Quote from: doolittledog on September 13, 2026, 11:12:15 AM59-0 Platteville over Dubuque.  Yikes.  Hopefully they just flush that, forget it, and move on to next week. 

That is what Central had to do with the Gustavus game. The first quarter I felt pretty good. The second quarter was the exact opposite. The 2nd half Central played much better. The defense made nice adjustments at the half. Central hit by the injury bug early this year with three starters out after game one.

I hope none of the teams we play have a good rush defense. Apparently that is all we have for offense at this time. We had a great passing QB in the team scrimmage highlights, but he is either injured or quit the team.

Congratulations to Gustavus on an impressive win today against Central 29-3. Gustavus played well in every aspect of the game. Central needs a lot of work on both sides of the ball. The only stat we won today was punting. I was truly surprised by how unprepared Central looked on both offense and defense. The o-line really needs to step up and give the quarterback some time as well as open some holes. The coaches have their work cut out for them. As a fan I expect to see significant improvement next week as the coaches will work hard. Get to work Dutch.

Central game at Gustavus is moved up to 10 AM. I hope you have your pick-ems in!

Quote from: DriftlessDuhawk on September 02, 2026, 01:31:53 PMDuhawks will now be taking on St. Olaf at 7 pm, hoping that the night will allow for a cooler environment. This heat adverse guy of Scandinavian decent is quite happy about this decision!

Rock Bowl under the lights is just an added plus!

I really wish all the teams would do that when it is this hot. It isn't safe for the players, coaches or fans. I was going to make the trip to Gustavus, but I just can't handle the heat anymore.

Feeling excited for football season. Things are looking good. We have Coach Baethke back where he belongs and a nice size freshman class looking to make an impact. Even though I can't wait to see how things will shake out I may not have a choice. First home game is in October.

Lots of posts to read since I haven't checked on things since the regular season ended. I am not looking forward to only three home games for Central this year! While I will get to one or two away conference games, it is going to be tough only playing at home 3 times. I wish at least one non conference game could have been at home. Luther would have been a home game.

I am greatly looking forward to Cody Baethke coming back home to Central. We definitely suffered from him being at Coe the last several years. I heard Central has a big class of recruits for this season. There are a lot of holes to fill this year.

I am impressed with Wartburg going big on non conference games. Wow!

Awesome play by Central in defeating UD at UD. Three Central players had double doubles.

From Central article about the game: Forward Owen Schipper (sophomore, Waukee HS) continued his great play with 25 points and 10 rebounds. Schipper did his scoring with great efficiency, shooting 9-11 from the field (82%) and 4-5 from beyond the arc (80%). He also made all three of his free throw attempts, finishing with an unheard of 101.46 true shooting percentage!

Well I don't claim to know the differences between coverages. I also said I was old and grumpy, so consider the source. 🤣

I wasn't the only one second guessing the coaches though. I watched the replay to see if I was being too judgmental. The announcers were saying the same thing already early in the first quarter and throughout the game. "You have a freshman QB thrown into a big game and you want to protect him so you play it safe. Coe is practically daring you to throw the ball downfield with their coverage. At some point you have to let him play." Maybe not exact words, but extremely close. Those coming from a fellow very successful Central coach. When did Central score? On a free play where he could do whatever he wanted with no consequences.

By not letting him take deep shots that he is very capable of our rushing offense did not work. They stacked the defense with no fear of us taking a deep shot. Once we were forced to do so, the rushing plays started to work. I think Centrsl has fantastic coaches. Very caring if their concern was protecting Kerndt from criticism. I stand by having more faith in him though.

Congratulations to Coe on the 13-7 win at Central. They certainly had our top two rushers nailed down. Grunder and Klein finished with 21 and 20 yards rushing. They just could not break free. Yet in the last minute it was the Coe players desperately trying to get their fans to make some noise. The excitement went down to the final 6 seconds when Coe finally managed to snag an interception. The defense for Central really stepped up today. One huge rushing TD was the difference in the game. I knew that Kerndt would rise to the big game challenge and he did. He really played outstanding. Had the coaches let him pass downfield before it became an absolute requirement we might have won. They did not have the faith I did. This loss probably ended our season, but we are in great hands for the future. I am extremely excited to see what the future holds.

Colin Kerndt to get his first collegiate start against Coe today. Go Dutch!

Quote from: HansenRatings on November 11, 2025, 10:46:04 AM

Quote from: Schipper Strong on November 08, 2025, 04:59:46 PMBoth starting QBs injured and out for the second half.

I didn't notice this... Any idea on their status for Coe?

It was not Central's top 2 QBs hurt last week. It was Central and Simpson's starters both out with injuries.

Quote from: HansenRatings on November 11, 2025, 10:46:04 AM

Quote from: Schipper Strong on November 08, 2025, 04:59:46 PMBoth starting QBs injured and out for the second half.

I didn't notice this... Any idea on their status for Coe?

I do not know the status of Hoffman for Saturday. Central's backup QB did a good job Saturday and it was the second time this season he has played the entire second half because of injury to Hoffman. In the write up of the game they did not even touch on it or recognize Kerndt for stepping up, maybe hoping nobody would notice. Central is riddled with injuries including to our best receiver from the WB game.

Some of you will remember I have not been the biggest Hoffman fan over his 4 years at Central. He has played better this year and definitely has far more experience than Kerndt. Honestly though, I would have more big game faith in the freshman Kerndt than Hoffman. I say that because as a Pella resident I saw him play in high school and take his team through big games all the way to the state championship. Last year's team was not one Pella fans expected to get that far if I am honest. On running plays he is every bit as good as Hoffman. They have not had him passing much at all, so maybe they saw something in practice that keeps them playing it safe. He is capable.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HFq0maixQGo

Easy to resolve. Central just needs to win. A big challenge with the way both teams are playing now. Central needs to step up to the challenge.

Central got off to another bad start to the game against Simpson falling behind 10-0 after a mishandled snap on a punt gives Simpson the ball at Central's 16 yard line followed by an INT on third down giving them the ball on the Central 20 or so. We were able to change momentum without waiting for halftime and boy did it change! Hoffman drops the ball on a pass play and should have been sacked as it took about 3 running steps trying to scoop the ball up. Instead of a sack for a huge loss Hoffman throws a 47 yard TD pass. Add another offensive TD between two blocked/muffed punts for TDs and Central cruises into halftime. Both starting QBs injured and out for the second half. Dutch add one more TD to win 35-10. All scores coming off turnovers. Simpson scores TD on 2 plays in 42 seconds followed by a FG taking 6 plays and 2:42. Central gets 2 TDS on blocked punts and 3 offensive TDS on 4 plays totaling 1:03.

Where is the laugh "like" button?