By Ryan Deal

VERMILLION — The Gregory Gorillas gained their first Class 9A state championship on Thursday. 

Gregory, which has one Class 11B and three Class 9AA state titles, captured its first-ever Class 9A championship, holding off Warner 36-23 at the DakotaDome. 

It is the first state championship since 2017 for Gregory, which epitomizes small-town high school football.  

“We have a football tradition and we have a great, great football program and a program isn't just a team,” Gregory coach Mike Murray said. “It’s the whole community that comes together. So this isn't a win for our team. It’s a win for our community because everybody pitches in.” 

Gregory (11-1) racked up 300 rushing yards and held off a late surge from Warner (11-1) to secure the title. Gregory quarterback Rylan Peck rushed for 162 yards on 15 carries and scored three rushing touchdowns. Peck, who was the Joe Robbie MVP and most outstanding back, threw for 77 yards and intercepted a pass on defense to seal the thrilling victory. 

Gregory’s Rylan Peck breaks free for a touchdown run during the first half of the Gorillas’ 36-23 win over Warner in the 9A championship game on Thursday at the DakotaDome in Vermillion. (Rodney Haas/605 Sports)

“It put us through an emotional rollercoaster and we had to play with emotion and just not get emotional,” Peck said.  

The Gorillas gashed the Monarchs in the first half and reached their season average (232) for rushing yards by halftime. Kade Stukel (3 yards) and Peck (81 yards) had first-quarter rushing touchdowns. 

Peck’s 23-yard touchdown run stretched Gregory’s lead to 24-0 with just under seven minutes left before halftime. The Gorillas, however, knew the Monarchs wouldn’t go away. 

“We knew Warner is a good team,” said Gregory senior Gunnar Stephens, the game’s most outstanding lineman. “They were ranked No. 1 in the state. So we knew we would have adversity throughout the game, but our coaches told us all through the year, we have to overcome it.” 

Hunter Cramer hit Ashton Schuchhardt for Warner’s first touchdown, cutting the deficit to 24-8 with 29 seconds left before halftime. Stukel’s third-quarter touchdown run extended the advantage to 30-8 with 7:19 left in the third quarter. 

Gregory’s Kade Stukel cross the goal line for a touchdown during the third quarter of the Gorillas’ 36-23 win over Warner in the 9A championship on Thursday at the DakotaDome in Vermillion. (Rodney Haas/605 Sports)

That’s when Warner, which overcame a 31-14 halftime deficit to Canistota in the quarterfinals, came to life. Cramer scored two third-quarter touchdowns and Warner got within 30-23 entering the final period. 

“All year we talked about adversity and I told them this team we are playing is so good,” Murray said. “We are going to see some adversity, but don't fall apart and don't get down. Just stick together and be a team. That’s exactly what happened.”

That and Peck cemented the championship. The junior quarterback engineered a 96-yard drive and capped it off with a one-yard TD plunge, extending Gregory’s lead to 36-23. 

Murray noted how the drive was indicative of Gregory’s season and how it improved throughout the season. 

“This team has just been getting better and better,” Murray said. “I don’t think we could have done that at the beginning of the season. That 96-yard drive was incredible and just all the credit to those guys for getting it done and executing and not falling apart.”

Peck kept the drive alive with 3rd and 11 conversion to Fogel, who hauled in the catch at Warner’s 20-yard line after Peck scrambled around the pocket.  

“I told coach I said ‘They can’t catch up to Fogel, man,’ ” Peck said. “ ‘Throw him something deep and I will get it on him.’ I threw it and he caught it.”

On Warner’s ensuing drive, Peck picked off a pass and Gregory ran out the clock. 

Warner finished with a season-low 29 rushing yards on 21 carries. Cramer rushed for eight yards on 13 carries, while he threw for 175 passing yards. 

Warner quarterback Hunter Cramer throws a pass during the third quarter of the Monarchs’ 36-23 loss to Gregory in the 9A championship on Thursday at the DakotaDome in Vermillion. (Rodney Haas/605 Sports)

“I don’t know what to say about our defense,” Stephens said. “We are solid all-around and we just have trust in each other and we know that somebody is going to make a play because that’s what we do and it happened.” 

Warner was playing in its second state championship game in three years, falling to Canistota/Freeman in 2020. The Monarchs are still searching for their first-ever championship. 

But the night belonged to Gregory as it added another championship to the trophy case. 

“We knew it was possible at the beginning (of the season),” Stephens said. “But we had to keep preserving and overcoming adversity and being here is just surreal and it’s an awesome feeling.”