By james art 
Gilbert football players in their 4A playoff win over WSR
Gilbert football players discuss the Class 4A No. 4 Tigers’ 21-14 playoff win over Waverly-Shell Rock in the 4A playoffs Friday in Gilbert.
(This story was updated to include a video)
GILBERT — It was a battle of ball control versus big plays when No. 4 Gilbert faced Waverly-Shell Rock in the Iowa Class 4A high school football playoffs in the round of 16 Friday at Tiger Stadium.
With his “Tiger Bone” veer/option attack, Gilbert wore down other teams all season with his running game, featuring 6-foot-1, 220-pound Iowa State running back Will Hawthorne and a veteran offensive line. The Tigers continued that Friday, putting together long scoring drives, including one that ate up more than nine minutes of time.
WSR tried to counter that with the big play ability of running backs Ethan Bibler and Jayden Stevens. But the Go-Hawks couldn’t put together enough big plays to counter the Tigers’ physicality.
Gilbert advanced to the 4A quarterfinals with a 21-14 win.
“It feels great,” Gilbert right guard Mason Griffin said. “It’s something we’ve never felt before. It had been a while since Gilbert had been at this level. We’re really excited.”
The Tigers will take a 9-1 record into next Friday’s quarterfinals. The Go-Hawks finished 6-4.
Here are three things we learned from Gilbert’s big playoff win.
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Patience and strength help Gilbert prevail
Gilbert’s ability to wear down teams with his powerful running game has been his bread and butter all season.
They set the tone right away against WSR, eating up 8:50 on a 68-yard opening touchdown. Hawthorne ran through the WSR defense for a 19-yard touchdown to complete the drive.
“We just stick to our game,” Hawthorne said. “We’re not a big-play team. We’re going to go down and do the little things right. What we’re building here in Gilbert is special.”
Later in the half, the Tigers took another big chunk of the clock on a drive that ended with Hawthorne’s 1-yard touchdown run.
In the second half, Hawthorn snapped a long streak.
After a big defensive stand in the red zone, Hawthorne took a handoff inside, broke outside and outran the Go-Hawk defense for an 87-yard score. This gave the Tigers the cushion they needed.
“We keep hitting that hammer and paper cutting, paper cutting, paper cutting,” Hawthorne said. “Eventually the defense breaks down and we get these explosive plays that are exciting to watch.”
Big defensive stands, key win
WSR tried to turn the tables on Gilbert to start the second half.
The Go-Hawks moved the ball from their own 20 down to the Gilbert 11. But on third-and-6, Gilbert’s Alden Short made a big play to break up a pass in the end zone.
On fourth down, the Go-Hawks quarterback failed to field a leadoff pass to give Gilbert the ball and set up Hawthorne’s long touchdown run.
In the fourth quarter, WSR got the ball down to the Gilbert 20 thanks to a huge catch by Brady Bodensteiner. But on third-and-8, Hawthorne tackled Bibler for only a 1-yard gain.
On fourth down, WSR fumbled and Gilbert’s Bowen Kruse returned the ball to the 38 with just over 3:30 left to seal the win.
“It all comes down to working every day and practicing our fundamentals, so when it comes down to it, you can make those plays,” Cruz said. “The game is never won in the first, second and third quarters. It’s always won in the fourth.”
Next is Pella
With the win, Gilbert would get a rematch with No. 5 Pella in the 4A quarterfinals next Friday in Pella.
The Tigers handed the Dutchmen their only loss of the season last week, 14-7.
“They’re a great team and we’re a great team, too,” Hawthorne said. “It should be good.”
Joe Randleman covers high school sports for the Ames Tribune. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @JoeRandleman
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