Entering 2026, the Concordia University, Nebraska Football program has played 99 seasons while led by 10 different head coaches. Those coaches have combined to lead the Bulldogs to 12 conference championships with the first one coming in 1929. Throughout its history, Concordia has competed in the Nebraska Junior College Conference, the War-Time College Conference, the Central Church College Conference, the Tri-State Conference, the Nebraska Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, the Nebraska-Iowa Athletic Conference and the Great Plains Athletic Conference.
Concordia Football Historical Articles:
· Beating the Cornhuskers ‘B’ Team
· Mr. Concordia: Courtney Meyer
· Journey through the 2001 season
In honor of 100 seasons of Concordia Football, we present our list of the top 10 teams in program history.
1. 2001 | Head Coach: Courtney Meyer
• Record: 10-2 (7-1 GPAC); co-GPAC regular season champions; NAIA national quarterfinalist
The famed 2001 team remains the only playoff national qualifier in program history. After years of underwhelming results in the 1990s, Courtney Meyer and a fortified coaching staff including Offensive Coordinator Bill McAllister and Defensive Coordinator Tim Preuss built a roster capable of competing with anyone in the nation. The first team all-conference selections from the ’01 team included kicker Jess Boyd, linebacker Erik DeHaven, defensive back Sean Stewart and tight end Ross Wurdeman. Behind quarterback Jarrod Pimentel, the Bulldogs outscored their opponents by an average score of 27.2 to 12.8. Concordia defeated three NAIA top 15 opponents along the way. One of those victories was a memorable 17-14 upset at No. 8 Sioux Falls in game No. 2. The 10th win of the season came on Nov. 17 when the Bulldogs toppled No. 13 St. Ambrose, 31-26, in a home playoff game. The ’01 squad was inducted into the Concordia Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022.
2. 1981 | Head Coach: Larry Oetting
• Record: 9-1 (4-1 NIAC); co-NIAC regular season champions
Coach Larry Oetting’s ’81 Bulldogs were paced by arguably the greatest defense in program history. Concordia stifled its opponents, allowing them averages of just 228.0 yards and 8.8 points per game. The First Team All-NIAC award winners were cornerback Jim Beaudoin, tailback Donell Kinsey, defensive end Dave Kjergaard, nose guard Gary Pomerenke, quarterback Paul Reinisch, linebacker Scott Smith, center Tim Voelker and offensive tackle Tim Walter. Early in the season, Concordia made waves when it knocked off NAIA fourth-ranked Peru State, 20-9, on the road. The Bulldogs surrendered more than 15 points only once all season (in a 28-21 loss to Midland). They finished the season ranked 12th but were snubbed from the NAIA playoffs. Oetting was recognized as the NAIA District 11 Coach of the Year. The ’81 team was inducted into the Concordia Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006.
3. 1970 | Head Coach: John Seevers
• Record: 8-1 (5-0 NIAC); NIAC regular season champions
The head coaching tenure of John Seevers began with a bang on Sept. 19, 1970, when Doane carried its 38-game unbeaten streak into action inside Bulldog Stadium. According to at least one newspaper account, there were 6,800 fans in attendance that day. Concordia took advantage of a series of turnovers and blew out the Tigers, 35-0, sparking one of the greatest seasons in school history. The Bulldogs went on to go a perfect 5-0 in conference play with NIAC victories over Doane, Hastings, Dana, Midland and Nebraska Wesleyan. Seevers’ bunch defeated those teams by a combined score of 178-34. The ’70 conference championship team concluded the year with a No. 12 national ranking. Quarterback Rod Giesselmann set then school records with 1,722 passing yards and 17 passing touchdowns. Giesselmann frequently handed the ball to Carl Abele, who rushed 41 times in the win over Doane. The ’70 team earned induction into the Concordia Athletics Hall of Fame in 2000.
4. 1931 | Head Coach: Walter Hellwege
• Record: 7-0; NJCC champions
It was a completely different era as Concordia Teachers College then competed in the Nebraska Junior College Conference. The opponents that season included Nebraska Central, Dana, Hebron Junior College and Luther Junior College. CTC played three of those opponents twice in an utterly dominant 7-0 campaign. Head Coach Walter Hellwege’s team outscored its foes by a combined total of 206-19 behind the star power of Bernard Arkebauer, who hailed from Haven, Kansas. Arkebauer still owns the school record for touchdowns in a single season with 19. Arkebauer played in in the backfield along with quarterback Herb Meyer (future head coach). The roster also featured “Fritz” Kauffeld, “Ray” Maag, “Cocky” Hellbusch, “Emilia” Petsch, “Gib” Kufahl, “Bill” Zobel, “Bruno” Neben, “Herb” Lase, “Jay” Tucker, “Pop” Stohlmann and “Ches” Platt. Many of them played on both sides of the ball. CTC’s most staunch competitor was Hebron. CTC defeated Hebron by scores of 13-12 and 21-7. The ’31 team was inducted into the inaugural Concordia Athletics Hall of Fame class of 1994.
