Iowa High School Football Playoffs: Iowa City Liberty Vs. Dowling Catholic

Young, upstart Lightning look to prevail vs. perennial state contender Maroons

Iowa City Liberty's Reece Rettig looks to attempt a pass as Waukee Northwest's Jackson Davis brings pressure during the semifinal round of the Iowa high school football state championships at the UNI-Dome on Friday, Nov. 14, 2025, in Cedar Falls. / Lily Smith/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Dowling Catholic has more state football championships than Iowa City Liberty has years of existence.

The Maroons look for Iowa high school football state title No. 11 this Friday night when they take on the Lightning inside the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The championship would be the first in 5A for Dowling Catholic.

Iowa City Liberty has been a program for eight years now, having moved up to 5A three seasons ago.

Live streaming for the contest will be available on YouTube via Iowa PBS of all the championship games.

Here is a breakdown of what to look for when each team has the ball and when each team is on defense, along with key season information for the teams still alive.

Iowa High School Football Class 5A State Championship Game

Iowa City Liberty (11-1)

• Defeated Cedar Falls, 15-14
• Defeated Southeast Polk, 38-20
• Defeated Linn-Mar, 28-7
• Lost to Johnston, 27-24
• Defeated Iowa City West, 44-31
• Defeated Davenport Central, 54-7
• Defeated Pleasant Valley, 28-14
• Defeated Iowa City High, 48-29
• Defeated Muscatine, 68-14
• Defeated Waukee, 34-20*
• Defeated Southeast Polk, 31-28
• Defeated Waukee Northwest, 31-15*

When the Lightning are on offense: Reece Rettig has had an incredible senior season leading Iowa City Liberty, throwing for 2,326 yards and 21 touchdowns while rushing for 942 yards and 14 more scores. He has completed over 71 percent of his passes while averaging almost six yards per rush. Pryor Reiners, a junior, has had a pair of huge games in the postseason, as he leads the team with 52 receptions for 613 yards and seven TDs. Jordan Schroeder has over 450 yards receiving and six others have at least 100 yards receiving.

When the Lightning are on defense: Landon Bell has recorded 17.5 tackles for loss among his 65 stops, making 4.5 sacks along the way. As a team, Iowa City Liberty has 78 tackles for loss and 26 sacks. They have recovered nine fumbles and picked off six passes, with Logan Laubenthal recorded three of those while defending 13 passes. Adrian Clerry is dangerous in the return game, averaging 26 yards per kickoff return and nearly 18 on 10 punt returns.

Dowling Catholic (11-1)

• Lost to West Des Moines Valley, 20-19
• Defeated Johnston, 31-10
• Defeated Dallas Center-Grimes, 27-0
• Defeated Southeast Polk, 45-14
• Defeated Waterloo West, 55-7
• Defeated Cedar Rapids Kennedy, 34-0
• Defeated Waukee, 30-14
• Defeated Ankeny Centennial, 27-10
• Defeated Marshalltown, 42-0
• Defeated Waterloo West, 44-6*
• Defeated Iowa City West, 35-0*
• Defeated West Des Moines Valley, 14-10

When the Maroons are on offense: Not many teams can match the kind of star power that Dowling Catholic has. Iowa State commit Jeffrey Roberts and Northern Iowa commit Sam Drexler lead the receivers, Ian Middleton is a 1,000-yard rusher and Joey Nahas is completing 61 percent of his passes with 24 touchdowns and just four interceptions. Roberts has 46 receptions for 895 yards and 12 scores while Drexler has 52 receptions for 745 and seven touchdowns.

Middleton has rushed for 1,561 yards and scored 17 times, adding a receiving TD while Nahas has 2,165 yards in the air.

When the Maroons are on defense: Jeremiah Roberson has picked off four passes while Jordan Watson has two for Dowling Catholic, who has forced 16 turnovers. Roberts has also been strong in the return game, as has Drexler. Ryan Bobo leads with 12 sacks and 16 tackles for loss, as Anthony Bonanno has seven sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss.

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