West Branch running back Andy Henson carries the ball during a high school playoff football game between West Branch and MFL MarMac at the Little Rose Bowl in West Branch, Iowa, on Friday, Nov. 4, 2022. (Grace Smith/The Daily Iowan)

CEDAR RAPIDS – You’ll either be getting up early or staying awake late if you want to watch Gazette-area prep football teams play in the state playoff semifinals.

The Iowa High School Athletic Association has released pairings for the final four in each class. All semifinal games will be played at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls.

West Branch is the fourth seed in Class 1A and will play top-seeded and defending champion Van Meter in a 10 a.m. semifinal Friday. The Bears (11-0) rallied from 11 points down in the fourth quarter to win their quarterfinal over MFL/MarMac, while Van Meter (10-1) has posted shutouts in four consecutive games (including a 45-0 quarterfinals win over Sigourney-Keota) and six of its last seven.

The Bulldogs’ lone loss came way back in Week 2 of the regular season to Williamsburg, which is the top seed of Class 2A’s final four. The Raiders (11-0) play Dubuque Wahlert (9-2) in a 10 a.m. semifinal Saturday.

Wahlert’s losses have come to Waukon and Class 4A semifinalist Cedar Rapids Xavier.

Mount Vernon is the 2…