-Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Humboldt celebrate after beating Mount Vernon during 3A semi-finals on Saturday inside the UNI Dome

CEDAR FALLS — The early moments of Humboldt’s state semifinal game here on Saturday night followed a familiar pattern.

Thankfully, so did the conclusion — just in time to rewrite recent history.

The top-seeded and second-ranked Wildcats prevailed in a tug-of-war with No. 5 Mount Vernon inside the UNI-Dome, advancing to the championship round for the first time in 18 years with a thrilling 28-25 victory.

Head coach Derrick Elman’s squad will now face No. 1 Dubuque Wahlert – a 17-16 winner over Sergeant Bluff-Luton in the other semifinal — for the Class 3A state title back here on Friday at 1 p.m. Humboldt’s last crown came in 2006.

The short semifinal hex during Elman’s tenure — the Wildcats had reached this point in both 2021 and ’22, but fell short both times — ended when senior Syler Brown recovered a fumble to extinguish any hopes of a final Mount Vernon rally. Humboldt (11-1 overall), which has made a living on its nearly-impeccable turnover margin in 2024, added two fumble recoveries and a pair of interceptions to its ledger against the Mustangs (10-2).

“That’s kind of a testament to who we are,” said Elman, referring to his team’s aggregate plus-20 edge in turnovers this year. “We make things happen defensively, and we protect the ball well. In games like this, where the margin for error can be razor thin, that’s often the difference.

“Winning high school games is hard. When you get this deep into the playoffs, that (idea) is amplified. You’re facing the best teams in the state and you just have to find a way to get the job done. That’s what our kids have been doing all year long.”

The Wildcats were again slow out of the gate, falling behind 11-0 in the first quarter before finding their footing and reeling off 21 consecutive points to take control. Humboldt has now been outscored 28-3 in the opening period over the last five contests combined, yet the Wildcats have prevailed every single time.

“I’d like for us to come out and just dominate from the start, of course,” Elman laughed. “That would make things a lot easier. But sometimes, it takes kids a little while to get settled in. Coaches, too. You don’t panic and you make adjustments.

“It’s a long game, and we realize one moment or score isn’t going to define it. You take the good with the bad, try to keep the right mentality through those highs and lows. Again, this group just does a tremendous job of that.”

There were a number of defining moments that helped push Humboldt across the finish line in a game that was as close as the final score indicated. Like a 23-yard Coen Matson pass to Jackson Flaherty and a 14-yard Matson scramble for a first down – both on 3rd-and-long – to keep the Wildcats’ first touchdown drive alive when they trailed 11-0. Or interceptions by Cael Donahe and Flaherty in Humboldt territory – Flaherty’s came in the end zone to end the first half – to thwart Mount Vernon drives. Or a remarkable Keegan Groat reception to keep a scoring drive alive in the third quarter on a deep Matson pass that initially appeared to be intercepted. Or Landon Halverson recovering a fumble on a bad snap one play after officials had missed a clear Flaherty interception that was ruled an incomplete pass.

“There were a lot of plays where things could have gone a different way or snowballed on us,” Elman said. “You can’t ever assume anything. You have to go hard for 48 full minutes. Our guys understand that and embrace it.”

Matson threw for 208 yards and three touchdowns, finding Groat twice and Valley Davis for the final score with 3:44 remaining to give the Wildcats needed breathing room. The Mustangs quickly responded and got back within three points, then forced a Humboldt punt for one last chance before the ball was jarred loose and Brown recovered.

Groat hauled in seven passes for 83 yards. Halverson recorded a team-best 8.5 tackles. Senior Isaiah Busick and sophomore Broedy Hendricks sacked Mount Vernon junior quarterback Kellen Haverback.

“Landon Halverson is a perfect example of a kid who has just worked his tail off to get into this position as a senior,” Elman said. “He played a tremendous game. He didn’t play a ton last year, but has been a dude for us this season. A real difference maker.

“We have a lot of guys like that. We never have to wonder if they’ll step up when their number is called.”

Haverback did have 227 passing yards, but the turnovers ultimately told the story in this 2022 semifinal rematch.

“It takes everyone,” Elman said. “If you look up and down (the stat sheet or the play-by-play charts), you’ll see we had guys coming through in pivotal moments. That’s what this team is all about.”

The Wildcats and Wahlert – which has never won a state championship – now have a relatively quick turnaround for the Friday afternoon title tilt.

“These kids have never played a day game like this before, and I’ve never coached in one, either,” Elman said. “We’ll do our best to stick to our routine, keep things as normal as possible, and prepare like we always do.

“This is obviously incredibly exciting for us, and to be able to share with our community was special. But the job’s not done.”

H MV

First Downs 15 19

Rushes-Yards 28-71 32-97

Passing 16-27-0 22-30-2

Passing Yards 208 227

Total Offense 279 324

Punts-Avg. 5-35.6 2-42.0

Fumbles-Lost 0-0 3-2

Penalties-Yards 3-30 6-45

Humboldt 0 14 7 7 – 28

M. Vernon 11 0 0 14 – 25

Scoring Summary

Mount Vernon – Bennett Harp (32-yard field goal), 5:39 left first quarter.

Mount Vernon – Watson Krob (29-yard pass from Kellen Haverbeck), 1:38 left first. Jase Jaspers run.

Humboldt – Cash McIntire (7-yard run), 9:44 left second. Karson Rubel kick.

Humboldt – Keegan Groat (7-yard pass from Coen Matson), 9:44 left second. Rubel kick.

Humboldt – Groat (4-yard pass from Matson), 5:50 left third. Rubel kick.

Mount Vernon – Cooper Hird (3-yard run), 11:18 left fourth. Bennett Harp kick.

Humboldt – Valley Davis (23-yard pass from Matson), 3:44 left fourth. Rubel kick.

Mount Vernon – Michael Ryan (21-yard pass from Haverback), 2:54 left fourth. Harp kick.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing – Humboldt: Cash McIntire 8-35, Jaxson Kirchhoff 2-30, Coen Matson 14-12, Team 4-(minus-6). Mount Vernon: Cooper Hird 21-69, Kellen Haverback 8-27, Jase Jaspers 2-2, Team 1-(minus-1).

Passing – Humboldt: Coen Matson 16-27-0-208. Mount Vernon: Kellen Haverback 22-30-2-227.

Receiving – Humboldt: Keegan Groat 7-83, Valley Davis 2-61, Chase Flaherty 5-42, Mason Van Pelt 2-22. Mount Vernon: Michael Ryan 8-83, Watson Krob 4-69, Jase Jaspers 3-32, Cole Thurn 4-29.