SEWARD, Neb. – The Concordia University Football team hopes to pack its strong running game on the road once again after overwhelming Dakota Wesleyan, 42-7, in Mitchell, S.D., this past weekend. The Bulldogs will be headed to Sioux City, Iowa, on Saturday for a matchup with Briar Cliff. The 22nd all-time meeting between the two sides is slated for a 1 p.m. CT kickoff from Sioux City Bishop Heelan’s Memorial Field.
Head Coach Patrick Daberkow’s squad has played three lopsided games to open the 2024 season with two ups (45-7 win over Waldorf and 42-7 win at Dakota Wesleyan) and one down (51-21 loss to No. 10 Morningside). The running game churned out 332 yards in last week’s thumping of the Tigers. The 641 total yards were the most for the program during the GPAC era (2000-present). The performance vaulted Concordia up the NAIA national statistical leaderboards. The Bulldogs now sport national rankings of 10th in both total offense and rushing offense.
Briar Cliff has been on the road for three-straight weeks to begin its 2024 campaign. The lone victory so far came at Doane, 15-10. Head Coach Shane LaDage is in his fourth season for a program still attempting to find its footing. The Chargers dropped a shootout last week at Hastings, 44-35, despite throwing for 384 yards. Briar Cliff is seeking its first winning season since going 6-5 in 2018.
GAME INFO
Concordia (2-1, 2-1 GPAC) at Briar Cliff (1-2, 1-1 GPAC)
Saturday, Sept. 21 | 1 p.m.
Memorial Field | Sioux City, Iowa
Webcast: GPAC Network
Live Stats: SideArm Stats
Radio: 104.9 Max Country
Commentators: Parker Cyza and Ross Wurdeman
Tickets: Sold on site
STATISTICAL BREAKDOWN
Team Statistics
*2024 national rankings out of 95 NAIA football programs (65 teams have played at least one game in 2024)
Concordia
Offensive PPG: 36.0 (25th)
Defensive PPG: 21.7 (35th)
Total Offense: 492.3 (10th)
Pass Offense: 260.7 (22nd)
Rush Offense: 231.7 (10th)
Total Defense: 366.7 (60th)
Pass Defense: 272.0 (79th)
Rush Defense: 94.7 (28th)
Turnover +/-: -3
Briar Cliff
Offensive PPG: 23.7 (52nd)
Defensive PPG: 27.3 (54th)
Total Offense: 338.3 (46th)
Pass Offense: 265.3 (19th)
Rush Offense: 73.0 (82nd)
Total Defense: 384.0 (66th)
Pass Defense: 279.7 (82nd)
Rush Defense: 104.3 (33rd)
Turnover +/-: +1
2024 INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Concordia
Head Coach: Patrick Daberkow (34-37, 8th season)
Passing: DJ McGarvie – 61/101 (.604), 680 yards, 6 td, 5 int, 126.7 effic.
Rushing: Mark Arp – 67 rushes, 357 yards, 5.3 avg, 4 td
Receiving: Austin Jablonski – 24 receptions, 291 yards, 12.1 avg, 2 td
Defense: Grant Huss – 28 tackles, 2.5 tfl’s
Briar Cliff
Head Coach: Shane LaDage (9-27, 4th season)
Passing: Brock Saya – 62/113 (.549), 796 yards, 9 td, 3 int, 135.0 effic.
Rushing: Matthew Mason – 70 rushes, 216 yards, 3.1 avg, 0 td
Receiving: Cory Carignan – 15 receptions, 205 yards, 13.7 avg, 2 td
Defense: Brayden Pommier-Williams – 28 tackles, 5 tfl’s, 1.5 sacks, 2 pbu’s
2024 SCHEDULE/RESULTS
Concordia (2-1, 2-1 GPAC)
8/31 vs. Waldorf, W, 45-7
9/7 vs. (10) Morningside, L, 21-51
9/14 at Dakota Wesleyan, W, 42-7
9/21 at Briar Cliff, 1 p.m.
