Central College clinched the American Rivers Conference football championship and a berth in the Division III playoffs with a 31-21 win over Coe College Saturday, as heard live on 92.1 KRLS.

The Kohawks struck first with a touchdown on the opening drive before Central scored 31 straight points to seemingly take control.  But following a similar script to the last two weeks, the Dutch weren’t able to coast to the finish. Coe scored a touchdown and a two point conversion midway through the fourth quarter, then another touchdown, but Central thwarted that two-point attempt and stopped Coe on downs on their last gasp inside of a minute.

Record setting Dutch quarterback Blaine Hawkins set arguably the most hallowed quarterback record Saturday, throwing three touchdown passes to get to 38 on the season, surpassing Tim Connell’s mark of 35 set in 2007.

Central finishes the regular season 9-1, and 7-1 in American Rivers Conference play.  That’s tied for the top spot with Wartburg, but the Dutch have earned the league’s automatic bid to the playoffs because of their head-to-head win over the Knights.  They’ll host the University of Wisconsin-Ohkosh, the WIAC’s automatic qualifier, this Saturday at Ron and Joyce Schipper Stadium.