PELLA — Despite what season records might imply, danger lurks in Dubuque Saturday for the Central College football team when it takes on Loras College in an Iowa Conference contest.
The Duhawks (0-3 overall, 0-1 conference) are winless, but return 17 starters from a squad that used an up-tempo attack to race past Central 55-48 last year at Dubuque.
"Loras is a very talented football team," coach Jeff McMartin said. "They've got just about everybody back from last season. We know they have a lot of firepower and we're expecting this to be a great challenge."
Central is 3-0 overall and 1-0 in the conference after a 33-0 shutout of Buena Vista at Pella Saturday. That was enough to vault the Dutch into the D3football.com Top 25 for the first time since 2010, debuting at No. 25.
Game time is 1 p.m. at the Rock Bowl in Dubuque.
On the air and on the Web—The Voice of the Dutch, Trevor Castle, will call the action on KRLS-FM (92.1), along with Cory Houser. The KRLS pregame show will air at 12:35 p.m. The broadcast can also be accessed through www.kniakrls.com or directly at rdo.to/krls. It's also accessible via mobile device with the KRLS app available through iTunes and other outlets.
On Mondays, Castle plays host to McMartin on the KRLS Coaches' Corner broadcast live from Fred's dining establishment inside Central's Maytag Student Center at 7 p.m. Those broadcasts are also available on demand through www.kniakrls.com. A live video stream of the show can be accessed via the Central athletics website at www.central.edu/athletics.
The series—Last year's Loras victory was its first over the Dutch since 2008. Central still holds a 31-6 advantage in the teams' all-time series. The programs first met in 1932.
The Duhawks--Loras stumbled in the league opener at Coe last Saturday, 45-10, but narrowly missed out on a pair of non-conference wins, with a 28-27 setback against Elmhurst College (Ill.) Sept. 3 and a 14-9 loss at Aurora University (Ill.) Sept. 10.
Loras racked up 638 yards of offense against the Dutch last year, just six shy of matching the most Central's ever surrendered. The Duhawks gained 434 through the air as Central was hit with a 28-point fourth quarter. The Dutch took a 48-47 lead with 1:41 remaining, but Loras needed just 54 seconds to answer and tacked on a two-point conversion for the victory margin.
Sophomore Nolan Baumhover, a 6-foot-4 quarterback, returns and has completed 39 of 65 passes for 441 yards and two touchdowns with four interceptions. Senior Jon Powers has 26 catches for 257 yards.
Senior Zach Minch is fifth in the league in rushing, averaging 101.7 yards per game.
It's the same rapid-fire attack that the Dutch had to deal with last year, McMartin said.
"They've run a lot of plays and gained a lot of yards," he said.
McMartin said the Loras offense has some similarities with Whitworth, Central's opening-game opponent.
"Certainly the tempo," he said. "We've experienced what this is going to feel like and how we have to play."
Senior inside linebacker Cal Harridge and junior safety Bryan Hermann are tied for 19th in the NCAA Division III in solo tackles with 7.7 per game. Harridge is 30th in total tackles with 12.0.
"They use a three-man front," McMartin said. "They really work at stopping the running game. They've got big defensive linemen who are very physical. Their outside linebackers are extremely quick and their inside linebackers have a lot of experience and really fly to the ball. They've got two safeties who are very physical and smart. For their cornerbacks, they've got a freshman and a junior who are very good. They ask a lot of their defensive backs because of their style of defense and the defensive backs do a really good job."
The Duhawks are No. 1 in the conference in pass defense, allowing 201.3 yards per game, and second in total defense at 382.7 yards.
"We have to run a lot of plays and continue to stress taking care of the ball," McMartin said. "Football is a game of mistakes. If you have fewer than your opponent, you've got a good chance of success."
Dialing up the heat—Central's offense has generated promising offensive numbers in the early going but it was the defense that shined the brightest against Buena Vista Saturday as the Dutch posted the shutout.
One of the keys was the pass rush, which recorded four sacks. Central had six tackles for loss overall, a fumble recovery, two interceptions and nine pass breakups.
"We got good pressure," McMartin said. "We did a good job on the running game, too. I really felt like our linemen got better as the game wore on."
Injuries forced a little reshuffling and McMartin saw good things from several players who saw increased time, including linebackers Chris Neeld (junior, New Boston, Ill., Mercer County HS) and Tyler Olson (junior, Mapleton, Minn., Maple River HS). They recorded career highs with 13 and nine tackles, respectively.
"Chris has played a lot of football for us at outside linebacker and on special teams," McMartin said. "He was asked to carry a bigger load. He brings a lot of energy and great speed. It's nice to have that on the field.
