There's more than one way for Central College to move the football.
Running back Josh Osborn (senior, Burlington) topped the 100-yard rushing mark for the seventh straight game, but the Dutch (4-2 overall, 2-1 Iowa Conference) also struck through the air for 330 yards in a 41-14 romp past Loras College Saturday. It's the first time above the 200-yard passing mark for Central in 2014. Dutch freshman Sam Markham (Atlantic) nearly put his name in the record book with 11 catches for 184 yards and a touchdown. That's just one catch shy of the school single-game record shared by Randy Busscher (Sept. 21, 1974) and Jeremy Snead (Sept. 26, 2009). It also puts him sixth in single-game receiving yards.
Meanwhile, free safety Jake Edleman (senior, Mechanicsville, North Cedar HS) picked off three Loras passes. That gives him four interceptions for the year and 12 in his career, ranking fifth on Central's all-time list.
The Dutch finished with 467 yards of offense, while limiting Loras (1-5 overall, 0-3 conference) to 285 yards, including only 45 on the ground, and intercepted three passes.
Osborn racked up 130 yards on 27 carries, but they didn't come easily. He didn't pass the century mark until his final carry, a 41-yard burst up the middle for a fourth-quarter touchdown on the first play after Edleman's third interception.
"I was really concerned about their run-stopping defense," coach Jeff McMartin said. "They committed to stopping the run and if you look at their whole season up to today, they've done a very good job of that and they make it tough. They've got some good people inside with good size and speed and they take some things away. When that happens, when you've got some wide receivers and tight ends that can catch the ball, it really helps you be able to shake some things loose in the running game."
Markham, who missed the first two games of the season with an illness, is rapidly emerging as a pass-catching threat to bookend with senior receiver Brendon Boerm (Traer, North Tama HS). He had eight catches before halftime.
"Sam did a nice job," McMartin said. "He and Brendon make a really good pair. I think we've got two really talented wide receivers and that gives us a lot of opportunities. Sam made some great catches and when you have two guys like that, it's hard to defend."
It was a big day for quarterback Aaron Eiseler (senior, Mesa, Ariz., Red Mountain HS) who threw for a career-high 302 yards, completing 24 of 35 passes. He was intercepted twice but had two TD passes as well.
Strong safety Jacob Tune (senior, Mesa, Ariz., Red Mountain HS) had nine tackles for the Dutch defense, which pitched a first-half shutout before yielding two second-half scores following interceptions. Outside linebacker Drew Carlson (sophomore, Ankeny) and inside linebacker Jessie Peterson (sophomore, Coralville, Iowa City West HS) each had eight stops while freshman defensive lineman Corbin Blythe (Williamsburg) had six tackles, including a sack. Cornerback Eric Larson (senior, Waverly, Waverly-Shell Rock) blocked a first-half Loras field goal attempt, the fifth blocked kick of his career.
"I thought our guys did a good job of making them earn everything and not allowing any big plays to happen," McMartin said. "That was big for us."
Kicker Kevin Sheldon (senior, West Des Moines, Valley HS) shined as well, connecting on a pair of field-goal tries, including a season-long 41-yarder.
There was progress on all fronts, McMartin said.
"I think we got better today," he said. "I thought we played, in some ways, even better than last week (a 47-7 victory at Luther College). It's going to be important that we keep improving. That's our goal. We want to do some special things this year and those things will only happen if we get better every week."
Central travels to Cedar Rapids next Saturday to take on Coe College. The Kohawks are 3-3 overall and 2-1 in the league after roaring past Simpson College 35-21 at Indianola Saturday. Central defeated Coe 21-7 in last year's season finale at Pella. The Dutch hold a 14-8-2 advantage in the teams' all-time series.