Dodgers end on a high note, but are left out of playoffs
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Following a victory filled with elation and a sense of closure, no one was more crestfallen at the end of Friday night than the Fort Dodge football team.
Barely an hour after defeating Sioux City West in the regular-season finale, the Dodgers (6-3 overall) found out they landed a single spot short of the Class 4A playoff field. Their 2026 campaign, just like that, was over.
Head coach Nik Moser and his players knew this was a possibility, but both the frustration and disappointment of reality started to sink in. Attempting to reach the postseason for a third consecutive year - something Fort Dodge had never achieved in the modern history of the playoff format - the Dodgers instead became the only squad with six wins or more in all of 3A, 4A and 5A not to advance.
Moser had a choice to make: dwell in the letdown of being left out, or focus on the positives that came with ending this season - and the era of his senior class - on a high note.
He quickly pivoted to the latter.
"It goes without saying that we'd rather be in the playoffs and getting ready for at least one more game together," Moser said. "But I'm still very proud of them. They did their part (on Friday). We challenged them to put themselves in a position to succeed and make memories, and they did that.
"We're not going to apologize for going 6-3 and finishing a stretch record-wise that no other Dodger football team has had here in almost 80 years. That's a big deal, and they were able to go out with a win."
Fort Dodge's defense set the tone all evening long, holding the Wolverines (4-5) to 21 net rushing yards and barely over 150 yards of total offense. Talented West quarterback Tavin Irvine was just 9-for-32 passing, and produced only 11 net rushing yards on 18 carries. He had over 1,300 yards and 13 TDs from scrimmage before Friday.
"I thought we were really good defensively," Moser said. "It took us a while to get going on offense, but we found a formation we liked in the second half and kept it simple. We were going to run the football, and our line did a nice job with Will (McElroy) of sticking to what worked."
McElroy had 111 of his 155 rushing yards after halftime, carrying the ball 24 times in the second half alone. The three-year starter, who spent his sophomore campaign as the Dodgers' nose tackle before shifting full-time to tailback, had 2,147 total rushing yards - good for 7th all-time at FDSH.
The only points in the first half came on a 33-yard field goal by senior Conrad Greathouse. Holding a tenuous 3-0 lead, senior quarterback Tru McBride hit classmate Sam Moser in stride for a 43-yard touchdown strike that gave the Dodgers some breathing room.
A 40-yard Moser kickoff return set the stage for Fort Dodge's final drive, which was heavy doses of McElroy and a quarterback sneak by McBride on 4th-and-goal.
McBride closed his prep career with 4,223 passing yards, ranking him third on the program's all-time charts behind only Drake Miller (7,100) and Randy Reiners (4,385). The three-year starter had 39 passing touchdowns, tying him for third with Reiners behind Miller (74) and Connor Carver (42).
"I would take guys like our captains - Sam, Will, Tru and Zak (Jorgensen) - on my team every year," Moser said. "Our seniors have represented the program the right way both on and off the field. They won 21 of their 29 games, and a lot of them were on the field for all three of those seasons.
"They left their mark. They didn't just expect to win, but they prepared for it."
Moser also called it "very emotional" coaching Sam - his oldest son and the namesake of Hall of Fame Fort Dodge coach Sam Moser - for the final time.
"Sam has put in the work to become an all-state football player," Moser said. "It didn't come naturally. It was through consistency and effort. He devoted his time to the weight room and film room.
"It's been an honor to coach him, his classmates and this team."
Jayce Skow had 14 tackles, applying constant pressure on Irvine with Jayon Preston-Grady, Luke Beckley, Alex Beekman and Cael Adams up front. Irvine also constantly tested Dodger defensive backs Moser, Javion Soppeland, Will Jones, Ezrah Barkhaus and Jayshawn Jackson deep, but to very little avail.
Coy Nichols blocked an extra point for the Dodgers after West’s lone touchdown.
The last time Fort Dodge won at least six games in three consecutive seasons came during a stretch just after World War II, from 1948-50. Only seven other 4A programs - Sergeant Bluff-Luton, Cedar Rapids Xavier, Pella, North Polk, ADM, Newton and Western Dubuque - have done so in the last three years.
The Dodgers’ defensive average of 14.7 points per game allowed tied the 1990 and 2010 squads for the best in a single season over the last 40 years.
Fort Dodge’s 22-player senior class was recognized before kickoff - a group that included McElroy, McBride, Moser, Skow, Preston-Grady, Beekman, Jorgensen, Barkhaus, Soppeland, Jones, Greathouse, Cal Pederson, Kyree Rochon, Korben Davis, Kason Echevarria, Kingston Phillips, Aidin Grady, Kellin Crouse, Rylan Crouse, Jayden Stanley, Teddy Johnson and Patrick Clay.