PLEASANT HILL, Iowa — The 2025 football season starts with Southeast Polk looking for its fifth straight state title in Class 4A.

The Rams have won the past four state championships, most recently beating Ankeny 38-35 in the title game last year.

The journey starts for head coach Brad Zelenovich and his team on Friday night at home versus the Ankeny Centennial Jaguars. Last year, when the two teams played, Southeast Polk won 21-13 at Centennial.

Zelenovich said that while the team has won the past four championships, that isn’t a topic of conversation in the locker room.

“The narrative is the narrative,” Zelenovich said. “We don’t talk a whole lot about it. You know, calendar went to 2025. We have a new football team and new challenges and new personnel. And, you know, the standard remains the same. And, you know, we’ve got a quality opponent coming in. But now, we’ve spent a whole lot of time talking about that and looking forward to the opportunity Friday night.”

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Southeast Polk Stadium in Pleasant Hill. The game will also be featured on Football Friday Primetime, streaming the game to WHO Channel 13, the WHO 13+ App, and online at WHO13.com. Keith Murphy and Justin Surrency will be calling the game.