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For their next challenge, the Cyclones' heralded defense will face all that with the added bonus of chasing around a quarterback who can also run the football.
Throw in an indoor climate and brand new FieldTurf surface at the UNI-Dome and the recipe is set for some offensive fireworks when top-ranked HCHS (12-0) meets No. 3 Carroll (12-0) on Monday afternoon in Cedar Falls. The first of two Class 3-A semifinal games inside the UNI-Dome will kick off at 4:30 p.m., followed by No. 10 New Hampton (10-2) versus Pella (9-3) at 7:30.
The Cyclone defense, which came up with four key takeaways in last Friday's 21-14 quarterfinal playoff win over Heelan, will once again be facing one of the state's best quarterbacks in 6-4, 200-pound Tiger senior Blake Haluska, a talented third-year starter. Haluska has not only passed for 2,156 yards and 25 touchdowns this fall - giving him career numbers of 5,945 and 61 - but he has also rushed for nearly 700 yards and 10 more TD's.
Finding a way to slow down Haluska's scrambling ability will play a big part in the Cyclones' defensive success on Monday.
"He's certainly the cog in their offense, no doubt about that," said HCHS head coach Curt Bladt. "He throws the ball very well, he puts it on the money, and at any time he'll pull that thing down and take off, and he's hard to bring down. He's got pretty good speed and agility and he's a tough kid, so it will make it doubly difficult on us."
Haluska is also surrounded by a solid supporting cast.
"He's got four or five receivers who catch the ball really well," Bladt added. "(Fullback Jordan) Thelen (706 yards, nine TD's) is a great runner and a tough kid; he also plays defensive end and he's a stalwart there. They've got six guys that are playing on both sides of the ball, and they're very, very good athletes."
Carroll head coach Dennis McCartan - now 48-14 in his sixth year at the helm - is equally impressed by the Cyclone arsenal that his defense must try to stop. HCHS tailback Dylan Barrett (6-0, 185) was held to a season-low 66 yards by Heelan last week but has still totaled 1,580 yards rushing and scored 29 total touchdowns as a junior. Lining up in front of Barrett in the backfield is 6-4, 245-pound Iowa recruit Matt Hoch, who has rushed 75 times for 546 yards and scored nine total TD's.
"They just are fantastic running backs," McCartan said. "They're both powerful and they're both fast, and that's a deadly combination when you've got two running backs that are not just big and strong, but they're fast, too, and elusive."
McCartan also sings the praises of Cyclone quarterback Michael Kaufmann (1,750 yards, 16 TD passes, 8 TD runs) and his deep receiving corps, led by tight end Adam Cave (27 catches, 551 yards, seven TD's).
"They have an arsenal of kids to throw to," McCartan said, "and that makes it really difficult to prepare for a team like that."
Tradition favors Cyclones
Comparing the football playoff traditions of Harlan Community and Carroll is basically an "apples to oranges" exercise, but the differences cannot be overlooked.
The Cyclones boast Iowa bests with 11 state titles, eight runner-up trophies and now 25 semifinal appearances in 30 all-time playoff trips. The school's all-time playoff record is an amazing 79-18.
Carroll, meanwhile, is 3-8 in all-time playoff games and did not earn its first playoff win until last season. This is the Tigers' first-ever trip to the semifinal round and its first game inside the Dome.
What all that means, however, is up for debate, especially when factoring in the Cyclones' rare three-year absence from the UNI-Dome prior to this season.
"Like I told our kids today," Bladt said . . . "They say we've been in the Dome this many times, we've got this many state championships, we've got this many runner-ups and so forth. I said, 'how many of you have played in the Dome?' - and of course, it's none. So there goes that advantage."
And while McCartan knows this is unchartered territory for Carroll football, he believes this year's team possesses enough leadership and experience to avoid any feelings of complacency for making it this far or any intimidation regarding the opponent or venue.
"They're like anybody else - they're real excited - but they've done a really good job of keeping their heads about them and realizing that the task at hand is a lot more important than where you play the game. That's been the key for them right now," he said.
"Last spring when we did our senior leadership training, one of the things raised was a foreshadowing of getting to the Dome. But if this is good enough for them, then we're going to be in a world of hurt. The expectations are that this is just the next game out of a 14-game season."
Although Carroll has lost 14 straight football games against Harlan, dating back to 1966, there have been some close calls in recent years and the Tigers have defeated the Cyclones in some post-season games in both basketball and baseball.
"(We) played them for third place in (state) basketball and won that game, so the kids are pretty confident," McCartan added. "They haven't beat (Harlan) in football, but I think they just feel real confident in their abilities, and I think we have a different mindset than maybe we've had in the past."