9/28 vs. Dordt, 1 p.m. (homecoming)
10/5 at Northwestern, 1 p.m.
10/19 at Doane, 1 p.m.
10/26 vs. Mount Marty, 1 p.m.
11/2 vs. Hastings, 1 p.m. (senior day)
11/16 at Midland, 1 p.m.
Briar Cliff (1-2, 1-1 GPAC)
8/31 at St. Ambrose, L, 21-28
9/7 at Doane, W, 15-10
9/14 at Hastings, L, 35-44
9/21 vs. Concordia, 1 p.m.
10/5 vs. Mount Marty, 6 p.m.
10/12 vs. Midland, 1 p.m.
10/19 at Morningside, 1 p.m.
10/26 vs. Waldorf, 1 p.m.
11/2 vs. Dordt, 1 p.m.
11/19 at Dakota Wesleyan, 1 p.m.
11/16 at Northwestern, 1 p.m.
In the rankings
Concordia landed at No. 5 in the 2024 GPAC preseason coaches’ poll. The Bulldogs did not generate any votes in the NAIA’s national poll this preseason. The program’s most recent NAIA top 25 appearance came in November 2017 when they checked in at No. 25. Briar Cliff has yet to crack the NAIA poll since starting its program in 2003. The Chargers were pegged eighth in the GPAC’s preseason poll.
Concordia
GPAC preseason: 5th
Current Massey Ratings: 37th
Briar Cliff
GPAC preseason: 8th
Current Massey Ratings: 68th
Last time out
The trip to Mitchell went about as well as the Bulldogs could have scripted it. Concordia built a 21-0 halftime advantage and kept piling on in the second half behind a dominant running game. It was a career day for senior Mark Arp, who rushed 32 times for 210 yards and three touchdowns. Sophomore Carlos Collazo backed up Arp with eight carries for 116 yards and two touchdowns. The 641 total yards as a team marked the highest output for the program during the GPAC era (2000-present). In the passing game, quarterback DJ McGarvie threw for 309 yards and a touchdown while completing 26-of-35 passes. Tight end Daylan Russell hauled in a touchdown reception and Austin Jablonski made nine grabs for 142 yards and Adam Van Cleave collected seven catches for 87 yards. Defensively, the Bulldogs prevented Dakota Wesleyan from scoring on two of its three red zone trips. One red zone drive ended when Devon Polley forced a fumble (recovered by Stephen Hughes) on a sack. In addition, Kyle Sterup came up with a sack and four Concordia players collected seven tackles apiece.
Road Dawgs
In last week’s win, Concordia took its act on the road for the first time this season. The Bulldogs went 3-2 on the road in 2023 with the wins coming at Jamestown, Hastings and Mount Marty. The most recent season that saw Concordia win more than three road games was 2013 when it went 4-2 on the road under then Head Coach Vance Winter. This year’s road schedule will feature additional trips to Briar Cliff (Sept. 21), Northwestern (Oct. 5), Doane (Oct. 19) and Midland (Nov. 16).
Offensive line flexes muscles
The current offensive line may wind up being the best during Head Coach Patrick Daberkow’s eight-year tenure. The group has not allowed a sack in seven of the past eight games (dating back to last season) and trots out a senior at all five positions. The starting group in each of this season’s first three games has included Cohen Carpenter and Blake Schlegel at the tackles, Tyler Walford and Christian Schlepp at the guards and Jackson Anderson at center. That crew helped pave the way for the 2023 team to average 30.3 points per game while breaking a school record for total yards per game (415.3). Those numbers have increased so far in 2024 to 36.0 points per game and 492.3 yards per game.
