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SEWARD, Neb. – On the opening day of the 2024 season, the Concordia University Football team greeted visiting Waldorf University with a rather rude welcome to the Great Plains Athletic Conference. The first ever meeting on the gridiron between the two sides was a complete whitewashing. Five Bulldogs found the end zone as part of the 45-7 demolition of the Warriors inside Bulldog Stadium on a pleasant Saturday (Aug. 31) night.
This was exactly the dominant start Head Coach Patrick Daberkow had hoped for from an experienced squad with superior strength up front. Now in year eight, Daberkow just might have his best team yet.
“I was pleased to see how we operated,” Daberkow said. “I thought our group 1s and 2s did a pretty good job of executing our game plan. It was fun to see that come together, and what a beautiful night in Bulldog Stadium.
“Any time you’re in a game like this, you kind of want to get everybody in. It was good to see the guys come out and start it off the way we did.”
Fourth-year starting quarterback DJ McGarvie and his offensive mates put this one away in the first half while scoring touchdowns on six of their first seven possessions. Those six first-half touchdown drives covered distances of 83, 68, 79, 45, 69 and 32 yards, respectively. There was also a safety sandwiched in-between that was caused by the hard-charging pass rush of the ferocious Kyle Sterup. The statistics said it all – Concordia averaged 7.4 yards per play (565 total yards) and Waldorf averaged just 3.7 yards per play (209 total yards).
The occasion marked breakout performances for the likes of transfer tight end John Goodwin (former Cornhusker) and sophomore running back Carlos Collazo. McGarvie found Goodwin for each of the game’s first two touchdowns on strikes of 10 and 27 yards. A bruising, physical back, Collazo carried the ball 18 times for 128 yards and a score. His long rush of 43 yards was finished with a lowering of the boom on a Waldorf defender. The backfield duo of Collazo and Mark Arp (69 rushing yards and a touchdown on Saturday) figures to be a potent one.
Said Collazo afterwards of his efforts, “Last year was kind of rough. The second week, I tore my PCL and that put me out the rest of the year. Going in, I kind of had that chip on my shoulder. I knew where I would be sitting depth chart-wise and that I had to come in and work. It was a blessing to be able to go out there. The offensive line dominated their defensive line. They made it easy for me.”
McGarvie went 17-for-22 for 220 yards and three touchdowns (57 career) before giving way to Gideon Stark (5-for-8 for 102 yards) for the final 30 minutes. McGarvie and Stark combined to complete passes to eight different receivers. Adam Van Cleave hauled in seven receptions for 80 yards, Austin Jablonski made six grabs for 71 yards and transfer Jonny Puelz pulled in two catches for 89 yards. In addition, tight end Daylan Russell nabbed a 14-yard touchdown strike from McGarvie.
The offense showed balance with 322 passing yards and 243 rushing yards. Four different running backs saw action. The lopsided nature of the contest gave all of Concordia’s starters a rest. The starting group up front included tackles Cohen Carpenter and Blake Schlegel, guards Tyler Walford and Christian Schlepp and center Jackson Anderson.
Said Daberkow in assessing the offense, “I thought DJ made some great throws and great decisions and was just operating at a very high level … It was a breakout on the stat sheet (for Collazo), but it wasn’t a breakout for us because we seem him do this all the time. We have a great running back room.”
The defense also flexed its muscles in producing constant pressure in the backfield. The Bulldogs registered seven tackles for loss and three sacks. The veteran defensive front of Carson Fehlhafer, Devon Polley and Sterup helped hassle quarterback Louis Williams into a 9-for-17, 69-yard passing performance. Those numbers were music to the ears of a secondary that will be better after taking some lumps in 2023.
Statically, linebacker Grant Huss paced Concordia with 12 tackles while fellow backer Michael Grindey added nine stops. Tal Solo was exceptionally disruptive in notching five tackles (one for loss) and Zachary Downs subbed in and recorded a second-half sack.
Said Solo, “The thing we have to improve on is getting to the quarterback more. I think we showcased that today … I feel like we did exactly what the coaches wanted us to do.”
Concordia punted only twice and got solid results in that area. The son of former Baltimore Ravens punter Sam Koch, Braxtyn Koch punted twice for an average of 44.5 yards with one landing inside the 20. Meanwhile, Peyton Atwood made all five extra point attempts and Admir Mujkic handled kickoff duties.
The Warriors, coached by Doane alum Tyler Chapa, went 4-6 last season. They had their most success offensively with the quarterback run. Williams gained 105 yards on 16 attempts. Tailback Rocky Ketchum was stonewalled with just 33 yards on 23 carries. Waldorf avoided being shutout by scoring on a 17-yard pass play with 32 seconds left in the contest.
Another home night game is coming up next Saturday (Sept. 7) when perennial power Morningside (0-1) pays a visit to Bulldog Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CT in Seward. In their 2024 opener, the 10th-ranked Mustangs fell in a shootout with No. 19 Benedictine College (Kan.), 48-45, in Sioux City, Iowa. Morningside went 9-3 and qualified for the NAIA playoffs in 2023.