Devils Lake and Fargo Shanley went into last week's Class AA semifinals as underdogs.

Today, the Firebirds and Deacons have a chance to be state champions.

Devils Lake came from behind to defeat No. 1 Wahpeton 28-21 last Saturday. Shanley also rallied that day, erasing a 14-0 halftime deficit on the way to a 27-23 win over No. 2 Dickinson Trinity. Both Wahpeton and Trinity entered semifinal play undefeated.

"I don't think a lot of people expected this matchup in the state title game, but here we are. ... Anything can happen in the playoffs," Devils Lake coach Jay Schneider said. "We're excited to be there, and no doubt Shanley is, too.

No. 3 Devils Lake (10-1) and No. 4 Shanley (9-2) will meet at 1 p.m. today at the Fargodome for the Class AA crown. The Firebirds are in the state title game for the second time in three years. Shanley, which moved from the Class AAA ranks to Class AA this season, is in a state final for the first time since 1983. That year, it won the Class A 11-man title in the three-class system.

The Firebirds needed 15 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to defeat the top-ranked Huskies. They scored the game-winning touchdown with 1:40 remaining in the contest.

"The kids just gritted their teeth and owned the fourth quarter," Schneider said. "For a lot of them, it was their last chance to get back to the state title game. They decided they weren't going to waste it."

The Firebirds denied North Dakota football fans the chance to see one of the state's most electrifying players in Wahpeton running back Ryan Smith. But those fans will get to see Devils Lake's Ben Wolf, one of the state's top all-around players.

The senior running back-defensive back has racked up 1,512 yards and 20 touchdowns on offense, and picked off eight enemy passes on defense. Wolf, who scored last week's game-winner on a 1-yard run, was a first-team all-state defensive back last season.

"Ben has had an outstanding year on both sides of the ball ... again," Schneider said. "He's a playmaker, plain and simple. He's an all-stater on defense but he could definitely be one on offense, too."

The Firebirds have other playmakers in quarterback Beau Eriksson (52-for-102, 738 yards, 9 TDs); running backs Jason Berg (65-327) and Kole Jenson (60-278), and receivers Tyler Mertens (15-354, 5 TDs) and Calvin Crawford (14-187, 3 TDs).

Defensively, the Firebirds allowed Smith to run for 242 yards, but the senior needed 46 carries to accumulate that total. Smith entered that contest averaging well over 10 yards per carry.

"We talked all week about limiting the big runs, and I think Smith's biggest run of the day was 20-some yards," Schneider said. "But the key to the game, I thought, was our offense controlling the ball for most of the second half and keeping it away from Wahpeton's offense. I think they ran only 18 plays the whole half."

For Shanley, quarterback Myles Montplaisir has hurt opposing teams with his arm (65-for-110, 1,055 yards, 12 TDs) and his legs (79-421, 9 TDs). Stefan Webber is the team's top rusher with 796 yards on 109 carries, and Mike Jones, Josh Rodenbiker and Dylan Dunn have 21 (274 yards), 19 (309) and 16 (292) receptions, respectively.

"Shanley is well-coached, with good team quickness and athletic kids," Schneider said. "And their lines are solid on both sides. They're a very good team, no doubt about it."