Photo by Iowa Central Athletics: The Iowa Central football team celebrates its Game One Bowl victory over Snow on Sunday at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls.

CEDAR FALLS — Damarcus Creecy made a play here Sunday that will be talked about by the quarterback and his Iowa Central football teammates for years to come.

Going down on a sack late in the fourth quarter against Snow in the Game One Bowl, Creecy spotted CJ Phillip standing behind him.

Creecy quickly reacted, flipping the ball into the waiting arms of Phillip, who used his game-changing speed to do just that and sprint 77 yards for the winning score.

No. 10 Iowa Central’s then got an interception by Kadarius Williams to cement its 15th consecutive bowl win as a program and eighth in a row under head coach Jesse Montalto.

The Tritons (8-4 overall) rallied for a 38-24 victory over the 14th-ranked Badgers in a rematch of the postseason contest here two years ago. Montalto is now 12-0 in his coaching career in bowl contests.

“Our kids showed heart,” Montalto said. “They pushed all the outside distractions away and focused on finishing with their teammates one final time.

“I’m incredibly proud of them.”

Creecy and Trevon Taylor split time under center, going a combined 12-for-23 passing for 252 yards. Creecy connected with Tony Terry in the final minute on a 74-yard scoring strike, as Taylor found Marcellus Chandler in the first half.

Phillip, who finished his high school career leading Southeast Polk to a Class 5A state championship, ran for 125 yards and three scores to earn offensive MVP honors. Chandler finished with four receptions for 68 yards and Darrion Gilliam had three for 62.

The Tritons ran the ball 44 times for 296 yards, giving them over 500 yards of total offense on the day. Six different players had positive yards rushing, and six recorded at least one reception.

“We felt like we had an advantage along the offensive line, as those guys have been playing great over these final few games,” Montalto said. “Our backs did a great job, as did our quarterbacks, of taking what (Snow) was giving us.”

On defense, Williams recorded two interceptions while Jaden Turner and Cayden Mayfield each had one. Christian Barney, who forced and recovered a fumble, had 11 tackles, as Turner finished with eight and Mason Chandler seven.

Barney was named the defensive MVP of the game.

Taylor, the starter last year, returned from a season-ending injury to help provide added depth to the quarterback position. He played in eight games this year, throwing for nearly 500 yards with five touchdowns.

“All glory to God for allowing me to come back this season and play with my boys,” Taylor said. “This season meant a lot ot me mentally and physically for my recruiting. I’m proud that we ended on a win.

“I’ll definitely miss this team, as I’m proud to call them family.”

Iowa Central has won 23 bowl overall, and will finish in the Top 10 nationally for the fifth time in the last six seasons. All four losses in 2025 came to teams ranked ahead of them, including No. 1 Hutchinson and second-ranked Iowa Western, who will meet for the national title later this month.

For Snow, Matt Wilson had 99 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Jace Welsch threw for 151 yards, but was picked off four times.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing – Iowa Central: CJ Phillip 10-125, Damarcus Creecy 11-69, Trevon Taylor, 6-48, Ethan Johnson 9-30, Anthony Hall 6-28, Ty Purdy 1-1, Jecari Patton 1-(minus-5). Snow: Matt Wilson 19-99, Jace Welsch 3-48, Quezon Villa 6-9, Makel Paiva 1-2, Kael McCoy 1-(minus-3).

Passing – Iowa Central: Damarcus Creecy 7-13-1-170, Trevon Taylor 5-8-0-82, Ty Purdy 0-2-1-0. Snow: Jace Welsch 14-33-4-151.

Receiving – Iowa Central: Tony Terry 1-74, Marcellus Chandler 4-69, Darrion Gilliam 3-62, Kamare Williams 1-19, Sencerre Brown 2-17, Sejhe Jackson 1-12. Snow: Makel Paiva 4-67, Stephon Sellers 2-52, CJ Rabb III 3-22, Quezon Villa 2-20, Matt Wilson 2-13, Kael McCoy 1-5, Myles Peters 1-1.