"Tyler Olson is doing a very good job at inside linebacker for us. He just keeps getting better. He's a positive for us as well."
Dutch numbers—Central is the Division III leader in first downs through three games with 31.3 per game. They rank 14th in third down conversions (55.4 percent), 29th in scoring (42.7) and 29th in sacks (3.33).
Individually, receiver Sam Markham (senior, Atlantic) is fifth in receptions (9.7) while safety Zach Matter (senior, Ankeny) is 19th in pass breakups (2.3). Receiver Zack Martinelli (senior, Elburn, Ill., Kaneland HS) is 21st in punt returns (15.2 yards) and running back Donny Groezinger (sophomore, Sulphur Springs, Texas; Eastland, Ill. HS) is 21st in rushing touchdowns (1.3).
Within the conference, Central is first in rush defense (100.7 yards), first downs and third down conversions. Markham leads in receptions, Matter is tops in pass breakups and Martinelli leads in punt returns.
Record watch—Markham is just one catch away from Chris Johnson's (1995-98) school career mark of 151. He's fourth in career receiving yards with 1,941, well back of Johnson's record 2,566.
What ranking?—It's safe to say the Dutch haven't devoted a lot of time to reflecting on their first appearance in the D3football.com Top 25 in six years.
"We're always going to focus on one game at a time," McMartin said. "Our mission right now is to have a really good week of practice and get ready to play Loras."
The University of Dubuque, which is listed as among those also receiving votes in the D3football.com poll, is the only conference school to crack the season's first American Football Coaches Association's coaches' poll, appearing at No. 21. Wartburg, Central and Coe are all among the schools receiving votes.
Duo honored—Kicker Aaron Marcellus (senior, Hudson) shared the Iowa Conference special teams player of the week award after hitting a pair of 27-yard field goals along with three of four extra point tries Saturday. It's the first multi-field goal collegiate game for Marcellus, who was cited by the league for the fourth time.
Defensive lineman Edwin Etienne (senior, Lehigh Acres, Fla., Riverdale HS) was named to the D3football.com team of the week. He notched a career-high eight tackles with 2.5 sacks, blocked a field goal attempt and recovered a fumble that set up a Central touchdown.
Notes—This is Central's third road game in four weeks. It's also the first of three games away from home over the next four weeks…Central is among 57 teams Division III teams still unbeaten in 2016, including three in the Iowa Conference…It's premature to project three-game statistics over an entire season, but nonetheless, the Dutch are well ahead of record pace for the season first downs mark of 246, with 94 already. Central's averaging 31.3 and needs to average just over 22 a game in the final seven contests for a new season high…The Dutch have turned the ball over twice in three games while forcing three turnovers.
Probable starters
Central College
Sat., Sept. 24
OFFENSE
QB 16 Riley Gray (6-1, 200, sr.)
RB 4 Donny Groezinger (5-9, 185, so.)
SB 28 Kyle Gritsch (6-1, 205, jr.)
TE 88 Mitchell Boerm (6-5, 250, sr.)
WR 13 William Meredith (6-1, 185, sr.)
WR 5 Sam Markham (6-2, 170, so.)
LT 75 Yaqoob Ahmad (6-3, 260, sr.)
LG 60 Kyle Pepper (6-1, 275, sr.)
C 57 Josh Brunk (6-1, 265, jr.)
RG 56 Cole Tanner (6-2, 275, sr.)
RT 76 Cal Smith (6-4, 290, jr.)
DEFENSE
DE 22 Edwin Etienne (5-9, 240, sr.)
NG 91 Wes Wheat (5-11, 265, jr.)
DE 78 Corbin Blythe (6-2, 265, sr.)
OLB 19 Drew Carlson (6-1, 220, sr.)
ILB 2 Tyler Olson (5-11, 215, jr.)
ILB 42 Sam Norgaard (6-1, 215, sr.)
OLB 48 Josh Scheible (5-9, 200, jr.)
CB 14 Danny Anderson (6-0, 175, fr.)
SS 9 Tate Jensen (5-11, 200, jr.)
FS 20 Zach Matter (6-0, 200, sr.)
CB 25 Trevor Smith (5-9, 170, so.)
SPECIALTY
K 32 Aaron Marcellus (5-9, 205, sr.)
P 87 Cam Kiner (6-4, 215, so.)
PR 11 Zack Martinelli (5-8, 185, sr.)
KR 11 Zack Martinelli (5-8, 185, sr.)
LS-K 83 P.J. Norem (6-2, 225, jr.)
LS-P 33 Carson Remick (5-10, 205, jr.)
H 2 P.J. Carey (6-0, 160, jr.)