The Cyclones' mindset was sky high last Friday after clearing a tough hurdle in Heelan - the team that ousted them from the playoffs the previous two years - but Bladt knows his team must put that win behind them now. Just as the Cyclones don't look past any opponents throughout the season, they cannot depend on last week's win to carry them forward.
"Carroll really doesn't care if we beat Heelan or not, and we don't really care that they beat Clear Lake, either," Bladt said.
"I think we've just got to start over. It's one of those deals that everybody was pointing at that (Heelan) game. We weren't going to worry about what was coming up next, but that's the way we treat all the games. We didn't mention Heelan at all when we were getting ready to play A-D-M, and we didn't mention A-D-M when we were getting ready to play MOC-Floyd Valley. We try to take the same approach with everybody, prepare one game at a time and try to put the best product on the field that we can."
Monday's keys
For Coach Bladt, potential success against Carroll comes down to keeping the ball out of Haluska's hands as much as possible and playing another sound version of bend-but-don't break defense when the Tigers have the ball.
"The key matchups are going to be: can we maintain control of the football and put it in the endzone, and can we slow down their quarterback and keep him from running us to death," Bladt said. "We know he's going to throw on us - there's no question about that - but we have to limit the running and try to take that part out of their offense."
Asked about using a defensive "spy" to focus solely on Haluska's whereabouts, Bladt was hesitant.
"You almost have to have somebody that keeps an eye on him, but the problem with that is they'd soon figure out who that guy is and send somebody to take care of him," he said.
Coach McCartan credits Haluska's decision-making abilities on when to tuck the ball and run as a big part of Carroll's improvement this year in sustaining drives.
"That's a great threat when you drop back to pass, you see nobody (open) and you just take it," he said. "We can spread teams out a lot and maybe get the linebackers to drop a little more and pick up five or six yards here or there."
By the same token, McCartan knows his Tigers' defense must contain the scrambles of Kaufmann, who has shown a knack all year for making people miss in the open field when it's time to pick up a key first down.
"Kaufmann does a great job of running the show and he's elusive, too," McCartan said. "He's not big but he sure is fast, and if he gets outside on people, it's over."
McCartan, who like Bladt is a linemen coach, believes the biggest matchup on the field Monday still comes down to who wins in the trenches. Both teams possess a good combination of size and skill on their offensive and defensive lines.
"It's always won or lost up front," he said. "I think whoever can win that battle - or at least when it's third and short to get another first down as opposed to going three and out - I think that's a big deal. And as always up front, if they've got a huge pass rush our front five have got to stop those guys or we're going to be in for a long night, and it's kind of vice versa."
Odds and ends
The Cyclones have avoided the injury bug for the most part this fall, but may or may not have the services of right tackle Jacob Brown (ankle) on Monday. Brown re-aggravated the injury early in the Heelan game and did not return.
"I don't know if he's going to be ready to go or not, but he's sure working hard trying to get there," Bladt said. "I also felt that (Joe) Kohorst did a good job coming in there and taking his place."
The biggest change to the UNI-Dome this year is the installation of FieldTurf, which replaces the old Astroturf playing surface. The players will be able to wear their regular football cleats on the FieldTurf, which is less bouncy than the old surface but still lends itself well to speed.
"That will help us, too, but we'll have to see who it favors the most," Bladt noted.
With two good offenses and two good defenses on the field, Bladt says it's hard to predict just how many points will go on the board.
"It could go either way," he said. "If it goes high-scoring, I hope we can put the ball in the endzone; otherwise it's going to be a miserable afternoon."
Harlan Community (12-0) vs. Carroll (12-0)
Monday, November 16, 4:30 p.m.
(Class 3-A Playoff Semifinal at the UNI-Dome; Cedar Falls)
Series History
All-time Series: Tied, 32-32-4.
at Harlan: Series tied, 16-16-3.
at Carroll: Series tied, 16-16-1.
Playoffs: HCHS leads, 2-0 (1996, '98).
Carroll's last win: 1966 (7-6, at Carroll).
Playoff Scores: HCHS 48, Carroll 7 (1996); HCHS 48, Carroll 6 (1998).
Last 5 Meetings
2007: HCHS won 38-7 (at Harlan).
2006: HCHS won 28-18 (at Carroll).
2005: HCHS won 42-20 (at Harlan).
2004: HCHS won 41-7 (at Carroll).
2003: HCHS won 28-21 (at Harlan).
Probable Starters
OFFENSE
Harlan Community
LT: 76, Marcus Streit (5-10, 240, sr.)
LG: 50, Joe Brummer (6-1, 235, so.)
C: 52, Mark Langenfeld (6-2, 255, sr.)
RG: 60, Jon Kaufman (6-3, 200, sr.)
RT: 67, Jacob Brown (6-0, 250, sr.)
TE: 80, Adam Cave (6-3, 200, jr.)
