The #2 (1A) Dike-New Hartford football team will make its first appearance in the UNI-Dome since 2021 when it takes on #3 (1A) Hinton in a 1A semifinal Friday on 99 The Wave.
“One of the first goals that our seniors had when we started to do our goal-setting way last spring was to get to the Dome,” Head Coach Don Betts says. “They got to be there when they were freshmen the last time we were at the Dome, but they didn’t get to play, and they wanted to get back and have an opportunity to play on the field. So really happy for our seniors that we’ve made it this far, but that wasn’t the only goal they had, so more work to be done.”
The Wolverines (10-1) have rolled through the playoffs, including a 36-19 win over #5 (1A) South Hardin in last week’s quarterfinal, where senior Noah Borcherding recorded his second straight four-touchdown game. His 27 rushing touchdowns and 1,603 rushing yards on the season are both the most in Class 1A.
Hinton (10-1) has had one of its best seasons in recent history. Having placed third in District 1 via a three-way tie, the Blackhawks were on the road for the first two rounds of the playoffs, but defeated Underwood 37-15 at home in last week’s quarterfinal. Betts on containing dual-threat quarterback Gabe Anderson.
“The big thing is to understand is that it’s not one person who’s going to stop a quarterback like that. It’s definitely a team effort. It’s everybody having their eyes on the right place. It’s everybody doing their job. They’ve got enough other weapons that if you focus too much on the quarterback, they’re going to hurt you other places. So it really does come down to a group effort. Everybody dialed in, focused on what their job is, and their eyes in the right place.”
Anderson has passed for nearly 1,000 yards, and is the team’s leading rusher with 197 carries for 1,131 yards, making him account for over half of the team’s total yards.
Pregame coverage will begin at 12:30 p.m., followed by the kickoff at 1:00. The winner will advance to the 1A championship game against either #1 (1A) Grundy Center or #6 (1A) Wilton.
Don Betts interview:
