt Valley.

2. Ankeny Centennial ensures there’s no doubt in their playoff bid

Ankeny Centennial and Urbandale entered the game in a do-or-die situation. The winner goes to the playoffs, the loser ends its season.

The Jaguars made sure there wasn't any doubt, dominating the J-Hawks in a 41-3 contest. Senior running back Elijah Porter, who just flipped his commitment from Northern Iowa to Northern Illinois, ran for over 100 yards and two touchdowns.

Ankeny Centennial is perhaps the most dangerous 5-4 team in the state. Porter is the headliner, but they’ve got a ton of weapons outside of him. Braeden Jackson is an equally talented running back, while quarterback Trenton Smith and his wide receiver Max Snyder have one of the best connections in Iowa.

Pair that with a stingy defense, and they’ve been able to push the likes of Southeast Polk and Dowling Catholic to the brink.

The Jaguars have drawn Waukee Northwest for the first round of the playoffs, who they lost to just two weeks ago,17-7. If that offense stays hot, they are a team to watch.

3. Johnston gets hot just in time for the playoffs

Losing four of five games from Sept. 1 to Sept. 29, the Dragons easily could have laid down and given up. They refused, winning back-to-back games against Council Bluffs Lincoln and Urbandale to enter Week 9 with a chance to clinch a playoff spot against Sioux City East.

Both teams were near the cut-off line of No. 16 heading into this game (Johnston at No. 12, Sioux City East at No. 11). A loss didn’t assure they would drop out of the playoffs, but a win would make them feel a heck of a lot more comfortable.

Johnston didn’t leave any doubt on that, as Jacob Simpson hauled in two touchdowns and 114 receiving yards on six receptions to lead his team to a 48-13 win on the road. Sioux City East, despite the loss, narrowly made the playoff cut at No. 15 in the RPI.

The Dragons didn’t have the regular season some expected after making it to the UNI-Dome for the first time in school history last season, but Simpson and his team are going to present some major fits for Ankeny in the first round of the playoffs.

4. Bettendorf looks sluggish in loss to Iowa City High

The Bulldogs entered Week 9 with a playoff bid already in hand, but this performance, albeit against a surging Iowa City High squad, is concerning as they enter the postseason.

The Little Hawks, behind junior Bobby Bacon’s 336 passing yards and three touchdowns, got out to a 28-0 lead at the half. Bettendorf showed some fight, scoring 21 points in the second half, but the game was mostly over by then.

A loss like this in Week 9 would be easy to write off, but they now have to play Iowa City again on Oct. 27 after being paired together for the first round. That’s going to be one of the more fascinating matchups of the 5A playoffs after this performance.

5. Des Moines Roosevelt ends seasons as top DMPS program, Des Moines Lincoln has an exciting future

Let’s show some love for a couple of the DMPS schools, who despite not making the playoffs, made some strides this season.

Roosevelt (4-5) coach Jared Barnett said before the season that he hoped to have his team doing more than just beating the DMPS programs, he wanted to compete with the best in the area. While they weren’t able to hang with the likes of Dowling Catholic, Waukee Northwest and Ankeny Centennial, the truth is, not many other teams did either.

Hudson Miller at tight end and Gerald Hill on the defensive line, in particular, had solid senior seasons, helping them take down Des Moines East in a 52-7 final to end the year as the de facto best DMPS school. Beating a solid Ottumwa squad in Week 2 was also a highlight for them.

Lincoln (3-6), however, has a ton of optimism heading into next season despite the loss to Roosevelt. The Railsplitters will be returning Javon Sanders, one of the best running backs in 5A, and a host of other juniors for what should be a great senior class next year.

6. In win over ADM, North Polk makes case for the best team in a crowded Class 4A

Class 4A is full of quality teams, but not many stand out as one that you can pencil in for a semifinal appearance because of how competitive the field is. Western Dubuque is the only team sitting at 8-1, with the rest at 7-2 or below.

If there’s one team you can point to as a surefire contender, it would be North Polk (7-2). Aiden Flora returned at quarterback for ADM, but it didn’t matter as the Comets soared for a 28-17 victory behind BJ Tate’s 117 yards on the ground.They remain our No. 1 team in the class for now behind a stingy defense that only 39 total points in the last six games.

However, they face Ballard in the round of 16. The Bombers are the last team that handed North Polk a loss this season, 7-6, in Week 6.

7. Pella continues to win big games when it matters

It feels like time and time again after we check box scores, we find Pella winning big when it matters most. Starting in Week 5, the Dutch defeated Xavier 31-21 in one of the massive upsets of the season. Then they took down No. 1 Bondurant-Farrar in Week 8 and followed it up by securing a playoff bid by beating Gilbert 33-23 in Week 9.Senior quarterback Luke Hardman has been an absolute gamer for Pella, ending the regular season with 16 passing touchdowns and 13 rushing touchdowns. Hardman will lead his team against Bondurant-Farrar once again in the first round of the 4A playoffs, where we'll find out if he can re-kindle that magic from Week 8.

8. Webster City, Jaxon Cherry put stamp onto successful regular season

Webster City has not made it to the UNI-Dome since 2016, but they look well equipped to do so after finishing the regular season 7-2 with a win over Humboldt. Jaxon Cherry rushed for 234 yards, three touchdowns and had eight tackles in the 26-7 victory. His play on both sides of the ball has the Lynx heating up at the perfect time.

However, they'll have a tough road to make it back to the UNI-Dome. If they can defeat 7-2 Nevada in the first round, they would face the winner of Harlan Community (6-3) or Creston (9-0) in the quarterfinals.

9. Sumner-Fredericksburg receives early scare in 1A playoffs

South Hardin was always going to be a tough draw for the Cougars, but the Tigers nearly completed the upset over Sumner-Fredericksburg on Friday.

The ultimate difference was two interceptions returned for touchdowns by Noah Henderson and Caden Trainor, both of which took them over 50 yards to the endzone to win 31-26.

It’s not a cause for concern that Sumner-Fredericksburg played this one close, but it could be a good wake-up call for the Cougars as they advance to the second round and face Emmetsburg (7-2).

10. Same goes for Lisbon, who gets an early test from North Linn

The Lions came into the contest 8-0, and they left 9-0, but not before North Linn gave them the scare at home. Lisbon narrowly escaped with a 14-6 win, with junior quarterback Dakota Clark rushing and passing for a touchdown to move onto the round of 16.

As a team that has only failed to score 40 or more points one other time this season, this goes to show that Lisbon can win by playing a defensive battle if needed. Again, an early wake-up call can pay dividends down the line as the Lions look to continue their season win a win over East Buchanan in the Round of 16.

Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: What did we learn from Week 9 of the Iowa high school football season?