Regina rewrites record book

CEDAR FALLS – Iowa City Regina is No. 1.

Not only can the Regals make the claim for this year, but they put their mark as one of the best any year.

Top-ranked Regina routed No. 7 Fort Dodge St. Edmond, 35-0, in the Iowa High School Athletic Association 1A championship game Friday at the UNI-Dome, posting its 56th straight victory to set the state's longest all-time win streak.

The Regals (14-0) topped Waterloo East's consecutive wins mark set from 1965-71 and tied the Trojans' record 56-game unbeaten stretch. Regina can own that record with a win in its 2014 opener, continuing what began in 2010.

'It means the world to me to win this game,' Regina senior running back Riley Dixon said. 'It's a kid's dream just to win a championship and then to have the 56 wins in a row, there are no words to describe it. It's unbelievable.

'We wish we could go out and play one more game. It kind of sucks this is the last one but good to go out on a win.'

The Regina crowd rose and showed its appreciation as Dixon came out of the game. They repeated the gesture when juniors Drew Cook and Jake Brinkman, followed by a senior-laden line. Cook tried to balance attention with not showing-up St. Edmond (13-1), which made its first finals appearance.

'I think it is a great deal,' Marv Cook said. 'It is nice people can recognize them. That was a great football team. It was a great win for us.'

The players were able to soak in the atmosphere as the final minutes ticked off the clock. As Dixon approached the sideline for the last time in a Regals jersey, he raised his right hand and slightly pumped his fist to the crowd. Thoughts of the feat raced through his mind.

'Four in a row,' said Dixon, who toted the trophy down the tunnel toward the locker room after rushing for 91 yards. 'It's been a goal for the whole Regina community.'

It also ends a chapter of Regals history with a fairy tale ending for many like Casey Beaver, Mike Sehl, Elliot Halsch, Adam Demory, Julian Martinez, Bryan Amelon, Dixon, Jared Garaets and others. The senior class finished without a varsity loss and helped Regina join rival Solon (2007-10) as the only Iowa programs to win four straight crowns.

'I'm just happy for this group of guys that get to hold up a championship trophy and take it back to Iowa City to put in the trophy case,' said Marv Cook, noting that it is a symbol of their leadership, dedication and hard work.'

The game was all Regina from the start, scoring touchdowns on four of its first five possessions. Marv Cook said the team hadn't reached its potential, despite outscoring their opponents by about an average of 31 points per game. Friday was more like it.

'It was really, really close,' Marv Cook said. 'Offensively, I thought out execution was really good.'

The Regals opened with a 69-yard drive capped by a 33-yard run by Riley Dixon, who ran inside right tackle, cut to the outside and hot clear field to the end zone. Regina had all it needed a little more than three minutes into the game.

'That was huge for momentum,' Drew Cook said. 'We knew our offense would be clicking the whole game and it did.'

Regina also manufactured a long drive to increase its lead. The Regals went 85 yards on 14 plays for a 14-0 lead on the first play of the second quarter. Jake Brinkman rushed in from four yards out. Brinkman, who led the Regals with 116 rushing yards, also added an impressive 68-yard TD run on Regina's second offensive play of the third quarter, creating a 35-point advantage.

Drew Cook was impressive, completing all 13 of his passes for 177 yards. He also had 49 rushing yards, including a 5-yard run for a 21-0 edge.

Cook's scoring strike came on a trick play where the Regals faked a reverse before pitching it back to the junior quarterback. Cook hit a wide-open Amelon down the left side for a 61-yard TD and 28-0 lead with 2:22 to go in the second, which held until halftime.

His eyes lit up when offensive coordinator called the 'Firefly' play and he was excited when it played out.

'He was so open I was almost unsure of what to do,' Drew Cook said. 'I didn't want to overthrow or underthrow him, so I just threw it right where he was.

'I love that play.'

Despite giving up nearly 312 yards to the Gaels, the Regina defense stood strong, turning the Gaels away deep in Regina territory. Three St. Edmond drives reached the 'red zone' but the Regals stopped them on downs twice and Nick Phillips intercepted quarterback Matt Bocken at the goal line to end the Gaels final drive of the first half.

'They're impenetrable,' Drew Cook said. 'No one seems like they can score.'

The focus immediately turns to next season. Talk has begun of offseason training and preparing for more wins.

'Seventy, that's what I'm thinking about,' Drew Cook said. 'That's what Jake (Brinkman) said. I'm on the same page as him.'I'm already looking forward to next season.'

IC Regina 35, St. Edmond 0

AT UNI-DOME

TEAM STATISTICS

St. Edmond

IC Regina

First downs

12

22

Rushes-yards

37 - 207

36 - 229

Passing yards

105

202

Comp-Att-Int

5 - 19 - 2

16 - 16 - 0

Total yards

312

431

Fumbles-lost

3 - 2

5 - 2

Punts-average

3 - 38.3

2 - 32.0

Penalties-yards

4 - 28

4 - 29

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing:  St. Edmond – T.J. O'Tool 18-119 , Michael Faiferlick 4-32 , Jimmy Averill 2-31 , Zach Gailey 1-15 , Robert Flattery 2-13 , Vinnie Harvey 7-13 , Matt Bocken 3--16  IC Regina – Jake Brinkman 11-116 , Riley Dixon 10-91 , Drew Cook 8-49 , Eric Bracken 2-9 , Elliot Halsch 1-2 , Michael Cooper 1--2 , Nathan Stenger 3--36

Passing:  St. Edmond – Bocken 5-18-1-105 , Flattery 0-1-1-0  IC Regina – Cook 13-13-0-177 , Stenger 3-3-0-25

Receiving:  St. Edmond – Landon Peed 5-105  IC Regina – Nick Phillips 4-40 , Bryan Amelon 3-88 , Conner Brown 3-32 , Payton Raso 2-15 , Cooper 1-10 , Jared Garaets 1-9 , Nile Vincent 1-6 , Dixon 1-2

SCORE BY QUARTERS

St. Edmond

–

IC Regina

7

21

7

–

35

SCORING SUMMARY

ICR - Dixon 33 run (Jacob Adam kick)

ICR - Brinkman 4 run (Adam kick)

ICR - Cook 5 run (Adam kick)

ICR - Amelon 61 pass from Cook (Adam kick)

ICR - Brinkman 68 run (Adam kick)