Opening up its record-setting passing attack on the Nebraska plains, the Central College football team overwhelmed Nebraska Wesleyan 43-17 Saturday behind quarterback Riley Gray's (senior, West Des Moines, Waukee HS) career-best 343 yards.
The Dutch (5-2 overall, 3-2 Iowa Conference) threw for 365 yards overall and racked up 587 yards total offense in halting a two-game skid. With another 10 catches for 103 yards and a touchdown, wide receiver Sam Markham (senior, Atlantic) shattered his own school season receptions mark with 71 with three games left.
Gray connected on 30-of-40 with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Central was 34-of-45 passing overall. Gray also rushed 11 times for 48 yards, caught an 8-yard pass and was never sacked.
"Riley did a great job," coach Jeff McMartin said. "That was probably one of his best games as a quarterback. I thought all three of our quarterbacks did well. But Riley did a great job of going to the right people at the right time. He was really dialed in and showed great focus. Staying focused was something we wanted to do as a team this week."
But the Dutch running game was productive as well, with 222 yards. Sophomore Nathan Fitzgerald (sophomore, Elkader, Central Elkader HS), pushed into the lineup Oct. 1 because of injuries to other backs, topped the 150-yard mark for the second time in three games. He racked up 158 yards and a TD on 24 carries.
Central is generating 530.1 yards of offense per game, well ahead of the school mark of 457.0 yards set in 1996. The Dutch passing yardage average of 320.0 easily eclipses the record 244.4 gained in 2007.
Central, which roared to a 29-3 advantage after an 8-yard Gray to Markham TD pass on the second half's opening possession, had to withstand a third-quarter Nebraska Wesleyan surge. The Prairie Wolves (2-5 overall, 1-4 conference) put together back-to-back scoring drives in a 4-mnute span to climb within 29-17 with 9:02 left in the period and had a chance to draw closer but stalled on their next drive.
"I thought we played really well defensively in the first half," McMartin said. "But then we gave up a two-play touchdown drive. That's one of those things you have to avoid because it really swings the momentum. It got them back in the game. But I thought we kept battling."
The Dutch did, reasserting command with an 11-play, 61-yard drive. Gray's 2-yard TD run with 2:49 remaining in the period made it 36-17.
"That was big for us," McMartin said.
McMartin called that a turning point, He also cited the ensuing Nebraska Wesleyan drive, when receiver/returner Zack Martinelli (senior, Elburn, Ill., Kaneland HS) came in as a cornerback. He made a critical third-down tackle at the Central 12 and the Dutch were able to get a fourth-down stop.
The Dutch kept Nebraska Wesleyan under wraps the rest of the way, getting four fourth-quarter interceptions. Strong safety Collin Erickson (sophomore, Gilbert, Ariz., Dobson HS) snagged his second interception of the season while linebacker Chris Neeld (junior, New Boston, Ill., Mercer County HS), freshman cornerback Danny Anderson (Boone) and freshman defensive back Tate O'Tool (Fort Dodge, St. Edmond HS) each had the first of their Central careers. Erickson's pick was the first of the game and the most crucial, McMartin said. It halted a Nebraska Wesleyan drive at the Central 45-yard line and helped set up another Dutch score that put the game out of reach.
"That was a huge play," McMartin said. "We played the ball really well and just took it from them."
Central came up big on fourth down, going 4-4 on fourth-down conversions while stopping Nebraska Wesleyan on its two tries.
Nebraska Wesleyan still posted big numbers. The Prairie Wolves completed 32 of 50 passes for 342 yards and a score while rushing for 118 yards and a TD on 26 carries for 460 yards overall. The Dutch did hold running back Joel Wiedel to 71 yards on 16 carries, about 30 yards below his season average, but Wiedel also had 10 pass receptions for 101 yards.
Linebacker Tyler Olson (junior, Mapleton, Minn., Maple River HS) came off the bench because of an injured starter and had a team-high nine tackles for the Dutch, including seven solos. Linebacker Jessie Peterson (senior, Coralville, Iowa CityWest HS) had eight tackles, including two for loss while Erickson had seven stops and cornerback Trevor Smith (sophomore, Audobon) had six with two pass breakups along with his interception.
"Tyler (Olson) did a nice job," McMartin said. "And Jessie (Peterson) played another great game."
Offensively, S-back Kyle Gritsch (junior, Brooklyn, BGM HS) had six receptions for 62 yards and two touchdowns, giving him five TD receptions for the year. Receiver Kohle Helle (junior, Guttenberg, Clayton Ridge HS) had five catches for 57 yards and also completed two passes in as many attempts for 16 yards.
Markham, who ranks second in Division III with 10.2 receptions per game, is closing in on Chris Johnson's (1995-98) school career receiving yardage record of 2,566. Markham has 2,436.
McMartin liked the way the Dutch quickly put their two previous losses behind them this week.
"Our players have a goal of being 1-0 each week," he said. "They really had to focus, especially because it was fall break. But our seniors did a good job of leading the team all week. We practiced hard and showed a lot of enthusiasm. By Wednesday, if you watched practice, you wouldn't have known what happened the previous two weeks. And today we went out and played a great game."
After five road games in the season's first seven weeks, the Dutch finally return home, taking on preseason league co-favorite Wartburg College next Saturday at Ron and Joyce Schipper Stadium. The Knights are 4-2 overall and 3-1 in the conference after a 20-6 victory over Simpson College at Waverly Saturday.