Projected starters
LT – No. 54 Cohen Carpenter, Sr. (6-4, 260)
LG – No. 69 Tyler Walford, Sr. (6-3, 305)
C – No. 56 Jackson Anderson, Sr. (6-1, 245)
RG – No. 58 Christian Schlepp, Sr. (6-2, 280)
RT – No. 74 Blake Schlegel, Sr. (6-6, 320)
Coach Daberkow + staff
Patrick Daberkow’s history at Concordia dates back to his first season as a Bulldog football player in 2003. This is Daberkow’s 17th season as part of the program’s staff – eighth as head coach. He served as defensive coordinator for seven years before being named as head coach in December 2016. Daberkow assumed offensive play calling duties in 2022 before turning that role over to Greg Nelson, former Lincoln Lutheran head coach, in 2023. Meanwhile, his full-time staff includes Defensive Coordinator Corby Osten, Special Teams Coordinator Trent Laune and Assistant Coach Grady Koch (who specializes in coaching the offensive line, among other duties). Former Nebraska Wesleyan assistant Kevin Crume is in his second season at Concordia. Former Head Coach Courtney Meyer again works with the specialists and has spent more than 50 years coaching football.
Arp reaches milestone in career day
McCook, Neb., native Mark Arp has twice gone over 100 yards rushing in a game, but he had never hit the 200-yard mark until last week’s domination of Dakota Wesleyan. Arp toted the rock 32 times for 210 yards and three touchdowns. Arp was named the GPAC Offensive Player of the Week on Monday. His previous 100-yard rushing games came against Midland (24 for 113, 1 TD) in 2023 and against Briar Cliff (15 for 130, 1 TD) in 2022. The breakout performance for Arp pushed his career rushing total to 1,199 yards in 22 games. He has rushed for nine touchdowns in his Bulldog career. Arp leads the GPAC with 357 rushing yards on the season. Arp combines with Carlos Collazo for a stellar 1-2 punch in the backfield. Collazo has carried the ball 37 times for 285 yards and four touchdowns this season. Arp and Collazo are tied for the GPAC lead with four touchdowns this season.
McGarvie eclipses 7,000 career passing yards
DJ McGarvie made his 29th career start in the win at Dakota Wesleyan. The Lincoln North Star High School alum rose to the top of the program’s all-time passing charts in 2023. As part of the Morningside game, McGarvie eclipsed 7,000 career passing yards (currently at 7,359). In the win at DWU, McGarvie threw his 60th career touchdown pass. He owns a career completion percentage of 57.3 (630-for-1,100) in 32 games. While leading the GPAC in passing yards per game (264.2) in 2023, McGarvie became the first Bulldog quarterback in the GPAC era (2000-present) to be named either first or second team all-conference. By season, McGarvie has turned in touchdown-to-interception ratios of 19-7 in 2021, 18-6 in 2022 and 17-10 in 2023. Worth noting, McGarvie’s passing has helped a Concordia receiver lead the NAIA in receptions (during the regular season) in back-to-back years: Korell Koehlmoos (95) in 2022 and Austin Jablonski (91) in 2023.
Concordia all-time passing yards leaders
1. DJ McGarvie – 7,359
2. Jarrod Pimentel – 6,435
3. Von Thomas – 5,662
4. Rod Giesselmann – 5,519
5. Kurt Earl – 4,158
Concordia all-time passing touchdowns leaders
1. DJ McGarvie – 60
2. Von Thomas – 49
2. Jarrod Pimentel – 49
4. Rod Giesselmann – 47
5. Kurt Earl – 37
All-American Jabo keeps climbing program all-time lists
Lincoln Pius X High School alum Austin Jablonski moved up another rung on the program’s all-time catches list as he made nine grabs for 142 yards in the win at Dakota Wesleyan. With that outing, Jablonski passed Eric Pralle (147 receptions) for No. 4 on the program’s career receptions list. The returning NAIA First Team All-American currently ranks fourth in receptions (151), sixth in receiving touchdowns (13) and sixth in receiving yards (1,908). Former teammate Korrell Koehlmoos remains the program all-time leader in receptions (221) and receiving yards (2,894). Jablonski’s 1,134 receiving yards in 2023 broke the school record for a single season. As a Bulldog, Jablonski has also passed for four touchdowns and has run for five.