QB: 5, Michael Kaufmann (5-11, 155, sr.)
FB: 9, Matt Hoch (6-4, 245, sr.)
TB: 32, Dylan Barrett (6-0, 185, jr.)
SE: 42, Brian Kloewer (6-1, 190, sr.)
FL: 31, Luke Lansman (6-2, 190, sr.)
PK: 15, Trent Wendt (5-9, 150, jr.)
Carroll Public
LT: 51, Ben Caltrider (6-3, 250, sr.)
LG: 65, Devon Geisler-Piihl (5-11, 190, sr.)
C: 57, Peter von Qualen (5-11, 185, sr.)
RG: 58, Cole Schwarte (5-11, 220, sr.)
RT: 50, Kyle Bauer (6-2, 265, sr.)
TE: 4, Jordan Holdsworth (6-5, 185, jr.)
QB: 11, Blake Haluska (6-4, 200, sr.)
FB: 24, Jordan Thelen (6-0, 195, sr.)
TB: 1, Taylor Ostrich (6-3, 195, jr.)
SE: 2, Brad Christensen (6-0, 160, so.)
Slot: 36, Ethan Shields (5-7, 160, sr.)
PK: 12, Casey Kasperbauer (6-0, 160, so.)
DEFENSE
Harlan Community
LDE: 70, Joe Arentson (6-0, 190, sr.)
DT: 47, Alex Brown (5-11, 195, jr.)
DT: 76, Marcus Streit (5-10, 240, sr.) and 77, Mitch Anderson (5-10, 215, jr.)
RDE: 6, Ryan Fahn (6-3, 195, sr.)
LOLB: 46, Dillon Kramer (6-0, 170, sr.) and 17, Dan Schaben (6-0, 185, sr.)
MLB: 9, Matt Hoch (6-4, 245, sr.)
ROLB: 12, Derek Schwartz (6-0, 185, jr.)
S: 31, Luke Lansman (6-2, 190, sr.)
S: 4, Craig Connell (6-2, 150, sr.)
CB: 42, Brian Kloewer (6-1, 190, sr.)
CB: 7, Anthony Hough (5-8, 150, sr.)
Punter: 15, Trent Wendt (5-9, 150, jr.)
Carroll Public
DE: 44, Tim O'Tool (6-3, 185, sr.)
DT: 58, Cole Schwarte (5-11, 220, sr.)
DT: 50, Kyle Bauer (6-2, 265, sr.)
DE: 24, Jordan Thelen (6-0, 195, sr.)
LB: 1, Taylor Ostrich (6-3, 195, jr.)
LB: 22, Taylor Berger (5-7, 165, jr.)
LB: 37, Nathaniel Moore (5-10, 170, sr.)
LB: 88, Jay Baumann (6-3, 175, jr.)
FS: 11, Blake Haluska (6-4, 200, sr.)
CB: 2, Brad Christensen (6-0, 160, so.)
CB: 12, Casey Kasperbauer (6-0, 160, so.)
Punter: 1, Taylor Ostrich (6-3, 195, jr.)
Class 3-A Semifinals (Nov. 16)
(at UNI-Dome: Cedar Falls)
HCHS (12-0) vs. Carroll (12-0), 4:30
New Hampton (10-2) vs. Pella (9-3), 7:30
3-A Championship (Nov. 21)
(at UNI-Dome: Cedar Falls)
Semifinal Winners play at 4:05 p.m.
2009 Game-by-Game Results
Harlan Community (12-0)
HCHS 56, Denison-Schleswig 21
HCHS 24, Sioux City Heelan 6
HCHS 38, Atlantic 0
HCHS 42, A-D-M, Adel 14
HCHS 48, Winterset 3
HCHS 41, Glenwood 0
HCHS 49, Clarke, Osceola 0
HCHS 44, Creston/O-M 0
HCHS 28, Lewis Central 0
Substate/Playoffs
HCHS 49, MOC-Floyd Valley 7
HCHS 48, A-D-M, Adel 0
HCHS 21, Sioux City Heelan 14
Offense: 488 points (40.7 ppg.)
Defense: 65 points allowed (5.4 ppg.)
Carroll Public (12-0)
Carroll 30, Kuemper Catholic 7
Carroll 31, Carlisle 7
Carroll 20, JSPC, Jefferson 12
Carroll 49, Perry 7
Carroll 24, Dallas Center-Grimes 10
Carroll 66, Saydel 7
Carroll 28, Ballard 14
Carroll 38, Boone 14
Carroll 60, Nevada 14
Substate/Playoffs
Carroll 46, Hampton-Dumont 12
Carroll 42, JSPC, Jefferson 7
Carroll 28, Clear Lake 14
Offense: 462 points (38.5 ppg.)
Defense: 125 points allowed (10.4 ppg.)
