SIOUX CENTER, Iowa – A blanket of snow surrounded Open Space Park Field, providing a backdrop for old school GPAC football on Saturday (Nov. 8) afternoon. After a couple of close calls over the past two weeks, sixth-ranked Dordt ramped up the offensive firepower and rolled past the Concordia University, Nebraska Football team, 56-20, in chilly Sioux Center, Iowa. The Bulldogs cut their deficit to 21-14 in the middle of the second quarter before the Defenders took control with their punishing rushing attack.
Head Coach Patrick Daberkow’s squad slipped to 6-3 with one game remaining on the 2025 schedule. Two of the losses have come on the road against teams currently ranked in the NAIA top 10.
“You can’t miss opportunities against the No. 6 team in the country,” Daberkow said. “We missed opportunities on both sides of the ball. We did some good things in our kicking game, but it’s just not enough. We didn’t play well enough to win, and we didn’t deserve to win. That’s the result that you get. I did like the way our team responded to the weather. I didn’t think at any point that was a factor for us. I was happy to see that. We have a ton of tough young men, and I love coaching them.”
Concordia entered the game allowing fewer than 100 rushing yards per game, but GPAC leading Dordt gashed the Bulldogs, who remained without First Team All-GPAC nose guard Carson Fehlhafer. Defender running back Daniel Dickerson carried the ball 12 times for 97 yards and four touchdowns and Preston McCoy added two scores on the ground. Seven of Dordt’s eight touchdowns came via the rush as the home team bullied its way to 354 yards on 51 attempts (6.9 per carry).
The two sides traded touchdowns in the second quarter. Trailing 14-0, the Bulldogs mounted a eight-play, 74-yard drive that was capped by quarterback Gideon Stark’s 10-yard rushing touchdown. After a Dickerson score, Concordia went back to work and went 75 yards on 10 plays. Stark found tight end Maddox Rickertsen from three yards out for a touchdown. From that point on, it was all Defenders, who outgained the Bulldogs, 575-322.
In his postgame remarks, Daberkow commended his squad for fighting through injuries. Starting offensive lineman Kadence Velde played both ways along the line of scrimmage. Daberkow also made mention of the likes of Rickertsen and linebacker Drake Trent for their toughness. The effort was there, but it was tough sledding against a Defender squad that has now clinched at least a share of the GPAC championship (first in program history).
“In a game like this – and against Morningside – we have a gap that we need to close,” Daberkow said. “That’s the reality of it. There are some performance gaps and some weight room gaps that we need to shore up. There’s no aspect of the program that’s not under a microscope. When you look at the small simple things that it takes to win, you just have to stack all of them. We’re not there yet, but we’re working towards it.”
Added Daberkow, “There are still a lot of things we can look back on and say that team 99 had a great season. A win against Northwestern on senior day next week would do that. That’s going to be where we pour all our focus in.”
Stark finished 18-for-36 for 215 yards and two touchdowns (against one pick). Stark pushed his season touchdown pass total to 20. One of those scoring tosses covered eight yards to Jonny Puelz (at the 3:18 mark of the third quarter). Puelz led the team with five receptions for 84 yards. At running back, Calvin Sassaman ran 25 times for 72 yards. Concordia was without star receiver/running back Adam Van Cleave, who missed the second half of last week’s win over Briar Cliff.
Defensively, Bulldog linebacker Grant Huss tied for a team high with six stops on the day and boosted his season total to 91 stops. The defense surrendered 221 passing yards as Defender quarterback Kolson Kruse completed 11-of-18 passes for one touchdown. On special teams, Braxtyn Koch punted seven times and had one punt that pinned Dordt inside its 20.
The Bulldogs will celebrate their senior class next Saturday (Nov. 15) while hosting No. 20 Northwestern (6-3, 6-3 GPAC). Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. CT in Seward in what will be the regular season finale for both sides. In this weekend’s action, the Red Raiders played their final home game and defeated Doane, 51-20.