Rolling up 42 unanswered points in that first-half span propelled the Central College football team to a record-shattering 51-37 triumph over Iowa Conference preseason co-favorite Wartburg College Saturday.
Quarterback Riley Gray (senior, West Des Moines, Waukee HS) fired a school record-tying five touchdown passes—all in the first half—as the teams combined for 1,175 yards, also a Central record in the unexpectedly wild affair. Gray connected on 29 of 43 passes for 327 yards with one interception. He also rushed 18 times for 82 yards.
"I thought Riley was spot-on," coach Jeff McMartin said. "He was in command and threw the ball really well."
The Dutch (6-2 overall, 4-2 conference) threw for 385 yards overall, with 231 yards on the ground for 616 yards total offense, the fourth most in school history. Meanwhile, Wartburg (4-3 overall, 3-2 conference) got 500 yards passing from Matt Sacia, the most ever allowed by the Dutch. He completed 37 of 60 throws with three touchdowns but was picked off twice and sacked four times. The Knights were limited to 59 yards rushing on 29 carries, including a team-high 49 yards on 10 attempts by Sacia.
Despite bolting to a 42-7 second-quarter lead and a 42-14 halftime advantage, McMartin and his defense couldn't exhale until the game's final minute.
"Our guys are gassed," he said. "They've got nothing left in the tank. The guys who started on defense spent every ounce of energy they can spend."
Central receiver Sam Markham (senior, Atlantic) added to his already glossy numbers, breaking the school career pass receiving yards record. His 12 catches Saturday for 202 yards—4 yards shy of his career best and the fourth most in school history—give him 2,638 career yards. That eclipses the record 2,566 posted by Chris Johnson (1995-98). Markham has 83 catches this season and 204 for his career—both are also school marks. And his two touchdown catches Saturday give him 10 for the season—two short of the record—and 20 for his career.
Meanwhile running back Nathan Fitzgerald (sophomore, Elkader, Central Elkader HS) rushed for 137 yards on 21 carries with a touchdown and also caught four passes for 46 yards and a score, a 28-yard pass which saw him hurdle a Wartburg defender en route to the end zone. Fitzgerald has rushed for more than 100 yards in three of the four games since he moved into the starting lineup.
"Nathan Fitzgerald had some great runs today and Sam Markham had an amazing game," McMartin said. "He made some great catches. And we got some great contributions from (S-back) Kyle Gritsch (junior, Brooklyn, BGM HS), (tight end) Mitchell Boerm (senior, Traer, North Tama HS), (receiver/returner) Zack Martinelli (senior, Elburn, Ill., Kaneland HS) and (receiver/quarterback) Kohle Helle (junior, Guttenberg, Clayton Ridge HS)."
Central, which fell behind 7-0 when Sacia threw a 64-yard bomb on Wartburg's opening drive, erupted for 286 second-quarter yards and a school-record 426 in the first half, topping the 409 the Dutch compiled against Cornell College in 1989.
Central scored touchdowns on six of its seven first-half possessions and didn't punt until the third quarter.
"That's about as good as we can play," McMartin said.
Central stretched its advantage to 48-14 with 8:04 left in the third quarter as Gritsch barreled in from the 1 on just his third carry of the season. Earlier he had a 12-yard touchdown reception.
But Wartburg kept up the pressure. The Knights had driven 74 yards in just 54 seconds to stop the first-half bleeding, getting a score with just 9 seconds left. Then in the third quarter, they struck with a 16-yard Sacia TD pass with 5:33 left and a 35-yard pick-six interception just over two minutes later to climb within 49-28.
A 24-yard Aaron Marcellus (senior, Hudson) field goal with 12:41 left in the game completed Central's scoring. Wartburg made it a two-score game when Sacia scrambled for an 18-yard TD with 3:42 remaining. A two-point conversion made it 51-37. Wartburg got one last possession but time expired with the Knights on the Central 29.
McMartin again applauded the Central defense for stemming the second-half Wartburg surge he anticipated.
"I thought the defense played very well in the second half," he said. "That's a hard offense to stop. It's one of the top offenses in the Iowa Conference. They throw the ball well, they've got very talented running backs, they've got a good scheme and they're well-coached.
"I have to give Wartburg a lot of credit. You knew they weren't going to give up or quit. We went out in the second half thinking we're going to have to score points because it's not over and it wasn't. We had to keep playing until the last play."
Gray's five TD passes tied a mark set by Chris Nelson in 1972, also against Wartburg. It was the first time, however, for a Central player to get five in one half.
Yet in a game littered with offensive records, it was the Dutch defense that received special mention from McMartin.
"You've got to get stops and we were able to do that, by and large," McMartin said.
Linebacker Jessie Peterson (senior, Coralville, Iowa City West HS) had 13 tackles, including 1.5 for loss and a forced fumble. Linebacker Sam Norgaard (senior, Naperville, Ill., Neuqua Valley HS) had 10 stops, while cornerback Danny Anderson (freshman, Boone) and strong safety Collin Erickson (sophomore, Gilbert, Ariz., Dobson HS) each made eight tackles. Anderson and linebacker Josh Scheible (junior, Kansas City, Mo., Liberty HS) each had an interception as the Dutch forced three turnovers.
While McMartin wasn't anticipating a shootout, he wasn't caught off guard, either.
"I knew our offense was going to have to play well," he said. "And our defense was going to have to get stops. But this is kind of how college football is played now. If you look across the league, you've got to score points. You're not going to get away with scoring seven or 14 points to win football games these days."
The victory assured Central of its 54th winning season since 1960. It snapped a three-year losing streak against Wartburg and was the most points Central has scored on the Knights since a 66-7 rout in 1988.
The Dutch get next Saturday off before the year's final two games, starting with the home-season finale against Simpson College Nov. 5 at 1 p.m. at Ron and Joyce Schipper Stadium.
VIDEO:
Highlights
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKhJgCXmVA4&feature=youtu.be
Riley Gray interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRik3Wm0V84&feature=youtu.be
Sam Norgaard interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoecfHiYbcc&feature=youtu.be