PELLA—Central College can take control or create chaos in the American Rivers Conference football race when it tackles preseason favorite Wartburg College at Waverly Saturday.
           
\The Dutch (7-0 overall, 5-0 conference) are the league's only remaining unbeaten team after a heart-racing 17-16 comeback victory over Simpson College Saturday. But defending champion Wartburg was the overwhelming preseason league favorite and looms just a game back in the loss column at 3-1, along with Simpson, Loras College and the University of Dubuque. As many as four teams could be atop the standings with one loss after Saturday, or the Dutch could remain alone in first with a win.
           
It's Wartburg's homecoming and the start time is pushed back to 1:30 p.m. at Walston-Hoover Stadium. The Knights are 4-2 overall after dumping Coe College 31-19 Saturday at Cedar Rapids.
           
Central is ranked 20th in the American Football Coaches Association Division III coaches' poll. In the D3football.com top 25 the Dutch remain on the outside but are a top contender.
           
Playing a pair of teams contending for the league title on consecutive weekends doesn't affect Central's mindset.
           
"We look at every game as a big game," coach Jeff McMartin said. "We're excited to play the game and it will be a great challenge. But we want to be very businesslike in our approach. We don't go into this game thinking about our last game. We're just excited to have the opportunity to play."
           
On the air and online—The Voice of the Dutch, Trevor Castle, will call Saturday's action on KRLS-FM (92.1), with Cory Houser providing the color. The KRLS pregame show will air at 1:05 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 at 7 p.m. Those broadcasts are also available on demand through www.kniakrls.com.
Twitter users can follow Saturday's action through @CentralDutch.
           
The series—Wartburg overpowered Central 44-20 at Pella last year and has won four of the teams' last five meetings. The Dutch were winners in 2016 and hold a 43-23 advantage in the all-time series, which started in 1945. Central hasn't won at Waverly since 2009.
           
The Knights—Despite a 37-36 overtime stumble against Simpson Sept. 29, Wartburg remains a dominant club. The Knights are first in the league in scoring (43.8 points per game) second in scoring defense (17.8), second in total offense (434.6 yards) and first in total defense (271.0 yards). They also lead in rushing defense, yielding just 68.2 yards per game, which ranks 15th in Division III.
           
"They work really hard at stopping the run," McMartin said. "They make it challenging."
           
Wartburg is also tops in pass defense (202.8 yards), pass offense (293.3 yards) and possession time (32:42). Wartburg averages 150.8 yards rushing.
           
Senior quarterback Matt Sacia, last season's conference offensive player of the year, ranks eighth nationally in completion percentage and 20th in pass efficiency. He's completed 120 of 173 passes for 1,594 yards and 15 touchdowns. In Saturday's win at Coe he set Wartburg's career TD passes record with 74. He ranks second in school history in career passing yards (7,592) and third in completions (582).
           
"He does a great job," McMartin said. "He throws the ball really well. He's a senior, so he knows what he's doing."
           
Running backs Connor Bailey, a junior, and sophomore Bennett Goettsch  are averaging 62.6 and 60.3 yards rushing per game, respectively.
           
"It's a balanced offense," McMartin said. "Each week they give you some different things. They're good at find weaknesses and exploiting them. They've got a good offensive line with a lot of size and they've got some good receivers."
           
Junior Kolin Schulte has 28 pass receptions for 657 yards and five touchdowns. Wartburg also gets the most out of versatile sophomore JoJo McNair. He's the starter at cornerback where he's made two interceptions but also lines up at wide receiver, with 15 catches for 255 yards and three touchdowns, and is the team's leading return specialist as well. He's averaged 11.4 yards on 12 punt returns with a touchdown and 20.8 yards on eight kick returns.
           
Senior linebacker Marcus Johnson is the tackles leader with 51, including 3.5 for loss.
           
"They have a lot of team speed on defense and really move around," McMartin said. "One thing they do really well is they get off blocks. That's the sign of a good defense. When you don't stay blocked it's a sign of good football players who are well-coached."
           
To do list grows—A dramatic 15-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Blaine Hawkins (sophomore, Ankeny) to tight end Ross Norem (junior, Iowa Falls, Iowa Falls-Alden HS) Saturday lifted the Dutch to a dramatic 17-16 victory. McMartin was delighted with the comeback and the effort but sees opportunities for improvement as well.
           
"There's always things we can do better," he said. "We need to work hard to clean up the areas where we didn't execute well and maybe change course a little bit."
           
High on the list is the usually productive Dutch running game, which mustered just 104 yards on 43 carries. McMartin credited an aggressive Simpson defense but also noted that Central compensated by passing for 302 yards.
           
More rankings, honors— Defensive end Lou Gomez (sophomore, Mission, Texas) had a team-high 11 tackles Saturday, with 1.5 for loss, and received conference defensive player of the week recognition.
           
In the NCAA Division III statistical rankings, the Dutch are sixth nationally in pass completion percentage (70.4), eighth in kickoff returns (27.29 yards), 13th in first downs (156), 14th in pass efficiency (174.97) and 16th in third-down conversions (49.5 percent).
           