5. 2024 | Head Coach: Patrick Daberkow
• Record: 8-2 (8-2 GPAC); tied for 2nd in the GPAC
It’s a challenge to compare teams across different eras, but it’s a fact that the 2024 team possesses the most productive offense in program history. Led by record-breaking quarterback DJ McGarvie, the ’24 team set new school standards for scoring average (38.5), touchdowns scored (53) and total offense (469.7). McGarvie had the benefit of throwing to NAIA First Team All-American receiver Austin Jablonski. A balanced offense, the Bulldogs rushed for 5.3 yards per carry and surrendered only four sacks. Offensive tackle Blake Schlegel also garnered All-America accolades. Concordia put itself on the national radar on Oct. 5, 2024, when it handily defeated No. 2 Northwestern, 29-17, in Orange City. On the defensive side of the ball, Daylon Henson plucked six interceptions and was named an NAIA First Team All-American by the Associated Press. Unfortunately, Head Coach Patrick Daberkow’s squad landed on the wrong side of the NAIA playoff bubble. It finished ranked 17th in the NAIA coaches’ poll.
6. 1944 / 1945 | Head Coach: Herb Meyer
• Records: 8-0 (1944) / 6-0 (1945); WTCC champions both years
As World War II raged on, colleges experienced a shortage of men on their campuses. In response, Concordia Teachers College played six-man football during the 1944 and 1945 seasons. A “wartime college conference” of Concordia, Dana and Midland formed starting in 1944. Coach Herb Meyer’s ’44 and ’45 teams went a combined 14-0 while setting a school record for longest winning streak. Captain Erich von Fange, a 210-pound fullback from Deshler, Nebraska, teamed with former Concordia High track star Gary Meyer for a combined 160 points in 1944. The ’44 team went 8-0 – 5-0 versus conference opponents, and outscored foes by a combined total of 281-42. A year later, the Bulldogs wrapped up the ’45 season with a 60-12 win over Dana. The 1946 squad reported to preseason practice with a roster of 29, including 13 men who had served in the war that ended on September 2, 1945. Both the ’44 and ’45 teams are enshrined in the Concordia Athletics Hall of Fame.
7. 1951 | Head Coach: Herb Meyer
• Record: 8-1; CCCC champions
The ’51 team began a run of four Central Church College Conference championships in a five-year span. The roster of 40 clinched the 4-C title with a dominant 25-0 victory over Dana that November. In the win, Sid Seevers lofted a 53-yard scoring pass to Dick Walther and a defense flanked by superstar Gene Oetting snuffed out the Vikings. A week later, CTC capped an 8-1 season with a 26-6 win over the Nebraska ‘B’ team. Concordia outgained the Huskers, 280-200. The Bulldogs also manhandled the likes of Sterling, 41-7, Nebraska Central, 39-0, and Tarkio, 66-8. At 210 pounds, Oetting was the second heftiest player on the roster to Carl Carstens, a 6-4, 240-pound giant for the time. Coach Herb Meyer’s squad averaged 35.9 points per game compared to 9.3 points for its opponents.
8. 1960 | Head Coach: Ralph Starenko
• Record: 7-1-1; TSC champions
Don Thomas, a 5-10, 148-pound quarterback nicknamed “The Little General,” led Concordia to a Tri-State Conference championship in Ralph Starenko’s second season as head coach. Thomas earned Team MVP honors after passing for 553 yards and rushing for 270 on the season. The conference title was clinched with a 34-18 win over Sioux Falls. Thomas totaled three touchdowns (two passing) and 83 rushing yards in that win. Starenko’s Bulldogs finished the season with four straight wins, including a 40-20 rout of Concordia River Forest. Another star on that team, Bob Oetting remarked, “That was one of our goals and that was a tremendous thing to be able to do that. The program showed a ton of improvement and we took a lot of pride in winning. We certainly developed a winning attitude.” Oetting played on both sides of the line of scrimmage and was a key figure for a defense that allowed only 13.2 points per game.
9. 1954 | Head Coach: Herb Meyer
• Record: 7-1-1; CCCC champions
An influential figure in the history of Concordia (athletically and beyond), Herb Meyer completed his 14-year tenure as head football coach with a conference championship season in 1954. The ’54 team returned 19 letterwinners from the ’53 squad, including Gary Seevers and Vic Peter, end Ted Aufdemberge, guard Harold Zimbrick and center Wilber Tewes. For the first time, the Bulldogs played their games in the current location of Bulldog Stadium. It was referred to as “Concordia Field” in 1955. Concordia lost its home opener in 1954 before going 7-0-1 the remainder of the season. In the middle of October, Concordia clinched at least a share of the conference title with a 7-0 win that dampened Tarkio’s homecoming. The only touchdown came courtesy of a two-yard plunge by quarterback Gerald Freudenburg and Peter sealed the game with a late interception. Seevers ran for 780 rushing yards that season on his way to becoming a Bulldog legend. A legend in his own right, Herb Meyer acquired the nickname “Bulldog” because of his tenacious play on the football field and because of his strong opinions.
10. 1972 | Head Coach John Seevers
• Record: 7-2 (4-1 NIAC)
While not a championship team, the ’72 Bulldogs dominated the majority of their schedule under Head Coach John Seevers. They scored 35 points or more six times and lost only once in NIAC play. The lone conference defeat was a 14-7 decision at the hands of undefeated and No. 3-ranked Doane in what was billed as the “game of the season.” Randy Pospishil set a then school record by rushing for 1,085 yards in just nine games. The ’72 Concordia team finished NIAC play with a 50-0 thrashing of Dana and outscored its opponents by a combined score of 274-116 overall. In another statistical highlight, Rod Frieling amassed 257 kickoff return yards. Seevers went on to coach four more seasons before handing the baton to Larry Oetting.