Concordia all-time reception leaders
1. Korrell Koehlmoos – 221
2. Ross Wurdeman – 168
3. Jared Garcia – 161
4. Austin Jablonski – 151
5. Eric Pralle – 147
Concordia all-time receiving yards leaders
1. Korrell Koehlmoos – 2,894
2. Jared Garcia – 2,495
3. Ross Wurdeman – 2,458
4. Clarence Woods – 2,011
5. Eric Pralle – 1,974
6. Austin Jablonski – 1,908
Special teams highlights
Just a freshman, Braxtyn Koch is establishing himself as one of the GPAC’s top punters already. On a day when Concordia’s offense was clicking, Koch made the most of his two punts at Dakota Wesleyan. The native of Westminster, Md., landed his first one out of bounds at the DWU 6 after the punt had covered 52 yards. Koch’s next punt was a 39-yarder that resulted in a touchback. The son of former Baltimore Ravens punter Sam Koch, Braxtyn ranks third among GPAC punters in punting average at 40.2 yards per attempt. Also last week, kicker Peyton Atwood made all six of his PATs and is 12-for-13 on the season on PATs.
The ‘Corn Dogs’
The 2024 Concordia roster comes with some Nebraska Cornhusker flavor as three current Bulldogs are former University of Nebraska walk-ons: tight end John Goodwin, receiver Austin Jablonski and linebacker Nick Leader. In addition, receiver Adam Van Cleave began his college career at Nebraska (student only). All four are starters at Concordia. Goodwin saw action in two games in 2023 for the Cornhuskers before joining Jablonski, his roommate and close friend, in Seward. It didn’t take long for Goodwin to announce his presence as he caught two touchdown passes in the win over Waldorf. Jablonski and Van Cleave are both talented receivers and Leader is back in the starting group at linebacker after missing the 2023 season. Leader posted 50 tackles as a Bulldog in 2022.
Around the league
It's still early in the season and yet only two GPAC teams remain undefeated: Northwestern (2-0) and Dordt (1-0). The latter team already had a bye week following a 38-20 win at Midland. Concordia is the only team in the GPAC to have played three conference games already. In this past Saturday’s action, Hastings defeated Briar Cliff, 44-35, Northwestern routed Mount Marty, 38-3, Morningside got past Midland, 28-21, Doane knocked off Waldorf, 26-7, and Concordia rolled Dakota Wesleyan, 42-7.
Series vs. Briar Cliff
The series between Concordia and Briar Cliff dates back to 2003 when the Chargers played their inaugural football season. The Bulldogs are 18-3 all-time versus Briar Cliff. Concordia won 11-straight in the series until the Chargers snapped the string in 2018 with a 23-14 victory. Since that setback, the Bulldogs have won each of the past five meetings, including two in particularly decisive fashion – 61-21 in 2021 (Seward) and 45-10 in 2022 (Sioux City). Last year’s matchup in Seward was a more competitive contest as Concordia emerged a 35-23 winner. A 17-yard scoring strike from Brock Saya to Aaron Okoro late in the fourth quarter got the Chargers within 28-23. Austin Jablonski then put the game on ice by racing 75 yards for a touchdown. Jablonski finished with 86 rushing yards and 78 receiving yards while DJ McGarvie threw for 229 yards and a score. Michael Grindey made 15 tackles from his linebacker spot.
Scouting Briar Cliff
Briar Cliff will be looking to lean upon the throwing arm of quarterback Brock Saya, who has totaled 796 passing yards and nine touchdowns through the season’s first three games. Concordia is still working on tightening up a passing defense that ranks 79th nationally. Now in his fourth season, Head Coach Shane LaDage has led the Chargers to records of 3-8 in 2021, 1-10 in 2022 and 4-7 in 2023. The wins last season came over Hastings, Doane, Dakota Wesleyan and Jamestown. The program’s one winning season came in 2018 when it finished at 6-5. LaDage’s staff includes former Bulldog First Team All-GPAC defensive back D’Mauria Martin. Saya has spread the ball around to three receivers who have at least 11 catches on the season: Cory Carignan (15 for 205), Kymani Fleurme (14 for 192) and Steven Whiting (11 for 175). The Chargers will be playing at home for the first time this season after opening with three in a row on the road.