SEWARD, Neb. – As of National Signing Day 2023 (Feb. 1, 2023), the Concordia University Football program has announced an initial recruiting class of 36 pledges/signees, including 33 high school prospects and three college transfers. Based on the class as it currently stands, Head Coach Patrick Daberkow’s staff has reeled in 26 student-athletes from Nebraska, three from California, two from Colorado, two from Kansas, two from Texas and one from Utah. The entire list can be found below.
Daberkow and his staff will continue to add to the class leading up to the fall semester of 2023 at Concordia. The Bulldogs are coming off a 2022 season that saw them finish at 4-6 overall. They carry momentum into ’23 thanks to a prolific passing offense led by quarterback DJ McGarvie. Daberkow recently added to the coaching staff with former Nebraska Wesleyan assistant Kevin Crume coming on board. The full-time staff of assistants features Corby Osten, Trent Laune and Grady Koch.
Signing Day thoughts from Coach Daberkow:
I think the way our staff has operated has been a bit different. We’ve been very intentional about finding the right fits. It’s not like we haven’t been before, but we’ve made it an even bigger emphasis. We’ve hosted a lot of our recruits with personalized visits, which I think has given recruits a more well-rounded look at us as opposed to a standard weekend visit. That’s been helpful. It’s been good to have Coach (Trent) Laune and Coach (Kevin) Crume in their first recruiting cycle with us. Coach Crume jumped on late, but he’s already been a big help. I have to credit Coach (Corby) Osten, Coach (Grady) Koch and Coach (Bryce) Simnacher as well. Our whole staff has done a good job of putting together visits and just opening every door and pulling back every curtain so our recruits understand who we are.
We did well locally again. We’re always looking for impact players for the trenches and that’s reflected in this recruiting class. We got some specialists that will come in and compete. There’s not one position group that hasn’t been positively impacted by this recruiting class. Every position group is getting quality talent, so we’re excited about that.
I think the transfer portal has really shaken up college recruiting in general. There tend to be some high school kids that get lost in the shuffle. We’ve stayed steady recruiting high school recruits. That doesn't mean we won’t recruit transfers, but we’ve always been heavy on the high school circuit. We will bring in transfers. That’s just becoming a reality of college athletics. I think we have a group of guys coming in that are committed to what our guys currently in the locker room are committed to – winning and doing it the right way. We’re committed to closing the gap on the close losses we had last year so we can turn the tide in those games.
Class of 2023 Concordia Football Recruits
Peyton Atwood, Grand Island Northwest HS (Neb.)
Deegan Barnes, Bayfield HS (Colo.)
Noah Brumm, Seward HS (Neb.)
Carlos Collazo, Aurora HS (Neb.)
Scott Cyr, Platteview HS (Neb.)
Tyler Douglass, Grand Island Northwest HS (Neb.)
Ja'Mauri Erilus, Ellison HS (Texas)
John Fehlhafer, Centennial HS (Neb.)
Tanner Frahm, Plainview HS (Neb.)
AJ Frazey, Seward HS (Neb.)
Ariston Gamino, Wamego HS (Kan.)
Eli Grover, College of the Siskiyous; Marist Catholic, Ore.; (Calif.)
AJ Holmstrom, Westside HS (Neb.)
Zach Krajicek, Yutan HS (Neb.)
Lukas Lafler, Lincoln Christian HS (Neb.)
Kayson Maertins, Plainview HS (Neb.)
Carter Meier, Pierce HS (Neb.)
Braylen Muhle, Gretna HS (Neb.)
Luke Penrod, Lincoln Christian HS (Neb.)
Champ Porter, American Leadership Academy (Utah)
Will Potratz, Lincoln East HS (Neb.)
Isaac Rezac, Norfolk HS (Neb.)
Coy Rosentreader, Wilber-Clatonia HS (Neb.)
Gabe Schmidt, Lincoln Lutheran HS (Neb.)
Hunter Schultz, Wakefield HS (Neb.)
Terry Sebek, Nebraska Christian HS (Neb.)
Brice Stokes, Sutter Union HS (Calif.)
William Swanson, Lincoln Southeast HS (Neb.)
De'Vaughn Tolliver,Cy-Fair HS (Texas)
Drake Trent, Yutan HS (Neb.)
Quincy Trent, Louisville HS (Neb.)
Jarrod Villareal, Feather River JC; Warren HS, Arkansas (Calif.)
Landon Washington, Omaha Burke HS (Neb.)
Luke Wilson, Bethel College; Larned HS (Kan.)
Jayden Wolf, Fillmore Central HS (Neb.)
Max Wurdeman, Legend HS (Colo.)