Thursday night’s Class 6A state semifinal started as a race between Minnetonka junior quarterback Caleb Francois’ legs and Anoka senior quarterback Peyton Podany’s arm. It was a contest that remained even for a while, but eventually Francois ran away with things, carrying his team straight into the championship game. Francois rushed for 283 yards and five touchdowns while throwing for another, lifting Minnetonka past the Tornadoes 48-27 at U.S. Bank Stadium. “We have a lot of trust in our (offensive) line,” said Francois, whose team (10-2) advances to meet the winner of Friday’s semifinal between Maple Grove and Shakopee in the state championship game at 7 p.m. Nov. 22 at U.S. Bank Stadium. “So I think we were really confident in our run game going into this game.” That trust proved justified as the Skippers rushed for 397 yards as a team. Senior Chase Conrad finished with 102 yards and one touchdown. “We’re confident in Caleb throwing the ball too,” Minnetonka coach Mark Esch said. “We talk on the headsets all the time … ‘Let’s take a shot. Let’s take a shot.’ “But we felt like we were dominant tonight. When you’re running for almost 400 yards, why stop?” Both teams played to their strengths in a back-and-forth first half. Podany threw for 162 yards and two touchdowns — a 17-yard scoring strike to senior Afy Ibekwe and a 29-yard connection to senior Charlie Hendrickson. Ibekwe also had a 5-yard run that put Anoka up 6-0 after the Tornadoes forced the Skippers to turn the ball over on downs at the Anoka 25 on the game’s opening possession. “It’s always frustrating to go down the field like that and not score,” Minnetonka senior offensive lineman Aidan Becker said. “But that’s part of football. We all know stuff like that happens. We just focused on the next plays.” Those plays usually involved Francois, who rushed for 173 yards and two touchdowns in the first half while throwing what was ruled an 11-yard touchdown pass to senior Vincent May. That meant the two teams went to the locker rooms tied 21-21. Francois credited the preparation his team put in this week for the success it was able to achieve. “We spent a lot of time on film getting ready for them,” he said. That continued to pay off in the second half. The Skippers forced an Anoka punt on the opening drive of the third quarter, giving them the ball at the Tornadoes 43 and setting the stage for a 15-yard touchdown run by Conrad that put Minnetonka on top 28-21. Francois scored on a 10-yard run on his team’s next possession, then scored from four yards out following a 24-yard interception return by senior Jack Yerhot. He added a five-yard touchdown run with 4:33 to play to extend the margin to 48-21. Ibekwe scored on a 19-yard pass from Podany with 3:21 to play to cut that lead to 21, but that was as close as Anoka could get. Podany finished with 222 yards passing and three touchdowns. “I thought in the second half, their front seven did a good job putting pressure on me,” said Podany, whose team – which was in the state semifinals for the first time since 1994 – closed its season 8-4. “I had to make quick decisions. That obviously led to the interception. “But I’m just so proud of how we fought to the very end. We had trust in each other down to the last second we were on the field.” But it is the Skippers who are moving on to play for a state title. Francois and others were part of the Minnetonka boys basketball team that won the Class 4A state title last March. Now they are hoping to repeat that feat on the football field. “When (Francois) was on the state championship basketball team, I texted him right after and said, ‘Let’s go win one in football,’” Esch said. “He answered back and said, ‘I’ve been thinking about that the whole time.’ “So we’ve been thinking about this for a long time now.” Related Articles High School Sports | State football roundup: Becker cruises into Class 4A final High School Sports | High school football: Friday’s Minnesota state semifinal predictions High School Sports | High school football: Wisconsin state semifinal predictions High School Sports | High school football: Thursday’s state tournament semifinal predictions High School Sports | High school football: Owatonna edges Cretin-Derham Hall in overtime in Class 5A quarterfinal