Central is also one of only four teams at 100 percent in Red Zone offense. The Dutch have scored in all 27 trips inside the opponent's 20-yard line, with 25 touchdowns and two field goals.
           
Hawkins ranks fifth in pass completion percentage (70.1), 15th in pass efficiency (173.6) and 22nd in touchdown passes (16). He's completed 122 of 174 passes for 1,610 yards with four interceptions.
           
Strong safety Jordy Borman (Eagan, Minn.) is tied for second in interceptions with six.
           
Within the conference, Central is first in scoring defense (15.0 points per game), pass efficiency (175.0), third-down conversions (49.5 percent) and kickoff returns (27.3 yards). Linebacker Connor Lewin (junior, Stillman Valley, Ill.) is second in kick returns (24.8 yards) while receiver Hunter Robinson (junior, Lisbon) is third in punt returns (9.8 yards). Receiver Erik Knaack (sophomore, Reinbeck, Gladbrook-Reinbeck HS) is fourth in pass receiving yardage (82.6 yards) and Hawkins is fourth in total offense (270.7 yards)
           
Lewin tops Central's tackle charts with 49, including 24 solos and a team-high 3.5 sacks. Linebacker Drew Kithcart (senior, Atkins, Benton HS) has 46 tackles and linebacker Jake Poster (senior, Davenport, Assumption HS) has 43. Cornerback Trevor Smith (junior, Audubon) has an interception and 10 pass breakups while Borman has four breakups to go with his six interceptions.
           
One for the highlights—Hawkins' game-winning strike to Norem with 21 seconds left generated plenty of buzz and drew additional praise from McMartin after watching the video. Most impressive was Hawkins' ability to see Norem briefly break open while Hawkins was moving in the opposite direction. There was a high degree of difficulty on the throw, as well.
           
"Blaine just narrowly missed getting sacked," McMartin told Castle on Monday's "Coaches' Corner" show on KRLS-FM. "How he rolls all the way to his left, stops and throws it back is pretty amazing. It was about as perfect of a throw as you could throw in that situation and Ross went up and got it. You're not going to see that every day."
           
However, fans can see it every day here: https://www.facebook.com/CentralCollegeDutch/videos/2238864713058395/
           
Dual punting threats—Seniors Cam Kiner (Craig, Neb., Oakland-Craig HS) and Tyler Bryant (Donnellson, Central Lee HS) are ranked one-two in conference punting, averaging 43.6 yards and 40.7 yards, respectively. Bryant has landed seven of his 15 kicks inside the opponent's 20-yard line while Kiner has four kicks of 50 yards or more.
           
"We've got two very good punters," McMartin said. "We've used them both and will continue to do so based on the situation. They both know they have to be ready and we'll certainly look for ways to take advantage of their talent."
           
Each has 15 punts thus far.
           
7-0 start—Work remains, but McMartin likes his team's work thus far.
           
"In some ways we've improved each week and that's our goal," he said. "That's what we want to see this week. We're still a work in progress but the guys are giving great effort. They've handled adversity well and continued to play through that. Those are things I have really been pleased with. I want to continue to have a growth mindset."
           
30-year flashback—Last week, McMartin told his team about another Simpson-Central match-up 30 years earlier when both teams had unbeaten league records. In 1988 when McMartin was a student coach, the teams clashed on a soupy, mud-covered field in Indianola in the regular-season finale. McMartin highlighted the performance of back-up quarterback Greg Thomas. It was determined just prior to the team's departure Saturday morning that starter Steve Flynn was out with a season-ending injury and Thomas was thrust into the lineup. He played most of the game with what was later diagnosed as a broken jaw. In a gritty effort, Thomas rallied the Dutch from a late deficit, throwing a touchdown pass as the clock expired to pull within 14-13. But the extra point sailed wide, costing Central the title.
           
"We talked about how that felt and how important special teams are," McMartin said. "We stress that every point matters."
           
Saturday after the Dutch scored with 21 seconds left, as McMartin's squad lined up for the go-ahead point-after, he said he briefly had second thoughts about having shared a story that featured a last-minute missed extra point. But he had great confidence in kicker Jon Alberts (junior, Huntley, Ill.), who drilled the winner.
           
"It's kind of weird that it turned out the way that it did but Jon Alberts is as good of a kicker as there is," McMartin said. "I wouldn't trade him. He does a great job. And the protection was great all day, give them a lot of credit up front. It takes everybody to make that kick."
           
Alberts was among 21 kickers on the Fred Mitchell Award September Watch List, and one of seven from Division III schools. He was named the conference special teams player of the week. Alberts also booted his second field goal of the year, a 34-yarder, in just his third attempt.
           
The 1988 season still had a happy ending. Central received an at-large NCAA Division III playoff berth and, despite not having Flynn or Thomas available, made a storybook run to the national title game at the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl in Phenix City, Alabama.