High school football fans in Eastern Iowa have been dreaming about a matchup of top-ranked Washington against second-ranked Bettendorf in the semifinals of the Class 4A playoffs all season.

Now it's finally here.

The Washington Warriors roared into the semifinals behind the 1-2 punch of tailbacks Tavian Patrick and Johnny Dobbs Friday night and punished Iowa City West, 44-19, in the quarterfinals at Kingston Stadium.

Bettendorf upheld its end of the bargain Friday night by whipping North Scott, 23-3, so now both 12-0 teams are headed for a major collision in the UNI-Dome next Friday in Cedar Falls.

"I guess we'll see what happens," said Patrick, a 5-foot-8 scatback who danced for 172 yards and one touchdown Friday. "We're ready, they'll be ready. We're ready for a war."

Dobbs rambled for 120 yards and three short touchdowns as the Warriors, featuring a powerful offensive line and two sturdy fullbacks, rolled up 381 yards on the ground on 62 carries against the beleaguered Iowa City West defense.

Patrick and Dobbs, a power back at 215 pounds, have taken turns at tailback all season and have produced 1,904 yards and 22 touchdowns between them.

"Yeah, that's what we are: Thunder and lightning," said Dobbs. "It's hard to cover us, because he can run outside and inside, and I can go inside and a little bit outside."

It also helps to have an offensive line that features 315-pound Aries Davis, 275-pound Julian Good-Jones, 275-pound Royal Silver, 215-pound Max Podgorski and 210-pound Sean Knox. Toss in blue-collar fullbacks Connor Vincent and Caleb Smothers, along with three effective tight ends, and

Washington has one of the top rushing attacks in the state.

"Credit goes to our linemen for clearing holes, and our two fullbacks for being able to lead block and dominate," said Coach Paul James.

Dowling Catholic and Waukee will clash in the other Class 4A semifinal next Friday in the UNI-Dome.

The Warriors held Iowa City West to 158 yards of total offense. The Trojans carried the ball 21 times for just 37 yards.

It got a little nippy at Kingston Stadium Friday night as the temperature dipped into the 40's with a brisk wind, but it will be nice and cozy in the next round.

"You know what we're doing next Friday?" James happily yelled at his players after the game. "We're playing indoors!" The best football team from the Mississippi Valley Conference will meet the best team from the Mississippi Athletic Conference for a chance to play for the state title Nov. 21 in the UNI-Dome.

"It's going to be loud," said Good-Jones, who has committed to Iowa State. "It's going to be loud, but warm. So that's good."

Washington jumped to a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter against Iowa City West (7-5) and was never seriously challenged.

Washington drove 80 yards in 13 plays for a 7-0 lead on a six-yard touchdown by Patrick and the PAT by Gunner Lenzen. Reid Snitker broke loose for a 40-yard punt return, and six plays later Dobbs scored on a toss sweep for a 14-0 edge with the PAT.

After one quarter, the Warriors had 119 yards of total offense compared to minus-one yard for the Trojans, setting the tone for the entire game.

Washington drove 71 yards on nine plays and grabbed a 21-0 advantage on another 1-yard score by Dobbs.

Iowa City West went to a hurry-up offense and finally got untracked for an 80-yard touchdown drive, capped by a 25-yard pass from Aaron Bleil to Alex Henderson. Lenzen later kicked a 24-yard field goal and the Warriors led at halftime, 24-7.

Washington made it 30-7 in the third quarter on a two-yard touchdown by Dobbs and it was time to pass in the songbooks.

It's been obvious for a long time that Washington and Bettendorf were the two best teams in the Eastern part of the state and perhaps the two best in the entire state. The script rarely goes according to form, but it did this year and now the Warriors and Bulldogs will settle things in Cedar Falls.

James wasn't sure how things would turn out this year.

"You just never know," he remarked. "There are so many twists and turns.

"An injury here or there can turn your whole season around. A fumble or an interception can turn it around, so you just never know what the season brings."

James said he's not going to harp on the No. 1 vs. No. 2 angle for next Friday's game.

"That's the farthest thing from their mind right now," he said. "It's just the next opponent. They're athletically mature, in the way that they think about the season and the game.

"We'll have to play hard. Bettendorf has a quality program."

WASHINGTON 44, IOWA CITY WEST 19

. ICW          CRW

First downs          11           24
Rushes-yards         21-37        62-381
Passing yards        121          69
Comp-Att-Int         12-30-1      5-11-0
Fumbles-lost         1-1          3-2
Punts-avg.           6-43.3       2-19.0
Penalties-yards      6-47         4-40

Iowa City West    0    7  6    6 - 19
Washington       14  10  6  14 - 44

CRW - Tavian Patrick 6 run (Gunner Lenzen kick)
CRW - Johnny Dobbs 1 run (Lenzen kick)
CRW - Dobbs 1 run (Lenzen kick)
ICW - Alex Henderson 25 pass from Aaron Bleil (Connor Gordon kick)
CRW - FG Lenzen 24
CRW - Dobbs 2 run (kick blocked)
ICW - Henderson 9 pass from Bleil (kick failed)
CRW - Reid Snitker 2 run (Lenzen kick)
CRW - Connor Vincent 2 run (Lenzen kick)
ICW - John Milani 11 fumble return (pass failed)

Individual Statistics
Rushing

Iowa City West - Hicks 13-38, Doyle 2-6, Bleil 5-minus 5, Eads 1-minus 2.
Washington - Patrick 22-172, Dobbs 19-120, Snitker 4-31, Smothers 5-17, Vincent 10-42, Akers 1-0, Team 1-minus 1.

Passing

Iowa City West - Bleil 12-30-1, 121 yards
Washington - Snitker 5-11-0, 69 yards

Receiving

Iowa City West - Henderson 5-80, Eads 2-20, Martin 2-10, Greene 1-minus 1, Hicks 2-12.
Washington - Nimmers 2-44, Patrick 1-11, Vance 1-7, Akers 1-7.