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The Class 4A State Championship featuring #6 Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger (12-2) and #7 Roncalli (11-3) will stream via PPV on IHSAAtv.org this Saturday at 3 pm ET / 2 CT!

INDIANAPOLIS – Ninety-nine days or roughly 14 weeks.

That is how long it took for both sixth-ranked Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger and seventh-ranked Indianapolis Roncalli to travel full circle heading into Saturday afternoon’s IHSAA Class 4A football state championship in downtown Indianapolis.

Paired up on opening night of the 2025 season, the two “cousins” in faith and football battled to a 3-0 finale with Roncalli winning the home contest on Aug. 22.

Now, on the final day of the season, both programs expect nothing less for the sequel, a rematch held, this time, inside Lucas Oil Stadium.

“Maybe another 3-0. I just hope the three is on our side this time, but we expect a great battle between the 20-yard lines,” Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger coach Jason Garrett said. “It’s going to come down to the line of scrimmage. It’s going to come down to turnovers and things like that usually determine a game of this magnitude.”

With a combined 15 state titles between the two traditional football powerhouses – Roncalli with 10 (five in 4A) – both teams are ready to snap their respective championship droughts.

Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger (12-2) returns to the state finals for the first time since 2018 when the program won its second 4A title and fifth overall (three in 3A), making this the Saints’ 12th state championship appearance all time.

Roncalli (11-3) won its fifth 4A state title in 2020 and ended a five-year state finals absence with its 14th appearance since 1983.

“It’s exciting. It’s great to be back. The process from ’18, getting back here in 2025, has been unique in that we were in 5A for four years,” Garrett said. “We’re so blessed to be here.”

The Saints have put in the work to get back to state after navigating 5A football from 2019-22 before dropping down to 4A the past three years.

A regional champion in 2019 while in 5A, the Saints’ recent 4A run increased their regional title total to 23 and secured the program’s 11th and first semi-state crown since 2018.

In the process, FW Dwenger defeated No. 8 Leo, 31-7, in the sectional opener, and No. 1 East Noble, 32-0, in the sectional final.

“That’s one of the things that I’m trying to extend to our guys is take in every moment, appreciate it. Extend the memories as far as you can because there’s nothing like it,” Garrett said.

“We’re a 4A program by enrollment, but I think the 5A journey taught us a lot. I think the coaches learn more than anyone else, players alike. You’re playing these bigger schools. They’re able to do some things, like not have two-way guys, and just the environments that we were placed in, whether it be regular-season games or the postseason runs we made, those are some great moments that taught us a lot.”

Garrett led the Saints to the 2018 state championship in his first year with a record of 14-1, and while Dwenger’s offense has averaged 25.1 points per game this season, it’s the state’s third-best defense (8.14), regardless of classification, that has led to their reemergence.

Captained by senior linebacker Houston Ellinger (13.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks), the Saints’ defensive identity anchors around pressure, disruption and forcing turnovers.

Six different players have produced a total of nine forced fumbles, nine interceptions and 17.5 sacks.

Seniors Doug Henry (132 tackles, 16 for loss), KC Pieper (121 tackles, 18 for loss, 3 sacks), AJ Shefferly (17 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks) and Jackson Parrish (5 interceptions, two forced fumbles) provide the punch.
Tradition fuels the rest.

“A third of our team is related, so a lot of their dads, their grandfathers and uncles have been in the program, have played in games like this. So, as a little kid, they’ve seen it happen,” Garrett said.

“In fact, one of our captains, Houston Ellinger, was the ball boy in ’18 with us. There are pictures floating around. That’s the great thing about being part of a program that’s had long standing success is there’s some familiarity with being down here, so we’re looking forward to it.”

The same goes for Roncalli, which eliminated No. 10 Northview, 54-32, in sectional; No. 9 Yorktown, 31-27, at regional; No. 2 Heritage Hills, 42-14, at semi-state and No. 3 Indianapolis Bishop Chatard, 26-6, in the sectional final.

The Royals’ victory over Bishop Chatard, who beat Roncalli, 33-11, on Sept. 5, helped turn a 1-2 season record to start into a 10-1 run the rest of the way leading to the state finals.

“We played a lot of good football teams up until we played them at sectional, and our guys just week in and week out were able to get better and better. Play with confidence,” Roncalli coach Sam Otley said. “Just continue to develop. There were guys playing positions for the first time early on against good teams where you learn hard lessons. You see things on film, and we gave them an opportunity. The more you rep it at game speed against good teams, the fit gets more solid.”

Senior quarterback Collin Ash has been an ideal playmaker for the Royals, throwing for 1,843 yards and 17 touchdowns while rushing for 1,015 yards and 23 TDs.

“To speak on his influence on the guys in the locker room as a captain through his attitude and effort, he’s a fiery competitor. He just gets the best out of guys because every situation we’re going to go attack and we’re going to go compete,” Otley said. “He’s a threat in the run game. When things aren’t there, being able to make plays with scrambles and plays with his legs. It just adds another dynamic element to the offense.”

Saturday’s rematch marks the third meeting between both programs in the state finals with Dwenger winning 22-21 in the 3A title game in 1983 and Roncalli seizing the 4A championship, 24-21, in 2002.

“Cousin vs. cousin, no doubt,” Garrett said. “The way they run their program, their school, the coaching staff, there’s a lot of similarity, a lot of familiarity there. We were blessed to go down there week one and got to see how they do things. First class, you know, cousins in faith and otherwise.”

For Otley, a 2011 Roncalli graduate and former player, the roots run deep, after serving as an assistant coach for eight seasons, including state title finishes in 2016 and 2020, before taking over the program in 2024.

“It’s extremely special being able to be the head coach at Roncalli. It’s an awesome opportunity. It’s a responsibility, one that I don’t take lightly. Roncalli football has been part of my family’s Catholic identity,” Otley said.

“It’s a cool experience to play a team week one and week 15. That doesn’t happen, but we get an opportunity, and I know both programs are excited for a fifth, a sixth, a seventh and an eighth quarter to be hard fought. We’re proud to be able to represent Catholic football in a state championship, and I know Dwenger is. Just mutual respect amongst both programs.”

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